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Bergdahl's Platoon Mates: Six Died Looking for 'Deserter'
Jun 5, 2014 05:28:37 #
Bergdahl's Platoon Mates: Six Died Looking for 'Deserter'
Monday, 02 Jun 2014 12:24 PM
By Greg Richter and Melanie Batley
What began as a debate over negotiating with terrorists escalated Monday into anger among many armed services members at the attention being given to Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, a man who reportedly fled his post five years ago only to be captured by Afghan insurgents.
Bergdahl was freed Saturday in exchange for five Guantanamo Bay detainees. His release was celebrated at first by Washington politicians, including Republicans, though many felt the United States had broken its longstanding policy of not negotiating with terrorists.
By Monday, that had all changed. Soldiers who served with Bergdahl said they were outraged at the possibility he would be accorded a hero's welcome. He is anything but, they said.
CNN, Rolling Stone, and other media reminded Americans that at least six soldiers were killed in subsequent searches for Bergdahl in rugged Paktika Province in the ensuing days and weeks after he deserted.
The six men reportedly killed while searching for Bergdahl were identified by CNN as Staff Sgt. Clayton Bowen and Pfc. Morris Walker on Aug. 18, 2009; Staff Sgt. Kurt Curtiss on Aug. 26; 2nd Lt. Darryn Andrews and Pfc. Matthew Michael Martinek on Sept. 4; and Staff Sgt. Michael Murphrey on Sept. 5.
"He walked off," said former Pfc. Jose Baggett, a former comrade. "He left his guard post. Nobody knows if he defected, or hes a traitor, or he was kidnapped. What I do know is he was there to protect us, and instead he decided to defer from America and go and do his own thing. I dont know why he decided to do that, but we spent so much of our resources, and some of those resources were soldiers lives."
Bergdahl walked away from his base, reportedly without a weapon, in June 2009 and was captured by the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani network.
Moreover, CNN reported that soldiers in his platoon said attacks seemed to increase against the United States in Paktika Province in the days and weeks following his disappearance.
Richard Grenell, a former U.S. spokesman to the United Nations and partner with Capitol Media Partners, told Newsmax that numerous soldiers who served with Bowe reached out to him to express their anger with the decision.
"I have spoken with several of Bowe Bergdahl's platoon mates, and they are united in their view that Bowe walked away from them, and that many lives were risked and some lost in looking for a guy who willingly left the team," Grenell said.
The outrage quickly made its way into social media. A Facebook page, "Bowe Bergdahl is NOT a hero," went up on Monday, the New York Post reported. It linked to an online petition demanding Bergdahls prosecution.
"Punish Bowe Bergdahl for walking off base with intent to not support the war on terror. Bowe Bergdahl broke several Articles under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and needs to be punished not rewarded," the petition read.
"Bowe Bergdahl directly disobeyed the following articles Article 86 AWOL and Article 85 Desertion. Both articles call for trial by court martial. He is not a hero and is directly responsible for several military members' death. Bring punishment to Bowe Bergdahl and let the public know that the military holds all members to the same standard," the petition states.
Former combat medic Javier Ortiz told The Washington Post, "Regardless of what you learned while being there, we still have a responsibility to the men to our left and right. It's terrible, what he did.
"There were military assets required ... but the problem came of his own accord."
Another unidentified soldier said, "The unit completely changed its operational posture because of something that was selfish, not because a soldier was captured in combat."
CNN's Jake Tapper, who embedded with and wrote a book about soldiers in Afghanistan, also found much anger.
"I was pissed off then, and I am even more so now with everything going on," said former Sgt. Matt Vierkant, a member of Bergdahl's platoon. "Bowe Bergdahl deserted during a time of war, and his fellow Americans lost their lives searching for him."
Bergdahl's former squad leader, Greg Leatherman, told CNN: "I'm pleased to see him returned safely. From experience, I hope that he receives adequate reintegration counseling. I believe that an investigation should take place as soon as healthcare professionals deem him fit to endure one."
According to a 2012 report in Rolling Stone, Bergdahl, now 28, had become disillusioned with his role in America's longest war, sending emails to his parents prior to his disappearance.
"The future is too good to waste on lies. And life is way too short to care for the damnation of others, as well as to spend it helping fools with their ideas that are wrong," Bergdahl reportedly wrote his father. "I have seen their ideas, and I am ashamed to even be american (sic). The horror of the self-righteous arrogance that they thrive in. It is all revolting."
