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Army Medicine Failed Hasan, Shooting Victims

Shooter wasn't promoted because it was PC; it was necessity

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted Nov 13, 2009 11:52 AM CST
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(Newser) – Media coverage of the Fort Hood killings has been factually challenged and quick to jump to conclusions about terrorism and political correctness, but the underlying problem is much bigger, Mark Benjamin argues. The real question: Why was alleged shooter Nidal Malik Hasan an Army psychiatrist in the first place? Given his belief that Muslims shouldn't be killing other Muslims in battle, "It’s hard to imagine Hasan being particularly empathetic with his patients."

The catastrophic state of the Army medical establishment is sadly familiar, Benjamin writes for Salon. "Remember the Walter Reed scandal? The horrific treatment of traumatic brain injury and PTSD that has gone on for years?" he writes. "Army medicine has been dropping the ball on these issues for a long time. Given that history, it's not hugely surprising they'd miss warning signs with Hasan and just let him go on being a doctor."

Prescription bottles with Nidal Malik Hasan's name on them fill a shoebox in his Killeen, Texas, apartment Nov. 11, 2009, following an FBI investigation.
Prescription bottles with Nidal Malik Hasan's name on them fill a shoebox in his Killeen, Texas, apartment Nov. 11, 2009, following an FBI investigation.   (AP Photo/The Killeen Daily Herald, David Morris)
This 2003 picture provided by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences shows Nidal Malik Hasan in his graduation photo when he completed his M.D. degree.
This 2003 picture provided by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences shows Nidal Malik Hasan in his graduation photo when he completed his M.D. degree.   (AP Photo/Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences)
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Hasan was a military psychiatrist toiling in an overburdened, desperate Army healthcare system that will hold onto any warm body with a medical degree. - Mark Benjamin

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 12 comments
DaytonAve.
Nov 14, 2009 12:35 PM CST
@timeandagain....I fell that way about most religions.
Nelstorm
Nov 14, 2009 12:05 PM CST
I'll be sure to tell the warring Buddhists and Hindus on Sri Lanka that Fox News isn't covering them, so they can do as they please.
Cher
Nov 14, 2009 10:22 AM CST
Excuse me CUNOMOR A person can explain anything using the New Testament teaching. However, I do agree with you that all religions are not the same. Islam is a violent and hateful religion. I have lived in the middle east and own two Korans which will be burned in my fireplace soon.

 
medicine • US military • US Army • Walter Reed Army Medical Center • political correctness • psychiatrist • Fort Hood • Fort Hood shooting • Nidal Malik Hasan • Mark Benjamin

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