I will just let Kevin Tillman's letter speak for itself.
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Posted on Oct 19, 2006

Courtesy of the Tillman Family

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 got 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 America has become a country that projects everything that it is not and condemns everything that it is.

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 the more soldiers that die, the more legitimate the illegal invasion becomes.

Somehow American leadership, whose only credit is lying to its people and illegally invading a nation, has been allowed to steal the courage, virtue and honor of its soldiers on the ground.

Somehow those afraid to fight an illegal invasion decades ago are allowed to send soldiers to die for an illegal invasion they started.

Somehow faking character, virtue and strength is tolerated.

Somehow profiting from tragedy and horror is tolerated.

Somehow the death of tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of people is tolerated.

Somehow subversion of the Bill of Rights and The Constitution is tolerated.

Somehow suspension of Habeas Corpus is supposed to keep this country safe.

Somehow torture is tolerated.

Somehow lying is tolerated.

Somehow reason is being discarded for faith, dogma, and nonsense.

Somehow American leadership managed to create a more dangerous world.

Somehow a narrative is more important than reality.

Somehow America has become a country that projects everything that it is not and condemns everything that it is.

Somehow the most reasonable, trusted and respected country in the world has become one of the most irrational, belligerent, feared, and distrusted countries in the world.

Somehow being politically informed, diligent, and skeptical has been replaced by apathy through active ignorance.

Somehow the same incompetent, narcissistic, virtueless, vacuous, malicious criminals are still in charge of this country.

Somehow this is tolerated.

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

Pat Tillman's family being against the war, after his death, is understandable. It is sad that, if he hadn't been a famous football player, he would probably not have been allowed to join the Army, much less the Rangers.

But for other people to exploit his death to justify their political philosophy is just plain morbid.

gimpel, I suppose answering my post after your original comment instead of after my reply was your version of damage control. Look like you are giving an explanation before the question is even asked and also anybody that answers you will just push the OFFENDING post right on down the page. If that isn't the case, why would you reply to your own original post? Are you sure you aren't Karl Rove????

And as far as anyone using his death to justify their own political philosophy I assume you are referring to the Bush administration and the way they LIED about the circumstances of his death???? Or the way they LIED about the circumstances of the capture of Jessica Lynch in an effort to gain support for their ILL CONCEIVED ILLEGITIMATE WAR!!!!!!!

These were just 2 of the many thousands of lies this administration has told. The administration that was going to bring MORALS back to the White House has brought lies, deceit, deception, and a complete lack of integrity and morals.

And for your original talking points about how swimingly well things are going, I'll get back to you on that when I have a little more time also.

I think you might as well hang it up gimpel. People are finally starting to open their eyes up to what a sorry excuse for a president we really have.

To the Tillman family and all other families who have lost loved ones in the war in Iraq, my heart goes out to you, and I pray for you often even though I don’t know each one by name. Loosing a member of your family can be one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. Many have suffered that kind of loss. To the families that lost members on September 11th, 2001 as a result of terrorists attacking on American soil, the firemen and policemen who heroically lost their lives trying to save others, and the people who lost their life, working in a place being attacked by viscious cruel cowards who cannot stand toe to toe and fight like a man, our prayers go out for all of you.

Unfortunately the letter from Kevin Tillman wrote is missing one important ingredient. There is no way to verify whether or not Pat would agree with Kevin’s comments. Another important factor in this blog is that the response of mydtwc had nothing to do with gimpel’s blog.

I am absolutely amazed that there are political leaders and citizens who have politicized the War on Iraq for their own personal and/or party gain. The destructive nature they have brought upon this country is sickening. False, malicious accusations have been the mainstream of the radical liberal Democratic Party, the liberal media, and its supporters.

The War on Terror has had many enemies, and have been found in many nations, but the most effective enemy has been the those in America who try at every step to stop the War on Terror. The most effective weapon the terrorists have used is the news media and Democratic leaders in our Government.

If you do not believe that Saddam Hussein was a terrorist, ask the people of Kuwait and his own people. The big argument is that there were no weapons of mass destruction. If there weren’t, why did Saddam Hussein talk about them? Why did he continually break the agreement he made with President Bush #1? Could it be that he had weapons of mass destruction and thought he could bully his way back into terrorizing the world? Or, could it be that when President Bush went to congress and the Republican and Democrats all agreed to launch an attack against Iraq that everyone knew that Iraq was getting ready to attack someone else again.

Why isn’t the talk about looking for the weapons? Could it be that intelligence has a very good idea as to where they are and are waiting for the right time to get them back? Or, could it be that the investigation is so top secret so that CNN won’t find out and blab what has been discovered to the enemy? They’ve done it before.

I’ve got a great idea, mydtwc, stick to the subject that the blogs is started with.

It must be nice to live in Lala land.

North Korea has not stopped and apologized. Under Clinton we had weapons inspectors in North Korea.

You say the economy is good because the stock market. Yes, the rich are doing great. However the divide between inflation of prices and wages is at an all time high.

Unemployment? People are getting sh**y paying jobs yes, but good jobs? Those are being quickly shipped off overseas in all areas.

No Child Left Behind = pass students even if they do not deserve to pass so we can say they were not left behind.

Final note, why is it so many people get lose and loose confused? Sorry to ask, but I see it often when people mean to write "loser" or "losing."

Oh, the main one I forgot. Bush made gas prices drop? Now how does he take credit for it? Better yet, lets say he did. That means he has control of gas prices. That means he let the gas prices be high, hurting the economy, except for those who own stock in BP and Chevron, until it came election times. Do you know how bad that sounds?

Thanks for the letter mydtwc. It is ashame we can no longer voice our opinions with out being called name, mydtwc. We are either called traitors or unpatriotic. This is the world we live in now. Hopefully, this too shall pass, in 2 years. One day Americans will be able to once again, hold our heads up high and be proud of our country. Until then, mydtwc, people like you and I will be called names and yelled at for speaking our minds. I will not come back here to read the responses, because it will only be filled with name calling and who else knows what type of other insults. Good to all and be safe. It's no longer Terrorists we have to worry about.