Wife saw army medic husband die in Afghanistan while chatting on SKYPE

[Kat]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/0...psed-saw-bullet-hole-in-wall/?test=latestnews

JMHO but I think this spokesperson is the one that is authorized to make statements. (my italics)

But Christopher Grey, a spokesman for the Army Criminal Investigation Command, said Monday that no bullet wound was found in Clark's body.

Grey said an autopsy is being done to determine the cause of death.

ETA: I found a link at militarytimes that is dated yesterday. http://militarytimes.com/news/2012/05/army-wife-saw-bullet-hole-while-Skyping-with-soldier-050612/

 

[oh_gal]

Bruce? Some knew him as Kevin, though? It doesn't say why he was in Afghanistan without the rest of his unit. A Company Troop command in Beaumont.
It says he was based at a Texas medical facility, Beaumont Army Medical Center where he was assigned!

This I recall was where inquiries were routed to. Why would that be if he was supposedly in Afghanistan?

I strongly suspect this is a propaganda story. Flags at half staff all over the state of New York? They do this every time a soldier from New York dies in suspicious circumstances?

Half the people who knew him supposedly call him Bruce and the others call him Kevin?
A funeral in Spencerport and the memorial in Addison, Michigan, but nothing down in Texas. Sounds to me like this story will fade away having served it's purpose of igniting anger and invoking the town of Tarin Kowt, one of the most remote locations for a base he was supposedly assigned to that has not been mentioned at all.

They are running out of reasons to still be in Afghanistan, apparently.
News back home of billions of dollars of iridium and other precious metals that need to be extracted by private industry there as well as the need for the poppy fields to be protected for the voracious appetite of the Pharmaceutical industry who's array of morphine, and oxycontin, and it's derivitive products come almost exclusively from Afghanistan, probably doesn't play well in Peoria.

Just to be sure, because I haven't had enough coffee yet, are you saying that this never happened?

 

[Kat]

http://militarytimes.com/news/2012/05/ap-deployed-captain-died-skype-chat-with-wife-050412/

Clark, a 43-year-old Army chief nurse, grew up in Michigan and lived previously in Spencerport, N.Y., a suburb of Rochester and his wife’s hometown. He joined the Army in 2006 and was stationed in Hawaii before he was assigned to the William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso. He deployed to Afghanistan in March.

It's not uncommon for a single soldier (even an officer) to be attached to another deploying unit if there is a need for that soldiers MOS ( military occupation specialty) within that unit that needs to be filled during the deployment.

He grew up in Michigan. His wife's hometown is in New York.

Just from my experiences and what I've witnessed, there will more than likely be a memorial for him at Fort Bliss. It probably won't be reported to the civilian newspaper (El Paso Times) at least I've never seen the memorials covered in that newspaper. I'm not sure how Fort Bliss does that, we were only there for 10 months and not assigned to a deploying unit. At Fort Hood, they would have memorials scheduled once a month, but that instillation had (at one time) 3 divisions and then 2 divisions located so there was a need to combine the memorials to once a month. There would have been a memorial and service for him for his unit as well in Afghanistan. All just my speculation based on what I've seen happen since 2001. JMHO

I thanked the heavens above when we got skype. It meant that I could have a scheduled time to talk to my loved one and our kids could talk and see his face too! But I can't imagine the sheer terror and panic of witnessing your loved one possibly being harmed or even not being harmed but being incapacitated in some way and because they are forward (and especially remote). I was shocked they were able to get to him within 2 hours. That is pretty amazing in my opinion. Prayers for his wife and his children.

 

[jjenny]

Army says he was not shot. Sounds to me like he died from some natural cause and the hole just was in the closet door as a coincidence.
Although I am not sure what natural cause would kill someone instantly.
Heart attack? Stroke?

 

[houndstooth]

Just to be sure, because I haven't had enough coffee yet, are you saying that this never happened?

I'm saying I haven't read anything but a bunch of conflicting and sketchy unbelievable stories about it, so there is that distinct possibility in my mind.

Did you ever read anything about the base where this allegedly happened?
I would have thought that would have come up at least once. Any word at all from a single officer in Afghanistan?

It all appeared to be information at first through the medical center in Beaumont before handing it off to the Pentagon.

Reasonable doubt so far.

 

[houndstooth]

Army says he was not shot. Sounds to me like he died from some natural cause and the hole just was in the closet door as a coincidence.
Although I am not sure what natural cause would kill someone instantly.
Heart attack? Stroke?

Especially not to register any expression on his face as some reports have stated.

Well some said he showed no alarm, some said a look of surprise.
I would think it would be either or.

Then again some said he slumped forward, some said he slumped back.
You'd think there would be no ambiguity there, at least, to know which direction he slumped.

 

[houndstooth]

http://militarytimes.com/news/2012/05/ap-deployed-captain-died-skype-chat-with-wife-050412/



It's not uncommon for a single soldier (even an officer) to be attached to another deploying unit if there is a need for that soldiers MOS ( military occupation specialty) within that unit that needs to be filled during the deployment.

He grew up in Michigan. His wife's hometown is in New York.

