Pajiba

I have always felt Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Ashcroft were some of the evilest dudes around.

Yeah. The way his death has been handled is a motherfucking disgrace. The lies, the manipulation of the witnesses, the mindfucking of the Tillmans, and the grandstanding have been shameful. I hope the responsible parties can one day be held accountable for it.

I've only heard bits and pieces of this story so I'd really like to see the documentary. Hopefully it's made available in small markets too. Nice review, Prisco.

Isn't there an argument that, by inventing an alternative, more "heroic" version of Tillman's death, they were doing him a favor? Wouldn't some families prefer to believe that their son died in order to save the lives of others, rather than by friendly fire? Clearly the entire chain of military personnel that covered up the true story were primarily concerned for covering their own asses, but even so, couldn't you consider this a minor but acceptable lie? You know they did it during World War II... that didn't make FDR an evil guy.

elguapo, it's not minor or acceptable to lie to a family about their child's death, or to try to use it to serve their own purposes.

Clearly, soru, Tillman's family agrees with you. But what I'm suggesting is that there are probably a significant number of families that would prefer to hear that their son died a hero's death, rather than being shot in the back by his own men.

elguapo,

Families want to know the truth. Period. All this nonsense about protecting their feelings is total bullshit and is used to make the military feel better about lying to them. They may not want to know the DETAILS of the death, but they sure as hell would want to know he died by friendly fire. It's then made worse by the fact that their son's life was hijacked and smeared across the media as false propaganda. I would be FURIOUS if they did that to my kid.

And comparing WWII to this war is just blatantly baiting people, so I won't go near it.

Clearly, soru, Tillman's family agrees with you. But what I'm suggesting is that there are probably a significant number of families that would prefer to hear that their son died a hero's death, rather than being shot in the back by his own men.

I understand where you're coming from but here's the thing: even if the US government was doing this type of thing to spare the families, how do you determine which family wants truth and which want lies? When you enlist do they sent your spouse or parents a "please check one" survey?

It seemed to cut off part of my post. It should read 'my SAW gunner was killed due to pilot error but the military sent howm the usual jargon i.e. died a hero, fought bravely, served his country, etc.'

Does Tillman and all American deaths suck? Abso-freaking-lutely. But you people sit at home on your couch arm-chair quarterbacking things like you have a fucking clue how the military and government works.

Glad somebody gets it, EPA. This story (and others like it) is about a little bit of ass-covering, a little bit of propaganda, and a little bit of lets-give-Mama-Tillman-a-nice-story-to-tell. Only the Tillmans wanted to keep digging, and Pat's famous story got it some extra attention. Now that we know the "truth," is the family better off? Not sure I can say so. Only people who really seemed "happy" about how the Tillman story ended were those who didn't think he was worth celebrating in the first place.

It's been done this way for a long time (as long as this country's been at war), and will continue to happen, precisely because sometimes a lie is a little easier to swallow than the truth.

For what it's worth, he's gone down in history as a bona fide badass, an honorable human being and a true man. No government official or miliary puppet involved in this mess will have that said about them.

I understand the argument that some people just don't want to know, but it's entirely heartbreaking that when a soldier's family did want to know the truth, they kept getting blocked at every turn until they made a big enough noise that the government eventually had admit to it. On top of that, you've got this guy who didn't at all believe in the war but did believe in his country and went off to do what he believed was his duty. On top of covering their asses for being responsible for his death, the government did everything that he didn't want and turning him into something that he was, misrepresenting him into some God-fearing, American golden boy AND made soldiers lie to their fellow soldier's family.

You can't tell me that there aren't soldiers out there fighting right now whose stories aren't inspirational and heroic enough as they are without twisting them into bald-faced lies?

And great review, Brian. It made me want to burst into tears (no mean feat) and see this RIGHTTHEFUCKNOW.

I get it, this idea that someone would rather their child be remembered as a hero and not as a friendly fire casualty.
However, the fact that such a legacy is a lie makes the sentiment completely hollow. Not to mention the fact that it's not as if the government did this out of pity for the Tillmans. They did it to further political goals. Yes pursuit of political goals is totally natural for a government as is propaganda, but to base that propaganda all on a falsely heroic story about a person's death is pretty disgusting.
Just because the story might've made Tillman look better as a hero doesn't mean that it was any favor to the Tillmans nor does it make it okay. The administration did it for themselves, not the family. To suggest they were somehow doing the family any favor at all seems to miss the point that any alleviation of their grief would be a bi-product of the main goal at best.

