MILITARYMan served time after deserting his unit, says mental health issues were to blame
BY BRYAN DEAN
Published: January 25, 2009
Daniel Sandate made some bad choices.
The former Army private made headlines when he was deported from Canada, where he spent nearly three years hiding after deserting his unit.
After returning to the United States last year, he was sentenced to eight months in the stockade.
Sandate, 26, was released Tuesday from Fort Sill and plans to stay with friends in the Oklahoma City area for the time being. Having paid the price for his choices, he hopes to get back on his feet and that others will learn from his story.
Physical and mental problems
Sandate said he never meant to be anything other than a good soldier. His problems started in June 2004, when he developed severe back pain just before deploying to Iraq.
When he got back, Sandate said, his superiors ignored his medical problems and made him walk long distances when he needed to take his prescription pain medication.
“It came to the point where I didn’t want to get my medicine because it hurt more to walk that far than it would for me to just do without,” Sandate said.
He said discipline threats from the Army started as his physical condition deteriorated and his job performance suffered.
Sandate didn’t notice it, but friends told him his personality changed dramatically after he returned from Iraq. He had a history of depression and showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Sandate’s attorney, James Branum, practices out of Oklahoma City and works with groups that provide legal help to soldiers. He suspects Sandate’s mental problems pushed him over the edge.
The idea to leave for Canada wasn’t supposed to be a permanent move. Sandate said he just needed a break from the Army, and he’d met a girl online who happened to live there.
“Next thing I know, I was on a plane, and I was in Toronto,” Sandate said.
“I didn’t have anything thought out at the time. One of my downfalls is I don’t really plan things ahead.”
Help never came
He planned on coming back to his unit until he got a call a week later from his sergeant telling him he had committed a crime punishable by death. As the gravity of his mistake set in, he said, he decided not to go back and face the wrath of his superiors.
Sandate came to the attention of Canadian authorities when he attempted suicide. Sandate said he actually looked forward to returning to the Army, hoping he’d get help for his mental illness.
That help never came. He said he was denied mental health treatment by both the Army and the county jail where he was held awaiting trial. He pleaded guilty to desertion and was sentenced to eight months, far less than the potential two to five years deserters can face.
Karen Connelly, a spokesman for Fort Carson, said the military can’t comment on a specific soldier’s physical or mental health because of privacy laws, but she said all soldiers have access to adequate medical care.
“Every soldier is treated as an individual and has the opportunity to be treated by health care specialists, and they get a treatment plan just like anyone else if they saw a civilian doctor,” Connelly said.
Branum said the judge took into account Sandate’s mental health problems and the lack of treatment by Army doctors.
“I wish that he’d gotten help early on and fought back,” Branum said.
“He did what he was supposed to do in Iraq. When he came back, he had serious mental and physical health issues, and he was turned away.”
January 24, 2009
Environment, Poem, Wisdom
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Blue sent this to me for my blog, its from her sister, her earlier poem got a lot of attention.
Brought to you by Bad Rap co. & Panda Productions? I hope you enjoy.
The Earth
As the day goes on
We never know
How beautiful
The leaves may blow
How gracefully
The flowers bloom
How wonderful
The full moon shines
We never take time
To realize
How blue the sky really is
How amazing it is
To see a shooting star
Shine in the night so far
So next time look outside
And realize
How long it took
For trees to grow
And what will happen
In years or so
To the beauty of the earth we know
And thank the ones
Who plant the trees
And grow the flowers
And feel the breeze
Just look outside
Right now
Today
And realize
Day by day
The lovely earth
In all its splendor
And thank god for the time to look
At the beauty
Of the earth
By A.M.
January 24, 2009
News
No Comments
OpEdNews
Original Content at http://www.opednews.com/articles/Unanswered-9-11-Miracles-a-by-Allen-L-Roland-090123-116.html
January 23, 2009
Unanswered 9/11 Miracles about To Be Answered
By Allen L Roland
Hopefully this year, Pandora’s Box will be fully opened regarding the abuses of power by the Bush/Cheney administration. Eventually, their treasonous 9/11 cover-up will be revealed and the world will reel in shock and disgust : Allen L Roland
Barack Obama must first reveal the truth of our current financial nightmare as well as the abuses of power by the Bush/Cheney administration in order to restore trust in our government. That rapidly unfolding public vetting process will eventually lead to the 9/11 cover- up and Bush and Cheney’s active participation or willing countenance of the tragic events of that day.
Yesterday, Barack Obama today revoked President George W. Bush’s Executive Order which makes presidential records secret for up to 12 years after leaving office!