He also attacked the Army, saying it cut down people "for being honest," and rewarded sycophants. "The title of US soldier is just the lie of fools," he wrote. "I am sorry for everything here.
"These people need help, yet what they get is the most conceited country in the world telling them that they are nothing and that they are stupid, that they have no idea how to live.
"We don't even care when we hear each other talk about running their children down in the dirt streets with our armored trucks," he continued. "We make fun of them in front of their faces and laugh at them for not understanding we are insulting them."
His father, Bob, told him in an email, "In matters of life and death, and especially at war, it is never safe to ignore ones' conscience. Ethics demands obedience to our conscience. It is best to also have a systematic oral defense of what our conscience demands. Stand with like-minded men when possible."
Rolling Stone reported that Bergdahl even approached a superior, "If I were to leave the base, would it cause problems if I took my sensitive equipment?" He was told it would, so he left his gun and took just water, a knife, a camera, and his diary, and "slipped off the outpost."
Specialist Jason Fry told Rolling Stone that even before leaving for Afghanistan Bergdahl told him, "If this deployment is lame, I'm just going to walk off into the mountains of Pakistan."
Bergdahl left his camp close to the Pakistani border, on June 30, 2009.
Bergdahl who was promoted from private first class to sergeant during his time in captivity is said to have become increasingly disillusioned with the war after a close friend was killed in Afghanistan.
Though the Obama administration has publicly embraced Bergdahl, one former comrade called on Facebook for him to be executed as a deserter, according to the New York Post.
Bergdahl spent his first night of freedom at the military hospital at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan before being flown to Germany.
He will return to the United States to the Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, reported the Christian Science Monitor.
The five Taliban prisoners released by the United States into the custody of Qatar were described by Sen. John McCain on Sunday as the "hardest of the hardcore." Human Rights Watch has pressed for one of them, Mohammed Fazl, to be prosecuted for war crimes for allegedly presiding over a mass killing of Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan.
"It is disturbing that these individuals would have the ability to re-enter the fight, and they are big, high-level people, possibly responsible for the deaths of thousands," McCain said on "Face the Nation."
The government of Qatar negotiated the deal for the prisoner exchange and is supposed to keep the five Taliban members from leaving the country for at least a year.
"I think the big issue here is what's going to happen to these five individuals," McCain said. "If they re-enter the fight, then it is going to put American lives at risk, and none of us want that to happen."
Comments;
Yet another of Obama's grand schemes blows up in his face!
Already six of this coward's outfit were killed because of his stupidity, and now Obama releases 5 of the "worst of the worst", hoping for a BIG "atta-boy" for "rescuing" one of our "soldiers", who turns out to be a coward and a deserter.
Before this is all over with, more of out soldiers will probably die and the POS who caused it all will end up in prison for life; (or worse! )
On the news today, it was announced that his home town had just cancelled a big "welcome home celebration" for Bergdahl; next they'll be having a "hope you get hanged" celebration.
Monday, 02 Jun 2014 12:24 PM
By Greg Richter and Melanie Batley
What began as a debate over negotiating with terrorists escalated Monday into anger among many armed services members at the attention being given to Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, a man who reportedly fled his post five years ago only to be captured by Afghan insurgents.
Bergdahl was freed Saturday in exchange for five Guantanamo Bay detainees. His release was celebrated at first by Washington politicians, including Republicans, though many felt the United States had broken its longstanding policy of not negotiating with terrorists.
By Monday, that had all changed. Soldiers who served with Bergdahl said they were outraged at the possibility he would be accorded a hero's welcome. He is anything but, they said.
CNN, Rolling Stone, and other media reminded Americans that at least six soldiers were killed in subsequent searches for Bergdahl in rugged Paktika Province in the ensuing days and weeks after he deserted.
The six men reportedly killed while searching for Bergdahl were identified by CNN as Staff Sgt. Clayton Bowen and Pfc. Morris Walker on Aug. 18, 2009; Staff Sgt. Kurt Curtiss on Aug. 26; 2nd Lt. Darryn Andrews and Pfc. Matthew Michael Martinek on Sept. 4; and Staff Sgt. Michael Murphrey on Sept. 5.
