Quit Hiding Dead Soldiers -- Support H.R. 6662

The Department of Defense would be required to permit journalists to photograph military commemoration ceremonies and memorial services for soldiers who have died on active duty and when their caskets arrive at military installations in the United States under a bill introduced last month by Republican Congressman Walter B. Jones of North Carolina.

The bill, which was referred to the House Committee on Armed Services and currently has no counterpart in the Senate, would go far to undo the impenetrable cloak under which the Pentagon has hidden the ravages of combat from the American public since the 1991 Gulf War.

It is unclear what the purported justification for the outright ban is: there cannot possibly be any security reason for hiding flag-draped coffins from the eyes of the American public. And families cannot legitimately claim privacy interests since the remains and the coffins are not identified.

The sole purpose for banning photos of returning dead soldiers -- through seven years of war in Afghanistan and Iraq and 4,700 American casualties -- is to manipulate public opinion by shielding U.S. citizens from the horror and cruelty of the deaths of young men and women in an increasingly indefensible cause.

The Pentagon is not stupid. They recognize the profound impact that the televised coverage of the Vietnam conflict had -- gory and horrendous footage every evening on the news in our living rooms -- in turning the American public's opinion against that war and forcing Lyndon Johnson from office. Determined to never let that happen again, they imposed a ban during the Gulf War in 1991 on photographing returning military dead at Dover Air Force Base. That, coupled with the more recent embedding of press photographers in the field under the watchful eyes of military officers, provided an impermeable shield, protecting our eyes from any visible proof that soldiers actually die in wars.

Updated in 2003, the policy states, "There will be no arrival ceremonies for, or media coverage of, deceased military personnel returning or departing from Ramstein Air Base or Dover Air Force Base." And the justification has ostensibly been respect for the soldiers and their families.

In introducing the "Fallen Heroes Commemoration Act," with six co-sponsors, Jones, who initially backed authorization of the Iraq war, said, "Without a loved one serving in the military, it is sometimes possible for Americans to overlook the sacrifices that have been made -- and continue to be made, by members of our Armed Forces on behalf of our Nation.

"By once again permitting access to accredited members of the media at military commemoration ceremonies, memorial services conducted by the Armed Forces, and the arrival of the remains of fallen service members at U.S. military installations, this legislation would honor those who have given their lives in defense of our Nation."

Jones said he hopes to hold a hearing in September on the bill, which last week drew the support of the National Press Photographers Association.

(In 2004, The Seattle Times published a stunningly effective but still dignified photo of flag-draped coffins in a plane at the Kuwait International Airport, which was taken surreptitiously by Tami Silicio, an employee of a defense contractor. Silicio was shortly afterward fired from her job.)

Obviously, there is no reason, aside from naked manipulation of public opinion (the "ignorance-is-bliss" theory) to prevent news photographers from documenting the return of flag-draped caskets to the United States. Somehow, the Pentagon believes that if you don't see 'em, they don't really exist - or at least not in the minds of the American public. This charade has gone on long enough and it is time that Congress restores the trust in the American people they deserve: to have the facts and form opinions based on those facts. Not to sanitize the consequences of war, so that maybe we'll forget what it's all about.

Comments

[PioneerKing]

RUTH:

This is only the tip of the iceberg. The real manipulation has been the manner in which the Bush/Cheney administration redefined the definition of the “scope of the battlefield,"
This has allowed them to not include in the daily death tolls the soldiers who were injured / wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan but later died in a hospital or anywhere that was not considered on the battlefield.
Soldiers who committed suicide or those electrocuted by Halliburton/KBR faulty electrical wiring or killed by friendly fire.
Yes, Ruth if you do a LexisNexis search the obituary listings of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan from newspapers will exceed those numbers broadcast by the Bush/Cheney administration.

[quadman]

Once again I must address this ridiculous topic. This ban has been in place since 1991 and was not considered a major issue to repeal it during the Clinton years. The uproar about this now is purely political, IMHO. The fact remains that the Pentagon releases all information about fallen soldiers as that information is confirmed. It is made available to the public. However, this is where the public's right to information ends and a family's right to privacy during a period of grieving. With this in mind, should the family of a fallen sodier wishes for their loved one's coffin to be made available to the cameras of the press, then, and only then, is it appropriate for these pictures to be taken and published. At no point is it appropriate to violate the privacy wishes of the families of fallen soldiers.

[Michale32086]

^^^^^ What HE said...

Michale...­...

[combatveteran]

That is correct. If my my son is killed in Iraq-don't sneak him back into country. That is political.
And by the way, I don't give a damn about Clinton.

[quadman]

By bringing up the Clinton presidency, I was emphasizing that this practice has been in place during three different administrations: Bush 41, Clinton, Bush 43. The point I was making was that this issue was never brought up prior to Iraq. Also, all information (except for coffin pictures) is available for public access on our fallen soldiers. In other words, no fallen soldier is sneaked back into the country. Leaving the choice purely up to the families of our fallen is the morally and ethically best path of action. It respects and honors American dead in a way their families desire it.

If you have a son in Iraq, I hope for his safe return. And God bless.

[Sundialsvc4]

"Congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; "
-- Amendment One
-- The Blee-Blee Piece of Paper

[Michale32086]

"The right to swing your arms ends, where someone else's nose begins."

Michale...­..

[Lemeritus]

Interesting that you would quote Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., that great utilitarian, who felt that the moral worth of an action was determined by its outcome.

[Michale32086]

Or, as someone from the Left so eloquently put it here on HuffPo earlier...

"The First Amendment is not absolute"

Michale...­..

[jollyelle]

We the people should want the whole truth and let people react as they may. We need to see the dead of War. The fundamental problem facing this country is the fact that we are living alongside a government who makes decisions based on political posturing. It changes us, it divides us. There is complete cycle of war, it should be a national effort instead it is "managed" by the Bush Administration. If the war on terror is important, we should all be involved. But it is not on terror, we are at war because we are dependent on oil. Our economy is in huge trouble...­..........­..... this is all connected. We all must ask ourselves what freedom really is? The conclusion must be to see all aspects of war, to see the truth -----to preserve our American community.
That is freedom.

[Michale32086]

Let me ask ya'all something.­..

The Left wants to parade around with pictures of dead soldiers to further their agenda..

How is this any different from the hysterical Right's activities of protesting at soldier's funerals??

Michale...­..

[athenasword]

The truth is, men and women are dying. And for us to ignore their deaths, for the Pentagon to hope no one notices the suffering, is to dishonor their service.

[lincheryl]

This is their version of pro-life. It is hard to convince people that you value life when they see dead soldiers from an unnecessary war that was started with lies. Family values. Right.

[Romulus]

And what would be the purpose of SHOWING these pics if not the "naked manipulation of public opinion?

[Michale32086]

Exactly..

The ban on photographing the dead returning is logical because the hysterical Left would use these images to further their political agenda..

It's that simple..

Michale...­.

[HypocrisyAlarm]

While prohibiting the photographs allows the radical right to further their political agenda . . . It's that simple.