That would be the logical first step for his Administration to take if they are considering going after Bush for criminal prosecution over crimes against the nation ~ such as deliberately lying to take us to war in Iraq under false pretenses. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article21816.htm
Obama is committed to the truth but he will do this by not playing to his progressive base but by letting the events reveal themselves within the context of his pledge for government truth and transparency.
Steven Kessler, editor of the Redwood Coast Review, accurately writes about the style of the new sheriff in town ~ President Barack Obama.
” He’s not playing to his base but is attempting to seduce the center and, through the functional political instruments of compromise, persuasion and patience with opposing points of view, maybe actually steer a course to accomplishment that reasonable people can agree on. Fundamentalism of any kind is not his thing; he’s a negotiator, a shape-shifter, yet he’s also anchored in core beliefs and principles ~ honesty, decency, discipline, kindness ~ that he is unlikely to abandon.” http://www.metcruz.com/metro-santa-cruz/01.14.09/cover-0902.html
In that context, I return to the 9/11 scene, not to fan the flames but, instead, to review ongoing truths ~ particularly in light of the growing awareness of the obvious deceptions and lies of the Cheney/Bush Administration.
Americans are now ready to look into the Pandora’s Box of 9/11 because the implications are truly breathtaking and staggering for as each shocking abuse of power of the Cheney/Bush regime is revealed ~ the public becomes more open to the possibility of a monstrous deception beneath the unanswered 9/11 miracles.
If one accepts the ” Official Version ” of the events that occurred on 9/11 or in the days leading up to it, one must conclude that a series of miracles indeed occurred ~ suggesting factitiously the hand of higher powers.
Here they are once again ( Courtesy of Alex James )
Allen L Roland http://blogs.salon.com/0002255/2009/01/23.html
THE MIRACLE
” On the day of the hijackings the US Government is running drills with its Air Force where it is simulating “Multiple Hijackings of Aircraft” within the United States of America. This drill causes great confusion amongst Air Traffic Controllers as it provides a “Cover” for the real Hijackings. Without these drills it is very possible that the Aircraft that were hijacked could have been intercepted far earlier. Certainly one has to consider this some sort of “Miracle”
Surely “The hand of ???”
The Miracle
Months prior to the hijackings the US Government changes the rules of engagement for hijacked Aircraft. Now in order to send up planes to intercept, the approval of the Defense Secretary, one Donald Rumsfeld, is required. Unfortunately he goes missing for 30 minutes, on the morning of the attacks, again impeding the ability of intercepts to be flown. Not only this but on the day of those intercepts, supersonic US fighter aircraft that are scrambled suddenly have a top speed of only around 200 MPH.
Surely “The Hand Of ???”
The Miracle
The US President is on a pre-scheduled event in a school in Florida. The Government has no idea of how many Aircraft have been hijacked or what the targets of the hijackers are. Indeed, given that the president’s location that morning had been televised, the President himself might well be a target. Yet, rather then rush him to safety as they are trained ~ and expected ~ to do, the Secret Service is certain the President is not at risk. They let the President sit in the classroom and continue with his story about a pet goat for the next half hour ~ even after he was told the second tower was hit. A miracle of faith if anything.
Surely “The Hand of ???”
The Miracle
Five Israeli Citizens manage to be across the river from the WTC towers and are in place to film the planes crashing into the towers. Great is their Joy as they realize that the United States will certainly discover that Al Qaeda is the Culprit and this will lead to the destruction of Israel’s many enemies. How they came to be there is certainly a miracle, and that the attack lead to the destruction of their arch enemies, the Iraqis, even more so. Why, after traces of explosives were detected in their vans by bomb-sniffing dogs these men were inexplicably released by the police, only adds to this miracle. (They later admitted during an interview on Israeli television that they had been sent to the the United States “to document the event”, but no one asked them who sent them.)
Surely “the Hand Of Yahweh”
The Miracle
No steel-framed buildings in the history of construction had ever suffered total structural collapse due to fires, yet on this single day, within hours of one another, THREE buildings collapse after fires burn through them. This even after Firefighters claim to have had the fires under control.
Surely “the Hand of ???”
The Miracle
All three towers collapse neatly into their own footprints, exactly as they do in controlled demolitions, at freefall speeds ~ i.e., in the same time it would take apples dropped from the roofs. All 110 floors fell as if nothing existed beneath them but air.
Surely “the Hand of ???”
The Miracle
The owner of the buildings slips up on national television and admits that he ordered one of the towers (building 7) to be “pulled”. A “Pull” ~ jargon for controlled demolition ~ requires months of planning and preparation. Yet, no one to this day has asked this man how he managed to achieve this incredible feat in a matter of hours, and amidst the chaos of 9/11. The 9/11 Commission surely must also have assumed this to be a miracle because they did not even address this in their report. That the insurance company paid out 7 billion dollars without even the slightest investigation ~ even after the owner’s admission of a ‘pull’ ~ only compounds the magnitude of this miracle.
