"Workplace violence"

This story begins with the report that Nidal Hasan is still getting his military salary while awaiting his murder trial (13 counts of premeditated murder, 32 counts of attempted murder).

The Department of Defense confirms to NBC 5 Investigates that accused Fort Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan has now been paid more than $278,000 since the Nov. 5, 2009 shooting that left 13 dead and 32 injured. The Army said under the Military Code of Justice, Hasan’s salary cannot be suspended unless he is proven guilty.

If Hasan had been a civilian defense department employee, NBC 5 Investigates has learned, the Army could have suspended his pay after just seven days.

Though as mentioned, that's apparently what the Military Code of Justice requires. Too bad the salary can't be suspended.


But the much bigger issue IMO is this part of the story:

Retired Army Spc. Logan Burnett, a reservist who, in 2009, was soon to be deployed to Iraq, was shot three times when a gunman opened fire inside the Army Deployment Center.

“I honestly thought I was going to die in that building,” said Burnett. “Just blood everywhere and then the thought of -- that's my blood everywhere.”

Burnett nearly died. He's had more than a dozen surgeries since the shooting, and says post-traumatic stress still keeps him up at night.

Burnett is now fighting a new battle; only this one is against the U.S. Army.

The Army has not classified the wounds of the Ft. Hood victims as “combat related” and declines to label the shooting a “terrorist attack”,

The “combat related” designation is an important one, for without it Burnett and other shooting victims are not given combat-related pay, they are not eligible for Purple Heart retirement or medical benefits given to other soldiers wounded either at war or during the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon.

As a result, Burnett, his wife Torey, and the families of other Fort Hood victims miss out on thousands of dollars of potential benefits and pay every year.

To Burnett the shooting felt like combat.

“You take three rounds and lose five good friends and watch seven other people get killed in front of you. Do you have another term that we can classify that as?” asked Burnett.

The Army has categorized the shooting as a case of “workplace violence.”

“Sickens me. Absolutely sickens me. Workplace violence? I don't even know if I have the words to say,” said Burnett.

http://www.nbcdfw.com/investigations/Accused-Fort-Hood-Shooter-Paid-278000-While-Awaiting-Trial-208230691.html

How crazy is it to still call this "workplace violence"? And now we are seeing this is just not a case of playing political word games, this is hurting the people who were injured in the attack.

While the accused murderer has made over 1/4 million dollars, his victims are getting shafted over a choice of words.

When the shooter was reportedly yelling "Allah Akbar", how can this be characterized as workplace violence? Is this another attempt by the Obama administration to make it look like terrorism has been stopped?

That would be very sad to see all these GI's in this hell because someone cares more about good public relations than American troops.

FredHayek wrote: When the shooter was reportedly yelling "Allah Akbar", how can this be characterized as workplace violence? Is this another attempt by the Obama administration to make it look like terrorism has been stopped?

That would be very sad to see all these GI's in this hell because someone cares more about good public relations than American troops.

Here we go again.... Obama is micro managing everything that happens in the government and the military.... The man is amazing.

It could also be someone who wants to curry favor with the current administration. Something about ridding me of this priest?

Obama as a micromanager? More like a Pilate, wanting to wash his hands of what the people who serve at his request do. (Unless it makes him look good!)

Question Archer: do you think the Major's crimes are solely workplace violence?

1. Congress decides payment issues for the military. If someone is classified a deserter, which begins the 31st day after they are classified as AWOL, their pay is "suspended" until their duty status is changed or they are caught. If someone gets lost hunting, they are classified as DUSTWUN (and this may not be correctly spelled), which means Duty Status Unknown...their pay and benefits are not stopped until their duty status is known and changed. If a person is charged with a crime and put in correctional custody, by law, the duty status they are given does not give anyone the right to suspend their pay and benefits. In the article referenced, I believe there were at least a couple of our politicians that were trying to change this.

2. This court-martial has taken so long because it is really something "new" to the military. Most of these types of massacres that have been done by military members have resulted in their own death, either by suicide or by other person.

3. Again, our politicians have to change the meaning of "terrorist attack" and "workplace violence"...the Army didn't just name it that. The criteria for getting a purple heart are very, very strict, as it is a wartime medal with added benefits.

9/11 was classified as a terrorist act, but before 9/11 the terminology for terrorist act did not include acts committed on U.S. soil. Right now the terminology says a terrorist act is an act that is committed by a known terrorist group, on or off U.S. soil, with the sole purpose of "terrorizing" the people. Major Hasan is not a known terrorist group.

Again...this terminology takes an act of Congress, literally, to change. I believe the change will happen, but changing anything in the military rules usually is like having a baby elephant--it doesn't happen quickly and it takes a lot of screaming!

I agree that this whole thing has

FredHayek wrote: It could also be someone who wants to curry favor with the current administration. Something about ridding me of this priest?

Obama as a micromanager? More like a Pilate, wanting to wash his hands of what the people who serve at his request do. (Unless it makes him look good!)

Question Archer: do you think the Major's crimes are solely workplace violence?

I don't know how the military classifies these things so I can't say, I just don't know enough. Do you think Obama told the military personally how they should classify it?

Hopefully Congress addresses this soon. Or Obama is CINC maybe he could set this right.

archer wrote:

FredHayek wrote: It could also be someone who wants to curry favor with the current administration. Something about ridding me of this priest?

Obama as a micromanager? More like a Pilate, wanting to wash his hands of what the people who serve at his request do. (Unless it makes him look good!)

Question Archer: do you think the Major's crimes are solely workplace violence?

I don't know how the military classifies these things so I can't say, I just don't know enough. Do you think Obama told the military personally how they should classify it?

Do you think that is the correct question to be asking?

FredHayek wrote: It could also be someone who wants to curry favor with the current administration. Something about ridding me of this priest?

Obama as a micromanager? More like a Pilate, wanting to wash his hands of what the people who serve at his request do. (Unless it makes him look good!)

Question Archer: do you think the Major's crimes are solely workplace violence?

I think it's for a court of law to decide, sadly his "reportedly" yelling Allah Akbar isn't proof until it's presented in a trial with evidence, so for now it's workplace violence until proven otherwise. This situation highlights problems with bureaucracy more than anything.

Blazer Bob wrote:

archer wrote:

FredHayek wrote: It could also be someone who wants to curry favor with the current administration. Something about ridding me of this priest?

Obama as a micromanager? More like a Pilate, wanting to wash his hands of what the people who serve at his request do. (Unless it makes him look good!)

Question Archer: do you think the Major's crimes are solely workplace violence?

I don't know how the military classifies these things so I can't say, I just don't know enough. Do you think Obama told the military personally how they should classify it?

Do you think that is the correct question to be asking?

Fred brought up Obama in the second post of this thread. Seemed like a natural question to ask.