450,000 holiday letters & cards to an "American Soldier" dumped in trash by the military...

[IndyOp]

Christy Harvey, from Center for American Progress, is on Thom Hartmann right now.

You know how religious groups, girl/boy scout groups, and private citizens send holiday greeting cards to "An American Soldier" or a "Wounded American Solder"?

For the past several years the military has been dumping them in the trash. Why? There is a risk that someone might write a message that is critical of the war or they might send Anthrax to the soldiers.

Don't know whether to :cry: :cry: :cry: or :nuke: or...


THANKS TO VIRGINIADARE for finding the link to the Washington Post article - U.S. Refuses "Any Wounded Soldier Mail"


THANKS TO UNHAPPYCAMPER for finding the link to Security stymies thousands of holiday wishes - UHC posted a thread on this yesterday.

Letters to ‘Any Wounded Soldier’ are returned or discarded
Posted: Wednesday Dec 12, 2007 9:25:07 EST

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Hundreds of thousands of holiday cards and letters thanking wounded American troops for their sacrifice and wishing them well never reach their destination. They are returned to sender or thrown away unopened.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks and the anthrax scare, the Pentagon and the Postal Service have refused to deliver mail addressed simply to “Any Wounded Soldier” for fear terrorists or opponents of the war might send toxic substances or demoralizing messages.


Edited to add links contributed downthread by VirginiaDare and Unhappycamper...

[babylonsister]

1. Wow, that sucks big time. I'm with you on my reaction...

:wtf:

[yardwork]

2. The U.S. military are the only people who have anthrax to send.

This sounds like an excuse to me. The fact is, the Pentagon under this administration doesn't care whether soldiers get cards or not, and they'd just as soon be able to tell the soldiers that nobody cares, then take the time and energy needed to check that the letters are safe.

The U.S. leadership doesn't care enough to send body armor to our soldiers. Why would they care about cards?

[Virginia Dare]

21. The anthrax is just an excuse..

they don't want "die baby killer" messages getting through to these soldiers is the real reason, and there isn't enough manpower to open and read every single letter.

[yardwork]

25. I don't think that they care. Very very few letters would be negative, and they know it.

If we don't have the manpower to support our soldiers, then we don't have the manpower to be at war.

[Virginia Dare]

26. See, now you're being all logical....n/t

[yardwork]

28. I know - logic is not allowed with the monkey in charge!

[TheDebbieDee]

52. You're right! The anthrax scare is just an excuse!

The REAL real reason is because processing and delivering the half million cards and letters to "anonymous" military personnel slows down the processing and delivery of real mail from family and friends of military personnel.

As a soldier doing a tour halfway around the world, I'd much rather get a letter from someone I know and love than a card from Toya at Westburg Elementary School in Bumfuck, PA and have my mail from a loved one slowed down by 2 weeks.

[AX10]

3. BULLSHIT!

The right wing has to censor everything and control everyone. They are dangerous SOB's!

[aquart]

4. How, precisely, would WE mail anthrax to our soldiers?

Is weaponized anthrax available on eBay?

[Virginia Dare]

19. Maybe we should ask Dick Cheney that question..

I bet he'd know.

[Captain Hilts]

5. As was the case with phone cards the troops didn't need. I don't think they want these cards...

it's too much to handle logistically.

I've volunteered at WR and Bethesda Naval.

[Zywiec]

7. I worked at two mob sites in 2003 and personally handed these cards out

I never saw any of them thrown in the trash.

[Captain Hilts]

22. BN and WR are overwhelmed by stuff sent in the mail. nt

[Zywiec]

6. I checked the Center for American Progress website

and see no mention of this. I can't believe this would happen for several years without any speaking out about it until now.

If true, it's despicable.

[ThomCat]

9. If it's true, I hope someone finds a link

so we can pass it around. This would make news.