Surely “the Hand of ???”
The Miracle
Jet fuel is essentially refined kerosene. It burns without problem in millions of steel stoves, heaters and furnaces around the world every day. Yet on 9/11, in less than an hour, this innocuous substance MELTED all the massive steel beams of three skyscrapers and caused the structures to collapse like pillars of sand in less than 10 seconds. How do we know the steel melted? Firefighters and other first responders reported seeing molten metal “flowing like rivers” in the basements of the collapsed buildings for several weeks.
Surely “the Hand of ???”
The Miracle
Six months before the 9/11 attacks, the cluster of buildings that constitute the World Trade Center are purchased by a private investor for a relatively paltry sum of $200 million. (That was the first time in its 33-year history the complex had changed ownership). The new owner has the foresight (again miraculous, no doubt) to insure the buildings against terrorist attacks. The buildings were never seen as being profitable. In fact, because of their extremely high asbestos content, the structures had actually been condemned. Yet to destroy and rebuild them by conventional means would have been prohibitively expensive. It is indeed a miracle that the investor was paid $7 billion by the insurance companies after the attacks. A miraculously handsome return on an investment of $200 million.
Surely “The hand of ???”
The Miracle
Immediately following the acquisition of the WTC complex, the new owner makes it a priority to change Security companies. The CEO and a director of the new security company are none other than George W. Bush’s brother, Marvin Bush, and cousin, Wirt Walker III. It is a double-miracle that this same company is also responsible for providing security to American Airlines and the Dulles airport ~ both closely associated with the 9/11 attacks.
Surely “The hand of ???”
The Miracle
Billions in profits are made off put options shortly before 9/11 wherein investors made up to $15 billion in a frenzy of trading betting that certain stocks would fall in value over the next few days. These included stocks in the two Airlines that would suffer most from 9/11. In fact, the profits were so staggering and unprecedented that it caused Bloomberg News to exclaim: “This would be the most extraordinary coincidence in the history of mankind if it was a coincidence. This could very well be insider trading at the worst, most horrific, most evil use you’ve ever seen in your entire life. It’s absolutely unprecedented.”
Little did Bloomberg News know that it was in fact a miracle.
Surely “The Hand of ???”
The above mentioned miracles are but a small sampling of those that occurred on 9/11. People who do not believe higher powers had a hand in these are surely blinded. The number of coincidences that occurred in those few days is mind boggling. Terrorists’ passports that Miraculously survived fireballs and landed blocks away…the Miraculous bag that did not make the flight that included the names and details of every hijacker…Persons receiving Miraculous warnings out of the ether not to fly on that day…Cell phones Miraculously working from 30,000 feet where they had never worked before…People who couldn’t fly a little Cessna performing Miraculous corkscrew maneuvers in Jumbo jets…The list of Miracles on 9/11 is virtually endless.
“???” has certainly spoken “
——————————————
Or is this the evil work of determined and unscrupulous men ?
To be continued ….. but first let’s re-open the 9/11 Investigation.
Allen L Roland http://blogs.salon.com/0002255/2009/01/23.html
Authors Website: http://www.allenroland.com
Authors Bio: Allen L Roland is a practicing psychotherapist, author and lecturer who also shares a daily political and social commentary on his weblog and website allenroland.com He also guest hosts a monthly national radio show TRUTHTALK on Conscious talk radio www.conscioustalk.net
January 23, 2009
Poem, Poem of The Day, Relationships
2 Comments
A Not Sung Song
The lyrics are out of tune
A bird cannot sing
The meaning misunderstood
A sign not read
We have to know ourselves
Before we can know each other
By: Roger Harkness
*******************
In otherwords, you can’t sing about others until you sing about yourself. I think I was being lazy when I wrote this, sure isn’t much to it.
January 22, 2009
Environment, Poem, Poem of The Day
1 Comment
A New Earth
With A Pink Sun
It’s a happy day
It’s a warm soft rain
Sprinkling my body
Washing off my pain
Now stand
Rise to a pink sun
Command the flowers to bloom
Direct the birds in song
One more chance
A new earth
You will not hurt
Kiss the ground
Take nothing down
Milk and honey
Fruits and berries
Will be your food
Teach your sons
Teach your daughters
About the new earth
And pink sun
Teach them
How their forefathers
Didn’t care
About the other one
In a great anger
The old earth got sick
And threw-up
Ice water washed it clean
A death of life
Chilled us to the bone
To be awakened here
All alone
A law giver charged us
To take care of
This one
A new earth
With a pink sun
By: Roger Harkness
********************
Wrote this in the late 80s, a dream of a new world.
