Posted on 06/15/2014 10:55:03 AM PDT by yoe
As an Army Veteran who was working as a contractor attached to the 25th Infantry Division (same Division as Bergdahl) in a nearby FOB when Bowe Bergdahl went missing, I feel the need to speak out on the situation (notice I don’t ascribe rank to him, I will address that later).
A few days ago, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel took the stage at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan and excitedly started with what he thought would be a big applause line. “We got him back!” he exclaimed.
Silence.
Not. Even. One. Clap.
Numerous White House leaks show that Obama and his team were convinced that Americans would greet the news of a returning POW with elation; that this would be the great moment in Obama’s second term. This shows just how clueless they are about the military. Let me clue them in.
You see, when Hagel took the stage, he expected joy at the announcement that one of their own was returned! However, you have to see inside a soldier’s mind to understand what was going on here. I believe I can provide a little insight.
When a soldier deserts his post, when he writes that he is ashamed to be an American, when he gives the enemy secrets (and he did), he is no longer “one of us”. He is a traitor. He is not a brother-in-arms. Soldiers risk their lives for each other every day on the battlefield, there is a trust and respect they have for each other. For Bowe Bergdahl to break that trust and the Secretary of Defense to announce a hero’s welcome instead of a court-martial is a huge let-down.
He isn't one of their own. He is one of them. He is the enemy.
That's not something to celebrate.
The message the White House is sending is that they value treason more than honorable service.
Read that last sentence again. Let it sink in. THIS is what every soldier is thinking.
In a soldier’s mind serving with honor means finishing your tour, even if you disagree with the way things are done. All bets are off if you serve with dishonor.
I do not refer to Bergdahl as a sergeant, even though he received “automatic” promotions while in the Taliban’s custody because according to law, after 30 days his rank and pay should have been stripped from him. Due to political pressure, his was not. In fact, he probably has over $200,000 in cash waiting in his bank account. In my opinion, this money should be given to the families of the soldiers who died in the aftermath of his desertion.
Bowe Bergdahl deserted his post. He served with dishonor. I know that firsthand. Our soldiers know that. They know they risk their lives every day. They don’t get a hero’s welcome from the White House, they get fewer meals (due to budget constraints) and less safety equipment (due to the drawdown).
Let me be perfectly clear. A Rose Garden Ceremony, a “hero’s welcome”, and automatic promotions to a person that deserted is nothing more than a slap in the face to every service member who has served honorably.
That, Mr. President and Mr. Hagel, is why soldiers aren’t clapping and applauding for you. That is why you have lost any remaining respect from the military community.
WooHoo! Well-stated! That IS exactly how every one of us feel, as well. My husband served during the VN war era, but not in VN. His family had always served in the Coast Guard...generations of CG family. We served in the military community for 25+ years, serving the children of military members (overseas) while they are deployed to hotspots elsewhere. I can only imagine the mood on ANY military base these days after this recent event. It has been one misstep after another with this president, but now this? That is a bridge too far, I’m afraid, even for those who may have voted for him in the past two elections. The message from the president to the military is, “Sc-— you!” It couldn’t be clearer!
That might be true in general, but it ruins the author's otherwise powerful argument. The White House made the trade because they value Obama's image more than honorable service.
This deal was not done to reward some traitor. Nope, that was just a side effect. This deal was done for two reasons only. One, to get the VA scandal out of the news. And two, to boost Obama's poll numbers.
To argue argue otherwise is too go a bridge too far.
As an Army veteran, as well as the father of two West Point graduates (and we served honorably), your text sums up my personal feelings on what Obama has done by spitting on our service!
Bttt.
5.56mm
Would they fight against the regime of the foreign enemy combatant in our White House when he abandons his covert war against America (which he declared when he became a signed member of The New Party, which was the political arm intended to carry out the Cloward-Piven Strategy of Manufactured Crises to destroy America from within) and finally declares open war on her?
That’s the big question of our time, and not one that anybody should take lightly. Military and civilian alike will almost certainly have to answer that question.
The book deal alone will make him rich. And you can bet when he's on Oprah, he'll get only sympathy and softball questions.
Obama has always been a selfish, spoiled, brat who occupies the oval office. And doesn’t think or care for what effect his actions have on others. Had he been something other than a politician, he would have been some annoying trust fund baby whom all but a few care about, but now that we’ve got a spoiled trust fund brat in the White House, and his brash behavior amped up, God help us...
“The message the White House is sending is that they value treason more than honorable service.
Read that last sentence again. Let it sink in. THIS is what every soldier is thinking.”
I can understand the overeducated anti-American idiots who got to to the top by virtue of identity politics, cheating, lying, MSM, stupidity of voters, etc. being clueless and/or not caring about the value of real soldiers and their code of honor - but the Secretary of Defense????
We apparently have no Secretary of Defense!!!
I just looked up. All are ranked. In the Navy, enlisted are rated. Why the USN has this I have no idea. Additionally, the USN gives the enlisted a rating. The rating specifies his field of expertise.
For example, a PO First Class would have a rate of E-6. His rating might be ‘Electronics Technician’.
Hagel is now the Secretary of Offense!...
“I have been talking to the boys who are still in, and they will not fight anymore. If sent anyplace, they will rollup the drawbridges and sit and do absolutely nothing. The vets I talk to that can be brought back, many are saying they will head out of country first...to Canada.”
Please tell them to change their mind. Please tell them they are playing right into Obama’s hands. He expected this would demoralize the military. He doesn’t have a clue about the American spirit. Please tell them they are not alone. They are not forgotten. Please tell them to rethink their actions. We need them. Esp those that feel this way...we really, really need them as a country. They are heroes every day. Many of us realize that. Please tell them not to leave.
“As an Army veteran, as well as the father of two West Point graduates (and we served honorably), your text sums up my personal feelings on what Obama has done by spitting on our service!”
Please take heart and be PROUD of your service. The MSM may paint it differently but MANY of us out here really do respect you and are GRATEFUL. Don’t let it get to you. That’s what King Obama wants. Be stubborn. Your family is truly an inspiration to many. Keep posting your story because it really DOES matter. And Thank you!
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 America demands Justice for the Fallen of Benghazi! |
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The real purpose was to release the Tollybon Five. 0bama has been pushing for this trade for years.
No force on earth can ever move me to believe that the clown president said: “We’ve got to get this Bowe guy released, figure out how to do it”. No. They wanted to release a bunch of Godless killers and they figured out a way to do THAT.
Not to mention “Homeland Security” is the opposite - letting in cartels and hoards to leech off us ...
NASA - diverted to muslim outreach to make them feel better about themselves....WHAT? How crazy was that??? Even worse, why wasn’t there more screaming about it? How many billions have been skimmed with this crap?
IRS - turned into a “defeat Americans who don’t agree with us” organization.
and on and on..
To obama and company the only enemy is Americans who disagree with him. As I’ve said before, this is the biggest heist the world has ever seen - but the ones with the biggest megaphones aren’t talking.
Bergdahl doesn't want to be called sergeant either. I wonder why?
Just a note, I was talking to a Sgt Major yesterday and he said that during his service, it was an automatic promotion for POWs, once they returned from the enemy back to the US.
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