Necessary Illusions?

[flyboy55]

Pat Tillman's brother and Jessica Lynch say the military fabricated stories.

Updated: 2:40 p.m. ET April 24, 2007

WASHINGTON - An Army Ranger who was with former NFL star Pat Tillman when he died by friendly fire in Afghanistan testified Tuesday that he was told by a higher-up to conceal that information from Tillman’s family.

"I was ordered not to tell them," Army Spc. Bryan O’Neal told the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which was also looking at how the military portrayed the rescue of Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch.

. . .

Earlier, Kevin Tillman (who was serving in the same Ranger unit as his brother at the time of Pat Tillman's death) accused the military of "intentional falsehoods" and "deliberate and careful misrepresentations" in initially portraying his brother's death as the result of heroic engagement with the enemy instead of friendly fire.

"We believe this narrative was intended to deceive the family but more importantly the American public," Tillman testified.

"Revealing that Pat's death was a (friendly fire) fratricide would have been yet another political disaster in a month of political disasters ... so the truth needed to be suppressed," said Tillman.

. . .

Pat Tillman was killed on April 22, 2004, after his Army Ranger comrades were ambushed in eastern Afghanistan. Rangers in a convoy trailing Tillman's group had just emerged from a canyon where they had been fired upon. They saw Tillman and mistakenly fired on him.

. . .

Though dozens of soldiers knew quickly that Tillman had been killed by his fellow troops, the Army said initially that he was killed by enemy gunfire when he led his team to help another group of ambushed soldiers.

. . .

Mary Tillman said family members were "absolutely appalled" upon realizing the extent to which they were misled. "We’ve all been betrayed. ... We never thought they would use him the way they did."

. . .

Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch was badly injured when her convoy was ambushed in Iraq in 2003. She was subsequently rescued by American troops from an Iraqi hospital but the tale of her ambush was changed into a story of heroism on her part.

“The bottom line is the American people are capable of determining their own ideals of heroes and they don’t need to be told elaborate tales,” Lynch told the committee in prepared testimony.

I read a story in the alternative press, shortly after Pfc. Jessica Lynch's "rescue" was dramatically reported by the cooperative mainstream media, which outlined how the Iraqi medical personnel had attempted to arrange for Lynch's transfer to a U.S. Army medical unit, but were rebuffed by U.S. military leaders. The U.S. military had their own dramatic "rescue" planned and needed the film footage of Special Forces conducting a night time raid on the hospital to bolster patriotic fervor back home.

This reminds me of those stories about babies being tossed out of incubators in Kuwait hospitals by invading Iraqi troops during the first Gulf war. These were later proved to be complete fabrications produced with the help of a large Washington PR firm, but by then they had already served their purpose of mobilizing American public opinion behind military action.

Our leaders must really think we're stupid. Hmmm, maybe they're right.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18287244/

[Skibo]

Propaganda and misinformation are tactics used in every war, by both sides. I am not surprised at this.

[Indiana Jolly Mon]

I agree that stories are, and have always been, fabricated to generate public support and that is repulsive. However in some cases maybe it is not "evil". I wonder if it were my child killed over there if I would rather be told he died at the hands of an enemy rather than mistakenly by friendly fire. Either way he would not be coming back, but it may be easier to deal with.
There were soldiers in WWII, aka "the greatest generation" that were killed by friendly fire and the families were told they were killed in combat, that was the extent of it.
Dunno, but maybe current days of having to know everything and "alternative press" isnt such a good thing.
The family of Pat Tillman is doing what they think is right, but it is sullying his memory. That is too bad.

[The Lost Manatee]

I agree that stories are, and have always been, fabricated to generate public support and that is repulsive. However in some cases maybe it is not "evil". I wonder if it were my child killed over there if I would rather be told he died at the hands of an enemy rather than mistakenly by friendly fire. Either way he would not be coming back, but it may be easier to deal with.
There were soldiers in WWII, aka "the greatest generation" that were killed by friendly fire and the families were told they were killed in combat, that was the extent of it.
Dunno, but maybe current days of having to know everything and "alternative press" isnt such a good thing.
The family of Pat Tillman is doing what they think is right, but it is sullying his memory. That is too bad.

The difference between the Pat Tillman case and many of those killed in WWII that were listed as killed in action was that there wasn't the same sort of cover up and creation of an alternative myth including the awarding of a silver star. The families were notified that their son, husband, brother, had been killed in combat and that was that. In Pat Tillman's case, the Army went beyond that and not only ignored the facts but created a completely different story that was used to form a specific public opinion and to create a hero out of Pat Tillman's death.

I believe that this is what happens when you allow PR to drive decisions and not what is good for the military and their families. I would not be surprised to find out at some future date that the decision was made fairly far up the chain of command and that the motive was purely PR driven. I don't believe that this decision was made to hurt the families or to dishonor the fallen. It does raise additional questions about the process used to decide who is and isn't award medals, such as the Bronze Star, the Silver Star and the Medal of Honor.

No matter the outcome, Pat Tillman was killed in action and he died doing the job he had volunteered to do and I will honor his memory, along with all the other brave men and women who have died or been wounded in the service of their country.

[flyboy55]

I agree that stories are, and have always been, fabricated to generate public support and that is repulsive. However in some cases maybe it is not "evil". I wonder if it were my child killed over there if I would rather be told he died at the hands of an enemy rather than mistakenly by friendly fire. Either way he would not be coming back, but it may be easier to deal with.
There were soldiers in WWII, aka "the greatest generation" that were killed by friendly fire and the families were told they were killed in combat, that was the extent of it.
Dunno, but maybe current days of having to know everything and "alternative press" isnt such a good thing.
The family of Pat Tillman is doing what they think is right, but it is sullying his memory. That is too bad.

In the very old days, it used to be common practice to tell loved ones that "Johnny died doing what he loved, and from the expression of peace on his face when we found him, it was clear that he died secure in the knowledge that his sacrifice wasn't in vain."

We have come an awfully long way from those days. Combat death is brutal and shocking to look at and just about everyone knows it, including Tillman's family. His own brother was there on the road in Afghanistan that day. What they wanted was the truth, which hasn't been easy to obtain from the military/government. I'm surprised that you think his brother, also a combat veteran, is "sullying" his memory.

In the case of Jessica Lynch, it could be argued that the simulated combat mission undertaken to "rescue" her in front of cameras could have increased the risk to her personal safety and the safety of those sent to retrieve her. But it does make for more drama than simply sending over an ambulance to pick her up.

[Indiana Jolly Mon]

I wont comment on the Jessica Lynch as the impeaching source is an alternative unnamed paper, but nothing would suprise me. Any death by war is a tragedy, and I am not saying I blame them for wanting answers, but a co-worker of mine and his friends that were in Korea were discussing this matter and the "sullying" comment was their opinion, and I have to agree with it. He is a "war hero" either way, but if it were them they would prefer people heard the killed while atacking the enemy vs. killed by friendly fire by mistake explanation.
The whole war itself is a mess on so many levels that answers are needed, I dont see how this issue will help anything at all.
Between Bush messing all this up and Obama's yapping he was against war when at the time his opinion mattered about as much as mine (ie not in congress), I am more disgusted with politics than I have ever been.