The Death of Pat Tillman

[Ian David]

The Death of Pat Tillman
by Brian Dunning, Apr 09 2009

It’s often suggested to me that I do a Skeptoid episode about Pat Tillman. I’m still on the fence.

For anyone who has lived under a rock for the past five years, Pat Tillman was a young professional football player who gave up a large contract to go to war after 9/11. A star linebacker from Arizona State University, he eagerly joined the Arizona Cardinals in the 1998 draft. At the completion of the season during which 9/11 struck, Tillman was offered $3.6 million over 3 years to stay on, more than double his previous salary. He turned down the offer, and along with his brother Kevin, a promising baseball player, felt a higher calling. They enlisted and joined the Army Rangers.

<snip>

Did I want to start considering the other side? Are there reasons that a well-meaning person might decide the whitewash for the greater good? Can it be justified? Is that really where I want to go?

Did I want to look at the evidence of the actual event? MP5s can be switched into triple-tap mode, where three bullets are fired virtually at the same instant, and all strike the target within inches of each other. This mode is commonly used in combat. Did I want to suggest that three shots to the head doesn’t necessarily mean a Godfather style execution?

<snip>

So if I were to do an episode about Pat Tillman, I’m just not sure where I’d go with it. I’d probably just encourage people to focus on what’s good, instead of magnifying what was bad. I certainly don’t see myself taking sides, trying to prove that he was or wasn’t murdered, or that the coverup was or wasn’t an evil conspiracy. I’d probably just suggest that you think of Tillman’s example and give him a mental high-five for being a rocking kind of guy. You don’t have to agree with his decision to go to war to be inspired by his example of self sacrifice.

More:
http://skepticblog.org/2009/04/09/the-death-of-pat-tillman/

[Schema Thing]

1. This skeptic doesn't know what to think either

It's an odd situation where if he wasn't murdered, the aftermath is just as bewildering, and in a way, more shameful, than if he was.

[MADem]

2. At this juncture, it's not just the crime (or the accidental friendly fire), it's the cover up.

The cover up is what sickened so many people, and caused their minds to ease towards a worst-case scenario.

[Captain Hilts]

3. Being in the military is dangerous. I think people understand that. So, the cover-up fueled

all sorts of conspiracy theories.

[blm]

4. Because you all are SO certain BushInc would NOT want him eliminated before the 2004 election where

a man like Pat Tillman WOULD get a great deal of media attention, especially from male-oriented programs, as he campaigned vigorously for John Kerry?


It amazes me that ANY Dem even half aware of the last 50 years of BushInc's deceits upon this country and their targeting of its finest patriots, would still believe they would NOT target Tillman.

[Name removed]

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[rakeeb]

6. would Pat Tillman have been out of the military and eligible

to campaign vigorously for anyone in November 2004?
You cannot campaign for anyone while on active duty.

He started basic in May or June of 2002.
He enlisted for Ranger Regiment, which is typically a 3yr 17wk or 4yr 17wk contract.
(The 17 weeks is just for basic and airborne school, ensuring you get to RIP with 3 or 4 full years left.)
To be out of the military, he would have needed to be on a 2 year contract, (unlikely for a Ranger contract).
Even if that were the case, Tillman deployed in April 2004 to OEF. Stop-loss for that rotation would have prevented him from getting out of the Army before November 2004.