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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2009
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Taliban Hostage's Hometown Stayed Quiet on Kidnapping

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(Newser) – The Taliban's capture of an American soldier in Afghanistan is old news for some residents of his hometown, but they kept quiet out of concern for his safety, the AP reports. The family of Bowe R. Bergdahl asked neighbors and other community members in Hailey, Idaho, not to discuss his situation publicly—a request they honored for weeks. The Pentagon released his name over the weekend after a Taliban video surfaced online.

"If the military wasn't releasing his name, we didn't feel we should be releasing it either,” Bergdahl’s former employer says. Bergdahl was home-schooled in Hailey, where he liked to ride his bike, attended a local ballet school, and worked at a café. That café now has a sign in its window reading "Get Bowe Back.” Meanwhile, his parents, described as very private, have a sign turning visitors away.

On the counter at a local cafe where Bowe Bergdahl pulled espressos is a small sign asking patrons to keep the 23-year-old Taliban captive in their thoughts.
On the counter at a local cafe where Bowe Bergdahl pulled espressos is a small sign asking patrons to keep the 23-year-old Taliban captive in their thoughts.   (AP Photo/John Miller)
This video frame grab taken from a Taliban propaganda video released Saturday, July 18, 2009 shows Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, 23.
This video frame grab taken from a Taliban propaganda video released Saturday, July 18, 2009 shows Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, 23.   (AP Photo/Militant Video)
The childhood home of Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, taken prisoner nearly three weeks ago in Afghanistan by members of a Taliban group, sits in the high sage desert just off a gravel road.
The childhood home of Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, taken prisoner nearly three weeks ago in Afghanistan by members of a Taliban group, sits in the high sage desert just off a gravel road.   (AP Photo/John Miller)
Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl worked as a barista at Zaney's River Street Coffee House in this central Idaho resort town just south of the Sawtooth Mountains.
Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl worked as a barista at Zaney's River Street Coffee House in this central Idaho resort town just south of the Sawtooth Mountains.   (AP Photo/David Seelig)
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Bergdahl is a United States soldier who was captured by Taliban forces in eastern Afghanistan.   (Mediabaronau)

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6 comments
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Cegorach
Jul 20, 09 1:26 PM CDT
"A drunk soldier on a mission looking for strange is now a national hero." Uhh... proof? He says he fell behind on a foot patrol, DoD says he left to meet a woman, so where are you getting the drunk soldier? "This solider should be courtmatrialed for his anti-American statements and numerous violations of the Uniform Code of Miltary Justice when he come home." Again, proof. "He is clearly no John McCain !" Because getting yourself shot down multiple times is so much better than being a simple ground pounder who got kidnapped because of unknown (since we have conflicting reports) circumstances. Reply
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2-bits
Jul 20, 09 3:22 PM CDT
Corona_King trusts the Talibans statements more than the DOD, obviously.
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IN RESPONSE:
Snarfeh
Jul 20, 09 4:34 PM CDT
@2-bits...that's because it is a member of the American Taliban Republican Party....
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kokuaguy
Jul 21, 09 11:39 AM CDT
C_k, why are you so sure there's any more truth in the Army's version than there was in the Jessica Lynch fabricated fables? But I am more interested in seeing a national movement to free the reporters in N. Korea than in invading Pakistan on behalf of young Bowe. He should do exactly as McCain did and wait for the negotiated settlement that will no doubt come within the next year or so when prisoners can be exchanged. There, see how rational I can sound when I'm not drinking Starbucks spiked with Courvoisier?
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IN RESPONSE:
kokuaguy
Jul 21, 09 11:42 AM CDT
And if he is some kind of a turn coat, when this long national nightmare is finally over, the Commander in Chief can pardon him, along with all the Bush Adminstration war criminals.
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