Why Not Just Send In The Military? *Open Thread*

No doubt you have heard that Obama’s initial response to the Ebola crises in West Africa was to send in our military. That is particularly meaningful to this area since we have an Air Force base here, and they are flying some of the C-17 missions there (they aren’t worried since they follow protocol, according to the article).

And now, Obama has taken that damn pen of his and signed an Executive Order to send in National Guard active duty and reservists. Here’s why:

[…] NBC News reported President Barack Obama is preparing an executive order to send National Guard active duty and reserve engineers and logistical specialists to Liberia build Ebola treatment centers there.

And word that the White House plans yet another foreign duty for a military corps built and intended for use to help Americans deal with crises and disasters on American soil was not being welcomed on the home front. […] (Click here to read the rest, including some good Tweets on the subject.)

Gee – what could POSSIBLY go wrong with that little idea, huh? Uh, yeah.

And how about sending our military (and National Guard) into harm’s way? The mother of an active duty soldier had a WHOLE lot to say on this topic this week in an interview with WND (h/t Facebook friend who posted this via RightWingNews). Here is some of what Judy Turner had to say to WND:

Amid the Defense Department’s vague explanations of the mission of U.S. troops deployed in West Africa, the mother of one soldier who already has done tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan is expressing outrage.

“I am constantly amazed at the myriad ways this government finds to put my military son’s life in danger,” Judy Turner told WND.

She explained simply the president is “exposing all of those soldiers to a potentially fatal disease.”

“They are not medical units; they are not trained medically,” she said. “They are not social workers. My son has said before that he’s not a peacekeeper and he’s not a medical missionary. He says he doesn’t want to be. So, why are doing this? What is the purpose? Tell me!”

The highly contagious and often fatal Ebola virus has claimed more than 4,000 lives in West Africa. Defense officials say the soldiers will be given protective gear. But Turner has some knowledge of such specialized clothing, having worked at a nuclear power plant.

“It was a process that I had to go through, and it took at least two people to help me go through putting on the protective gear for radiation. I know what that kind of process entails, and he’s never been taught that. We had to put on protective gear to cover every inch of skin. We had to put on special booties and we had to know how to put on all of that gear,” she explained.

“Are they going to train him? How much training is he going to get, and how much training are the other soldiers going to get? Are they going to double and triple glove? Are they going to require oxygen gear? And if so, how long is their supply going to last?” Turner said.

Turner makes a lot of great points: they are not social workers, they are not medically trained, and are they going to BE trained for all of the protective gear they need to wear?

But those weren’t all the questions Turner had (from WND):

Turner also questions if there will be any rules of engagement if the soldiers deployed to Liberia encounter hostile activity.

“What if they end up having people shooting at them? Are they going to be allowed to shoot back? It’s just crazy. There are so many questions and no answers,” Turner said.

WND previously has reported the difficulty the Defense Department has had defining the Ebola mission.

The government has confirmed that an estimated 4,000 troops are being deployed. Defense officials have said the military will “support” the civilian-led response and construct a “command center,” treatment centers and training centers, even though private companies currently are hiring construction crews for various projects there.

That’s a whole boatload of people to be sending into an area where a deadly disease is running rampant, isn’t it? How likely is it that they will NOT bring something back with them? A couple of retired Army generals men have something to say about that:

[…] In exclusive interviews with WND, retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. William “Jerry” Boykin and retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Paul E. Vallely condemned Obama’s decision to deploy troops to West Africa, arguing they could bring the virus to the United States or to other units.

That’s pretty much what I figured.

Ms. Turner had more to say, though, about Obama’s decision-making on this issue (and this was before Obama appointed an Ebola czar, which he just did Friday morning): Turner said the deployment decision is like Obama woke up at night and said:

[…] “‘Oh, I know, we’ll send the military. That’s what we’ll do.”

“He never consults anyone; he just makes these decisions with no input,” she charged.

Turner said her concerns were raised during her son’s most recent deployment to Afghanistan.

“It was in 2013. What were they doing there? What was their mission? They didn’t have a clear mission, and I didn’t understand why he was sent there again,” she said. “They couldn’t shoot back unless they could pinpoint the person who was shooting at them, because they weren’t supposed to hurt any of the civilians.”

She warned that administration decisions regarding previous U.S. military deployments have been vague.

No kidding. Turner spoke at length about her son’s tours in Iraq, the lack of mission focus there, and the impact of that decision by Obama (you can read it here). Lt. Gen. Boykin (retired) had this to say about this mission:

[…] Boykin said Obama “thinks like a community organizer who will jump into anything that might make him look good or that might serve his agenda.”

“This deployment to Liberia is abuse and demonstrates a level of contempt for the youth of America who have chosen to serve their nation under a leader who has never served and has been open about his contempt for the traditional values of the nation.” […] (Click here to read the rest of this good piece.)

Sadly, LtG Boykin has a point. So does Judy Turner. I don’t see how this campaign cannot end up having an effect not just on the troops, but on those of us here at home in one way or another. Just look at the avalanche of consequences from just ONE man infected with this disease. It is mind boggling. And mind boggling that this Administration ahs bungled this so badly, and is now sending our troops into an area like Liberia.

My heart goes out to Ms. Turner and all the family members of our troops being sent to Liberia with next to no or little medical training. I hope and pray they will come back safely, and soundly…

This is an Open Thread.