Remains of 274 US troops dumped in landfill......what a wonderful military we have

Evrythngmatters

Title says it all. This is when you know our country is NOT the greatest in the world anymore. We don't even give a crap about the people who gave their lives for us. I cannot imagine being a parent knowing this is how my son and or daughter was honored for their ultimate sacrifice. No wonder the rest of the world laughs at us now. We have now turned on our own and they are loving every minute of it.
http://news.yahoo.com/remains-274-us-troops-dumped-landfill-report-081234306.html

FTGV

Wtf.

Toolfan66

And soon it will be illegal to wave the American flag like prayer in schools!!!

Dennis Gardner

I think the fact that 274 soldiers had families that didn't want to deal with the remains themselves is the problem. These were remains left for the military to deal with.

stuwee

Although I might not have the right answer, this has been going on for centuries from every country in bad times...no excuse I know, but let's cut some slack to the folks in charge, there are many, many reasons why this might have happened, we weren't there, it's not like we all haven't had them in our thoughts and prayers all this time, that means more than where the body (just a shell of who they were here) wound up. Sorry, I never understood this whole body respect thing, it's just a body, the person is no longer with it.

inspiredsports

I'm not sure how to think about this one. Where you put a physical body is one thing, but once a body has been cremated it doesn't seem like you could do much worse to it. I certainly don't appreciate these soldiers ultimate sacrifice any less because of where there ashes were placed.

An urn of ashes really is just symbolic if you think about it. Their families would have claimed the ashes if they wanted them. If they didn't have family, the symbolism is pretty much irrelevent.

Tony M

The ashes should have respectfully been dispersed somewhere else in my opinion. My mother-in laws ashes were dispersed into the ocean surrounded by all family members to witness. It was the last her family would ever see of her phisical remains but they were remains.

Couldn't a military plane disperse the ashs over our vast country from 3,000 ft. SOMEWHERE else?

As it is now and will always be, Osama Bin Laden had a better remains burial from our country than the 274 soldiers' remains. Am I Right?

VR3

Yeah I would think you could just dump them in the ocean and be done..

Its not like... "Fallen Soliders Ashes mixed in with concrete to form military memorial..." still strange and all but better than trash heap

Systems

I would not have thought it would even be legal to put human remains in a landfill.
Unbelievable shame!

tonyb

tony millard wrote: »

As it is now and will always be, Osama Bin Laden had a better remains burial from our country than the 274 soldiers' remains. Am I Right?

That says it all right there.
The least they could do is give these cremated remains a specific burial plot, after all, how much room does ashes take up ? To dump them with the garbage is just plain disrespectfull to our country and those soldiers. The fact that some may be just body parts is irrelevant. A simple 6 foot grave can hold alot of ashes.

tonyb

pepster wrote: »

I would not have thought it would even be legal to put human remains in a landfill.
Unbelievable shame!

For you and I it probably is illegal....but since when did something illegal ever stop our government ?

txcoastal1

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/07/pearl-harbor-survivors-return-to-ships-after-death/


Simple....enough said

nooshinjohn

stuwee wrote: »

Although I might not have the right answer, this has been going on for centuries from every country in bad times...no excuse I know, but let's cut some slack to the folks in charge, there are many, many reasons why this might have happened, we weren't there, it's not like we all haven't had them in our thoughts and prayers all this time, that means more than where the body (just a shell of who they were here) wound up. Sorry, I never understood this whole body respect thing, it's just a body, the person is no longer with it.

EPIC FAIL right here^^^:evil:

These men and quite possibly women too, have given everything sio that you are free to believe that rubbish you posted. Their souls have indeed left their mortal remains, but regardless of whether a family stepped forward to claim their bodies, their sacrifice should have been met with the highest honors our nation can give them. I find your position to be horrific at best, and it strikes at the very core of what is wrong with our country. If we don't give a **** about the remains of those that safeguard our freedoms, then our liberties are already lost. Shame on you and shame on those that did this to the bravest of us all.

Those responsible for this travesty should be severely punished. I apologize in advance if this appears to some to be over the top, but you all know how strongly I feel about everyone that has or willl someday wear the uniform of a U.S. Service-member. They serve us with dignity and HONOR and deserve no less in return. The lost "274th" got neither. I shed more than a couple tears when I saw this story today...

