Think Progress

Soldier: I Was Deployed To Iraq With Traumatic Brain Injury

By Nico on Apr 20th, 2007 at 9:48 pm

Soldier: I Was Deployed To Iraq With Traumatic Brain Injury»

Salon.com’s Mark Benjamin revealed last month that seriously injured U.S. soldiers are being dispatched back to Iraq:

As the military scrambles to pour more soldiers into Iraq, a unit of the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Benning, Ga., is deploying troops with serious injuries and other medical problems, including GIs who doctors have said are medically unfit for battle. Some are too injured to wear their body armor, according to medical records.

Days later, House Armed Services Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) and Military Personnel Subcommittee Chairman Vic Snyder (D-AR) requested an immediate review of Benjamin’s report in a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

Now, one of the those soldiers has stepped forward:

After an hour of bench-pressing a log weighing several hundred pounds during Army Special Forces selection training in February 2006, five soldiers lying on their backs at Fort Bragg, N.C., reacted quickly to the next order:

“Drop back!”

So quickly, in fact, that when they dropped the log, it landed on Spc. Paul Thurman’s head.

“I shook for a moment, and then went limp,” Thurman told Military Times. “I was unconscious for a minute or two, and then I went back to training.”

An MRI later showed that Thurman had lesions on the right parietal lobe of his brain, a condition that led to a “don’t deploy” order — which the Army violated, according to Thurman. Worse, rather than providing compassionate understanding of the symptoms associated with traumatic brain injury, he said leaders at Fort Carson, Colo., have harassed him, refused him medication and pushed for an Article 15.

The Army Times reports that Thurman stepped forward after six senators wrote the GAO earlier this month requesting a review of alleged improper handling of traumatic brain injuries and PTSD.

The letter states that the Army surgeon general’s investigation into the cases “said the soldiers were handled properly — but the soldiers involved said no one from the surgeon general’s office ever talked to them in the course of that investigation.” Revolting.

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107 Responses to “Soldier: I Was Deployed To Iraq With Traumatic Brain Injury”


  1. Happy420 Says:

    Brought to you by BushCo, winning the hearts and minds of Americans every day…

    Keep Shopping!


  2. Wayne Says:

    I’ll trust the MEDICAL officer’s opinion.

    Comment by michael

    Go Away Jake, you sick, demented, lying, namejacking piece of dog-doo.


  3. Chief Medical Officer Says:

    Take 6 Quaaludes, and call me in the morning, jake.


  4. Zooey Says:

    I’ll trust the MEDICAL officer’s opinion.
    Comment by michael

    The medical doctor who SAW him, Jake? You know, the one who said he has a traumatic brain injury?

    Or the medical doctor who DIDN’T SEE him?


  5. old hack Says:

    when they reinstate the draft and starting plucking kids out of college then the war will be over. Till then “They Volenteered” will be the excuse of the day.


  6. michael Says:

    Sorry, but BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake.


  7. michael Says:

    old hack, you can’t deny that every soldier volunteered, right?


  8. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    #3 sounds more like Patrick1 who hasn’t been around for a few days.


  9. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    yep, michael = Patrick1


  10. Zooey Says:

    Sorry, but BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake.
    Comment by michael

    Pissant coward. Answer the question, Jake.


  11. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    back on topic, Americans are getting more and more disgusted with the way the Bush administration treats our troops while screaming “Support the troops!” Bush is shooting himself in the foot because now nobody will want to join the service.


  12. Shane Says:

    Sorry, but BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake.

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:01 pm

    You had an ignore list before BoB said anything. However with #1 you proved yo never served. Trust the medical officer’s opinion who never saw him you sick f**k.


  13. Zooey Says:

    Someone else ask Jake the questions in #5, please.

    Jake’s being a pussy.


  14. Trekkie Says:

    you can’t deny that every soldier volunteered, right?

