Poll | 02/27/2009 12:00 am

Do you think the press should be allowed to publish photos of slain soldiers' coffins as they're brought back to the U.S.?

Read more about: Death, Dying, Journalism, Pentagon, Press, Terrorism, U.S., War

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I agree completely. An honor guard should salute their coffins as they come home and we as a country should see the process an acknowledge the ultimate price they have paid. As I understand it, the practice was stopped a few years ago because it was shown split screen on TV with Bush making a joke. Very thoughtless, indeed.

By Agyness O on 02/27/2009 5:16 pm

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Agy, I remember their doing it during Vietnam, and I frankly can’t remember when it stopped. I think they did it at Granada; can’t remember about Bush 41’s Gulf War.

It is not only respectful to have cameras and honor guards waiting, it also brings the reality of warfare into the living rooms of every American home. That is why the war was stopped in Nam. I call VietNam the first "real time" war, when we saw the realism taking place, uncut to please our sensitivity, broadcasted by Cronkite, Dan Rather, and Brokaw. And, that is when the plain citizens starting objecting noisily. If only they had done it during Bush 43’s "pre-emptive" war, the outcry would have been impossible to ignore. And, that, in my opinion, is why cameras were not allowed, and it is almost as though the coffins were slipped in….

By Diana T on 02/27/2009 6:39 pm

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I agree completely we should honor the these brave souls for their service to our country!

By Tee Zee on 02/28/2009 7:03 pm

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I agree Diana. In an attempt to allow the American people to forget that this war actually involves death, the media was not allowed to photograph the coffins. It is our duty to have to look at them, acknowledge the sacrifice being made, and to pay our respects.

By DeBúrca obj on 02/27/2009 7:28 pm

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And, also, DeB, by physically being involved with our military and the military fallen, the administration must then become accountable for its decision to place those young people in the path of death.

By Diana T on 02/27/2009 10:28 pm

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I agree, Diana!

By C jay on 02/28/2009 10:15 am

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Diana, our "Dora" has asked me to post information about her condition, and I’m won’t do it on this thread, but will somewhere else on the site, today. However, one must look at my Posts to find where I put info about "DORA."

Hugs

By C jay on 02/28/2009 10:18 am

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This is the link: http://www.wowowow.com/question/liz-smith-leaves-new-york-post-best-gossip-221498?page=2#comment-223467

By C jay on 02/28/2009 10:35 am

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I agree. I really think a lot of people don’t realize that it is a real cost of war that people die — they don’t get up and walk off like they do in the movies or in a video game.

So many people said that we should go to war in Iraq, but very few of them had someone in their family that was going to fight it. Some of those same people would discourage their children from joining the military if they had to fight in a war. We should be supplying them with an honor guard, and their wives and children should be given appreciation for their sacrifices as well. Many of those fallen heroes are not active duty military, but rather National Guard and Reserves.

By Patti J on 02/28/2009 12:18 pm

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We need to be back into being participants of our National Conscience. I call this Bushs’ war because we were deceived into starting this pre-emtive war. The National Conscience has every right to be as angry as it is at this time.

By Diana T on 02/28/2009 12:49 pm

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Diana T,

I also believe had we seen our fallen soldiers coming home there would have been a greater outcry to stop the WAR……While all this killing of our soldiers and the innocent Iraq’s was taking place we were watching TV news with barely anything about the War being broadcast. If not for the internet the general American public would be totally uninformed.

Did you see the TV movie last week about the care given a Fallen Soldier being taken home and accompanied by a ranking officer. It was so moving. I had tears in my eyes almost the entire movie. I keep thinking about all the Thousands who were basically snuck back home with no opportunity for all of us being able to honor them.

With all the terrible things Bush did (of course the War itself is the worst) not openly honoring our dead soldiers is one of the worst.

I don’t know how that man can sleep at night.

I hope he has many sleepless nights for the rest of his life. He did so much harm to all Americans.

By Dona Howlett on 03/01/2009 9:27 pm

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You know, Dona, I don’t think he’s gotten it yet after all this we’ve been through. He is caught in a web of denial, and probably has been in it his whole life.

You and I are close enough to the same age to remember how the VietNam war ended. It was the first war in history to come into our living rooms in real time, and it still took years for the public outrage to make it stop.

My son told me how fallen soldiers are cared for; he had to do it a few times when he was a Sea Duty Marine in the 80’s.

By Diana T on 03/01/2009 10:51 pm

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Diana T,

"You know, Dona, I don’t think he’s gotten it yet after all this we’ve been through. He is caught in a web of denial, and probably has been in it his whole life"

You are right Diana……..

The ignorance of some never GET IT……….

I remember seeing Barbara Bush on Larry King a couple of years ago make the statement that it made her furious to hear people say negative things about her son George. She stated that in her opinion her son George was a Perfect Man.

How dilusional can one person be. She’s probably the reason he’s the way he is.

I love my sons dearly…….I would die for them.

None the less I would never be so stupid as to say I thought they were perfect.

By Dona Howlett on 03/02/2009 12:37 am

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Reminds me of my first mother-in-law, who, until her death, refused to acknowledge the alcoholism, womanising and all the "inperfections" of her precious little boy.

By Diana T on 03/02/2009 10:11 am

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YES. The people need to see what’s going on. If the family of the soldier does not object, they can do it. If the family does not want reporters involved, then they won’t do it. Some families want to share their loss with the American people. The real reason that was instituted had nothing to do with protecting hte family. That is just BS. It got put into place during Papa Bush’s administration. What happpened was they were showing on TV, bodies coming from back the first Iraaq war. There was another clip with Bush. He was joking around. He looked very bad. I’m not sure what he was joking around about. But it looked very bad. It was like a big thing at the time. So after that, he ordered that no TV crews, no reporters could be there. Clinton didn’t change that. Bush Jr. certainly didn’t want that changed. The whole purpose of it - it had nothing to do with protecting the family - the way they want to do it now, is the family’s right to privacy - it has to do with basically not letting the public be aware of the deaths resulting from the wars we are getting into. That’s why they blocked off so much access. The Vietnam war ended finally is because the public was furious. Every night on TV they saw clips of the war. I mean, I remember, I’d watch it, and see these big air bases being attacked from the air - you’d See the war. Of course, you never see the war now. And the people who are For war don’t want to show it to the public. They want to run their own war. But this is Our country, it’s not their country. And the Amer.ican people pay the cost of the war. The people that run it want to run it without our knowledge and consent. We should be able to see it!

By N P on 02/27/2009 12:35 am