19 year-old national guard lady dies in afghanistan

[CAG]

http://newsok.com/two-soldiers-from-oklahoma-killed-in-afghanistan-this-week/article/3619431#ixzz1cbm237yg

snip

"Dead are Pfc. Sarina Butcher, 19, of Checotah, and Spc. Christopher Gailey, 26, of Ochelata, according to the Department of Defense.

Butcher was the first woman from the Oklahoma National Guard to die in fighting since women were allowed to join the Guard in 1971, according to a release from the Oklahoma National Guard. She was also the youngest Guard soldier to die in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Next time you see Condi Rice or Dick Cheney shilling for more millions to sell their books or give a speech remember this 1-year removed cheerleader from rural oklahoma, dead at age 19.

Read more: http://newsok.com/two-soldiers-from-oklahoma-killed-in-afghanistan-this-week/article/3619431#ixzz1cbpm8Gmc

[Name removed]

1. Deleted sub-thread

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[NYC_SKP]

2. This is really sad, but I want to thank you for posting about her and Christopher.

K/R

And great respect for the lady and gentleman who served their country.

:patriot:

[Name removed]

5. Deleted message

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[msedano]

3. with a 2-yr old daughter

at 19 and an E-3. And Gailey, a 26-yr old E-4 leaves a 3-year old daughter. when is obama going to bring the troops home?

Ironic that when i was in basic in 69 the National Guardsmen were ridiculed for getting out of active duty.

qepd sarina and christopher

mvs

[JVS]

7. Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be National Guard ladies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_a4BU09GrU

[FiveGoodMen]

14. "when is obama going to bring the troops home?"

Based on other reading today, it looks like he'll bring them home just in time to send them to Iran.

[Bigmack]

4. I believe this is called...

"eating our seed corn".

Not just the "national guard lady"...

We're pissing away the lives of some of our finest people for nothing.

Nothing!

[apocalypsehow]

6. Sad news. Thoughts and heart go out to the families. n/t.

[Elsewheres Grandson]

8. I won't be 19 till next year

What a waste of life. We need to gfto NOW.

[Norrin Radd]

13. Welcome to DU. Condolences about your mother.

[burrowowl]

9. Damn! Damn! Damn!

[JohnnyLib2]

10. RIP

[xchrom]

11. Recommend

[Are_grits_groceries]

12. She IS Pfc. Sarina Butcher, and not

a National Guard Lady. She was a soldier who was called up and doing her duty. That she was a 1-year removed cheerleader is sad, but so are 1-year removed students and all others.

We need to quit emphasizing the gender of the soldier and let it be another fact of their life. As long as people are singled out in this manner, then too much attention is paid to that aspect and not to the other information about who they really are.

Women are quite capable of performing many jobs that cause others to shriek about 'her place' and where it should be.

It will be a great day never to have to read about soldiers dying in this misbegotten mission no matter who they are.

[seabeyond]

16. thank you for this post. i agree. nt

[seabeyond]

15. a gentleman died with her, too. i am sorry for their loved ones... nt

[mainer]

17. Yet NO ONE on DU commented on this Asian American 19 year old soldier who died

Yesterday I posted a link to this NYT article about another 19-year-old who died in Afghanistan:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x2229453

Pvt Danny Chen was the only child of a couple in NYC's Chinatown. A soldier who died under suspicious circumstances -- possibly murder, possibly suicide after bullying by his unit. A young man who was found with his body covered with bruises, and a single gunshot wound to his head. As you'll see from the link to my DU post, there was not ONE SINGLE COMMENT from DU.

I guess being Asian American means being invisible even on DU.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/31/nyregion/after-soldiers-death-a-chinatown-family-seeks-answers.html?hp

[seabeyond]

18. point taken. she was a soldier, a woman. that is why i commented on this thread

i dont normally reply to threads about soldiers dying. there are too many. we shouldnt be there.

i didnt read your post

but it is a damn valid point

thank you

[mainer]

19. Thank you for your comment. My post didn't even get one rec.

I was so sad for the parents, who barely speak English. It seems that Pvt Danny Chen's death isn't even worth noting by the white community.