"He walked off," said former Pfc. Jose Baggett, a former comrade. "He left his guard post. Nobody knows if he defected, or hes a traitor, or he was kidnapped. What I do know is he was there to protect us, and instead he decided to defer from America and go and do his own thing. I dont know why he decided to do that, but we spent so much of our resources, and some of those resources were soldiers lives."
Bergdahl walked away from his base, reportedly without a weapon, in June 2009 and was captured by the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani network.
Moreover, CNN reported that soldiers in his platoon said attacks seemed to increase against the United States in Paktika Province in the days and weeks following his disappearance.
Richard Grenell, a former U.S. spokesman to the United Nations and partner with Capitol Media Partners, told Newsmax that numerous soldiers who served with Bowe reached out to him to express their anger with the decision.
"I have spoken with several of Bowe Bergdahl's platoon mates, and they are united in their view that Bowe walked away from them, and that many lives were risked and some lost in looking for a guy who willingly left the team," Grenell said.
The outrage quickly made its way into social media. A Facebook page, "Bowe Bergdahl is NOT a hero," went up on Monday, the New York Post reported. It linked to an online petition demanding Bergdahls prosecution.
"Punish Bowe Bergdahl for walking off base with intent to not support the war on terror. Bowe Bergdahl broke several Articles under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and needs to be punished not rewarded," the petition read.
"Bowe Bergdahl directly disobeyed the following articles Article 86 AWOL and Article 85 Desertion. Both articles call for trial by court martial. He is not a hero and is directly responsible for several military members' death. Bring punishment to Bowe Bergdahl and let the public know that the military holds all members to the same standard," the petition states.
Former combat medic Javier Ortiz told The Washington Post, "Regardless of what you learned while being there, we still have a responsibility to the men to our left and right. It's terrible, what he did.
"There were military assets required ... but the problem came of his own accord."
Another unidentified soldier said, "The unit completely changed its operational posture because of something that was selfish, not because a soldier was captured in combat."
CNN's Jake Tapper, who embedded with and wrote a book about soldiers in Afghanistan, also found much anger.
"I was pissed off then, and I am even more so now with everything going on," said former Sgt. Matt Vierkant, a member of Bergdahl's platoon. "Bowe Bergdahl deserted during a time of war, and his fellow Americans lost their lives searching for him."
Bergdahl's former squad leader, Greg Leatherman, told CNN: "I'm pleased to see him returned safely. From experience, I hope that he receives adequate reintegration counseling. I believe that an investigation should take place as soon as healthcare professionals deem him fit to endure one."
According to a 2012 report in Rolling Stone, Bergdahl, now 28, had become disillusioned with his role in America's longest war, sending emails to his parents prior to his disappearance.
"The future is too good to waste on lies. And life is way too short to care for the damnation of others, as well as to spend it helping fools with their ideas that are wrong," Bergdahl reportedly wrote his father. "I have seen their ideas, and I am ashamed to even be american (sic). The horror of the self-righteous arrogance that they thrive in. It is all revolting."
He also attacked the Army, saying it cut down people "for being honest," and rewarded sycophants. "The title of US soldier is just the lie of fools," he wrote. "I am sorry for everything here.
"These people need help, yet what they get is the most conceited country in the world telling them that they are nothing and that they are stupid, that they have no idea how to live.
"We don't even care when we hear each other talk about running their children down in the dirt streets with our armored trucks," he continued. "We make fun of them in front of their faces and laugh at them for not understanding we are insulting them."
His father, Bob, told him in an email, "In matters of life and death, and especially at war, it is never safe to ignore ones' conscience. Ethics demands obedience to our conscience. It is best to also have a systematic oral defense of what our conscience demands. Stand with like-minded men when possible."
Rolling Stone reported that Bergdahl even approached a superior, "If I were to leave the base, would it cause problems if I took my sensitive equipment?" He was told it would, so he left his gun and took just water, a knife, a camera, and his diary, and "slipped off the outpost."
Specialist Jason Fry told Rolling Stone that even before leaving for Afghanistan Bergdahl told him, "If this deployment is lame, I'm just going to walk off into the mountains of Pakistan."
Bergdahl left his camp close to the Pakistani border, on June 30, 2009.
Bergdahl who was promoted from private first class to sergeant during his time in captivity is said to have become increasingly disillusioned with the war after a close friend was killed in Afghanistan.
Though the Obama administration has publicly embraced Bergdahl, one former comrade called on Facebook for him to be executed as a deserter, according to the New York Post.
