US POW Bowe Bergdahl Returning from Afghanistan After 5 Years

[GDS_Starfury]

playing devils advocate here.

did he leave with nothing but a knife and water to go kill them and then got captured?

[GDS_Starfury]

I've seen some people do some pretty whacky shit under prolonged stress.

[Jarhead0331]

did he leave with nothing but a knife and water to go kill them and then got captured?

This scenario is exceedingly unlikely. There is no evidence, either direct or circumstantial that this was a motivation. In any event, it is also equally irrelevant as it would still not be a justification for abandoning one's post. Like I said, for this act, there is no excuse.

[MikeGER]

is it possible for a corpsman to pull someone out who seems to be 'mentally wounded over time', and about to losing it? (getting a danger for himself, or less likely but also possible for certain members in his group)
or does the soldiers has to be totally blown away like those poor chaps under "Grabenschock" that can be seen in some old WW I field hospital footage, before action can be taken?

shouldn't that guy had been under a little 'closer observation' (in the meaning of 'taking care' - not surveillance) by his buddies (well, if he had some...)   

[bayonetbrant]

yikes

http://twitchy.com/2014/05/31/working-to-free-all-guantanamo-prisoners-tweet-from-account-of-released-soldiers-father-deleted/

[Jarhead0331]

yikes

http://twitchy.com/2014/05/31/working-to-free-all-guantanamo-prisoners-tweet-from-account-of-released-soldiers-father-deleted/

Once again, the government and the mainstream media will try to bottle up the truth.

[undercovergeek]

forgive my ignorance, he may just like it that way but does the father's beard suggest a certain sympathy for those in Cuba?

[Airborne Rifles]

Confirmation from CNN of what I posted yesterday:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/01/us/bergdahl-deserter-or-hero/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

Despite that and the possible tweet from his father (I had read months before that he had grown out his beard and tried to travel to Pakistan to try to gain the release of his son, understandable actions on a father's part IMO), I think the prisoner exchange was the right thing to do. The timing of this with the VA scandal going on is troubling to me, and I would really, really hope the exchange wasn't delayed until a politically opportune time, but there doesn't seem to be any indication of that. About the Taliban prisoners, keep a couple things in mind:

Taliban does not equal Al Qaeda

Taliban does not necessarily equal terrorist

We have been negotiating with the Taliban via the Gulf States for a while now

Exchanges of prisoners are normal at the end of a conflict, and that is where we are headed in Afghanistan

I think this sends the right message to service people, that if they are captured during war their country will go to great lengths to redeem them. What are all those POW/MIA flags everyone flies worth otherwise? Regardless of whether the individual deserved to be rescued or not. What I don't like is how operations are affected and entire campaign plans disrupted to search for one missing soldier. Having been there, I know there is a great deal of fear among Americans military people when we consider being taken captive by the people we are fighting. I have expressed, and friends of mine as well, that we would save the last bullet for ourselves rather than submit to the fate we expect from them. But, we end up risking far more lives because of our fanatical adherence not leaving anyone behind by completely disrupting our own operations. Interestingly, Bergdahl does not seem to have suffered mistreatment. Not sure what that says about his actions while with the Taliban or about the Taliban itself. I have no doubt Bergdahl is a deserter, and probably a traitor, but that is an issue for us to deal with, not one for us to leave to the hands of the Taliban. Interestingly, the CNN article states that the SecDef didn't rule out UCMJ action against Bergdahl when asked about it by a reporter. I hope he has the guts to pursue it, but I doubt it.

Anyway, my .02. Hope it doesn't offend, but that's the way I see it.

[bayonetbrant]

My jaded view of contemporary American politics is that no matter which way this broke, someone was going to try to inflate it for their own electoral gain, rather than just focusing on getting a son home to his parents and sorting the rest out once he's here.

[bayonetbrant]

And...  it's officially a "thing" now that TDBhas weighed in

http://www.duffelblog.com/2014/06/bowe-bergdahl-freed-taliban

[Airborne Rifles]

And...  it's officially a "thing" now that TDBhas weighed in

http://www.duffelblog.com/2014/06/bowe-bergdahl-freed-taliban

True story.

[Centurion40]

This is so f'ed-up, I don't what to say.  When I first saw the headlines, I couldn't help but think of the TV show "Homeland".

I'm fine with negotiating with enemies to get POWs home.  But it sure sounds like this particular dude should see the inner workings of a Court Martial.

[bayonetbrant]

another perspective:  http://sunnyinkabul.com/2014/06/01/on-bergdahl-never-leave-a-man-behind-even-if-hes-a-dick/

[eyebiter]

.

[airboy]

Much of what Jarhead and others have stated have now come out in the Washington Post.  This is pretty disturbing:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/mixed-reaction-to-bergdahls-recovery-by-service-members-who-consider-him-a-deserter/2014/06/01/3713e3ce-e9c5-11e3-b98c-72cef4a00499_story.html?hpid=z1