    Not every soldier. The guys who are in the National Guard didn’t volunteer to do the Army’s job - some did it to pay for college, some to work disaster relief, and some because they didn’t want the “Army life”. Neither did the guys on Individual Ready Reserve or Inactive Reserve - they did their service years ago, got recalled, and now the military won’t let them go because of stop/loss orders.


  15. michael Says:

    no, you’re the one with a cunt


  16. Wayne Says:

    I’ll trust the MEDICAL officer’s opinion.
    Comment by michael

    That’s why you answered Zep in the other thread whenhe was talking about Jake huh?
    Morelike you forgot which name you had jacked, Jake-a$$

    yep, michael = Patrick1
    Comment by Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party

    Nope, patrick1 can’t post more than a line without saying leftist, islamafascist, jihadist or some other BS


  17. michael Says:

    Sorry, Trekkie, but every National Guard contract had the fine print about stop/loss too.


  18. michael Says:

    Sorry, but BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake.


  19. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    I just reported michael to TP. Hopefully they will ban him.


  20. Zooey Says:

    no, you’re the one with a cunt
    Comment by michael

    I’m sure you’re disappointed that I managed to bring you down to my level, Jake.

    Hook. Line. Sinker.

    Heh.


  21. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    #17…LOL about the Patrick1 comment.


  22. Wayne Says:

    Sorry, but BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake.
    Comment by michael

    Lame, just lame
    But then you are Jake……



  23. BucketsofBlood Says:

    Jake, go f*ck yourself.


  24. Shane Says:

    Sorry, Trekkie, but every National Guard contract had the fine print about stop/loss too.

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:10 pm

    Just like Jake - doesn’t know when to shut up. But this post is 100% Jake.

    #16 is a little surprising even for you, you worthless piece of shit. Haven’t you put in your full day yet? Frankly every hour you’re here feels like 5. But I bet all the ladies tell you that.


  25. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    20 - so did I.

    back on topic…(notice how quickly a troll can derail the main topic)…

    The greatest army in the world is down to sending kids with brain injuries to the front.

    This sort of information needs to get out to high school and college kids. We can’t let them continue to get conned into “volunteering.”

    And I cannot help but wonder about hacker bob, the Marine with an ankle injury. I don’t think he’s exempt from being sent back to the front lines, either.


  26. Zooey Says:

    Shane,

    I can’t believe how long Jake stays on here. I’ve out a couple times, gone off and done things, and every time I check in — there he is.


  27. Zooey Says:

    And I cannot help but wonder about hacker bob, the Marine with an ankle injury. I don’t think he’s exempt from being sent back to the front lines, either.
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    He’s got his orders — not to Iraq. But if this war continues, I can’t imagine he’ll be safe much longer.


  28. michael Says:

    As long as you get banned too, Zooey, fine by me.


  29. michael Says:

    I’m not Jake, but at least I didn’t make a joke about you getting raped again, Shane.


  30. Shane Says:

    And I cannot help but wonder about hacker bob, the Marine with an ankle injury. I don’t think he’s exempt from being sent back to the front lines, either.

    Comment by Briseadh na Faire — April 20, 2007 @ 10:23 pm

    But none of this soldier information is on the news. It’s all lambasting Harry Reid for speaking the truth.


  31. Wayne Says:

    And I cannot help but wonder about hacker bob, the Marine with an ankle injury. I don’t think he’s exempt from being sent back to the front lines, either.
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Not if he has been home more than 12 months, under the new rules


  32. Shane Says:

    I can’t believe how long Jake stays on here. I’ve out a couple times, gone off and done things, and every time I check in — there he is.

    Comment by Zooey — April 20, 2007 @ 10:24

    This michael is Jake but I think a lot of the trolls are using michael’s name today.


  33. Zooey Says:

    As long as you get banned too, Zooey, fine by me.
    Comment by michael

    Exactly why would I get banned, Jake?


  34. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    Bush will have to reinstitute the draft. He can’t keep raising the age, accepting ex-cons, extending tours of duty, sending troops back to Iraq over and over again, and sending injured soldiers back to the front lines.