Syndil

...the families of the fallen troops, who had authorized the military to dispose of the remains in a respectful and dignified manner...

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Landfills may not be glamorous, but I would have no problem having my own ashes spread in a landfill. It's how we, as human beings, return things to the earth. So I don't really see what the fuss is about.

Sherardp

I think dumping the remains at sea would be a better choice. Having these guys remains dumped in a landfill just seems low end to me. The Commander Officer should definitely be relieved of duty over it though.

nooshinjohn

Syndil wrote: »

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Landfills may not be glamorous, but I would have no problem having my own ashes spread in a landfill. It's how we, as human beings, return things to the earth. So I don't really see what the fuss is about.

The piece you chose to quote is contrary to your statement. If you have never picked up a weapon and stood a post defending this nation, I suggest you watch "Saving Private Ryan", "Flag of Our Fathers", and the "Band of Brothers" series. Tell me the tens of thousands of men and women that rest at Arlington National Cemetary are just dead bodies so who cares what happens to them.

War and defending our freedoms are not an effing video game you can turn off and forget about. Real people die for those freedoms, and their remains should be afforded the highest respect and honor. Better that the ashes of the "274th" be spread among the trees and flowers of Arlington than spread amongst garbage and forgotten. I have taken to calling them the "274th Lost Souls Regiment" and they will never be forgotten by me. I intend to ask that my Congressman investigate this travesty, and if he won't, I will find one that will.

Syndil

I've said my opinion and I stand by it. You see a pile of garbage, I see a future park. Calling for resignations over this... Really?

inspiredsports

tony millard wrote: »

The ashes should have respectfully been dispersed somewhere else in my opinion. My mother-in laws ashes were dispersed into the ocean surrounded by all family members to witness. It was the last her family would ever see of her phisical remains but they were remains.

Couldn't a military plane disperse the ashs over our vast country from 3,000 ft. SOMEWHERE else?

As it is now and will always be, Osama Bin Laden had a better remains burial from our country than the 274 soldiers' remains. Am I Right?

By air or at sea from an Air Force plane or Navy vessel is a great idea.

dorokusai

I don't want to be scattered in a landfill but I'm not super concerned with my remains after I'm gone either. This should have and could easily have been handled in a better way. I would have personally taken those remains at my own expense and ensured a proper and honorable dispersal. This is completely unacceptable.

swb502

I find the opening statement "is is when you know our country is NOT the greatest in the world anymore" far more insulting then a mishandling of remains. What you do with people in life is far more important then what happens when we die. Having people say where not the greatest country in the world; given credence to our enemies actions. The conflict in front of it US is growing, the Muslim spring has yielded one fundamentalist government in Tunisia, it seems all but guaranteed Egypt and Libya are going that way, Yemen could be soon behind, with Somalia still in shambles. A third of Mexico is out of government control, China is actively trying to enter with force into the first world, Putin is about to take the reigns in Russia again. The nuclear wild cards of Iran and North Korea still loom. While we might not have the battle's of WW2 the stress is still there.

Having the public ignore those things and say we have fallen as a country makes it all the harder for us to do our duty.

SDA1C

An absolute travesty!

GMiller

My take on this was that there were a lot of individual parts of remains, rather than relatively intact bodies. To me, that is then medical waste, rather than parts of bodies. Would it be expected that one having a limb taken off surgically be responsible for it's disposal? No, that is medical waste. Where do you think medical waste is disposed of?
If I am correct, all bodies and body parts go through Dover. At Dover, using DNA, PARTIAL REMAINS are identified. Those remains are then sent on to the family. Sorry, but there are going to be a lot of parts left over. Should every bit of tissue be identified?! The NBC piece I saw said that over 4 years more than 2700 body parts came in, with 1000 pieces ID'd as having come from 274 service personnel. The piece only showed the AF officer's explanation for 3 seconds! Come on, that is patently inflammatory!
To characterize this as even "mishandling" is ridiculous. Body parts ending up in a landfill is commonplace.

nguyendot

Horrible. Some people have no respect.

