New details on Pat Tillman’s death

By MARTHA MENDOZA, AP National Writer

Army medical examiners were suspicious about the close proximity of the three bullet holes in Pat Tillman’s forehead and tried without success to get authorities to investigate whether the former NFL player’s death amounted to a crime, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.

“The medical evidence did not match up with the, with the scenario as described,” a doctor who examined Tillman’s body after he was killed on the battlefield in Afghanistan in 2004 told investigators.

The doctors — whose names were blacked out — said that the bullet holes were so close together that it appeared the Army Ranger was cut down by an M-16 fired from a mere 10 yards or so away.

Ultimately, the Pentagon did conduct a criminal investigation, and asked Tillman’s comrades whether he was disliked by his men and whether they had any reason to believe he was deliberately killed. The Pentagon eventually ruled that Tillman’s death at the hands of his comrades was a friendly-fire accident.

The medical examiners’ suspicions were outlined in 2,300 pages of testimony released to the AP this week by the Defense Department in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

Among other information contained in the documents:

• In his last words moments before he was killed, Tillman snapped at a panicky comrade under fire to shut up and stop “sniveling.”

• Army attorneys sent each other congratulatory e-mails for keeping criminal investigators at bay as the Army conducted an internal friendly-fire investigation that resulted in administrative, or non-criminal, punishments.

• The three-star general who kept the truth about Tillman’s death from his family and the public told investigators some 70 times that he had a bad memory and couldn’t recall details of his actions.

• No evidence at all of enemy fire was found at the scene — no one was hit by enemy fire, nor was any government equipment struck.

The Pentagon and the Bush administration have been criticized in recent months for lying about the circumstances of Tillman’s death. The military initially told the public and the Tillman family that he had been killed by enemy fire. Only weeks later did the Pentagon acknowledge he was gunned down by fellow Rangers.

With questions lingering about how high in the Bush administration the deception reached, Congress is preparing for yet another hearing next week.

The Pentagon is separately preparing a new round of punishments, including a stinging demotion of retired Lt. Gen. Philip R. Kensinger Jr., 60, according to military officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the punishments under consideration have not been made public.

In more than four hours of questioning by the Pentagon inspector general’s office in December 2006, Kensinger repeatedly contradicted other officers’ testimony, and sometimes his own. He said on some 70 occasions that he did not recall something.

At one point, he said: “You’ve got me really scared about my brain right now. I’m really having a problem.”

Tillman’s mother, Mary Tillman, who has long suggested that her son was deliberately killed by his comrades, said she is still looking for answers and looks forward to the congressional hearings next week.

“Nothing is going to bring Pat back. It’s about justice for Pat and justice for other soldiers. The nation has been deceived,” she said.

The documents show that a doctor who autopsied Tillman’s body was suspicious of the three gunshot wounds to the forehead. The doctor said he took the unusual step of calling the Army’s Human Resources Command and was rebuffed. He then asked an official at the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division if the CID would consider opening a criminal case.

“He said he talked to his higher headquarters and they had said no,” the doctor testified.

Also according to the documents, investigators pressed officers and soldiers on a question Mrs. Tillman has been asking all along.

“Have you, at any time since this incident occurred back on April 22, 2004, have you ever received any information even rumor that Cpl. Tillman was killed by anybody within his own unit intentionally?” an investigator asked then-Capt. Richard Scott.

Scott, and others who were asked, said they were certain the shooting was accidental.

Investigators also asked soldiers and commanders whether Tillman was disliked, whether anyone was jealous of his celebrity, or if he was considered arrogant. They said Tillman was respected, admired and well-liked.

The documents also shed new light on Tillman’s last moments.

It has been widely reported by the AP and others that Spc. Bryan O’Neal, who was at Tillman’s side as he was killed, told investigators that Tillman was waving his arms shouting “Cease fire, friendlies, I am Pat (expletive) Tillman, damn it!” again and again.

But the latest documents give a different account from a chaplain who debriefed the entire unit days after Tillman was killed.

The chaplain said that O’Neal told him he was hugging the ground at Tillman’s side, “crying out to God, help us. And Tillman says to him, `Would you shut your (expletive) mouth? God’s not going to help you; you need to do something for yourself, you sniveling …”

Sharon Stone – I don’t have a drug problem and I’m not sick

Sharon Stone denied reports she is addicted to drugs or is gravely ill. She was spotted outside a Starbucks in Beverly Hills, CA on Saturday after buying an iced coffee.

World’s tallest and smallest men agree to 12 round boxing match

The world’s tallest man, Bao Xishun, who stands 2.36 meters (7 feet and 9 inches), shakes hands with He Pingping, who measures 73 centimeters (2 feet and 5 inches), in Baotou, China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Friday, July 13, 2007.

Xishun and Pingping agreed in principle to a 12 round boxing match in Summer 2008 to be held in Beijing, China. The purse (250 million, U.S. dollars) is expected to be the largest in boxing history.

