I felt like the recent
"WTF" front page entry from Armando (and the subsequent comments) was a bit obnoxious given that all the offensive quotes were essentially unattributed. But before opening my mouth, I checked with the reporter that wrote the article.
He confirmed my suspicions: this woman is being maligned for "quotes" that were told second-hand by the recruiter that was unable to sign-up her son.
So, a reporter says that a recruiter says that some kid's mom says that "Military service isn't for our son. It isn't for our kind of people." Does that really seem to be worth the fury and righteousness that so many folks are working up? Perhaps a little less invective against anonymous mom and northern Pgh (my hometown, I'll confess) might be in order.
Here's the email from the reporter:
From: Jack Kelly <jkelly@Post-Gazette.com>
Sent: Friday, August 12, 2005 10:13 AM
To: nbier
Subject: RE: Parent Trap article question
Rivera recounted them to me.
-----Original Message-----
From: nbier
Sent: Friday, August 12, 2005 10:13 AM
To: Jack Kelly
Subject: Parent Trap article question
Hi,
Your article yesterday on problems in local military recruiting has
started a bit of a tempest (probably teapot-based) in the lefty blogs (
http://atrios.blogspot.com/2005_08_07_atrios_archive.html#112381157167118542
http://dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/8/11/225739/815 if you're interested).
Anyway, before I jumped into the fray, I was hoping to get some
clarification from you regarding the two quotes attributed to the
prospect's mom:
"I want you to know we support you," she gushed.
"Military service isn't for our son. It isn't for our kind of
people," she told him.
Did you actually hear these quotes, or were they passed on to you
second-hand from Staff Sgt. Rivera?
Thanks,
nbier
There's more than enough to in today's America that's worth your fury and indignation--this is a distraction worth ignoring.