I'm Right Again dot com
I'm Right Again dot comSHAME ON THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
On 5 November, 2009, U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a U.S. Citizen of Palestinian descent, jumped up on a desk at Fort Hood, Texas, yelled "Allahu akhbar," Arabic for "Allah is greatest," and began shooting soldiers with two laser-sighted pistols. He killed 13 and wounded another 32, before being shot himself - by a bullet that severed his spine and left him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
At his court marshal, attorneys appointed for him by the court said that by ignoring counsel and attempting to defend himself, it was apparent to them that Hasan was bent on assuring he got the death penalty - and they want no part of it. The latest word from the military judge is that Hasan can act as his own attorney. So be it.
Here's the problem: For at least six years, colleagues and superiors have taken note of his downward mental spiral. More and more often he spouted anti-American views. Since the horrendous event, it has been found that he communicated regularly by e-mail with the late al-Qaeda Iman al-Awlaki and he clearly planned the murderous rampage over an extended period of time. Two days before the slaughter, this medical doctor gave away all of his possessions. Either no one paid attention to this ostentatious waving of the red flag or didn't care.
It is no little irony that this graduate of our finest medical schools; a licensed psychiatrist, tasked with treating soldiers on the largest Army base in America for mental issues, went berserk.
It is not the least bit clear to me why something wasn't done as his irrational behavior became more and more apparent as his time in service progressed.
Worse, someone in the Army sanitized and falsified his Officer Evaluation Reports, hid his obvious radicalization and purged his files of the reports of a constant uptrend in violations of Army regulations, then ignored a peer report that he was a "ticking time bomb." Instead, the Army promoted him to major and terminated the investigation into his ties with al-Awlaki and al-Qaida. Someone needs to investigate the investigators. They are, at the very least, incompetent.
I also have no doubt that Hasan will be either executed, or more than likely confined for the remainder of his life, so I'm not going to worry about either outcome. My concern is for the victims' families.
The F.B.I. and the Department of Defense have classified the shootings as an "Act of Workplace Violence." This, despite the fact that a U.S. Senate subcommittee concluded that "Hasan participated in the second worst terrorist attack on U.S. Soil." Hasan himself has called himself in court "a musahid," or "warrior of Islam," and that he "shot the soldiers to defend the Taliban."
The battleground for freedom and justice was not on foreign soil. In a few fateful moments, our service members. all of whom had joined the Armed Services of our Nation of their own free will, knowing full well they could be injured or die in the service of their country - just happened to be on a battleground outside of Kileen, Texas.
By calling it "Workplace Violence," the D.O.D. is attempting to distance the Federal Government from any further responsibility - meaning cost. The wounded and their families, as well as the families of the killed, were disqualified from receiving combat-related benefits and Purple Hearts. For recipients and their families, that could mean speedier and less costly medical services, free tuition at some universities and preferential treatment for many federal and state jobs.
As of the moment, the government has not admitted any wrongdoing. It has never even apologized to the victims for dereliction of duty by Hasan's immediate superior officers.
Something extraordinary needs to be done for the victims in this case. And that should include Kimberly Munley, the civilian Defense Police Department Officer who was the first to return fire on Hasan. She can no longer work in law enforcement due to her injuries That certainly is due Staff Sgt. Alonzo Lunsford who lost an eye and most certainly the family of Staff Sgt. Josh Berry, who has since committed suicide. And for the family of former child refugee from Viet Nam, Kham See Xiong, who enlisted in the Army in 2008 and was readying to go to Afghanistan - and for all the rest of the families of those killed and injured by Nidal Hasan that day.
You may be inclined to send this to your Senators and Congressional delegation or whomever you choose.
I am sending this to Secretary of Defense Hagel. Perhaps he will be inclined to walk it up to his friends and former colleagues on Capitol Hill and perhaps to the ear of his president and see if something more favorable cannot be done for these heroes and their families - the minute the fate of Malik Hasan is decided.
It should begin immediately with recognition of this injustice.
-Phil Richardson, Observer and Storyteller.
Reponses are welcome. Return to the eMail that carried this link and click "Reply."
Phil's
current post can be read at: http://www.imrightagain.com
If
you wish to comment, Phil can be reached at:
k7os (at)
comcast (dot) net
Our thanks to Jim Bromley who programmed an ARCHIVE PAGE FOR OLDER BLOGS
@AgainRight