President Bush selects infant child as new War Czar

The White House wanted to appoint a high-powered czar to oversee the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with authority to issue directions to the Pentagon, the State Department and other agencies, but it has had trouble finding anyone able and willing to take the job, according to people close to the situation.

Friday afternoon, the president selected an infant child after V.P. Dick Cheney recommended him during a ceremony on the White House lawn.

World’s fattest man

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War in Iraq can no longer be faceless – Ben Mahaffey

by Ben Mahaffey

Opinion piece from deseret news on 19 July 2007

Late statistics from Iraq indicate that deaths are at 4,000 and are occurring at about 3.5 a day. There are more than 28,000 wounded, maimed and injured in mind, body and spirit. Statistically, the numbers of deaths and wounded are insignificant and will continue to be insignificant in a land with more than 300 million people. However, every death and wound has a circle of catastrophe that touches scores of people.

When I question my friends and acquaintances whether they know anyone who is serving or has served in Iraq, seldom do I get a positive answer. I served in the Korean War. Two of my sons have served in the military; the third one was not so inclined. My only grandson is not interested, nor would he qualify, because of his personal habits. So, for the past four years, the war in Iraq has been a faceless war for me and for most people. This condition, by nature, causes a general lack of interest. The daily news is shed from the concern of our minds as if our sensitivities have a coat of Teflon.

Last November, on a plane from Dallas, a chance meeting with a National Guardsman from Ogden has changed my whole perspective on the war. The Teflon of my feelings has been stripped away by the acid of knowledge and information gained firsthand by months of e-mails and other communication. I watched and studied where his unit was serving. I received regular information on the complexity and foolishness of many missions required by our military. I learned of his loyalty and bravery until betrayed by the Iraqis they were serving with. I agonized when I received information that my new friend, Sgt. Kevin Roy Shope, was blown up the first time.

He returned to duty with a concussion in two days; a week later he was blown up again. This time, his two crew members were killed and he was severely wounded. Later, I would learn that 11 men out of a platoon of 33 had been killed or wounded. Have you heard that statistic in any national newscast?

I traced him to a hospital in Germany and then to the Fort Bragg hospital. He spent two months there, reporting very poor treatment, caused by an endless government bureaucracy. Apparently, the Walter Reed hospital problems are endemic in other military hospitals. He has now been transferred for treatment at the Hill Air Force Base hospital in Utah. He indicates that his treatment has improved.

I have been a political hawk all of my life. I originally thought that the invasion of Iraq was wise and would be useful. But no more. We won the war, but we cannot win the peace in a land where the people hate their enemies more than they love their children. The elected Iraqi government is impotent and cannot solve its own problems with our presence there. I doubt that the Iraqis will solve their problems when we leave.

Undoubtedly, there has been positive progress, but at what price? We are spending $30 billion to train Iraqis who betray us. We can’t identify our enemy; insurgents are destroying their own infrastructure faster that we can build it. Our national treasury will be taxed for generations from the expenses of this war.

Leave, we must. The logistics can be left to the military. Iranian problems can be solved from a distance. The Israelis will help us. An old man once told me: “A wise man changes his mind; a fool never does.” We’ve been foolish long enough.

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Ben D. Mahaffey is a founding member of the Wounded Warrior Project, an organization that assists wounded veterans. For information call 435-781-0962.

Bumper sticker “support the troops” slogans mean nothing to US military personnel

How dare some people claim they “support the troops” just because they have some bumper sticker or magnet on their car. Every time I see one of those worthless slogans on a car I want to rip it off and admonish the driver. Why? Because supporting the troops is so much more than the $3 purchase of a car decoration (that’s probably made in China and doesn’t even support American workers).

Supporting the troops is about doing all you can to demand your elected representative bring the troops home from this worthless war in Iraq. It’s about demanding your elected representatives give all US military personnel bigger pay raises than they did at the start of 2007. How many average people know that Congress last year (109th Congress, Republican controlled) supported the troops by giving the military their smallest pay raise in the last 13 years? Is that supporting the troops? Did all those bumper sticker “troop supporters” write their Congressperson to complain and demand better pay for the troops they “support”? No, most people did nothing.

Supporting the troops is about speaking out against a war where American soldiers are being killed (4,000+) and wounded (28,000+) to support a country (Iraq) that doesn’t want us there and doesn’t represent the “freedom” we say we’re fighting for. How many people know women are not treated as equals in Iraq and do not have the same rights as men? How many people know American troops have repeatedly been killed or injured by the very Iraqi soldiers they are trying to train? How many people know that while the media reports Iranian and Syrian involvement in the everyday mess in Iraq, very little is really being done to demand Iran and Syria stop their involvement in helping insurgents kill and injure American soldiers?