Bergdahl spent his first night of freedom at the military hospital at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan before being flown to Germany.
He will return to the United States to the Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, reported the Christian Science Monitor.
The five Taliban prisoners released by the United States into the custody of Qatar were described by Sen. John McCain on Sunday as the "hardest of the hardcore." Human Rights Watch has pressed for one of them, Mohammed Fazl, to be prosecuted for war crimes for allegedly presiding over a mass killing of Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan.
"It is disturbing that these individuals would have the ability to re-enter the fight, and they are big, high-level people, possibly responsible for the deaths of thousands," McCain said on "Face the Nation."
The government of Qatar negotiated the deal for the prisoner exchange and is supposed to keep the five Taliban members from leaving the country for at least a year.
"I think the big issue here is what's going to happen to these five individuals," McCain said. "If they re-enter the fight, then it is going to put American lives at risk, and none of us want that to happen."
Comments;
Yet another of Obama's grand schemes blows up in his face!
Already six of this coward's outfit were killed because of his stupidity, and now Obama releases 5 of the "worst of the worst", hoping for a BIG "atta-boy" for "rescuing" one of our "soldiers", who turns out to be a coward and a deserter.
Before this is all over with, more of out soldiers will probably die and the POS who caused it all will end up in prison for life; (or worse! )
On the news today, it was announced that his home town had just cancelled a big "welcome home celebration" for Bergdahl; next they'll be having a "hope you get hanged" celebration.
Jun 5, 2014 05:46:59 #
Gitzo wrote:
Bergdahl's Platoon Mates: Six Died Looking for 'De... (show quote)
while I totally disagree with the way the administration handled this, I don't think this forum is the right place to discuss it
Jun 5, 2014 05:51:11 #
MARTYIV
Loc: On the Wabash
Wanted to share a reply I received re: this weeks "trade" of five high value terrorist for one deserter named Bergdahl.
I've been following this pricks story since 2012 when I first read up on him while I was in Afghanistan. I served there honorably, never abandoned my men, was decorated in combat, promoted to Corporal in country, and brought my four men home alive and well. I called him a pussy, a coward, and a traitor then, and now I consider him a murderer. Who knows what kind of info he gave to the Taliban that affected other units besides the 6 who were killed searching for him. Hell, even my unit could've been affected by some type of information that he gave out. I want him to receive a court martial and upon his conviction of desertion and overall betrayal to the United States, he deserves the firing squad at the minimum. Those five Taliban we released have connections (let alone probably did so) with killing Americans and other NATO forces prior to their capture. This is a huge embarrassment to the nation and one more thing to add as to how weak our nation is becoming due to liberal scum.
I've been following this pricks story since 2012 when I first read up on him while I was in Afghanistan. I served there honorably, never abandoned my men, was decorated in combat, promoted to Corporal in country, and brought my four men home alive and well. I called him a pussy, a coward, and a traitor then, and now I consider him a murderer. Who knows what kind of info he gave to the Taliban that affected other units besides the 6 who were killed searching for him. Hell, even my unit could've been affected by some type of information that he gave out. I want him to receive a court martial and upon his conviction of desertion and overall betrayal to the United States, he deserves the firing squad at the minimum. Those five Taliban we released have connections (let alone probably did so) with killing Americans and other NATO forces prior to their capture. This is a huge embarrassment to the nation and one more thing to add as to how weak our nation is becoming due to liberal scum.
Jun 5, 2014 05:53:29 #
MARTYIV
Loc: On the Wabash
crimesc324 wrote:
while I totally disagree with the way the administration handled this, I don't think this forum is the right place to discuss it
Well.......where is?
Jun 5, 2014 06:03:25 #
Jun 5, 2014 07:21:34 #
MARTYIV wrote:
Well.......where is?
Don't worry about it, Admin will move it for you.
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/s-7-1.html
Jun 5, 2014 07:27:48 #
Check out Astronomical Photography Forum section of our forum.
Jun 5, 2014 08:38:04 #
MARTYIV
Loc: On the Wabash
Searcher wrote:
I see and I won't worry. The way you came on I thought YOU were Admin!
Keep up the good work of being a monitor.
Jun 5, 2014 15:52:53 #
crimesc324 wrote:
while I totally disagree with the way the administration handled this, I don't think this forum is the right place to discuss it
Thanks for noticing; I posted this quite late last night, and I probably forgot to change the default text box to "chit chat" before I posted it; I'll notify the Admin to have him switch it to Chit Chat.
