Our government likes to claim it appreciates our veterans’ sacrifices to this country, saying, “You serve us, we serve you.” However, this is often not followed up by actions—from the shoddy healthcare veterans receive to the abandonment of veterans’ bodies in morgues. And now, our government has done something even more inexcusable.
Fox News reported that the remains of 274 troops were dumped in a Virginia landfill. When this was made public, The Pentagon vowed to take the “utmost care” of them… after it dropped the ball the first time around.
These remains were partial, incinerated American soldiers who were dumped like garbage in the King George County landfill. These soldiers were cremated between 2004 and 2008.
This report is based on information from a Dover Air Base mortuary database. It was here that many of the remains of soldiers came to rest. The only reason this information was found is because one of the widows refused to give up demanding information about her husband’s remains. Her husband, Sgt. Scott Smith, was killed in 2006 and was a member of a bomb-disposal unit.
Mrs. Smith continued to look into where his remains were placed and, after far too long, got her questions answered. The family members of the fallen often grant the military rights to dispose of the bodies of fallen soldiers, expecting them to be treated with respect for their sacrifice.
These families did not know the military would dump their family members in the landfill. Air Force officials stated to The Washington Post they would not alert the families of these fallen soldiers at all. That’s disgraceful! The families of the fallen deserve to know their family members were put in a landfill like trash.
Military regulations don’t authorize this practice of disposal, yet it has happened numerous times. This particular mortuary has handled the remains of 6,300 troops since 2001, many of which have likely been thrown in the landfill along with the others.
American soldiers sign their lives away. This is the ultimate sacrifice one can make in service of our country. The military breaks soldiers’ bodies with rigorous training and then places them on missions. These soldiers give their blood, sweat, and tears for this country and its people. And now, they don’t even get proper respect in death.
These soldiers are not given tombstones or even urns—instead, they are cremated and then dumped in a public garbage facility to rest next to the previous day’s trash. This is not honoring our soldiers; this is not respecting them as they should be respected.
The Pentagon is doing what it always does—shafting the military to save a bit of money. The Pentagon is also responsible for forcing soldiers to give back their reenlistment bonuses, which was used as an incentive so they would continue to fight. The Pentagon demanded this money back years later, which would ruin the lives of many retired veterans who simply could not afford to pay back this huge sum of money.
Of course, Obama rushed in to “save the day.” He looked like a hero to many, as he forgave the military members of their “debts” to the government, but the Pentagon should have never made this demand, period!
Our government is content to screw over soldiers, cheating them out of their resting places.
Its officials only changes their behavior when the American people find out. Obama and his administration are a disgrace to this country, and they always have been.