SDA1C

GMiller wrote: »

My take on this was that there were a lot of individual parts of remains, rather than relatively intact bodies. To me, that is then medical waste, rather than parts of bodies. Would it be expected that one having a limb taken off surgically be responsible for it's disposal? No, that is medical waste. Where do you think medical waste is disposed of?
If I am correct, all bodies and body parts go through Dover. At Dover, using DNA, PARTIAL REMAINS are identified. Those remains are then sent on to the family. Sorry, but there are going to be a lot of parts left over. Should every bit of tissue be identified?! The NBC piece I saw said that over 4 years more than 2700 body parts came in, with 1000 pieces ID'd as having come from 274 service personnel. The piece only showed the AF officer's explanation for 3 seconds! Come on, that is patently inflammatory!


Fair enough...But I do differ on the fact that medical waste and military war remains should be handled differently. If it is known to be military (Having served my time as well) I fell there should be a proper burial/cremation/spreading of ashes even if its a mass or group burial.

MY.02 1C

ryanjoachim

I'm one of those people who couldn't care less what happens to my "remains" after I die. I'm dead...what does it matter?

The men and women were already honored for what they did in life, so what's the point of honoring a dead shell?

It all comes down to religion and personal preference. As shown above, plenty of people care as much about dead bodies as they do the living ones, which is fine.

I will agree that there could have been a better choice of where to put the ashes (or remains...they're not completely clear about exactly what was found), but that's not for me to decide.

nooshinjohn

GMiller wrote: »

My take on this was that there were a lot of individual parts of remains, rather than relatively intact bodies. To me, that is then medical waste, rather than parts of bodies.

If all they had of these soldiers was a pinkie toe and a pubic hair from each, these remains still deserved better than a fu@#ing landfill! Let's put faces on these souls and say it was YOUR mother or father, maybe even your child or wife and this was done to them! I am willing to bet there would be outrage and lawsuits.

As I have said in an earlier post, something is fundamentally wrong with our country if so many believe as you do. I am not a religious person by any means, but I do believe that the respect and love we show our family and friends in life should be extended to them in death.

I visit the graves of my step father and both of my grand fathers every time i return to Minnesota for a visit. They are a big part of who I am and I honor them for it still. Respect for the dead and the living is one of the things that set us apart from animals. Sadly, as I look around our world these days, I think maybe he are not as civilized as we used to be. I guess when we have no respect anymore for the living, why give two sh!ts about those that have gone before us

Syndil

GMiller wrote: »

My take on this was that there were a lot of individual parts of remains, rather than relatively intact bodies. To me, that is then medical waste, rather than parts of bodies.

From the first line of the article:

The US Air Force dumped the cremated, partial remains...

Ashes were dumped, not limbs and body parts.

nooshinjohn

Syndil wrote: »

Ashes were dumped, not limbs and body parts.

Ashes are still remains of a human being. Would your attitude still be the same if this was done to someone you deeply cared about? I am willing to be that answer would be a big NO!

Even if the families did not step forward to claim them, they were the sons and daughters of a supposedly "grateful Nation"... Every American of 75 years ago would be absolutely livid over this, that their soldiers remains would be disrespected in such a horrific manner. From what I see in this thead, about 50% of us could now care less. How sad a comentary on where we are as a nation is that?


I am out on this one. God bless the 274th.

Joe08867

The remains be it ashes or whatever deserve better than a landfill.

The commanding officer and all involved should be ashamed of themselves.

GMiller

I guess I just wouldn't characterize this as "disrespect" in a "horrible manner", and it goes without saying everyone can have an opinion. I just wish ALL the facts were presented, rather than a brief sensationalized bit that uses emotion to stir the masses. People have enough to worry about without this crap.

I agree, a simple ceremony would have been easy. For all we know, there may have been a ceremony prior to the disposal of the medical waste. I can't see our military being as callous as you are assuming.

mrbigbluelight

Syndil wrote: »

I've said my opinion and I stand by it. You see a pile of garbage, I see a future park. Calling for resignations over this... Really?

Resignations of those responsible, military or civilian, would not be appropriate, IMO.

No, the appropriate action would be along the lines that I envisioned for those responsible for the Walter Reed Hospital "Let "Em Care for Themselves" disgrace: High noon, middle of Pennsylvania Aveneu, blindfold (if they wish), and a firing squad.

Bad, good, or indifferent on the police actions in the Middle East, those who went and came home in a body bag or urn deserve better than a GD dump.

Nobody to claim the body/ashes ? Then GD treat them with twice the respect.