Lousy treatment of Marines at Oakland Int'l Airport

A plane load of returning Marines were not allowed to enter the Oakland International airport last week, they were forced to stay 400 yards from the terminal for a few hours with no restrooms, food or beverages.



If you read the article (forget about National review, this is not a political issue, it is the disrespectful treatment of the Marines who serve this country.), you will see the procedures described and the security that returning troops/marines go through before ever boarding a plane out of Iraq.

I went through the same exact scrutiny in 1991 when I boarded the plane home from the gulf.

My welcome at Bangor, Maine's airport was outstanding and memorable..

These Marines will probably never forget their reception, though it will not be a memory like mine.

The Marine Chaplain put it like this in his email:

It felt like being spit on. Every Marine and soldier

felt the message loud and clear, "YOU ARE NOT WELCOME

IN OAKLAND!"

Mod edit: changed title for a less inflammatory one

[edit on 10/3/2007 by Gools]

No one spit on the Marines. Mods should change the thread title...

Should we expect anything else from Cali? Really, it is probably the most liberal minded state; with exception to maybe Vermont, it is by far the most liberal state in the U.S; as far as they are concerned, our military personal are little more than "murderers." It's sad, but it's the truth.



[edit on 2-10-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

i was in the army so by nature all other branches are a joke.. just kidding this is an outrage. i would have flipped and started killing people if this had happened to me. its a sad day for solders world wide when some thing like this happens. all of these people out there scream and cry about rights they have never done anything to protect. and yet we selflessly go on with our lives protecting freedom and this is how we get treated.

i would like to know some of your feelings on these responces to my posts on this thread.
www.abovetopsecret.com...
u2u me if need be..

And, the airport was told that they were not TSA screened and had weapons.

People are making it sound like, "Once again, those gosh darn left coast liberals are disrepecting our men in uniform!", which, is simply not the case as far as I can see.

reply to post by Malichai

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It's more accurate than these two recent threads:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

And those titles are intact.

Please note that the Chaplain mentioned "it felt like being spit on," which is an allusion to the Vietnam Era, and the unsubstantiated reports that soldiers were spit on. So I think the editorial license regarding the title is within due bounds.

reply to post by DaleGribble

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Dale, I feel the same, well, except for the "killing people" part.



Anyway, I was in the army as well, and it kind of rubs me the wrong way, but it doesn't surprise me. Americans are like a bunch of spoiled brats in a sandbox; they think they know what is good for them, but they really haven't a clue. They sure do enjoy all of the freedoms they have though. Of course, that's only because they aren't the ones that have to fight for them. If they did have to fight for themselves, rest assured, they'd lose all of their rights because they think freedom is free.

I agree with you on that, war from both ends is like a double edged sword, either way you get stabbed

Murder, you are correct. What else can I say?

Well, I see the similarities with the Vietnam War. I dont think its fair to treat the troops in that way though. They believe they are fighting for freedom, so their intentions are honorable.

Its just that they are being lied to by their leaders, which is unfortunate. There was no weapons of mass destruction and they knew it. Remember how Bush went on and on about Saddam gassing lots of people to death? Well, the truth is as always very different when it comes to the Bush administration.

Blame the leaders, not the people. Dont trust another word from the Bush administration.


[edit on 2-10-2007 by Copernicus]

reply to post by Jadette

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To be honest, it could have happened in the "bible belt," and I would have been just as angry. It just seems that things like this almost invariably happens in states like California, New York or Vermont, all of which are very liberal states.

I don't see any similarities. We'd have to be in Iraq another 40 years before we ever reached the number of soldiers lost that we lost in Vietnam. There is no similarity between Iraq and Vietnam; it's a bunch of propaganda.



[edit on 2-10-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

Sadly this sort of thing happens in both UK and US forces. It should be the guys who sent them in the first place, who should be spat on or mistreated. Not these guys and women, who are just doing thier duty.

Where to start? Lets start with honor first. These people give their lives to what they "belive" is serving our country and protecting our freedom.
I have family and friends in the military. They are good people, and honestly feel they are doing the right thing. Which I admire all our men and women serving us now!! Very important part of this post..
But this sounds like leftwing gatekeepers having a chess game with the rightwing gatekeepers for a move in reaction. I notice both these sides will get us to go at eachothers throats!!

They felt like being spit on.. BIG difference than getting spit on litterally!!

Its sad that some people are controled into fighting for private oil deals and other stuff we dont know about. But put it under the geise of freedom, then we can get everyone fighting with eachother..
These guys are masters of war.. I think they know how the game works..
And its working on some people here.. Take a step back, respect the man who fights for you, but also understand, He is being manipulated by our government..

My friends told me when in a fire fight, the strenght to fight comes from your brother hood of the people you are fighting with! You think about your brothers, and family. Not IM saving WB out here.. Or Dick Cheney, IM out here to save you! Nope its always personal reasons, which are honorable.. But our Government has lost its honor.

People need to have more respect for our men and women bottom line, but they also need to step back and atleast ask why people feel so disrespectful, presay lashing out and wanting to kill them for a point of veiw..

[edit on 2-10-2007 by zysin5]

amen brother. thats all i can say about that. i sacrificed my body thak god it wasent my life for not only my freedom but all americans and this is how we get treated. it is sad but what can we do.

Certainly. There is a force in this nation that keeps trying to divide America. However, as when anything major happens, America always acts as one. We may have our differences, but that shouldn't fool anyone.

Zysin, what you said is true. When I was in Afghanistan, the furthest thing from my mind was Bush or anyone in the political system. I was only concerned about my comrades and what would happen if we weren't successful. That was the only thing that I worried about.

reply to post by SpeakerofTruth

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Right, and nice to have you back SpeakerofTruth

They are injecting these thoughts into the hive mind here. As we do act as one, and I think the hive collectively can see both sides to this story, And not get baited into a threating stance on this issue



Yeah personal friends and family have painted the picture of what War is really about, and Im telling you I have nightmares just hearing about it!!!

[edit on 2-10-2007 by zysin5]

Thank you zysin.

I will never forget going through an area in Kabul, and seeing a young girl, maybe ten or eleven years old in the street crying for her mother. It shook me so badly that me and a buddy of mine had to sit down for about 15 minutes.

There are some stories that I could tell you, zysin, that would only increase your nightmares at night. However, I will refrain from doing so.

The returning soldiers/marines go through a more thorough screening process prior to leaving Iraq/Afghanistan, than is performed by the TSA, the soldiers/marines have no access to any of their baggage prior to reaching their final destination (Hawaii). This screening is mentioned in the article.

The Marines were not treated like this in Germany, and NYC prior to arriving at Oakland. This is also mentioned in the article.

Nowhere in the article is the word liberal brought up.

There is no excuse for how these Marines were treated,

Having said that

It is not surprising where this happened,

A similar event happened across the bay in SF last week

When the Marines drill team was forbidden to film a commercial.

Oh in that case as well, SF was the only place where the Marines received this treatment.

Maybe there is something wrong with the water in the bay area....