    I can’t wait to hear his spin. “Since so many people want to volunteer to go to Iraq we believe that reinstituting the draft will give everyone an equal chance.”


  35. Shane Says:

    I’m not Jake, but at least I didn’t make a joke about you getting raped again, Shane.

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:27 pm

    What is that supposed to mean? Are you making threatening rape comments to me now? Guess it’s time to go report you. Be right back.


  36. michael Says:

    Or, was Zooey the one who said she was raped?


  37. michael Says:

    If I’m banned, it’s only because Zooey managed to bring me down to her level, right?


  38. Shane Says:

    And I cannot help but wonder about hacker bob, the Marine with an ankle injury. I don’t think he’s exempt from being sent back to the front lines, either.
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Not if he has been home more than 12 months, under the new rules

    Comment by Wayne — April 20, 2007 @ 10:30 pm

    I thought he was a recruiter. If he is though I guess it would be poetic justice if he ended up in Iraq.


  39. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    Jake says he’s 75 years old which explains his “stubborn old man” thinking and also explains why he’s on this site all the time. He’s retired, doesn’t have any friends, doesn’t have anything to do, and “the wife,” as he calls her, wants him out of her hair.


  40. michael Says:

    Not at all, Shane. JAKE was the one who made the joke about rape.


  41. Shane Says:

    Or, was Zooey the one who said she was raped?

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:33 pm

    Time to take those antipsychotic before you hurt yourself or somebody else.

    And all that time you spend denying you made rape jokes just went down the toilet, Jake.


  42. Shane Says:

    If I’m banned, it’s only because Zooey managed to bring me down to her level, right?

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:34 pm

    No, it’s because you’re a scum sucking pig.


  43. Zooey Says:

    If I’m banned, it’s only because Zooey managed to bring me down to her level, right?
    Comment by michael

    If you get banned, Jake, it will be because you have hijacked michael’s name. And maybe because you’re making threatening comments to Shane.


  44. Shane Says:

    He’s retired, doesn’t have any friends, doesn’t have anything to do, and “the wife,” as he calls her, wants him out of her hair.

    Comment by Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party — April 20, 2007 @ 10:35 pm

    Believe me, if Jake has a wife, she wants him dead.


  45. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    michael, it’s your constant vulgarity that will get you banned.


  46. Wayne Says:

    I’m not Jake, but at least I didn’t make a joke about you getting raped again, Shane.
    — Jake…. er micheal

    Doesn’t really matter, Troll, because neither Jake, nor the real micheal have any honor anyway.


  47. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    if you open up other TP threads you will see that michael is spewing his vulgarity at many different people simultaneously. TP do us a favor and get rid of this harassing troll.


  48. michael Says:

    LOL — I’m “vulgar” with ONE cuss word around here. Yeah, right.


  49. michael Says:

    No wonder BucketsofBlood said to just ignore anyone who thinks I’m Jake. You guys are insane.


  50. todd Says:

    I’d liike to see the corporate media (MSM) cover this — instead of Sanjay and the battle of the roses between Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger.


  51. Republicans are the Fear and Smear Party Says:

    Makes me miss the old “ignore member” option in AOL chat rooms. Hey! Maybe we can get TP to give us that option!


  52. michael Says:

    I’d rather get Anna Nicole Smith back on 24/7 than Sanjay and Alec Baldwin.


  53. Shane Says:

    I’d liike to see the corporate media (MSM) cover this — instead of Sanjay and the battle of the roses between Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger.

    Comment by todd — April 20, 2007 @ 10:47 pm

    And the msm found plenty of time to treat Harry Reid like a criminal.


  54. michael Says:

    Reid is a criminal.


  55. Zooey Says:

    LOL — I’m “vulgar” with ONE cuss word around here. Yeah, right.
    Comment by michael

    You think vulgarity is contained only in “cuss words,” Jake? There’s one of your problems right there.

    Who tried to shame me with rape? You failed at that, but you tried, didn’t you? That just revealed you as the sick f*ck you are.


