His wife and kids are victims too. But of who? His commanding
officers perhaps. Those that used him once too many times.

Bearing in mind that this man is innocent until proven guilty, I still have to call BS on all the excuses that are being made about how this guy is a victim. That dishonors every combat soldier in theater that chooses not to deal with his/her issues by killing women and children. What next, we make excuses for Ted Bundy because his mother abandoned him?

Most everyone who goes apeshit and massacres multiple people was dealt some sort of shitsandwich by life...do they all get free passes, or just soldiers?

Fish on...

Todd

Yes it is...and there's no way to make it less than it is...but soldiers who turn mass murderer aren't the only mass murderers who have had schit go sideways in their lives.

Fish on...

Todd

We need to get out of there NOW!! No way any of our fine patriots should have to do four tours in a hell hole. Why doesn't Obama or any of the Rs stand up and say let's stop this nonsense. WTF do we think we will accomplish with another summer there?

I heard yesterday that suicides and attempted suicides among our service people are through the roof. We are quick to send them, off to war - slow to take care of them when they return. 32,000 wounded in Iraq. It a damn crime.

This from Washington Post

LAST YEAR, 143 soldiers, 41 sailors, 41 Marines and 31 airmen took their own lives. For the first time, suicides in the Army have outpaced the rate for the same demographic group in the nation at large, with the highest number since the Pentagon began keeping track in 1980.

Chuck, no I have not served in the Armed Forces. Does your question mean that for every other mass murderer, we can only understand if we have been:

orphaned
sexually abused
had drug addicted parents
lost family members due to murder
locked up in the home

I am very appreciative of this man's service and his mental state should absolutely be used as a mitigating factor in sentencing (if found guilty). But, it can never be used as an excuse for the act itself unless you are willing to let everyone else use any excuse that they have.

There is no excuse. However, there are apparently some mitigating
circumstances. What he did, based on his training and who he is
is absolutely insane. For what it's worth I cannot accept the fact
that if he had just ate a bullet it would be no big deal. The chit
that goes on in the sand box called the ME is truly what the Heart
of Darkenss is all about.

Aunty, you are now dancing on the head of a pin. Some excuses for mass murder are more worthy than others. I don't consider myself unempathatetic in this, or any other, case. However, there has to be a reason why the other combat soldiers in theater have not resorted to this.

Could it be that no two humans are exactly alike and react to stress in different ways ?

I think you fell off the pin.


What more can be said ?
It's a shiddy deal.......

Just try to walk in another man's shoes. There is no limit to the depths
or the heights that man can fathom.
Even so his alleged acts are unacceptable. Who will share his guilt?
I know eddie, not you.

I'm not sure if you guys are purposely and willingly misinterpreting what eddie says, or just not getting it...and I hate to say it, but it looks a lot more like purposely and willingly misinterpreting it to me.

Fish on...

Todd

I know what he's saying and I disagree.

Mostly bad is going to come out of this. That's a given.
But maybe some good.
Maybe we need to be more careful when we're thinking about sending our troops off to war.
Because when we do, we are agreeing to risking tragedies like this.

We opened up two simultaneous, long duration wars.
Sent warriors on multiple tours.
The law of averages caught up.

There's a ton of blame to go around, and it starts with being there in the first place, a whole bunch of fault in between there and here, and then with the guy who pulled the trigger a couple hundred times.

None of them gets a free pass, including him, to my mind...the bummer is that he, as always, will be the scapegoat for the rest while getting his just deserves.

Fish on...

Todd

It's looking like Todd will get his "bad soldier" wish. Seems this SSgt was bilking oldsters out of a ton of cash and in legal troubles up to his neck when he enlisted to run away from his obligations. Ugh.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse.
I'll wait for the facts.

I have no such wish...in fact, the only wish I have is that this, and whatever contributed to causing, had never happened.

Fish on...

Todd

P.S. The "bad soldier" thing is kind of a given when you take your weapon and purposely shoot fourteen or fifteen civilians, mostly women and children.

I agree that no good will come out of this, but I'll be damned if I draw distinctions between mass murderers. Everyone has an excuse, let one in you have to let them all in. Is that what you guys want?

Aunty, I remember that you and a couple others were with me in questioning whether going into Afghanistan and Iraq was in the best interest of the US. Notwithstanding the collateral damage that this soldier represents, it was still a terrible decision (especially Iraq).

Shades of the old 7th Cavalry. But he didn't have the Son of Morning
Star for an ossifer.

Not pulling the trigger on himself shows he was a true coward.