Just from my experiences and what I've witnessed, there will more than likely be a memorial for him at Fort Bliss. It probably won't be reported to the civilian newspaper (El Paso Times) at least I've never seen the memorials covered in that newspaper. I'm not sure how Fort Bliss does that, we were only there for 10 months and not assigned to a deploying unit. At Fort Hood, they would have memorials scheduled once a month, but that instillation had (at one time) 3 divisions and then 2 divisions located so there was a need to combine the memorials to once a month. There would have been a memorial and service for him for his unit as well in Afghanistan. All just my speculation based on what I've seen happen since 2001. JMHO

I thanked the heavens above when we got skype. It meant that I could have a scheduled time to talk to my loved one and our kids could talk and see his face too! But I can't imagine the sheer terror and panic of witnessing your loved one possibly being harmed or even not being harmed but being incapacitated in some way and because they are forward (and especially remote). I was shocked they were able to get to him within 2 hours. That is pretty amazing in my opinion. Prayers for his wife and his children.

His wife is from New York?
He's from Michigan.

Then why is Mario Cuomo flying flags at half staff? It's not as if he's a native son.
It seems to me to be a political ploy by the DoD and a Presidential election year.

 

[Kat]

His wife is from New York?
He's from Michigan.

Then why is Mario Cuomo flying flags at half staff? It's not as if he's a native son.
It seems to me to be a political ploy by the DoD and a Presidential election year.

I don't know which state his home of record is in.

(for anyone that doesn't know) home of record is where you enter the Army. It's not where you are born but where you report to the Army. So for example, my son was born in KY but entered into service in Texas. His home of record is Texas.

I'm just guessing but I think he entered into service from NY because one of the articles backthread says he and his wife moved to NY in 2000. After he graduated college he entered the Army in 2006. Just a guess though.

ETA: sorry didn't conclude that thought. I don't know what Cuomo's orders are about recognizing a fallen soldier but if it's to fly a flag at half mast, then yes if his home of record is in NY then he would be considered a NY'er. JMHO.

Here this explains it better :

http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/militarylaw1/a/homeofrecord.htm

 

[houndstooth]

Well, he isn't listed here:

http://www.tributes.com/browse_obituaries?city=Spencerport&state=NY

 

[Kat]

Well, he isn't listed here:

http://www.tributes.com/browse_obituaries?city=Spencerport&state=NY

Okay then my question is in that particular newspaper are the obits supplied by the Next of kin? Are they purchased?

I have no clue but that doesn't really tell me anything to be honest houndstooth.

I understand by your posts that you believe this may be a hoax of some sort, I may not share that opinion but I do believe you have the right to your opinion.

However,my opinion is this man did die in afghanistan. I don't know how or why but I do believe he did.

 

[houndstooth]

Okay then my question is in that particular newspaper are the obits supplied by the Next of kin? Are they purchased?

I have no clue but that doesn't really tell me anything to be honest houndstooth.

I understand by your posts that you believe this may be a hoax of some sort, I may not share that opinion but I do believe you have the right to your opinion.

However,my opinion is this man did die in afghanistan. I don't know how or why but I do believe he did.

I neither believe nor disbelieve anything.
There is either indisputable facts or there aren't.

There are hoaxes in the media.
There is propaganda in the media.
And there are fake stories planted in the media.

Each of which is proffered by a different individual or entity.
Hoaxes would mean I thought the wife or husband made it up. As in balloon boy. That is not what this is.

There is propaganda in the media, which is stories either invented or spun for a specific purpose to sell the war, create enemies in the people's minds etc.
This would be the military industrial complex.

There are fake stories planted in the news by the media for the purpose of selling ads and newspapers or clicks. This is by far the most common source of baseless stories that find their way into the collective attention of Americans. Yellow journalism is age old and still ongoing.
That is also not where or what this story involves.

I find that people are too willing to believe everything they see and hear, and have no idea how much is not true, at all for one agenda or another.

I read stories and put them to the test before I "BELIEVE" anything just because I saw it on the internet or television.

 

[SuziQ]

Houndstooth,

IMO, at worst we might be witnessing a case of friendly fire cover-up by the military, at best this poor guy merely died suddenly of a stroke or something. You have a right to your opinion, but I don't think there is any elaborate hoax or war promoting propaganda going on here.

 

[cluciano63]

Army says he was not shot. Sounds to me like he died from some natural cause and the hole just was in the closet door as a coincidence.
Although I am not sure what natural cause would kill someone instantly.
Heart attack? Stroke?

Yes, or an aneurism...
My husband's cousin literally dropped dead from one, she wasn't even 30. No warning signs at all.

 

[JodyMT]

I can't believe how fast this story was shut down. There is nothing about it at all past May 7th. Was he shot? This was a national story. You would think that if he died from an aneurism it would come out; surely the press has asked.

With it being shut up so effectively I can't help but wonder if he really was shot by friendly fire and the Army is shutting it up.

 

[michmi]

SOMETHING happened here. I've also periodically looked to see if a cause of death was ever determined and you can't find a shred of information.

 

[snowleopard]

I can't find anything dated after 2012 on this, no new reports, no autopsy result, statement on cause of death, nada. That highly strange considering the pretty abundant coverage at the time. I'd go Occam's Razor on this (stroke etc), except for the profound silence. Not even any public statement by the family. Very odd.