After yesterday's press briefing about Pat Tillman's death, there were still many questions that lurked. It smelled of a cover-up, and apparently the Tillman family feels the same way:
The family of Cpl. Pat Tillman said Monday the Army investigation into the former NFL player's death by friendly fire in Afghanistan suggests a "conspiracy" and vowed to pursue a congressional investigation into how the death was handled.
Military officials had said earlier that nine officers, including four generals, will face "corrective action" for making critical mistakes in the aftermath of Tillman's death.
The NFL player was killed in Afghanistan in 2004 after giving up a professional football career to fight as an Army Ranger.
In their statement, the Tillman family said they were not satisfied with the Army report.
"In our opinion, this attempt to impose closure by slapping the wrists of a few officers and enlisted men is just another bureaucratic entrenchment," the family statement said. "Once again, we are being used as props in a Pentagon public relations exercise."
The military cited all these false reports made, and yet that wasn't wrong? The most interesting part is how the series of events they described sounds like some group effort to cover it up, yet there is nothing wrong with that and they didn't even look into the intent of this action. What kind of investigation doesn't look into intent?
This brings another issue to light - accountability in our military. We have seen so many problems with out military and the upper brass always blames it on "rogue" elements. Abu Gharib, Haditha, the list goes on. So what kind of military do we have when the commanders and troops don't follow the rules? What kind of leader is our commander in chief when his army acts like this?
Hopefully Congress will open an investigation into this (and I believe they will). The Tillman family is owed the truth. Our military isn't treating our soldiers right when they are injured, or when they are killed in action. Someone must be accountable for that.
Comments
Honestly? I believe that it was an extremely patriotic,brave and honorable decision that Pat Tillman made in dropping everything and joining the service like he did. Yes, he was killed by friendly fire in the line of duty. Unfortunately that is a by product of war. People die in war. It is not pretty and it is not nice. However, I believe that his family by behaving the way that they are, weather it is out of grief or not, are doing their son an extreme injustice and are tarnishing who he was. I cant help but think that as pro-military as he was, and given the fact that he volunteered, he might have been aware of the risks involved and willing to make that sacrifice for something that he believed in strongly. He died honorably in the service of his country during wartime. Had the circumstances been criminal I could see some type of further action. But war is a very stressful, high adrenaline, kill-or-be-killed situation. Zero tolerance for mistakes or errors in that type of atmosphere is unrealistic.
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