Supporting the troops is about stopping this ridiculous funding that’s being sent to Pakistan while Al Qaeda is growing and operating freely in the tribal regions of the country. On September 20, 2001, President Bush addressed a joint session of Congress and said (in part)

“We will starve terrorists of funding, turn them one against another, drive them from place to place, until there is no refuge or no rest. And we will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. (Applause.) From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.”

and yet the administration has looked the other way as Al Qaeda has restrengthened itself in the safe-haven sanctuary of the tribal regions of Pakistan.

It’s time for Americans to “support the troops” and listen to the words of American Patriot Melissa Etheridge:

I need to speak out
Something has to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
NOW

Some of you may say who am I to say what “supporting the troops” means and how dare I question the actions (and inaction) of our leaders. Well you see, I am an American Airman (18 years and still on active duty) and I’m the one these bumper stickers are supposedly “supporting”.

So, do you REALLY support the troops or do you support a bumper sticker slogan?

George Bush and Richard Nixon

Please provide a caption for this photo

Dog gets run over at Tour de France

Senator David Vitter Prostitution Flip-Flop, says “GOD” forgives him

So what exactly is Senator Vitter apologizing for if he didn’t do it? And then to throw GOD in the mix and say GOD forgives him. Well Senator Vitter, I spoke to GOD this evening and he told me “I in no way forgave David Vitter for having sex with that prostitute and cheating on his wife” GOD went on to tell me, “I told him he must speak out against the war in Iraq and endorse any Democratic candidate for President, then I will consider forgiveness”. There you have it folks, GOD has spoken and his statement seems to indicate there is some lying coming out of the office of Senator David Vitter. Here are the two articles that show another Republican Flip-Flop.

Source CNN.com
On 9 July 2006, Sentaor David Vitter issued a statement where he apologized for “a very serious sin in my past” after his telephone number appeared among those associated with an escort service operated by the so-called “D.C. Madam.”

His statement that day went on to say “This was a very serious sin in my past for which I am, of course, completely responsible,” Vitter said in the statement. “Several years ago, I asked for and received forgiveness from God and my wife in confession and marriage counseling. Out of respect for my family, I will keep my discussion of the matter there — with God and them. But I certainly offer my deep and sincere apologies to all I have disappointed and let down in any way.”

Source Huffingtonpost.com
Then fast-forward to 16 July 2006, Senator Vitter Flip-Flops and denies he did anything wrong.

Sen. David Vitter on Monday denied having relationships with New Orleans prostitutes, a week after admitting links to a Washington escort service that federal prosecutors allege was a prostitution ring.

Vitter emerged from a week of seclusion by appearing at a news conference in suburban Metairie while holding hands with his wife, Wendy. He denied the New Orleans prostitution allegations and offered no indication that he would resign. He said he planned to fly Monday night to Washington to resume work in the Senate.

“I want to again offer my deep, sincere apologies to all those I have let down and disappointed with actions from my past,” Vitter said. “I am completely responsible, and I am so very, very sorry.”

Vitter said that the events in Washington took place years ago, and that he and his wife had undergone marriage counseling.

“No matter how long ago it was, I know this hurt the relationship of trust I have enjoyed with so many of you, and I have a lot of work to do to rebuild that,” he said.

On July 9, Vitter apologized for committing a “very serious sin in my past,” acknowledging that his Washington phone number was among those called several years ago by an escort service run by Deborah Jeane Palfrey.

Federal prosecutors accuse Palfrey of racketeering by running a prostitution ring that netted more than $2 million over 13 years, beginning in 1993. She contends her escort service, Pamela Martin and Associates, was a legitimate business.

Telephone records show that the service called Vitter’s number five times from 1999 to 2001, while he was a U.S. representative.

Also last week, the former madam of a New Orleans brothel that was shut down several years ago claimed Vitter was a client in the 1990s. However, her defense lawyer and a U.S. attorney who prosecuted her said Vitter’s name never came up in that investigation.

The Times-Picayune newspaper in New Orleans also reported that Vitter had used the services of another New Orleans prostitute.

Vitter, 46, referred vaguely to the New Orleans-based reports but said that “those stories are not true.”

The first-term Republican said he has worked hard on his marriage and on living by the values he has long espoused as a politician.

“I believe I received forgiveness from God. I know I did from Wendy,” he said. “Unfortunately, my admission has incurred some longtime political enemies and those hoping to profit from this situation to spread falsehoods, too.”

Vitter did not take questions at his news conference Monday, but Wendy Vitter stepped to the podium and called her husband “my best friend.”

“When David and I dealt with this years ago, I forgave David and made the decision to love him and recommit to our marriage,” she said. “To forgive is not always the easy choice, but it was and is the right choice for me.”

Vitter was elected to Congress in 1999 to fill the vacancy left when Rep. Robert Livingston, R-La., resigned amid disclosures of marital indiscretions. Vitter was elected to the Senate in 2004.

U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said she would have no comment on the matter until she speaks with Vitter.

Fox News…We lie…You Believe Us