Even if the Tillman's were somehow comforted by the hero story, it doesn't make it okay. It's still disgusting and awful not only to lie about that but to also use it for more support for the war.

losing my child WOULD leave*

Amir Bar-Lev, the director of “The Tillman Story,” said: “… there’s been no culpability on the second half of this tragedy, which is the higher ups trying to cover it up. … to borrow a football metaphor, they [the Tillman family] ran the ball 99 yards over four years time, they handed it off at the one-yard line to Congress and they fumbled it...."

However, Bar-Lev missed the ”untold story” that both the Democratic Congress and the Obama Presidency shielded General Stanley McChrystal from scrutiny and punishment for his central role in the cover-up of Pat Tillman’s friendly-fire death. This cover-up was a thoroughly bi-partisan affair. It wasn’t just a case of the Bush administration and the Army stonewalling the Democratic Congress. Congress didn’t just “fumble” the ball, they threw the game.

It’s not surprising that after their initial cover-up of Pat Tillman’s friendly-fire death fell apart, Army officers and the Bush administration lied to protect their careers. But after they took control of both Houses of Congress in 2006, the Democrats (including Congressman Waxman, Senator Levin, Senator Webb, and Senator McCain) could have gone after those responsible. Or at least not promoted them twice!

Just before the 2006 mid-term elections, Kevin Tillman published his eloquent letter, “After Pat’s Birthday”. Kevin had hoped a Democratic Congress would bring accountability back to our country. But, just as with warrantless wiretapping and torture, those responsible for the cover-up of his brother’s friendly-fire death have never been held accountable for their actions.

I’ve posted “The [Untold] Tillman Story” at http://www.feralfirefighter.blogspot.com

Fuck you EPA, you arrogant son of a bitch. Congratulations on your service. I served from 2000-2004 and find that your comments fall in line with the worst our military has to offer: narrow-minded, narcissistic, holier-than-thou people who think they know what's best for everyone else.

If I lost my life, I'd want my mother, wife and children to know what happened. And the military doesn't have to send the coroner's report (i.e. "American bullet entered cranium behind left ear, tore through the brain, exited top of cranium taking gray matter with it as blood pored out of his eyes, nose, ears . . .), but they should say, for example, that it was friendly fire, and that more information is available if they want to hear it.

And you can bet your sweet ass that I would want the truth if my kid lost their life. I would tear this motherfucking Earth to shreds looking for answers. And do you know why I would have to do that, EPA? Because of folks like you stonewalling me "for my own good."

Lots to respond to this morning.

@Diane: I don't see how my arm chair quaterback comment is stereotyping. All black people in Compton are criminals. That is a stereotype. Most people have no knowledge of the machinations of the military. That is fact. Our current military strength constitutes less than .01% of the population. Even factoring in their families and veterans the amount of the population with knowledge of military life is at most 1%. So yes, I stand by my comment that almost no one knows what happens both in the field and in the military brass decision making process.

Robert's opinion carries more weight because he has an experience with this through his father's side of the family. It's sad to hear his uncle was killed in an accident and since I don't know what the Navy considers secret I can't comment on why they withheld information on his death. But I ask Robert, do you really think your dad wouldn't be depressed for two weeks a year if he knew the truth. Based on your comments it sounds like he is mourning a dead brother, not becoming depressed because the Navy redacted portions of his death and the cause of it.

Oh and Robert since you want to get personal and tell me to go fuck myself because you think I somehow perpetuate propoganda (I actually said I understand its use) we can get personal. While your uncle's death is tragic the only good thing to come out of it is you and your future family's cowardice will not disgrace the military by serving in it.

@gforcetwo: You think my stereotype was implying people are too weak to handle the truth. Of course people want to be lied to. I don't even need to talk about the military to prove that point. Woman, "Do these jeans make my ass look big?" Or how about Man to woman, "Do you think my penis is big enough?" Liberal about Obama, "He is going to keep his campaign promises and not compromise with the GOP." Conservative about Reagan, "Trickle down works!" Most people can't handle reality and live a life of lies. That is why the first half of the Invention of Lying was so good. We all laugh at the brutal truths everyone says in the movie but if that applied to real life people would be miserable.

