12 Dead , 31 wounded in Shooting at Ft Hood Texas

People have the right to quit their jobs/contracts, and then suffer the consequences of being a quitter or reneging a contract.

If you join the ROTC for college benefits, afterwards you independently cancel your ROTC contract to avoid a war you fear or do not believe in, then you will suffer the legally binding punishments that you subscribed to. I don't know how things are done in Britain or any other nation, but in America, the ROTC isn't offered by the US military like Halloween candy to random visitors. It comes with many obligations for various contingencies, including single party violations.

In most situations, a volunteer military is MUCH better than a military based on conscription. No decent company wants an employee who does a lousy job, drags his feet on his assignments, has troubled relations with co-workers for whatever reason, and drags in other major productivity problems. He is a burden and not a contributor. It's almost as bad as being stuck in a bad marriage. Be a good soldier and soldier the pain? Only an idiot would agree with a bad relationship. Divorce and find a working relationship.

If a military can't find civilian support, then maybe the military shouldn't be fighting the war or needs to do a better job promoting its war. The US military is very powerful, but it is founded upon civilians. The US military whooped butt in WW1 and WW2 because it had good support from the people whether by volunteer service or by conscription, but the US military got mired in so many problems after WW2 because it engaged in controversial wars in Korea, Vietnam, and now the Middle East. If you want to live in a feudalistic state or a militaristic nation, then go for it. I prefer to live in a civilian-based nation like America.

The US military needs to get rid of idiots and leeches like the Fort Hood shooter(s). Don't draft people not mentally or physically fit for war, unless you want serious personnel problems such as criminal behavior or "grenading of superiors". If the US military needs more qualified personnel for a war, then it should convince more civilians to sacrifice their lives for the war.

List of shooters at Fort Hood: 1 shooter at personnel and medical processing, 1 shooter at theater, anymore?

jwangyue said:

This might not be religious though. The major was trying to get out of the military and hired a lawyer to do so a day before the shooting. His out-spoken view on the war might just be a way for him to get out of the army and avoid deployment to the front line.

Maybe when he found out that despite all the effort, he is not getting out and going to the front line, he went kaboom!!.

This is pure speculation though.

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The US Army couldn't, shouldn't use differences of political views as a reason to discharge people or prevent them from deployment. That's a bad precedent. When people sign up in the first place, they should know what they're getting into or they don't sign up at all. Its an oath, a pledge and a contract.

I guess that's what they originally thought that this guy was doing, but didn't realize that he was completely that screwed off the locker.

Crobato: When people sign up in the first place, they should know what they're getting into or they don't sign up at all. Its an oath, a pledge and a contract.
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If only life was that simple. Working with people isn't simply a matter of signing papers. I wish life was that idyllic, but it's not.

Moving along, the story of one shooter according to this news article: .

I read there was possibly 2 or more shooters.

cmb=1968 said:

Does any one know what is the enlistment requirements for a Officer in the medical core.

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Here are the requirements.

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To qualify for an Officer appointment in the Army Medical Corps, you must:

• Meet the prescribed medical and moral standards for appointment as a commissioned Officer
• Be a United States citizen
• Be a graduate of an American Medical Association (AMA) or American Osteopathic Association (AOA) accredited medical school.Or have a certificate from the Education Council of Foreign Medical Graduates.
• Have a current unrestricted license to practice medicine in a state of the United States, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico or a territory of the United States
• Be 21-42 years of age (physicians may apply for an age waiver)
• Experienced health care professionals ages 43 to 60 years old may apply for the new two-year service obligation option.
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• Have a favorable security investigation completed.

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but i still have to complain about the way this thing was reported though. media focused a lil bit too much on the fact that he's a muslim...that's like emphasizing that the DC sniper was black...

pla101prc said:

but i still have to complain about the way this thing was reported though. media focused a lil bit too much on the fact that he's a muslim...that's like emphasizing that the DC sniper was black...

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At the time of the DC sniper attack, the US wasn't accused of waging war on "black" people and they weren't using suicide bombings to retaliate. It's natural that there'd be a concern this guy was turned by Al-Qaeda or was a sympathiser, even if that currently seems to be unlikely.

I read that the Muslim shooter was sympathetic to Muslims, Palestinians, and Iraqis in general. This claim comes from his family, friends, and coworkers. I never read any credible news that the Muslim shooter had anything to do with terrorists, and I never read any quality news claiming he had sympathy or ties with Al Queda. I also read that it's not 100% certain the Muslim shooter was the belligerent, or working alone. Maybe he was working with terrorists, or maybe he was another lone gunman going crazy, or maybe he was working with at least one other gunman.

I read that there was at least 2 shooters at two different locations. The facts are still unclear and unrevealed to the public. I wish the police had fast and accurate investigations.

I get the sense that the man who did these shootings was not any sort of terrorist agent, had no contact with anyone in Al Qaeda or any other foreign terrorist organization, but he was inspired by the same sort of motivation; a sense that Muslims are being victimized and that the only thing to do about it is to seek martyrdom in combat with the "enemy".

Out of some 1.4 million men and women who serve in the US military, approx. 3,700 are Muslim. If the military were to say to them, that if they thought current military action in Iraq was against their believes and they're free to leave if they wished, a reduction of all 3,700 people from 1.4 million is not going to make a huge difference.

BUT it'd set a precedent that the military would find unacceptable in the future. War is ugly and requires you to send your young men to their deaths against their wishes.

Re: 13 Dead , 30 wounded in Shooting at Ft Hood Texas

My condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims. I fear there are no easy solutions to this 'enemy within' situation. I hope there are no knee-jerk reactions from either the US authorities or US citizens.