War dead dumped in landfill.

[dre]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/09/us/dover-remains/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Classy!

[punked]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/09/us/dover-remains/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Classy!

All the way up until Obama took office eh? Hmmmmm.

[Shakeyhands]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/09/us/dover-remains/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Classy!

Wasn't it just parts of.. ummm...people?

[dre]

Wasn't it just parts of.. ummm...people?

Yeah ashes and bone fragments me thinks. I wish I was a fly on the wall in the room where THAT decision got made...

Sir... We're running out of urns...

[bush_cheney2004]

Same thing happens with civilian crematories...you don't get every ash or fragment of your "loved one". Sometimes you even get the residue of somebody elses "loved one".

[Shwa]

From "War dead" to "Ashes from service members' remains" finally to "residual matter."

Slow news day at CNN?

[GostHacked]

Remember the fuss when bone fragments of 9/11 victims were found? Weird difference eh?

[wyly]

From "War dead" to "Ashes from service members' remains" finally to "residual matter."

Slow news day at CNN?

or how civilian casualties become "collateral damage"...why can't people be honest and say "we're sorry, we fucked up"...well maybe not exactly in those words...

[olp1fan]

whats "classy" is how this was used solely to take a cheap shot at the U.S

[DogOnPorch]

Don't want to be a civilian casualty during wartime? Join the military! Problem solved.

[Moonlight Graham]

Wasn't it just parts of.. ummm...people?

Probably not the right decision, but like you said, it's just parts, not bodies. Like a blown-off foot etc. I still wouldn't really like my ankle ashes dumped in a landfill though/

[Guest American Woman]

Probably not the right decision, but like you said, it's just parts, not bodies. Like a blown-off foot etc. I still wouldn't really like my ankle ashes dumped in a landfill though/

What difference does it ultimately make? If a foot is amputated at the hospital, do you take it home with you and have a proper burial?

[GostHacked]

What difference does it ultimately make? If a foot is amputated at the hospital, do you take it home with you and have a proper burial?

We may be just talking body parts, but it's parts from someone who is already dead, not something like an amputation. Is this how the war heroes fighting for your freedoms are treated?

Support the troops!!!

[guyser]

What difference does it ultimately make? If a foot is amputated at the hospital, do you take it home with you and have a proper burial?

Sure, I would !

Formaldehyde !

Then store it on the shelf, right beside Abby Normal's brain.

[Guest American Woman]

We may be just talking body parts, but it's parts from someone who is already dead, not something like an amputation. Is this how the war heroes fighting for your freedoms are treated?

Support the troops!!!

This is your idea of supporting the troops? Seriously? Making sure that the foot of a dead soldier is given a proper burial? I doubt whether that's the level of support most of the troops are looking for. I'm not saying the way the remains were treated was ok, but I don't think it's the horrible act that it's being made out to be, either.

What difference does it make if the person is already dead or not? A body part is still a body part.

If my child/partner/sibling/etc. were killed in an explosion and I retrieved his/her body/ashes, I doubt the idea of their foot not having been gathered with the rest of their body would have any impact on me. Would it you? What difference could it possibly make?

Recognizing the service, the sacrifice, is ultimately what's important. Wouldn't you agree?

[GostHacked]

This is your idea of supporting the troops? Seriously? Making sure that the foot of a dead soldier is given a proper burial? I doubt whether that's the level of support most of the troops are looking for. I'm not saying the way the remains were treated was ok, but I don't think it's the horrible act that it's being made out to be, either.

You might say different if it was a member of your family. I know I'd be quite pissed about it. I prefer that people put their 'support the troops' ribbon/sticker where their mouth is.

What difference does it make if the person is already dead or not? A body part is still a body part.

The dead person can't tell anyone how they would like their remains handled. A person who gets something amputated can say how they want their parts treated.

