Obama to review Dover policy

[DevsDad]

I read the post today and felt I just had to speak out. My son performs the duty at Dover on occasion (they rotate the duty at 8th & I). From what he has shared with me it is an extreemly solemn task carried out with the utmost respect and dignity it rightfully deserves. I simply can not imagine having the media there would do anything but disrupt and cheapen the event. Does anyone really think that todays media would view any pictures taken as anything but another opportunity to sway the public to thier liberal way of thinking? That is not what these heroes paid the ultimate sacrifice for. To have thier deaths be used as just another anti-war blurb in the news sickens me. Joe Bidens quote is eaqually wrong. These brave young men are not "snuck" into the country. It is precisley for the reasons of privacy, dignity, and respect that these events take place when they do.

[Katzman]

I agree with you 100%. If I wanted someone to photograph me coming home in a casket, I would say so.

[jerryk]

I Agree Also ,for I Did The Escort Duty When In Vietnam Do Not Show Disrespect To A Person That Died For His Or Her Country By The Media To Be There Not Something To Show On Tv To Make Money Off Of

[GySgtRet]

Politicians like Biden and the like just don't get it. It doesn't need to made public the media maggots would like to do any negative campaign for their headlines. It sickens me to this that the bottom line comes at the expense of our fallen heros.

My 2 cents
Gunny out
Semper Fi

[marinemom]

As someone who met the loved one not in the way I would have wished , this tells me that someone who has never served - and only showed concern for military families as a campaign issue - does not comprehend with what he is trying to deal.

He need letters, lots and lots and lots of letters, and so do the members of Congress - I'llwrite mine today - how about the rest of you?

[wolf0259]

Considering all the "behind the scenes" negative press I have seen and heard about Obama when it comes to the military and proper respect, this does not surprise me.

[Lupo22]

Marinemom, great idea. I lost my uncle in Korea long before I was a thought in my dads head, and still chose to follow in his footsteps.

The media would cheapen everything.

Maybe someone could post a generic letter for people to just print and mail? I'll make mine a little more personal though.

[Mattjd]

I also read a similar article about Obama's plan. From what i got out of the article the family members have to agree to have the photos/footage made public. They can't publish anything withouth the family's consent. I still don't see the need to change the policy though.

[Alisium]

Yeah, other than to exploit our fallen for political agendas, there is no reason for the media to want access.

[marinemom]

OK - this was an editorial in today's Washington Post - if they get it - one of the most liberal papers in the country - what is wrong with the Administration?????


A Respectful Homecoming
Privacy drives a sensible new policy on the coffins of war.


Sunday, March 1, 2009; Page A16

"WE SHOULD not presume to make the decision for the families; we should actually let them make it." With that eminently sensible -- and decent -- explanation, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced reversal of the ban on media coverage of the return of Americans killed in wars. No matter what one's views on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Americans would do well to heed Mr. Gates in thinking about the families who have lost loved ones, rather than using their grief to make political points.

Mr. Gates's decision, announced Thursday, reverses an 18-year-old military policy that barred the media from photographing the flag-covered coffins of America's war dead as they are returned to the country. Details are still being worked out, but the new policy will give family members the final say in whether the media can cover the ceremonies at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. As such, it would be similar to rules governing press coverage of funerals at Arlington National Cemetery.

It was distasteful the way the bodies of America's fallen got caught up in the political debate over the war in Iraq, and to a lesser extent Afghanistan. War critics charged that the Bush administration was trying to hide the cost of war, even though the ban predated the current conflicts. Supporters of the war accused opponents of wanting to turn the caskets into antiwar propaganda, even as some veteran families saw the images as honoring their loved ones.

As members of the press, we well know that our presence can be seen as intrusive and exploitative or a desired way of focusing attention on a subject or individual. Mr. Gates is right: The only people with any business making that choice are the mothers and fathers, wives and husbands and children of the servicemen and women who gave their lives in noble service to country.

[FrankNunez1986]

I hate to be the odd one out, although i've never been to theatre, I think photographs/media of the ceremony, as long as it's done with respect reminds Americans that this war is still going, and there are still casualties.

I could understand if the Marine or family dosn't want to be shown, then that would be different. Personally, if anything were to ever happen to me, I wouldn't mind photographs of me coming home, because I gave the ultimate sacrifice, and I'd want my family to have photos of my return. Just my opionion, didn't mean to offend anyone

[Gallic Gun]

Yeah, other than to exploit our fallen for political agendas, there is no reason for the media to want access.

I agree with you 100%.
Don't they have enough to be concerned about right now, such as, oh I don't know, doing all they can to make sure they don't have any casualties to take pictures of?

[DobbinsBlythe]

I hate to be the odd one out, although i've never been to theatre, I think photographs/media of the ceremony, as long as it's done with respect reminds Americans that this war is still going, and there are still casualties.

I could understand if the Marine or family dosn't want to be shown, then that would be different. Personally, if anything were to ever happen to me, I wouldn't mind photographs of me coming home, because I gave the ultimate sacrifice, and I'd want my family to have photos of my return. Just my opionion, didn't mean to offend anyone

The problem with this is, when media do pictures, there's always a different spin. Politicians with no military background should not have a say in these things. Honestly, most of them come from Harvard and Yale and Ivy league schools--most of which try to ban ROTC programs from their campuses and have the funds to refuse Federal funding anyway. So how can schools who are so anti-military produce graduates and lawyers and politicians who ARE pro-military? Simply put, they don't give a crap about our families or Marines, Soldiers, Airmen, or Sailors.. I agree with the statements above that stated the use of pro-military statements are simply propaganda toward making a politician more popular to gain more money for themselves.

I would like to see a President and an Administration actually do something for the military...vs. TALKING about it.



Case in point--I went to a movie premiere the other night with my friend who's a model in Hollywood. I was the only military spouse invited. There was a letter from President Obama that talked about the importance of the movie "American Identity." I thought that was great and all, but when some of the Hollywood types started talking about how much this administration has done for military families.. I had to roll my eyes and prop my head on my hands. All the liberal media-fed actors and actresses in the audience were applauding... but the TWO Marines invited, Myself, and one Soldier in the audience just stood still.

One actor said to me "so, I take it you're not a fan of Obama?" I then replied with "The decisions of this Administration directly affect my life, and my family's life, and I haven't seen a single thing come from this administration that has affected my life positively."

I only hope that people stop feeding the liberal hype and that people will use the media for good, but that's just too much.

Only pictures I'd want taken of me if I die are from a photographer hired to create memorabilia for my family... not Media.. who have every intention of skewing something sacred to the fear of the general public.

UGH