Army mistakenly sent letters to family members of fallen soldiers addressing them as ‘John Doe.’
By on Jan 7th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Army mistakenly sent letters to family members of fallen soldiers addressing them as ‘John Doe.’
The Army was forced to apologize today after sending approximately 7,000 letters to family members of soldiers killed in Iraq or Afghanistan which mistakenly addressed them as “John Doe.” The letters were sent late last month to inform survivors about private organizations “that offer gifts, programs and other assistance to families that have lost” soldiers. “Army Chief of Staff Gen. George W. Casey, Jr., was sending a personal letter to all the families who received the improperly addressed letters as the result of a printing error, the Army said.”
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"...the result of a printing error, the Army said.”
Oh, wait just a minute - they don't have anyone who can proof read and or just take a quick look to see that the letter is correct?
Inexcusable!
January 7th, 2009 at 5:14 pmJohn Doe. Is that how the US Army refers to its fallen heros? And it is always some sort of 'error'. Not the backhanded lack of respect Bush actually has for the soldiers. After all, Bush did everyhting humanly possible to avoid his armed forces committment. Cheney too. They both have absolute contempt for those brave soldiers how die due to the illegal and immoral invasion they started.
How do our trolls feel about this?
January 7th, 2009 at 5:15 pmJust yesterday at Fort Meyer, Virginia, Chimpy stood there with his patented smirk and told the assembled Army members how much he 'presheeates' their service. I guess this is just another example of Bush "presheashun"
January 7th, 2009 at 5:18 pmThe state of quality in America today...
January 7th, 2009 at 5:23 pmAnd we just thought the people who worked in Army communications were only capable of bad photoshop jobs. Now it appears they lack proofreading skills as well.
Just kidding, actually. I'm pretty sure that photoshopping pictures of soldiers is handled by a different department. But the root cause is the same -- general sloppiness.
January 7th, 2009 at 5:25 pmTo Whom It May Concern:
Dear Whom --
You have no idea of the level of heartache you have caused countless families through your callous disregard of excellence on the part of your own staff or of sacrifice on the part of the fallen soldiers.
Sincerely,
January 7th, 2009 at 5:27 pmAmerica
This was not a mistake it's business as usual. Calling our dead soldiers John Doe is exacly what our Govenment and the Military think of those who died based on the White House lies. We see Americans with ribbons on cars and flag in front of homes but that's it. Just don't ask their kid to served but others are just find. There have been many so called mistakes of the pass 8 years even the Military murdering soldiers that might harm the Bush/Cheney Election. We see no problem with contractors killing troops with faulty wire work, serving them bad food and water and of course Walter Reed Hospital mess that is still going on today. No one American or Law Maker cares. At lease Mrs. Obama spent almost two years of the campaign going to talk to Military families to get the truth to take to her husband as the Generals were lying about everything. Any young American should think twice about serving as their life means nothing note even their name as Cheney/Rummy and Rice said it's just numbers of dead soldiers nothing more.
January 7th, 2009 at 5:37 pmThis is just sad.
January 7th, 2009 at 5:41 pmThere's more to this story. First, the letter communicated what private organizations might do for loved one's of soldiers lost in fighting. Apparently, public support is insufficient.
Second, the letter was printed and mailed by a contractor. Can't our government do anything anymore?
"There are no words to adequately apologize for this mistake or for the hurt it may have caused," Brig. Gen. Reuben D. Jones, the Army adjutant general, said in the statement to be posted.
But there are answers to the reason such a mistake was made. It's called poor management/leadership, now epidemic after a decade of privatization.
January 7th, 2009 at 5:46 pmThey're all unknown soldiers now.
January 7th, 2009 at 5:53 pmToo Err his Human, To Really Screw up you need a Computer and something associated with George W. Bush.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:03 pmHow Yossarian.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:05 pmstateofthedivision Says:
Second, the letter was printed and mailed by a contractor. Can’t our government do anything anymore?
Privatization creates efficiency! And profits! So it's good! At least that's what Republicans tell me.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:36 pmThe term forced to apologize says it all. Typical of the stupid and careless way everything has done. Just the latest in an endless line of mistakes, and disasters connected to the war.
Too bad we cannot have our own tsunami of our own. One to sweep through the White House, Congress, Senate, Pentagon, DOJ, and every part of Washington. Wholesale sweep. What stupid, incompetent and corrupt people. Lord how I detest all of the losers of this administration. All bloated organizations of any kind reach a level of incompetence.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:39 pmWait a sec -- they sent out 7,000 letters to the families? Casualty reports only show a total of 4,953 KIAs in Iraq and Afghanistan. Where were the remaining 2,047 killed? Or, wait for it, had the Bush Administration and DoD been lying to us again? Maybe that's one reason they never wanted the return of the bodies photographed.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:40 pmIf only we a a real press corps who could look into this...
curious says sorry about my rant. I was so angry I forgot to check my spelling before I hit submit.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:42 pmAh, yes. Another fine example of the Chimpy administration "supporting the troops."
January 7th, 2009 at 6:43 pmTonymac:
January 7th, 2009 at 6:52 pmIt's probably the "projected" number of expected casualties...however, I had the same thought looking at the posted numbers...
tonymac, some have died out of country. The Bushies don't count it as a death in Iraq or Afganistan if the wheels are up on the hospital flight, if they die in Germany, or back home. Makes their numbers look better. They couldn't give a shit about our service folks.
January 7th, 2009 at 6:55 pmIf the number of casualities is 4700+ the number of family members affected totals much more than that. Has anyone considered all the aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews,grandparents affected? It's typical for the bush regime to blame anyone but themselves for all the shite they produced. It's pitiful. peace
January 7th, 2009 at 7:12 pmThe letters, which were printed by a contractor,
i wonder how many millions this particular contractor has scammed from the taxpayer...
January 7th, 2009 at 7:18 pm7000...?
January 7th, 2009 at 7:22 pmthey sent out 7,000 letters to the families? Casualty reports only show a total of 4,953 KIAs in Iraq and Afghanistan. Where were the remaining 2,047 killed?
Think for a second please. Perhaps there was more than one letter per dead soldier. One to the wife another to parents, a child or to parents now divorced. Sheesh.
January 7th, 2009 at 9:11 pmBush administration regarded each soldier as just another pair of 'boots on the ground'. This phrase was used frequently in the early days of the Iraqi war (wrong word---Iraqi massacre is more appropriate). Shame on the war mongers and their supporters. May they get their just rewards!
January 7th, 2009 at 11:38 pmSince the military lied about the number wounded (check the accounts of the hospital in Germany), it is fair to accept the 7000 number as evidence that the military has also lied about the number killed in our illegal wars-for-profit.
The neocons don't care how many live or die as long as the fighting goes on and on and on, and nothing interferes with their profits.
January 8th, 2009 at 2:32 amTheWatcher Says:
"Perhaps there was more than one letter per dead soldier."
"Perhaps" being the operative word here. Any proof, Watcher? Didn't think so. More likely as posted by others, the death toll is assuredly higher than officialy reported.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:27 amI would like to reiterate several posters surpise at the number 7000.
Nothing like lying to the American people about how many really died and then getting caught with your pants down like this.
January 8th, 2009 at 1:46 pm