If my child/partner/sibling/etc. were killed in an explosion and I retrieved his/her body/ashes, I doubt the idea of their foot not having been gathered with the rest of their body would have any impact on me. Would it you? What difference could it possibly make?

It would bother me. We cremated my Oma and my Grandfather and gave them both proper burials. I would be quite upset if those ashes or parts of them ended up in a landfill. We get upset when gravestones are turned over and grave robbers, why would we not be upset about this?

Recognizing the service, the sacrifice, is ultimately what's important. Wouldn't you agree?

I agree, so why don't we treat them with the recognition and respect including a proper burial they deserve because they died to protect your freedoms. We are told to support the troops when they are overseas fighting the good fight, so why would we not support them when they get home, and support them by treating their remains with respect? I guess that's just me.

[Guest American Woman]

You might say different if it was a member of your family. I know I'd be quite pissed about it. I prefer that people put their 'support the troops' ribbon/sticker where their mouth is.

Really? And you don't think you're being selective regarding your "support?" Where else have you spoken out in support of the troops, regarding their mission, their sacrifice, their lives?

Quite frankly, if I lost a loved one in this war, where their foot ended up would be the least of my concerns. I do support the troops. Their lives, their mission, their sacrifice.

The dead person can't tell anyone how they would like their remains handled. A person who gets something amputated can say how they want their parts treated.

True regarding a scheduled amputation, but not always true in the loss of a limb. For example, sometimes a person's body part is blown to smithereens and sometimes it ends up in the belly of a shark.

It would bother me. We cremated my Oma and my Grandfather and gave them both proper burials. I would be quite upset if those ashes or parts of them ended up in a landfill. We get upset when gravestones are turned over and grave robbers, why would we not be upset about this?

Yet we dig up graves all the time in the name of science/anthropology. We study them, we preserve them, we view them in museums. Does that upset you?

Here's the thing. Someone can have a "proper burial" even with a missing body part. People's body parts are blown apart in war - and when they do die, their burial is quite proper.

I agree, so why don't we treat them with the recognition and respect including a proper burial they deserve because they died to protect your freedoms. We are told to support the troops when they are overseas fighting the good fight, so why would we not support them when they get home, and support them by treating their remains with respect? I guess that's just me.

You mean "all their remains." As has been already pointed out, we aren't referring to "war dead," but rather "body parts." As I said, I see treating their memory, their mission, their lives with respect, dignity, and appreciation as much more important. Again, one needn't have their body intact in order to have a proper burial. Out of curiosity, where have you spoken out in support of the troops? - Calling for respect and recognition? I admittedly may very well have missed it, but it seems to me you have not been a huge "support the troops" proponent.

As I said, I'm not condoning what happened, but I don't see it as the horrible act that it's being presented as - especially since the practice has ceased three years ago. Seems to me some people are using it as just another means of criticism - "using" being the operative word.

[guyser]

It would bother me. We cremated my Oma and my Grandfather and gave them both proper burials. I would be quite upset if those ashes or parts of them ended up in a landfill.

Hate to break it to you but some of your Oma and grandfather were left behind when they were cremated.They never get it all , and later on when they clean it out, guess where they put the residue?

Landfill.

[dre]

Here's the thing. Someone can have a "proper burial" even with a missing body part. People's body parts are blown apart in war - and when they do die, their burial is quite proper.

Apparently Defense Secretary Leon Panetta isnt taking this as lightly as you are. He wants an investigation followed by disciplinary action.

[dre]

whats "classy" is how this was used solely to take a cheap shot at the U.S

No it wasnt. "The US" is not responsible for this, and from what we knew the this only happened in one single mortuary.

[dre]

Hate to break it to you but some of your Oma and grandfather were left behind when they were cremated.They never get it all , and later on when they clean it out, guess where they put the residue?

Landfill.

Fair enough, but my impression is that this went beyond just that residue. Top defense people are was saying there was a serious breach of standards at this one mortuary which leads me to believe that something out of the ordinary was happening, that isnt normal procedure.

