Tuesday, December 07, 2004

The Military Needs to Shoot Straight

“Lying is an accursed vice. It is only our words which bind us together and make us human. If we realized the horror and weight of lying we would see that it is more worthy of the stake than other crimes.”
Michel de Montaigne1533-1592, essayist

Why do people continue to lie? If the truth were told, the victim(s), (whether it is taxpayers or an individual) more often than not, would understand and possibly forgive. Most people are taught this when they are young, by an adult who says, ‘just tell me the truth and you won’t get in trouble,’ but people continue to lie and continue to get in trouble.

The military lied about to pro football quarterback Pat Tillman turned Army Ranger. The Tillman family was originally told he was killed by enemy fire, and then the U.S. Army admitted it was friendly fire provoked by the enemy. Now seven months later, the lie is once again amended, when the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times and report that Afghans who were there said it was an overreaction to an explosion that caused our men to start firing wildly.

The lie told by the military to family, to press and to the world was unnecessary. Once again spineless leaders trying to cover their rear-ends ultimately make an ass of everyone.

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