  56. michael Says:

    I’m not Jake. There’s one of YOUR problems right there. I couldn’t remember whether you or Shane were the one who said she got raped, so I was asking the question. I’m not trying to shame anyone.


  57. michael Says:

    Keep up with the cussing though.


  58. JD21 Says:

    These Republicans running our country have absolutely no shame. When are we going to rise up and hold our President, Vice President, their Chief Political Advisor and the White House Attorney General accountable to the rule of law? You know, the same rule of law Bush said in his last State of the Union was the number one reason we are in Iraq? What a coincidence how badly it’s gone for America and Iraq.

    Here are just a few examples in which they’ve broken the law:

    1. Illegal warrantless spying on Americas. Gonzales even recently admitted their program did not “strictly” comply with the rule of law. Yup, it’s a felony under FISA.

    2. Torture. Gonzales signed off on the memos that provided legal cover for this blatant violation of the Geneva Convention and Uniform Military Code of Justice.

    3. Outing a CIA agent. We all know the White House lied through its teeth that they all were not involved when every single one of them was knee deep in it. We all know they did it as payback. We all know she was a covert agent.

    4. Purging prosecutors for not witchhunting Dems or turning a blind eye to crooked Repubs. It’s called obstruction of justice. Despite all the deleted, oops I mean lost, records, there is more than enough proof they were all in it up to their eyeballs.

    5. Lying us into the war. Put aside what now all but the die-hard right-wing nuts know was shameless demagoguery to rush us into war, there is increasing evidence that the President and his Vice President flat out lied to us.

    Even if this gang weren’t so damn incompetent, they still would deserve impeachment and removal. And the fact that they are is all the more reason not to waste one minute. Unless the Fox Republican spin cycle can deflect it or Bush can manuever us into another war, even these lawbreakers may not be able to avoid accountability for their lawlessness.

    Let the rule of law prevail!


  59. Zooey Says:

    I’m not Jake. There’s one of YOUR problems right there. I couldn’t remember whether you or Shane were the one who said she got raped, so I was asking the question. I’m not trying to shame anyone.
    Comment by michael

    You are Jacob — deny that. Why is it important to you to remember one way or the other? You’re only making yourself look bad — no one else.

    Yes, I will keep up the cussing.


  60. alp3 Says:

    You think vulgarity is contained only in “cuss words,” Jake? There’s one of your problems right there.

    Who tried to shame me with rape? You failed at that, but you tried, didn’t you? That just revealed you as the sick f*ck you are.

    Comment by Zooey — April 20, 2007 @ 10:53 pm

    once again. Therein lies the rub. Great call, Zooey.


  61. michael Says:

    I’m not Jacob either.


  62. Zooey Says:

    I’m not Jacob either.
    Comment by michael

    Whatever. I know what you are, and that’s all I need to know.


  63. Trekkie Says:

    Sorry, Trekkie, but every National Guard contract had the fine print about stop/loss too.

    BUZZ! Thanks for playing.

    The contract says that once your commitment is up, you are done. It does not say that the government can keep you after the expiration of the contract. When challenged, the military argues national security and unit cohesion interests, not any “fine print” in the contract.

    That’s why so many National Guard are chafing about it - they weren’t told that, and active duty military personnel are allowed to retire while Guard and Reserve are being held under “stop/loss” order.

    Now tell me, is that fair? And don’t give me that line about “It’s the military - fair isn’t a consideration.” I don’t buy it as anything more than an excuse.


  64. the republic of stupidity Says:

    Hey, Michael

    There’s a new kind of medical specialist that can finally get you and the GOP the help you so desperately need.

    It’s a psychoproctologist, ya know…. someone who can explain why people like you are driven to behave like assholes.


  65. Shane Says:

    Reid is a criminal.

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:52 pm

    Why?


  66. hacker bob Says:

    BnF,

    Ankle problems prevented me from deploying to Kosovo. As you know, I have deployed twice to Iraq (so far).

