Kevin Tillman (Pat's Brother and Special Forces comrade) writes for change

[farmbo]

After Pat's Birthday

Posted on Oct 19, 2006

By Kevin Tillman

Editor's note: Kevin Tillman joined the Army with his brother Pat in 2002, and they served together in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pat was killed in Afghanistan on April 22, 2004. Kevin, who was discharged in 2005, has written a powerful, must-read document.

It is Pat's birthday on November 6, and elections are the day after. It gets me thinking about a conversation I had with Pat before we joined the military. He spoke about the risks with signing the papers. How once we committed, we were at the mercy of the American leadership and the American people. How we could be thrown in a direction not of our volition. How fighting as a soldier would leave us without a voice... until we get out.

Much has happened since we handed over our voice:

Somehow we were sent to invade a nation because it was a direct threat to the American people, or to the world, or harbored terrorists, or was involved in the September 11 attacks, or received weapons-grade uranium from Niger, or had mobile weapons labs, or WMD, or had a need to be liberated, or we needed to establish a democracy, or stop an insurgency, or stop a civil war we created that can't be called a civil war even though it is. Something like that.

Somehow our elected leaders were subverting international law and humanity by setting up secret prisons around the world, secretly kidnapping people, secretly holding them indefinitely, secretly not charging them with anything, secretly torturing them. Somehow that overt policy of torture became the fault of a few "bad apples" in the military.

Somehow back at home, support for the soldiers meant having a five-year-old kindergartener scribble a picture with crayons and send it overseas, or slapping stickers on cars, or lobbying Congress for an extra pad in a helmet. It's interesting that a soldier on his third or fourth tour should care about a drawing from a five-year-old; or a faded sticker on a car as his friends die around him; or an extra pad in a helmet, as if it will protect him when an IED throws his vehicle 50 feet into the air as his body comes apart and his skin melts to the seat.

...

Somehow nobody is accountable for this.

In a democracy, the policy of the leaders is the policy of the people. So don't be shocked when our grandkids bury much of this generation as traitors to the nation, to the world and to humanity. Most likely, they will come to know that "somehow" was nurtured by fear, insecurity and indifference, leaving the country vulnerable to unchecked, unchallenged parasites.

Luckily this country is still a democracy. People still have a voice. People still can take action. It can start after Pat's birthday.

Brother and Friend of Pat Tillman,

Kevin Tillman

[DemonFighterLives]

1. Sounds like he is seeing the light

He should be even more pissed at the way the bush regime used his brother for the hero thing and to push the war and cover up that it was friendly fire.
:dem:

[PaDem]

2. Both Tillman's have always seen the light..........

and the Tillman family is indeed disgusted with the exploitation of Pat's death.

[DemonFighterLives]

5. Thanks for the info

I guess I never followed it that closely. I was irked when the regime used his death for more reason to kill.
:pals:

[greenman3610]

4. Tillman was a patriot who thought Iraq was an illegal action

He signed up after 911 to fight in Afghanistan.
He stopped being a right wing poster boy after it came
out that he was a free thinker and a fan of
Noam Chomsky.

[Toots]

3. Luckily this country is still a democracy.

Sounds like his head is still in the stars. I guess he hasn't heard that we now live completely under "Unitary Executive". The Courts no longer have any power to review or contest any of the Administration's decisions. Bush* truly is the "decider" now, if he says you are a terrorist and wants to lock you away he can and will. He has the say not some court. You no longer are innocent until proved guilty in this new Amerika. You now no longer have the right to even defend yourself. You have no right to ask for a trial or a Lawyer or anything and the courts are now forbidden to interfere. And Rush Limbaugh continues to broadcast his political propaganda on Armed Forces Radio. That is what this country truly needs is the politicalization of the military, don't you think? America is dead and a stiking corpse but long live Amerika...