[Zywiec]

10. Absolutely. This really sux! n/t

[Blue Diadem]

13. I know it's true for those at Walter Reed, they have it on their website.

I sent out the link several weeks ago when I began getting email encouraging people to send cards to the wounded soldiers. I suspect it would be the same for sending cards to soldiers overseas too.



edited to add: I see they've updated, link is directly below. There is a way to send cards to the wounded soldiers there via the Red Cross.

http://www.wramc.amedd.army.mil/Lists/WRNews/DispForm.aspx?Id=30&

This is what the old page read on 12/5/07

Support A Recovering American Soldier
Walter Reed Army Medical Center officials want to remind those individuals who want to show their appreciation through mail to include packages, letters, and holiday cards addressed to "Any Wounded Soldier" or "A Recovering American Soldier" that Walter Reed cannot accept these packages in support of the decision by then Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Transportation Policy in 2001. This decision was made to ensure the safety and well being of patients and staff at medical centers throughout the Department of Defense.

In addition, the U.S. Postal Service is no longer accepting "Any Service Member" or "A Recovering American Soldier" letters or packages. Mail to "Any Service Member" that is deposited into a collection box will not be delivered.

Instead of sending an “Any Wounded Soldier” letter or package to Walter Reed, please consider making a donation to one of the more than 300 nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping our troops and their families listed on the "America Supports You" website, www.americasupportsyou.mil Other organizations that offer means of showing your support for our troops or assist wounded service members and their families include:
http://www.usocares.org/
http://www4.army.mil/ocpa/tooursoldiers/
http://www.redcross.org
For individuals without computer access, your local military installation, the local National Guard or military reserve unit in your area may offer the best alternative to show your support to our returning troops and their families. Walter Reed Army Medical Center will continue to receive process and deliver all mail that is addressed to a specific individual. As Walter Reed continues to enhance the medical care and processes for our returning service members, it must also must keep our patients and staff members safe while following Department of Defense policy. The outpouring of encouragement from the general public, corporate America and civic groups throughout the past year has been incredible. Our Warriors in Transition are amazed at the thanks and support they receive from their countrymen.

[Virginia Dare]

17. LINK HERE

it was an AP story a couple of days ago:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/11/AR2007121101250.html

[ThomCat]

23. Awesome! Any Digg or Reddit people hear to make sure

this gets out? :7

If you post at those sites, someone please pass this around!

[countryjake]

15. There was a report about it on the news this week...

mail without a specific name is not being delivered to any soldiers.

[uppityperson]

78. Snopes: USPS won't accept mail, Walter Reed gives other suggestions for donations

http://www.snopes.com/politics/christmas/soldiercards.asp

Origins: Sometimes a great-sounding idea proves to be far less of a brainstorm once considered from all angles. That is indeed the case with the October 2007 open-hearted entreaty to add
"A Recovering American Soldier" to your Christmas card list. While no one can fault the sentiment behind the suggestion (not only to remember the less fortunate during the holiday season but to make a special effort to reach out to those who have been wounded in the service of their country), the plan falters on one cruel yet central reality — in these times of heightened security, mail from strangers to unnamed soldiers must for everyone's safety be discarded unopened.

The U.S. Postal Service will not accept mail addressed to "Any Soldier," "Any Wounded Soldier," or the like because if it did, it could be providing a conduit for those who might do harm to armed services members. Such offerings are either returned to sender (if a return address has been provided or if one is found within the package) or donated to charities (if no address for the sender is found). Similarly, military hospitals will not accept letters, cards, or packages addressed in such manner for the same reason. Such beneficences, no matter how kindly meant, are not permitted to reach the soldiers they were intended for.

Walter Reed Army Medical Center officials echoed this information in a statement regarding the proposed plan to send cards to unnamed soldiers in its care:
Mail to Wounded and Recovering Soldiers

Walter Reed Army Medical Center officials want to remind those individuals who want to show their appreciation through mail to include packages and letters, addressed to "Any Wounded Soldier" that Walter Reed will not be accepting these packages in support of the decision by then Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Transportation Policy in 2001. This decision was made to ensure the safety and well being of patients and staff at medical centers throughout the Department of Defense....(more@link

[Chrisy5558]

8. I heard that

I was very sad when I heard that because my 2nd graders made Christmas card for the troops. They put their heart into the project and to think that the troops will never get to see them is heartbreaking. How many other school children who made Christmas cards to send the troops will have had all the efforts thrown into the trash?

[SharkSquid]

11. I dunno

I have gotten ass tons of these over the last few years, addressed just as described.

[Virginia Dare]

18. Some gets through..

there just isn't enough man power to screen all of it, so a whole lot gets dumped.