    Wayne,
    I have been home over 12 months. I got orders (as Zooey) pointed out to an Instructor billet.

    Shane,
    I was a recruiter from 2000-2003. And, as mentioned above, I deployed twice to Iraq. I left Recruiting duty reight before the invasion. First morning in Kuwait, the first person I saw was a young man I recruited. He shook my hand and handed me a cup of coffee. So I guess you can say justice was served, even though I did not recruit during the “war” in Iraq.

    Michael/Jake,

    shut up.


  67. Shane Says:

    Reid is a criminal.

    Comment by michael — April 20, 2007 @ 10:52 pm

    Michael, Zooey is dead on, it doesn’t matter who you are because you have shown us all what you are.


  68. hacker bob Says:

    “The contract says that once your commitment is up, you are done. It does not say that the government can keep you after the expiration of the contract. When challenged, the military argues national security and unit cohesion interests, not any “fine print” in the contract.
    Comment by Trekkie — April 20, 2007 @ 11:35 pm”

    Actually, all initial enlistments in the Active, Reserve, And Guard componenet are for 8 years. It is usually (except for a few select MOS) a 4 year Active or “drilling” Reserve commitment with the last 4 being IRR (Individual Ready Reserve). During the IRR period you are subject to recall. It has nothing to do with “stop loss”.

    The contract also stated that you can be placed on an active duty status for up to 24 consecutive months.

    Every person we enlisted into the Reserve had to sign a “Statement of Understanding for Reserve Duty” BEFORE they enlisted in order to make sure they understood the committment.


  69. Wayne Says:

    I got orders (as Zooey) pointed out to an Instructor billet.
    —Hacker Bob

    That answered that question =)


  70. impeachcheneythenbush Says:

    Since this thread was so largely hijacked by Michael (and those who insist on responding to trolls) I guess I’ll throw a bomb into the mix. This was comments from an earlier thread regarding mercenary forces in Iraq (and elsewhere). Oh yes, and a government that would redeploy brain injured (or any seriously injured) soldier back to a war zone is quite capable of many of our worst imaginings.

    #
    Such a large mercenary force, loyal to the people with the money (who have the money because they’ve been systematically gutting this nation for the past six years), is an existential threat to the stability of the country. It wouldn’t be nearly as troubling if our real armed forces hadn’t been systematically decimated by the reckless and criminal invasion and occupation of a sovereign nation.

    Comment by TripMaster Monkey — April 20, 2007 @ 12:04 am

    These are the enforcers of the police state that this administration has been diligently trying to create since PRIOR to 911. Combine this mercenary force with the contracts given to Haliburton to build detention facilities for “immigration control and other purposes,” and you should be able to see where we are headed here. Still think Alex and his “Prison Planet” website is just crazy? Worse…this started long before this administration. Think back to 1798 with the Alien and Seditions Act (one part of which still stands in law today). Bring it up to the modern era, with the passage of the Patriot Act, combined with today’s technology and a mercenary force…and the (as we were warned), military-industrial complex, and we have what we see today. But most of us continue to ignore this reality, because it’s nearly impossible to believe that our country is NOT the country we were brought up to believe it is. Well, it’s not. And it hasn’t been for a very long time.

    Comment by impeachcheneythenbush — April 20, 2007 @ 3:02 pm


  71. chimpeach Says:

    #8 michael

    old hack, you can’t deny that every soldier volunteered, right?

    Yeah, that’s right, jerk-off. Every soldier volunteered to serve and they agreed to keep getting sent back into combat no matter how scrambled their brains might be, no matter what the regulations say about fitness for duty. It’s right there in the contract.

    An MRI later showed that Thurman had lesions on the right parietal lobe of his brain, a condition that led to a “don’t deploy” order — which the Army violated, according to Thurman.

    Oh that’s okay. The contract says that the Army doesn’t have to follow its own regulations. And it can make up new regulations on the fly, too. In fact, I think there’s a new version of the enlistment contract that says, “You can do whatever the f*ck you want with me. I don’t care.” Isn’t that what all of our troops agreed to?