[Guest American Woman]

Apparently Defense Secretary Leon Panetta isnt taking this as lightly as you are. He wants an investigation followed by disciplinary action.

That doesn't change the truth of my comment, the one you quoted, does it?

Quote

Here's the thing. Someone can have a "proper burial" even with a missing body part. People's body parts are blown apart in war - and when they do die, their burial is quite proper.

Furthermore, I clearly said I didn't think what happened was "ok;" that I simply don't see it as the horrible act it was being presented as. This is under "US politics," with the simple comment of "classy," as if it were procedure, and that's not true; it's also not "war dead being dumped in a landfill" - that is a misrepresentation and misleading.

I also don't think being buried without a lost body part deprives one of a "proper burial." I think the sum of the person, their life, is far greater than that - and I think "supporting the troops" goes far beyond this issue.

That has been my point.

[dre]

That doesn't change the truth of my comment, the one you quoted, does it?

Quote

Here's the thing. Someone can have a "proper burial" even with a missing body part. People's body parts are blown apart in war - and when they do die, their burial is quite proper.

Furthermore, I clearly said I didn't think what happened was "ok;" that I simply don't see it as the horrible act it was being presented as. This is under "US politics," with the simple comment of "classy," as if it were procedure, and that's not true; it's also not "war dead being dumped in a landfill" - that is a misrepresentation and misleading.

I also don't think being buried without a lost body part deprives one of a "proper burial." I think the sum of the person, their life, is far greater than that - and I think "supporting the troops" goes far beyond this issue.

That has been my point.

That doesn't change the truth of my comment, the one you quoted, does it?

It just exposes the fact that "truth" depends on your perspective. Not every agrees that these soldiers were given "proper burial". And trying to compare body parts that are vaporized in war, to ones being thrown in the trash on purpose is a little disengenuous at best.

This is under "US politics," with the simple comment of "classy," as if it were procedure, and that's not true;

The word classy as far as I know, has no literal meaning that pertains to whether something is "procedure" or not. It was simply a comment on the article that reports on what happened in one single mortuary, and nothing more.

[Guest American Woman]

It just exposes the fact that "truth" depends on your perspective. Not every agrees that these soldiers were given "proper burial". And trying to compare body parts that are vaporized in war, to ones being thrown in the trash on purpose is a little disengenuous at best.

My comments have been in response to the idea that if one isn't buried with all of their body parts, it's not a "proper burial;" so "not everyone agrees" that they weren't given a proper burial. One can be angry at what was done, but I don't think that takes away from the soldiers receiving a proper burial. I, for one, would take exception to the idea that my loved one didn't receive a "proper burial" under the circumstances. If there is love, respect, and a service attended by family and friends, I consider it a "proper burial;" that means more to me than the other. So yes, it does depend on one's perspective, which is why I was stating mine.

The word classy as far as I know, has no literal meaning that pertains to whether something is "procedure" or not. It was simply a comment on the article that reports on what happened in one single mortuary, and nothing more.

And I simply commented on my perception of how it was presented, and nothing more.

[dre]

My comments have been in response to the idea that if one isn't buried with all of their body parts, it's not a "proper burial;" so "not everyone agrees" that they weren't given a proper burial. One can be angry at what was done, but I don't think that takes away from the soldiers receiving a proper burial. I, for one, would take exception to the idea that my loved one didn't receive a "proper burial" under the circumstances. If there is love, respect, and a service attended by family and friends, I consider it a "proper burial;" that means more to me than the other. So yes, it does depend on one's perspective, which is why I was stating mine.

And I simply commented on my perception of how it was presented, and nothing more.

One can be angry at what was done, but I don't think that takes away from the soldiers receiving a proper burial.

I think its a stupid, but relatively minor mistake that should get fixed if for no other reason than the optics alone. I dont know if its something to be really "angry" about. We can leave that up to the surviving families to decide I guess.