NationStates Jolt Archive

... at bargain basement prices!

Dear Sir/Madam,
Thank you for your child's sacrifice. You should be proud. Oh yes, and please remember to bring a truck to pick up your child's remains from the airport. It's arriving at 06:45 this Saturday and you will find it on the tarmac of you local airport in the big wooden box marked "Air freight - bulk rates".....

Sincerely,
The Pentagon

Really. (http://www.10news.com/news/5504608/detail.html)


SAN DIEGO -- There's controversy over how the military is transporting the bodies of service members killed overseas, 10News reported.

A local family said fallen soldiers and Marines deserve better and that one would think our war heroes are being transported with dignity, care and respect. It said one would think upon arrival in their hometowns they are greeted with honor. But unfortunately, the family said that is just not the case.

Dead heroes are supposed to come home with their coffins draped with the American flag -- greeted by a color guard.

But in reality, many are arriving as freight on commercial airliners -- stuffed in the belly of a plane with suitcases and other cargo.


John Holley and his wife, Stacey, were stunned when they found out the body of their only child, Matthew John Holley, who died in Iraq last month, would be arriving at Lindbergh Field as freight.

...

The bodies of dead service members arrive at Dover Air Force Base.

From that point, they are sent to their families on commercial airliners.

Reporters from 10News called the Defense Department for an explanation. A representative said she did not know why this is happening.


Anything to save a buck..... that's why.

Government efficiency?

Gotta cut costs so they can afford to maintain all those tax cuts on dividends! IF that means mailing home corpses and cutting food stamps, well a government just has to prioritize right?

I'm all for cutting government spending...

But that's, pardon my french, fucked up. And it better not be FUBAR.

i realize this may sound cold-hearted, but personally I don't see why a dead body should get first class accomodations during shipment as long as the funeral has all the amenities that a family member would expect. they could at least drape a flag over the crate though i spoze.

What the body is in shouldn't upset the parents. Why it's a lifeless body is what should be the upsetting part. At least that's what I would be focusing on.

I remember one of the jodies we sang in Basic... part of it went

If I die in the combat zone,
box me up and ship me home.
Pin my medals on my chest,
tell my mom I did my best.

I don't think that an expectation of better than "pick up your crate at the airport" is unreasonable - especially given what that crate contains....


I think that parents expect to see thier child escorted from the plane in a flag draped coffin. I understand that they DO do that at Dover when they first arrive home, but this process is off-limits as part of the ban to ensure that photos of the ceremonies are not taken.


People want the sacrifice honoured, but the way they go about it seems like the government finds these deaths just .... an inconvenience.

Heck, they can't even guarantee a bugler to play Taps at the funeral (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,71404,00.html) anymore....

At this rate, another year or two and the salute will be downgraded to two boy scouts with BB guns and a kazoo player while your pre-pressed and pre-folded flag (made in China) arrives FedEx... and probably postage due.

I get what you are saying and I really feel for the parents. It's bad enough that their kid has been sent off to die for a reasons that turned out to be misleading (oh how generous I am being here).

That is completely unacceptable. I mean, personally, I attach no great signifigance to a lifeless body, but for a lot of people, it's very important and treating it like it's nothing is offensive. Especially considering what these soldiers were doing and why, the government has a responsibility to ensure that the body and family is treated better than this. A lot better.

Yes indeed. It seems to be part of the Conservative credo to profess to be the ones that "Support the Troops" when debating military matters. And one would think that this support should extend to full honour given to those that fall in the service of their country.


But, it seems, it doesn't - except on the cheap. After all, gotta save a buck here and there to support the maintainence of that dividend tax cut....

Anything to save a buck..... that's why.

Call your Congressman and ask him to raise the defense budget.

Oh, I forgot - you're a Canadian and you don't have a US Congressman...

What I want to know is why the person who wrote that article thinks it's important that he's their only child. Would it be okay if they had 13 kids?

What I want to know is why the person who wrote that article thinks it's important that he's their only child. Would it be okay if they had 13 kids?
My estimations show that it would cut her loss by at least 92%, so I think so.
Which means the whole thing (or at least 92% of it) is her husband's goddamn fault for using condoms. See, the Catholic Church was right, condoms cause grief and suffering.

I'm sorry if I'm not taking this deadly seriously, but, really, who cares? Corpses are corpses, not people and not valuable. Fuck 'em, eat 'em, burn 'em, stick 'em in a hole, the person who was using it certainly can't complain, and neither should you.

... at bargain basement prices!

Anything to save a buck..... that's why.
Sacriledge! :mad:

I bet Silliopolous would be surprised to find out what happens to your body if you had checked "No Rel Pref" on your form. No Religious Preference.

If your family requests burial at a military cemetery, and they go along with the soldier's wish of "No Rel Pref", they put you in the ground, cover you up, and walk away - with no ceremony, no honor guard, no nothing. Your parents get a flag, and that's it.

I bet Silliopolous would be surprised to find out what happens to your body if you had checked "No Rel Pref" on your form. No Religious Preference.

If your family requests burial at a military cemetery, and they go along with the soldier's wish of "No Rel Pref", they put you in the ground, cover you up, and walk away - with no ceremony, no honor guard, no nothing. Your parents get a flag, and that's it.
And your proof of this???

That's not what happened during Vietnam! :p

I remember one of the jodies we sang in Basic... part of it went

If I die in the combat zone,
box me up and ship me home.
Pin my medals on my chest,
tell my mom I did my best.
Heh! I remember that. :)

And your proof of this???

That's not what happened during Vietnam! :p

It's been policy since the mid-1980s - if you say No Rel Pref, and your parents don't request a religious service, and want to follow your wishes, and no military brass find an interest in your funeral (i.e., you didn't win a big medal), they put you in the ground with no ceremony at all.

Oh, well that's different then.

I guess the parents should just be thrilled that they got the body at all!!


:rolleyes:

Oh, well that's different then.

I guess the parents should just be thrilled that they got the body at all!!


:rolleyes:

We were always told - put some religion on that form, or your parents will be upset.

Oh, well that's different then.

I guess the parents should just be thrilled that they got the body at all!!


:rolleyes:
I might add that the "No Rel Pref" is interpreted by the military as "I am an atheist, and would be offended by any display of religion at my burial".

Now remember, everytime an American questions why our fallen soldiers are shipped back home like Omaha Prime Beef on a freight plane the Terrorists win.[/sarcasm]