    Christ Almighty, michael, do you have any other goal in life but to be the biggest HORSE’S ASS IN THE UNIVERSE?!!

    You’ve made it! You can stop trying now!


  72. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    Comment by hacker bob — April 20, 2007 @ 11:46 pm

    And I’m sure the military recruiters tell them that they will be sent into a war zone. And explain exactly what all those provisions mean, and encourage those kids to contact a lawyer to explain the contract language to them before they’re allowed to sign.

    Sorry, but one of my former students is now a recruiter. He’s managed to get three purple hearts for relatively minor injuries. Small-arms fire, nothing life-threatening. To listen to him, it’s all nothing more than a glorified video game. He has to make his quota. I told him that it was nothing personal, but I do hope he fails in his job as a recruiter. A recruiter’s job is to feed the war machine…to keep those live bodies coming in the pipeline.

    I understand, your job is to train them so that they leave the war machine with their bodies intact. But, as you know, no training can equip them to leave the war machine with their minds intact. And you know the odds. Roughly 1 in every 200 combat soldiers comes home from Iraq in a box.


  73. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    Comment by chimpeach — April 21, 2007 @ 12:07 am

    Not quite. Gonzales still has him beat.


  74. Shane Says:

    Comment by hacker bob — April 20, 2007 @ 11:40 pm

    Glad to know you are no longer recruiting. Thanks for all the explanations.


  75. hacker bob Says:

    Roughly 1 in every 200 combat soldiers comes home from Iraq in a box.

    Comment by Briseadh na Faire — April 21, 2007 @ 12:10 am

    Over 1 million US troops have served in Iraq. We have lost 3312 ( it is closer to 1 n 300).

    That is an average of 2.27/day
    Viet Nam was an average of 9/day


  76. hacker bob Says:

    Glad to know you are no longer recruiting. Thanks for all the explanations.

    Comment by Shane — April 21, 2007 @ 12:23 am

    I just want to make sure people do not misunderstand my status.

    You couldn’t pay me enough to be a Recruiter these days!


  77. Wayne Says:

    Viet Nam was an average of 9/day

    Comment by hacker bob

    Yeah, vietnam, where a combat assigned lieutenant’s life expectancy was measured in minutes rather than hours.
    Vietnam was a virtual meat grinder.


  78. hacker bob Says:

    Comment by Wayne — April 21, 2007 @ 12:33 am

    Amen,

    I only used Viet Nam to show a comparison in the average daily number of deaths of US military personnel.

    VN was hell, Iraq is hell.


  79. Wayne Says:

    VN was hell, Iraq is hell.
    Comment by hacker bob

    Yeah, Desert Storm was a walk through the park compared to Iraq War II.

    Central Park, New York at midnight kind of walk in the park.

    At 49 now ( birthday was the 10th ) and after 2 sugeries to reconstruct my right ankle back in ‘91, they don’t want me back even if I wanted back in. Getting too old for that stuff now, heh
    My ankle sets off metal detectors LOL


  80. Zep Says:

    ’ll trust the MEDICAL officer’s opinion.

    Comment by michael

    But not any scientists on global warming?

    such hypocrisy.


  81. JPark Says:

    #80 He isn’t a hypocrite, he is just stupid.


  82. JPark Says:

    You know Mikey…the medical doctor (actually the specialist) said Terri Schiavo was brain dead. Why didn’t you believe that?


  83. chingebush Says:

    Hacker bob,

    The different venues have a lot to do with the survival rate, don’t you think? Injured in the jungles of Nam, hours away from any real medical help vs minutes away in Iraq.

    How many of the kids coming back with severe injuries to deal with the rest of their lives would have been in bags in Nam with the same injury?


  84. chingebush Says:

    Sorry. I didn’t realize the time. Late as usual.


  85. Frank Matthews Says:

    This guy is a volunteer and if the military has cleared him for duty, he’s duty is to go. What’s the big deal here?