[importDavid]

12. Is there a link?

I'd love to send a link to my repugnican uncle.

He sends me right wing email stuff all the time, including one about a month ago which said to get out and support the troops / mail those exact same letters.

Thanks!

[Virginia Dare]

16. Do a google news search..

I believe it was an AP story yesterday or the day before.

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[yardwork]

27. Why is that letter "dumb shit?" Don't our soldiers have a right to receive mail?

It seems to me that anyone mature enough to be a soldier is mature enough to receive a letter even if they don't agree with what it says. Do our soldiers have to be protected for their own good?

[I work for workers]

32. If you want to send something like that, then meet a Soldier and send it direct.

It's very disrespectful to send such a letter to a random person who, in all likelihood, doesn't want to hear it and almost certainly has enough to deal with already.

I showed that post to a friend deployed in Iraq, and he was livid.

[yardwork]

44. I didn't say that I agreed with the letter or that I want to send one like that.

But it does seem kind of silly to throw away hundreds of thousands of well wishing letters just because a couple of them might be unfriendly. Does it seem like a rational response to you?

[I work for workers]

51. I wish they didn't have to, but I can see why they would feel they do.

According to Snopes, you can still send random mail to the Red Cross. They will sort it for hate mail and send the cards to wounded military personnel at Walter Reed. Address it too:

We Support You During Your Recovery!
c/o American Red Cross
PO Box 419
Savage, MD 20763-0419

[yardwork]

56. Thanks for the info - I have no confidence in our military, none whatsoever.

I believe that the fear of mean letters is just an excuse to toss out the cards. I'll write to a soldier via the Red Cross.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

31. You mean "thank you for doing a wonderful job protecting the country"

Is better?

[I work for workers]

33. Yes. nt

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

34. So lying to the troops and insulting their intelligence is better?

Do you think all the troops are stupid?

[I work for workers]

37. Do you think any of them want to be accused of war crimes?

Let's make a bet. We will both head over to the nearest Guard depot. I'll thanks the first Soldier I see for their service, especially during the holidays. You will frankly inform the first Soldier you see that they are a war criminal, and make a veiled reference comparing them to the Nazis.

Who do you think will get the more positive response?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

38. Which, do you think, is more accurate?

[I work for workers]

39. What I said. Which do you think is more appropriate?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

41. The truth.

The truth is always more appropriate than lying.

[I work for workers]

43. The truth is, if you send Soldiers hate mail, you're an asshole.

There is a time and a place to express your opinions. Sending criticisms to random people living through extremely hard situations is as far from it as possible.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

45. truth = hate mail?

Yikes.

[I work for workers]

46. Calling Soldiers Nazis does not equal the truth.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

57. Nobody called the troops Nazis.

Again with the lies.

[I work for workers]

60. I didn't say they called them Nazis, I said they compared them to Nazis.

Read the text in the (now deleted) link.

EDIT: my bad, I guess I did say that. Either way, the charge hold up.

Question; why was my link to the post deleted, but the post itself remains?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

62. I read it.

It didn't compare anybody to nazis.

[I work for workers]

63. You must have read a different letter.

This war is illegal and you know it... ...The Nuremberg Trials prove that you are not immune from prosecution by claiming you "just followed orders."

That's a terrible and offensive letter to try and send. I'll give Xerox the benefit of the doubt and assume they tossed it, or at least sent it to the people who will.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

79. Maybe you should brush up on your interpretation skills.

Citing the Nuremberg Trials is not comparing anybody to Nazis. It's the landmark case study in war crimes and following orders. The troops themselves are taught this, or at least they're supposed to be.

[Richard Steele]

47. That's a pretty pathetic excuse for trashing every letter.

[I work for workers]

53. If you mail them to the Red Cross, they sort them and send them along.

I wish this was better publicized (I just found out two minutes ago). Send them to:

We Support You During Your Recovery!
c/o American Red Cross
P.O. Box 419
Savage, MD 20763-0419

[Richard Steele]

64. So, the US Army is AFRAID to open the letters that the Red Cross handles and forewards every day?

So, do ya think the Red Cross is really such a devil-may-care
gang of death-defying badasses...

...or do ya think the US Army is LYING about their reasons
for trashing all the letters that folks send to "any soldier"?

