12.28.2006

As Bush Pats Himself On The Back About Iraq, Consider This

Posted at The Blue State and what I consider required reading before we accept what Bush's usual suspects will announce about Iraq:

Here is just a taste of what this war is doing to military families:
    Army Reservist James E. Dean had already served 18 months in Afghanistan when he was notified three weeks ago that he would be deployed to Iraq later this month. The prospect of returning to war sent the St. Mary's County resident into a spiral of depression, a neighbor said.

    Despondent about his orders, Dean barricaded himself inside his father's home with several weapons on Christmas, threatening to kill himself. After a 14-hour standoff with authorities, Dean was killed yesterday by a police officer after he aimed a gun at another officer, police said.

    Wanda Matthews, who lives next door to Dean's father and said she thought of the younger man as a son, described him as a "very good boy."

    "His dad told me that he didn't want to go to war," Matthews said. "He had already been out there and didn't want to go again."
I believe this phenomenon is referred to as "suicide by cop."