This doesn't happen to me very often anymore -- not since "mainstream journalism" become a pablum-burbling idiot incapable of semi-consciousness, much less outrage -- but this weekend I read a story that made me so angry I had to toss my newspaper down in disgust and rail at poor Janet, who made the mistake of being near me at the time. If you haven't read it, it's the Walter Reed story ("Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army's Top Medical Facility") by WaPo reporters Dana Priest and Anne Hull. If you haven't read it already, click the link, do your homework, get pissed off and come back.
Now comes this, found via Alternet: "Pentagon: Wounded Troops Can't Talk To The Media." The coverage includes this passage from Dana Milbanks of the WaPo (what is it about The Washington Post and reporters named Dana?) covering the Army's attempt to whitewash (both literally and figuratively) the still developing story:
After the media tour of Building 18, the Army's surgeon general gave a news conference. "I do not consider Building 18 to be substandard," he said of a facility Priest and Hull found full of "mouse droppings, belly-up cockroaches, stained carpets, cheap mattresses" and other delights. "We needed to do a better job on some of those rooms, and those of you that got in today saw that we frankly have fixed all of those problems. They weren't serious, and there weren't a lot of them."
Kiley might have had a stronger case if men wearing Tyvek hazmat suits and gas masks hadn't walked through the lobby while the camera crews waited for the tour to start, or if he hadn't acknowledged, moments later, that the entire building would have to be closed for a complete renovation.
And then there's this from this morning's Navy Times:
Soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s Medical Hold Unit say they have been told they will wake up at 6 a.m. every morning and have their rooms ready for inspection at 7 a.m., and that they must not speak to the media.
“Some soldiers believe this is a form of punishment for the trouble soldiers caused by talking to the media,” one Medical Hold Unit soldier said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
It is unusual for soldiers to have daily inspections after Basic Training.
Soldiers say their sergeant major gathered troops at 6 p.m. Monday to tell them they must follow their chain of command when asking for help with their medical evaluation paperwork, or when they spot mold, mice or other problems in their quarters.
Enough. Enough with the blaming of a few platoon sergeants. Enough with the intimidation. Enough with REMFs (Rear-Echelon Mother Fuckers) and their ass-covering bullshit. I want firings. I want hearings. I want criminal goddamn charges. I want every careerist officer and command sergeant major, every GS bureaucrat, every partisan political appointee with even a whiff of Walter Reed smell about him called to the docket in front of God and Everybody and held personally, legally accountable.
Bad stuff happens in war, and REMFs are REMFs are REMFs. They have always been a stain upon our national and military honor and they Will Always Be With Us. But for the senior military leadership of this country to play public relations with the situation at Walter Reed after being humiliated by their failures in print? For the White House to allow this to happen without bringing down the immediate thunder of righteous indignation? Shame!
This isn't about the goddamned war. It's about a basic social contract that says we'll care for the people we send off to fight on our behalf. And what are we doing? The federal government has been cutting benefits for military retirees for years -- benefits that those men and women earned with 20 years or more of service, benefits that were promised in writing. Here we are, in a "war" that's been going on longer than our involvement in World War II, and the President's own budget cuts funds for veterans services. And now -- when faced with clear evidence of bureaucratic neglect of our own wounded Iraq war soldiers -- these rat bastards cover their own asses and punish the victims? And suggest that the media is the problem?
Screw 'em. Arrest them. Throw them in jail. I'm serious.
Let's put this in a personal context. I am sick to death of the President and his minions and mouthpieces and political operatives and smug, self-referential supporters lecturing the rest of us about supporting the troops. Well here's your goddamn chance. It's not about putting yellow ribbons on your SUV. It's about taking care of these veterans RIGHT NOW. Send in case managers and clean up these cases immediately. Yesterday. Quit stalling on discharge decisions to artificially boost retention quotas, or whatever it is they're doing. Get these people care, get them counseling, get them discharged and -- oh, while you're at it -- THANK THEM on their way out the door for their service to their country. It's simple. That's it. That's all.
We've been played as pawns, our leadership has zero credibility and I've decided it's past time we all got really, publicly pissed off about it.
Damage Control at Walter Reed
Posted by: Tim | Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at 18:18
HELL YEA !!!!!
Posted by: Jean McGreggor | Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at 20:24
I wrote my senators about this. I have my doubts that they pay attention, but still, this is ridiculous.
Posted by: ben | Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at 23:28
I hit all three of my federal reps last night.
Let me use this as an opportunity to talk to the way electeds process constituent feedback, because I think most people have no clue. It's different than constituent service requests.