[I work for workers]

80. I think the military probably doesn't have the time or inclination

to do this. They accept the letters the Red Cross screens and forwards. I don't think anyone is really scared of anthrax, it's the hate mail they want to avoid.

[Captain Hilts]

81. They have no means to handle the influx of seasonal mail. Just as before Anthrax...

the old Sailors' and Soldiers' and Airmens' homes opened mail addressed to the First Lady, White House pets, etc.

[IronLionZion]

50. That shit should be sent to pro-war politicians instead. nt

[I work for workers]

54. LOL! Much better choice!

[unhappycamper]

20. Here's a thread I posted yesterday in the Veterans forum:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=259&topic_id=8233

[IndyOp]

29. Thank you very much - I added a link to your thread and to the Army Times

story in the OP and credited you.

[Richard Steele]

24. Way to "support the troops". NOT. Grrrecommended

[Breeze54]

30. AARRGGHH!!!!!!!

Those &%$#@&^%# %&$%#@*!!!!!

:grr:

[bdamomma]

35. terrible to thwart good wishes to those who are sacrificing for us

another slap in the faces to all of us who do care about these soldiers, shows you how cold and calculating these neo cons are.

fuck these neo cons.

[undeterred]

36. Don't we have dogs that can be trained to sniff out just about anything?

I find it very hard to believe that mail can be delivered to Congress safely but not to our military forces serving overseas. Dogs have a sense of smell 200x more powerful than ours. Why are they not being used to detect toxic substances in mail?

[Virginia Dare]

40. They have machines that "zap" the mail now..

to kill certain potential deadly pathogens. I think they're using anthrax as an excuse, they want to screen content. They want to censor the mail going to the troops.

[IndyOp]

49. I think you are exactly right - they are censoring mail going to the troops,

just part of their overall goal of keeping everyone in line.

It really disgusts me - keeping greetings from reaching the soldiers is just makes the society colder and more mean. See? No one cares anymore.

:(

[wtmusic]

69. If their cause for fighting was just, it wouldn't matter

so yes, they are screening content and using the already stretched-to-the-limit "security" line as a pretext.

[orleans]

42. how disgraceful. another example of these hypocrites spewing

SUPPORT OUR TROOPS and then turning around and kicking them in their collective ass.

jesus!

too bad this doesn't make the "news" (meaning msm)

hey olbermann--another segment for "BUSHED"

[IronLionZion]

48. I was wondering why no one wrote back to me

I figured they were busy, but it never occurred to me that they might not have received it.

Oh well, there's always email. There are probably ways of finding out specific peoples' names if you want to send stuff to someone from your town or whatever.

[TacticalPeek]

55. Anysoldier.com - Helping approximately 121,235 Service Members with 4,136 Military Contacts!

http://anysoldier.com/

How this works:

We have Soldier contacts on the "Where to Send" page. Click through the names and select the one(s) you wish to support. They list what the folks they represent want and need. We even have a search capability so you can easily identify what the troops need most.

All the Soldiers involved in this effort are military volunteers stationed in areas that are in harm's way. You send your support (letters and/or packages) addressed to them and when they see the "Attn: Any Soldier" line in their address they put your letters and packages into the hands of Soldiers who don't get much or any mail first. Everything is shared.

We have "What to Send", "How to Send" and "FAQ" pages to help you properly send letters and packages, please read these. Be sure to also read our "New & Stuff" and "Success Stories" pages. This effort is 110% voluntary. You send your support, and maybe some stuff, directly to whatever unit or units you want, you don't send us anything.

We also have a video you may watch free online, "Tango Mike!" which is a great overview of how the site works. The video is available for purchase HERE.

PLEASE read the entire web site before you send anything.
We want you to be informed and comfortable with this effort.

Thank you for your support!

http://anysoldier.com/

[Fire Walk With Me]

58. "..terrorists or opponents of the war might send toxic substances or demoralizing messages."

Nice how they group the two so closely, like Saddam and 9/11 in the same sentence.

[OzarkDem]

59. Only the Bush administration sends anthrax

maybe they should be checking the soldiers' mail that comes from the WH.

[Recursion]

61. Eh. I can see their point.

And it's more boring than you may be thinking, having to do with where, when, and how military mail gets divided and routed based on to whom it's addressed.

Especially since there are ways to match yourself with soldiers as a pen-pal.