  86. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    2.27 a day is 2.27 a day too much.

    These deaths are nothing more than human sacrifices to insure greater profits for corporations.

    84. Read the links before you post. Your comment shows a lack of comprehension.


  87. chimpeach Says:

    #85 BnF

    84. Read the links before you post. Your comment shows a lack of comprehension.

    That’s Frank’s M.O. He claims not to understand what’s wrong with anything the righties do. No matter how corrupt or how wrong they are, he just plays dumb. I guess every troll has his or her gimmick.


  88. wmholt Says:

    After reading the first post here and elsewhere, I have a question.

    I don’t understand why “loyal Bushies” patrol these blogs. What’s more, I don’t understand how they are often the very first person to comment on the blog.

    The (intended) result is that the article will no longer be discussed. Instead, people will react to the inane and inflammatory comments made by the loyal Bushie: “Your mother wears Army boots!”

    Are these people on the GOP/Karl Rove payroll? Or are they just people who have nothing better to do than constantly refreshing their browser to see when an article is newly published?

    As much as I hate to admit, they *do* defuse the impact of the article by changing the subject and making themselves the target of commentor’s posts. That seems Rovian to me.

    I don’t consider myself cynical, but after our national nightmare of these past six years, I believe that we will find that the Karl Rove machine is actually what is behind a seemingly organized effort to be the first to post a right-wing message on any liberal blog.

    It’s just very suspicious.


  89. Mario Says:

    This treatment of anyone, especially our volunteer soldiers is really sad and painful to read.

    Also, I agree with the previous commenter. Let’s get away from the partisan hack who want nothing more than for us to bicker about nothing. Let’s focus on the issues.


  90. Jean Says:

    YOU CAN’T EVEN MAKE THIS STUFF UP!OVER 4 YEARS INTO THIS WAR,3300 DEAD AMERICANS,500,000 DEAD IRAQIS,3 MILLION DISPLACED ,14 GENERALS LATER AND NOW THEY WANT A GOD DAMN WALL! GOD PLEASE,SOMEBODY HELP THIS”VILLAGE IDIOT”WE CALL OUR PRESIDENT!

    Impeach bush cheney

    http://www.AfterDowningStreet.com


  91. Julia --------- Says:

    Bush is simply crazy and Tony too

    Time will tell - These nations have to repent on innocent ppl’s bloodshed.

    God bless you all



  92. ANARCHY-TV.COM Says:

    Yeah just give some Blue Eighty Eights and send them back up to the meatgrinder. That’s all the military thinks of grunts anyway, cannonfodder.

    When someone suffered from severe shell shock in WW2, and were royally traumatatized to the point of not being able to function anymore (probably because they just saw something like their buddy get blown to bits right next to them in a foxhole, and they got splattered all with his brains and guts and blood all over them), instead of the US military shipping them home to some serious pyschiatric ward for help… like anybody sane and compasionate and with any shred of humanity would do… they gave them this pills that were nicknamed Blue 88’s after the German 88 howitzers. The pills would knock them out for a 36 hour sleep, after which point, they were calm enough to pronounce “well” and they could ship them back up to the front line to get it right this time, and take a bullet for the president god and uncle sam like they were suppose to.

    As far as I’m concerned, if you volutarily sign up for the military, you’re making a deal with the devil and a pact with death. And its death you’re going to find on the other end of the bargain. You cut a deal to kill for money or patriotism, you very well are going to be on the receiving end of that bargain yourself. And the cost is high, very high my friends.

    If you’re drafted, well, that’s another thing. In which case you should do everything you can to sabotage your own military, so everyone can go home back to their vegtable gardens. No soldiers, no war, its just that damn simple.

    The military is going to hold you to your end of their fake contract, but not stand up to their end. If you signed such a bullshit agreement, tear it up and go home. Its a fraud. Once they violate any of the terms of that contract, its null and void, so walk off the battlefield.