The Asian American community is grieving across the country. Danny wanted to be a cop, and thought that serving in the US Army would be a good experience. But he was bullied, harassed by his comrades for being slight and Asian. And the most shocking thing of all is that not a SINGLE MEMBER of his unit bothered to express any sympathy for his parents. All emails from the NYT to the unit went unanswered.

Personally, I suspect that Danny Chen was murdered by his unit in Afghanistan.

[seabeyond]

31. it is another sad story of the many sad stories

that we have heard in the last decade. you are probably right. and i am sorry. it breaks my heart. thank you for telling me about pvt chen. i dont watch the news and i didnt pick it up on du.

i hope they find the answers. though i have again, seen too many stories, where the answers are never answered.

[county worker]

21. That is a bull shit charge and you know it!

[mainer]

23. Then why did NO ONE mention anything about Danny Chen?

No comments. No recommendations. It just disappeared off the face of DU.

Was it because Pvt Danny Chen was Asian American? Why did no one even bother to express any reaction whatsoever?

Yet this one post about a 19-year-old national guard soldier who died garners all these comments? I'm just wondering what the difference is. Is it because she's a woman, or because she's NOT asian american?

[county worker]

29. I don't know but it wasn't because of his race.

This story gets attention because it was a young woman who was killed.

[mainer]

30. Danny Chen's death was front page in the New York Times

but only after the Asian American community brought it to their attention. And because it appears to have been a murder by his "comrades" in his unit in Afghanistan. He died after being bullied and beaten by members of his unit, and the family doesn't believe the Army when they say it was a suicide.

I'm inclined to agree with the family, especially since none of his comrades bothered to offer any sympathy to the family. The death is under investigation.

I understand that many here may not be aware of his death, even though it was front page on the NYT. I find it disturbing that all soldiers' deaths are not created equal. And Danny Chen is the one whom nobody on DU seems to give a shit about.

[AsahinaKimi]

24. There are times when

I would have to agree. Gomen nasai..

[Brooklyns_Finest]

25. Interesting

As a former Marine, I have seen out an out racism towards Asians, and it would come from all groups (white, black, latino). One of my best buddies from the Corps is a Chinese dude, and while we did teaze him from time to time, he never had to endure some of the stuff I saw in other units. I wouldnt be suprised if some idiot in his unit decided to "off" the kid.

[mainer]

27. What's astonishing are comments that "Asians make bad soldiers"

They appear in response to the New York Times article. And I have to remind them of how we got our asses handed to us in Vietnam.

I always think back to Eisenhower's very wise statement that: "It's not the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog."

[seabeyond]

32. just more ignorant fools. nt

[Brooklyns_Finest]

34. Well

I don't know about us getting our ass handed to us in Vietnam, but we can save that discussion for another day.

I think the issue is that many guys in the military are just knuckleheads who look for easy targets to pick on. Asians are usually (but not always) smaller frame and have fewer numbers to support them in case of altercations. If there were more Asians in the military, you would see less of this. However, racism toward Asians are pretty much a fact of life in the military. Didn't we have a story last week about an Asian kid from California killing himself because he was being abused by his fellow Marines? In that case, I gave the Marines the benefit of the doubt since the kid had fallen asleep on fire watch multiple times, but now I am starting to wonder if there is a trend here?

[county worker]

20. I here ads on a Chicago radio station that I listen too on line for the National Guard.

They talk about how great it feels to help your community in a disaster. They don't tell you that the community is Paktia.

[Ohio Joe]

22. RIP - nt

[WinkyDink]

26. "National Guard lady"?? As opposed to a "National Guard gentleman"?

Just sounds....odd.

[mainer]

28. It's a bit old fashioned. Maybe generational thing.

I'm not gong to criticize anyone over that phrasing. Actually, I think it sounds quaint.

[seabeyond]

33. women can't be women. only girls or ladies. quaint, old fashion?

ok. and for a reason.