Gitzo
Jun 6, 2014 00:32:57 #
From retired General Stanley McCrystal:
Former top Afghanistan commander retired Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal wants those critical of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl not to rush to judgment before we know the facts.
We dont leave Americans behind. Thats unequivocal, McChrystal said during a Yahoo News interview published Wednesday. McChrystal was commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan when Bergdahl disappeared in June 2009.
He also pushed Americans not to judge the soldier until all the facts are settled. One of the great things about America is we should not judge until we know the facts, he said.
The retired general alluded to past efforts to try to recover the soldier after his disappearance, though he would not confirm whether Bergdahl walked off his base or whether, as some reports have said, troops died while on search missions to find him.
After Sgt. Bergdahl, then Pvt. Bergdahl, came up missing, we did a huge number of operations to try to stop the Taliban from being able to move him across the border into Pakistan, McChrystal said. And we made a great effort and put a lot of people at risk in doing that.
But thats what you should do. Thats what soldiers do for each other, so it wasn't the wrong thing to do, he added.
Former top Afghanistan commander retired Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal wants those critical of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl not to rush to judgment before we know the facts.
We dont leave Americans behind. Thats unequivocal, McChrystal said during a Yahoo News interview published Wednesday. McChrystal was commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan when Bergdahl disappeared in June 2009.
He also pushed Americans not to judge the soldier until all the facts are settled. One of the great things about America is we should not judge until we know the facts, he said.
The retired general alluded to past efforts to try to recover the soldier after his disappearance, though he would not confirm whether Bergdahl walked off his base or whether, as some reports have said, troops died while on search missions to find him.
After Sgt. Bergdahl, then Pvt. Bergdahl, came up missing, we did a huge number of operations to try to stop the Taliban from being able to move him across the border into Pakistan, McChrystal said. And we made a great effort and put a lot of people at risk in doing that.
But thats what you should do. Thats what soldiers do for each other, so it wasn't the wrong thing to do, he added.
Jun 6, 2014 02:33:36 #
I'm wondering why, if these guys who served with Bergdahl "knew" that something was wrong, they didn't report him? Now that the TV cameras and mikes are available, they're coming out of the woodwork. Hmmm, interesting...
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Jun 6, 2014 09:20:28 #
Who are:
Greg Richter and Melanie Batley
and what publication are they from?
Greg Richter and Melanie Batley
and what publication are they from?
Jun 6, 2014 09:51:39 #
From Rolling Stone:
MYTH: Six to eight U.S. soldiers died looking for Bergdahl
Again, this talking point has incredible resonance, because it feels like the kind of thing that really could be true. But as The New York Times has noted, the facts are actually far less clear. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has commented that "I do not know of specific circumstances or details of U.S. solders dying as a result of efforts to find and rescue Sergeant Bergdahl." And blaming Bergdahl's disappearance for every death in Patika province during one of the most deadly periods in the war simply doesn't stand up to close scrutiny. (As an aside, part of the reason we know what we know about Bergdahl's disappearance comes from the Wikileaks trove provided by Army leaker Chelsea Manning further evidence of how valuable that leak was and continues to be.)
Why not wait for the facts to come in?
MYTH: Six to eight U.S. soldiers died looking for Bergdahl
Again, this talking point has incredible resonance, because it feels like the kind of thing that really could be true. But as The New York Times has noted, the facts are actually far less clear. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has commented that "I do not know of specific circumstances or details of U.S. solders dying as a result of efforts to find and rescue Sergeant Bergdahl." And blaming Bergdahl's disappearance for every death in Patika province during one of the most deadly periods in the war simply doesn't stand up to close scrutiny. (As an aside, part of the reason we know what we know about Bergdahl's disappearance comes from the Wikileaks trove provided by Army leaker Chelsea Manning further evidence of how valuable that leak was and continues to be.)
Why not wait for the facts to come in?
Jun 6, 2014 09:55:25 #
Zaruka wrote:
From Rolling Stone: br br MYTH: Six to eight U.S... (show quote)
I've asked that time and again, but the Republicans here appoint themselves judge, jury and executioner. They haven't evolved much.
Jun 6, 2014 10:06:53 #
Zaruka wrote:
From Rolling Stone: br br MYTH: Six to eight U.S... (show quote)
:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
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