[Breeze54]

65. You're missing the point.

During Thanksgiving, for example, there was a postcard thingy going on...that people could send
thanks to the troops and they didn't get any of those greetings and there have been other projects
doing the samething. One that comes to mind is "Any Soldier"...

It's a real shame that those soldiers never heard a word, More B* propaganda!!! :grr:

[Recursion]

70. When we got deployed at the beginning of the war...

...we were told really explicitly to make sure all of our family and friends knew our FPO address exactly, because for security reasons mail had to be exactly addressed both forward and return. Maybe I'm being ho-hum about this because I had thought this was SOP for at least the past 4 years.

If they've stopped giving that briefing (and I wouldn't put it past them), then shame on them.

While we're on the subject, let me add (as I'm sure you know, but it can't hurt), two ways you can help "any soldier" are

donating to the Red Cross

and

donating to the USO

Donating money can seem kind of mercenary (it always does to me, even if desperately needed); both organizations really need volunteers too.
Now, if we could just convince USO to put cigarettes back in the care packages :evilgrin:

[Breeze54]

73. Well; when my son was deployed he didn't have an FPO until AFTER he got there...that's SOP!

I'm donating now by demonstrating against the war!!!

And I helped/help with care packages at my local Amvets!

For you, to post those links to me is, well, sort of insulting...

Do you actually think a mother of a stop lossed soldier wouldn't HAVE

all those links and be well aware of their existence? :shrug: ??

SEE MY SIGNATURE!! :crazy:

[Recursion]

74. I said "as I'm sure you know" and posted because some readers might not

and I did it because USO and RC were my only links to sanity over there so I feel the need to advocate supporting them.

I'm sorry if it insulted you and I really didn't mean for it to.

[Breeze54]

75. "any soldier" is an actual website.

"Want to send your support to a Soldier in harm's way, but have
no idea of what to send, who to send it to, or how to send it?"

http://www.anysoldier.com/

[Recursion]

76. Yeah, I really respect those guys

As far as I knew they got set up in 2002 because of this exact problem. They got mentioned upthread (by you, I think?) and I just wanted to add USO and ARC as other examples of how you can help soldiers you don't know get care packages and mail.

[I work for workers]

82. Lighten up, 90% of the people on this thread didn't manage to read the

story long enough to realize the Red Cross will sort the mail for them. Posting links to good charities is always appropriate.

[CRK7376]

66. While in Afghanistan back in 2003

I answered nearly every letter addressed to "Any Serviceman"...Lots of schoolkids and scout troops sent letters. They were everywhere and since it was free to mail letters home from a combat zone, I spent time responding to people. I ended up with pretty much of a canned letter that desribed the small town our Firebase was supporting/defending etc....I was outside the wire daily and had contact with the Afghanis and tried describing them, their food, ate lots of meals with the Afghan populace etc...built a few schools, worked on wells in the towns and villages etc...But of course the war was less than a year old when I went "In Country" and as a nation we were still reeling from 9/11 and looking for the true bad guy "OBL". We were not yet in Iraq pursuing WMDs that didn't exist...The letters I got were always positive, regardless if they were good or bad, they were mail and something to read. I was always thankful for the kindness and best wishes from those letterwriters.

[IndyOp]

71. Thank you for your perspective CRK7376 - I am just stunned that

they would prevent letters from going through. It seems incredibly inhumane to me -- for all parties involved. U.S. citizens were insulted after 9/11 by being told by Bush that what they should do is "go shopping" - and now, even this little attempt to be a citizen is dumped on.

[Recursion]

72. You got those in the Stan in '03?

We were specifically told we couldn't get "any servicemember" packages or letters in the sandbox back then. Different secpos I guess, or APO/FPO difference. USO did manage to piece together some care packages, though, which were nice.

[JBoy]

67. If it's a problem of manpower

in order to screen out potentially offensive messages, there's a simple solution:

Some of those Republican "I'll take my tax cut and show my support of the troops by putting a decal on my SUV" war supporters could volunteer to fill the gap.

But they're busy shopping. You know, doing their part to help the nation.

[malaise]

68. Please send this to KO immediately n/t

[Rex]

77. Can't trust the children or let the soldiers see unnerving pictures or notes.

Not surprised.