And I am not even going to respond to Kballs because he is too beneath me (I'm "arrogant" remember?)

I think you don't have a child, EPA. I suspect your attitude would be vastly different if your child came home in a body bag with a very pretty story of heroic sacrifice, especially given your knowledge of the way things work in the military. Could you seriously accept a line of bullshit, that rang patently false to everything you knew about your kid? It would make me furious that my child's memory would be dishonored in such a way, co-opted by a government's need to manufacture heroes. How dare they. It's bad enough they took his life, they don't get his reputation, too.

I cannot fathom the condescension of the attitude of shielding someone from the truth "for their own good."

You send your child away to fight for your country, you expect enough respect to be told whether the "shit happened" because of the awful consequences of war, or because of incompetence or worse, an outright culture of abuse. Nothing gets better by perpetuating a jaded air of "that's the way the world works."

EPA, if I may very humbly suggest, I think that perhaps your frustration is misdirected. Clearly your experience has affected you profoundly, but why not direct your scorn at the willfully ignorant, not the families who want to know the truth surrounding their family member's death?

Considering that these families have made their own sacrifice, are they not entitled to the truth if they want it? Ultimately, I think it's not for anyone, even soldiers, to judge how it's best for people to grieve and what will help bring them comfort.

Yes it's true propaganda serves a purpose, and yes there are certainly those who prefer to turn a blind eye to events. However, using propaganda, which helps disguise the atrocities of war, mostly supports the comfort of those who prefer the ignorance-is-bliss approach. Deciding what's best for society based on those who contribute the least is to use a very poor guidepost.

If Tillman's death should be used to demonstrate anything, it's that the loss of any soldier's life is a tragedy, and not because of heroism but precisely because so many war deaths are anything but heroic. We as a people should share that burden; "any man's death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind". We elect the leaders that send our soldiers to war and it should be our job to be more vigilant in holding their feet to the fire. We should be asking the important questions at the outset: What are our objectives? What is our exit strategy? What is the real cost?

There can always be the hope that a wiser electorate will be more hesitant to start the next conflict. We can hope that, if your son decides to serve, the decision will be made with greater gravitas. Given the nature of Tillman's death, I think that's the best protection he, or any soldier, truly has.

Thanks to you and other commenters for serving.

I disagree with EPA's overarching point, but sorry Diane most people don't give a shit about why or how the military does anything. Most people's most meaningful relationship with the military is their role as extras in Michael Bay movies (Please don't feed me any 'My grandfather...'). The United States by my estimation is one of the least patriotic and most narcissistic countries in the world (sorry, it hurts me too). Most people can't even name their congressmen, forget about any real knowledge of American history, and nothing of our military. Sad, but true.

For the military members of the board here's what I don't get - Cover up Tillman's death and give him a Silver Star for a friendly fire accident. Besides denigrating the Silver Star, why don't they start giving the Medal of Honor to living servicemen? Wouldn't that be better propaganda? Weird.

Even you use the word "hero" in a dumbed down way, so you fall for the same BS. Just because a man or woman wants to "fight for his/her country" certainly does not make him/her a hero, it makes those people soldiers. Someone who will fight for other countries is a mercenary. They kill and are killed. A hero is a person like the members of Doctors Without Borders, who voluntarily go into war zones to heal, with medical instruments, not weapons of death. Or, a hero is a soldier who risks his/her life to save another's life against bad odds. A hero sacrifices himself/herself, or performs a wonderful life-preserving task.

"Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference."

In the end the truth is not yet known, the people who are trying so hard to insult everyone have only their passion and our trust as to their credtials and sincerity.

Movie sounds interesting.

Wow, this is very interesting to read. Have you ever considered submitting articles to magazines?

good blog post, i clearly enjoy this page, keep it.

Thanks for your own efforts on this web page. My niece delights in carrying out investigations and it's obvious why. Many of us notice all about the powerful mode you provide advantageous strategies through this web blog and therefore inspire response from some other people on this area of interest while my daughter is without a doubt becoming educated a whole lot. Take pleasure in the remaining portion of the year. You are always carrying out a terrific job.