Letter From a Military Mom: Spying and Intimidation of Military Families

Domestic Spying and Intimidation of Military Families
Letter From a Military Mom

by Jack Dalton

Letter From A Military "Mom": Domestic Spying & Incident of Intimidation of Military Families
Written by: Robin Vaughan


During my son's deployment to Iraq, February 2004-February 2005: I created a small group website on MSN, for families and friends of our soldiers’ deployed unit. It was a membership only site, and we were a tight group of mostly "Moms", from all over the United States, just trying to make it through each day. The support and help we gave one another is a singular experience of grace, I will never forget.

During the first few months of our site, the Army decided to call every single family on the site, informing them, that the site was not to be used by any of the families. The Department of Defense called families in the middle of the night to notify them to not use the web site. Most of the families were near tears, thinking they were getting "THE" call telling them their child or loved one had been killed or injured.
The information received via the phone call was to inform the families that the base did not condone the site, nor the Army, and that it was not to be used; the gist was, families were not allowed to use the site, or they could get into "trouble". Some members reported their soldier calling from Iraq, telling them to be careful about using the site as the Army was monitoring it.

<snip>

The support group at our base, tried to force the site to be given over to them, which I refused. At this time I was told, I might want to be careful, as the government was monitoring the site as well. Soldiers in our unit, while in Iraq, were telling their parents to stay off of the site, or to be very careful of what they wrote. This came from a rear detachment officer in charge, and members on the site.

I reminded the Army I am a private citizen, not on base, with a private site making no claims to have any affiliation with any branch of service, but clearly stating we were families and friends of our unit in support of one another. We were treated to power by intimidation. It isn't hard to make that work, when you have someone's child in a war zone.

http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=DAL20051224&articleId=1631

maimed to keep them quiet? Bastards!

creating a web site for comfort? Bastards to good a term for these cretins!

This government thuggery needs to be exposed.

...they think they can control everyone through threats and intimidation. It works for the troops, why not their families?

In fact, evil. I've always been a little afraid of what I post on DU about my daughter because she is active army (She'll be out soon, thank God)
I now wonder if the Emails and phone calls and packages between my family and my daughter when she was deployed in Afghanistan were monitered.

The military evidently wants control of the "support groups", (which they offer) maybe so they can control the content. This doesn't suprise me, but it does sicken me.

do the nazipoohs have vast armies of boiler roomers monitoring incidentals?

of soldiers do online. Anyone who received such a communication should get the name of the military person making the call and who their commanding officer is ordering them to make such calls, and approach the media with this information. Or post it on websites such as this.

the White House destroys the freedoms of the very people who are charged with protecting the constitution.

I'm sure Bush substitutes corporation for constitution when he takes an oath of office.

They need to give this to their congressmen.

Just who's the ass that got het up about this?
Despicable.

Frankly, if this son is no longer in the service (has he been discharged?) I would consider filing suit against the Pentagon and the White House for this crap.

These are the kinds of stories which should be forwarded immediately to members of Congress along with demands they investigate this nonsense.

when a DUer who had a son in Iraq posted that she was getting wierd phone calls from someone claiming to be military and telling her she had better stop speaking out against the war?

over there. Maybe they better come here and defend it since it is being taken away.

IMPEACH

Pass it on!

IMPEACH

Sign every e-mail with the word

IMPEACH

Make sure your reps hear the word and know the dishonor * and colleagues have brought on this country.

IMPEACH!

This topic was raised a couple of days ago when the story first broke and she registered just to say thanks for the support. The story is MUCH bigger now.
(on edit)
the thread in question is here

I read her post the other day, it was good to re-read it.

I wish Robin all the best, she definately has my support.

Does she know? I'd imagine she does, but havent seen that.

"Every war is a PR battle"

about exposing strategic inform which might hurt those in the field if monitored by the enemy. That sort of thing would for for people using their soldier's direct location address dumbly right with the provided secure APO or FPO cover address. That would be to prevent the movement and location of troops from being monitored easily by the mail.

Specifically they might note particular things about the site that pose a particular risk. But the brutal and general intimidation is typical ham-handed military handling of the fodder crop which does not aim at security at all, much less morale. It fears the tide of retreat already begun and is shooting civilians in the back in desperation to avoid more and more Cindy Sheehans.

When your troops and your citizenry are your enemy, it is the sign of a loser establishment gone berserk.

Both the service personnel and their families took pains not to post sensitive information. If you have blood pressure problems don't read the whole article, your blood will boil at the shabby treatment these families were subject to.

It seems that military families are grouped together with Quakers and Critical Mass cyclists, classed as the sort of people we need to spy on to protect us from another terrorist attack.

If this doesn't nail Dubya nuts to the floor nothing will.

trying to take it away.

The irony of Bush's reign of lies is showing its rotten underbelly.

.....BOMBSHELL....HOW DID SHEEHAN ACCOMPLISH WHAT SHE DID?

As a military brat from the 60's, I can share with you that intimidating military members about the behavior of their family is not new.
Everything from promotions to your base housing can be jeopardized by any undesirable actions of your family. Rebellious children,
unruly wife, messy front yard, left wing politics, it's all up for scrutiny and control.

It isn't that surprising to me that the Internet age brings this control issue into entirely new realms. I'm glad it's being discussed.

mechanisms moving at warp speed.

http://www.brusselstribunal.org/index.htm

"Our 'neoconservatives' are neither new nor conservative, but old as Babylon and evil as Hell." – Edward Abbey