  93. conernaa limberger Says:

    YOYO check it out

    http://free-game-downloads.mosw.com/


  94. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    Comment by conernaa limberger — April 21, 2007 @ 5:37 pm

    I’ve alerted the management.


  95. nOOb Says:

    I have never seen a forum as full of stupid a-holes as this!
    One visit was more than enough.


  96. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    Comment by PFC Holden — April 21, 2007 @ 4:18 pm

    Thanks for the link.


  97. Briseadh na Faire Says:

    Comment by nOOb — April 21, 2007 @ 8:32 pm

    What, they don’t allow mirrors in your home?


  98. Someone's Mom Says:

    Hey, just lobotomize them, that’s the ticket.

    Asshats.

    They “lost” my husband’s military file for 25 yrs., lucky for them it took me so long to get them.


  99. Someone's Mom Says:

    Lobotomy anyone?


  100. Zooey Says:

    I have never seen a forum as full of stupid a-holes as this!
    One visit was more than enough.
    Comment by nOOb

    Let the “Glad You’re Gone Party” begin….


  101. TomPaine Says:

    As far as I’m concerned, if you volutarily sign up for the military, you’re making a deal with the devil and a pact with death. And its death you’re going to find on the other end of the bargain. You cut a deal to kill for money or patriotism, you very well are going to be on the receiving end of that bargain yourself. And the cost is high, very high my friends.

    Comment by ANARCHY-TV.COM — April 21, 2007 @ 4:48 pm

    That line is very true.

    I made my Faustian bargain in order to afford college. I just didnt realize it would be less bargain and more Faustian. We had more sane and logical people in charge when I signed the line. Now, I’m stuck fighting a war I’ve been against since the beginning. Like GEN Smedley Butler I feel our military is being used for some very wrong and nefarious purposes. War is a Racket. Now, noone wants to claim responsibility for something that is went so wrong, and is creating something worse than we had.


  102. TomPaine Says:

    I’ve been trying to figure out what to say about this, I feel kind of guilty because 3ID replaced us so we could come home after our short 14 month tour. We were actually extended to allow them the one year of “dwell time.”
    But when 1BDE 3ID showed up to replace us in Ramadi the unit that replaced me was at 60-70% personnel strength. Ramadi, is not a place you want to be going low on manpower into. It is a 24-7-365 manpower intensive fight for everyone. The infantry, the artillery, the logistics all work around the clock to keep the fight coming to the insurgents, not allowing them any quarter.
    So, when I’m barely getting by with the number of people I have and they show up understrength, it does not bode well for their tour.

    3ID was not supposed to deploy for sometime but due to the surge their redeployment was sped up by at least 6 months. It seems they were thrown together at the last minute, and hurried onto the plane. After they got back from their last tour a year before arriving to replace my brigade, I’m sure, alot of their stop loss soldiers finally got out of the army, and many changed stations. In order for a unit to completely reconstitute and train to go back to Iraq it takes about 18 months, and that includes nearly 6 months in the field for training, recirculating personnel and coming back to full strength.

    It’s a dangerous proposition to send an understrength unit into combat. But you add on top of being understrength the fact commanders are receiving broken people to make up for their manpower shortages, makes it that much worse. These injured people are just going to get other people injured or killed. They are no good to a unit. They are nothing but a liability, especially if they are rolling out the gate on missions. Commanders, however, have no choice on who goes and who doesnt. If you dont have a medical or other condition, that, by regulation keeps you from deploying, you have to go. And I could imagine the pressure on a unit that’s basically getting back from Iraq to turn around and come back to just take what you get and go.

    It’s unfortunate. It’s dangerous. It’s criminal.


  103. ms thurman Says:

    I am Thurman’s mom and I can assure you I have seen the medical records. He does have lesions on both frontal lobes, and I have watched him have 40 minute seizures. He has constant headaches. He had blurred vision and left arm tremors before deployement after the 1st head injury. I can assure you he had a TBI before deployment, and is worse more than ever now after the second head trauma.



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