1. Don't waste your time trying to write a lengthy or thoughtful letter. One topic, one opinion, no more than a paragraph. Barring something really strange, your congressman or senator will not read your letter/e-mail. Instead, their staff will log it and use it to create statistics. So be for or against something. And don't get cute or insulting.
2. If you're writing e-mail, put the subject in the subject line, and don't be cute about it. I called mine "Walter Reed." That's all. If you reach them through an e-mail form (like both South Carolina senators use) they'll give you a drop-down menu of topic choices. These will be different menus for different senators, and they'll be overly general, so clearly state your topic in your message.
3. Politicians are elected by clear constituencies, and they try to stay in touch with those constituencies and aligned with the groups that elected them. However, few electoral constituencies are static, and electeds are wise to try to tap the zeitgeist of their homestate voters. This is where letters and e-mails come in: It's one of the cheapest and most effective ways of taking the pulse of likely voters, since people who take the time to write will almost certainly take the time to vote. So when you write, what you're really doing is contributing to an ongoing, impromptu opinion poll in which the people set the topics.
4. Don't worry about the elected's politics and don't describe your own. Jim DeMint and I agree on very little, but I wrote to him anyway. I'm just trying to get this story on his political radar.
5. If you've got a special connection to a politician (i.e., you've been a donor, or you're a party activist, etc.), don't stop with sending a note. Call the office and identify yourself. Most staffs keep a separate tally for phone calls and track donors and supporters independently. But there's no reason why you can't do both and get on the separate tallies.
6. There's no problem with sending form letters or signing electronic petitions. But try not to copy-and-paste some group's suggested language when you write. Verbatim letters are identified as part of a coordinated campaign and receive less attention. I've also heard that e-mails receive less notice than letters, but I wonder about that now.
7. If you're writing about a specific bill, committee vote or amendment and you're smart enough to use Teh Internets, make sure you put the bill number in the text of your message. Look it up at http://thomas.loc.gov/.
Posted by: Daniel | Thursday, March 01, 2007 at 08:25
How about this scalp.
Posted by: DeweyS | Thursday, March 01, 2007 at 15:20
That's more like it. I'd like to see more retribution -- make a bloody example of a bunch of REMFs, send a message to the rest of their lousy tribe -- but I'll settle for a major general. It's better than what we got for the scandals in Iraq during the Rumsfeld Reign of Error.
Posted by: Daniel | Thursday, March 01, 2007 at 18:03
It's a start.
Posted by: Tim | Thursday, March 01, 2007 at 18:26
Sacrificial lamb, anyone? The place didn't get like this in a month or two.As the wife/daughter/sister/friend of service members from 2 wars,a police action as well as peace time service I can bear witness to the less than wonderful care the VA provides. But why would a doctor stay in the military when they can make twice the money in private practice?
By all means, pitch a fit! Contact your electeds and let them know how you feel. I've been told that if as few as 5 or 10 people call or write about an issue it is considered statistically significant.
Our people deserve so much better.They are willing to lay down their lives. Don't they deserve decent medical treatment?
Posted by: Jean McGreggor | Thursday, March 01, 2007 at 18:45
A few in the mainstream media are hitting this story, which has incredible legs, hard. Imus has asked every guest, whether it's a senator, a congressman or another TV journalist, about it for the last 2 weeks.
But thanks for the impetus to write to representatives.
Dana Priest (she's the Dana at the WP that is pronounced like Dan) spent 4 months investigating this. You could say she did Congress' work for them. Now all they have to do is hold hearings.
I read this story last week and have seen it recycled occasionally into the stupid television cycle... at least until Anna Nicole Smith's funeral came along ... ever since, but your post made me realize that just watching is not enough. Thanks.
Posted by: GMLc | Friday, March 02, 2007 at 12:10
Walter Reed fallout: Army secretary resigns
Rolling Heads, Foxes, Chicken Coops... and Moms
Posted by: Tim | Friday, March 02, 2007 at 17:34
Wow, Dan- I think that maybe I agree with most of that. Especially the treatment of wounded soldiers, we should treat these guys like royalty.
I don't necessarily think that the Department of Veterans Affairs is a well-oiled machine, and I KNOW that they spend a ton of money that I don't think they should be spending. I know a guy who tore up his shoulder in basic training for the Marines, in his first week there. He got an honorable discharge from the Marines, he's a "wounded veteran" and gets all of the free painkillers and muscle relaxers he can get, then sells them.
For chrissakes, they give free aspirin and calamine lotion, not to mention Rogaine. I don't think that should be a taxpayer expense, do you?
But regarding Walter Reed, it's shameful. There is no way to defend it, nor any point in trying to do so.
Posted by: chip | Friday, March 02, 2007 at 20:12