The Obama administration is shamefully using the media enhanced urban myth of the crazed veteran to try and overcome the recent victories in preserving the rights of the second amendment and to quash pro-military sentiments which negatively impact their plans. The intentional use of “Timothy McVeigh” dishonors the service and records of millions of American veterans especially when it is being used in context to smear the image of those in uniform. There is a risk that such statements will discourage war veterans from seeking treatment for mental illness for fear of being unjustly labeled a potential criminal.
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano who just a few weeks ago did not want to use the word terrorism in testimony before Congress about her duties as head of DHS is now saying terrorism or terrorists in every other sentence in appearances and interviews for the media. When asked about the DHS report mentioning the right wing terrorist threat (see my ADR article yesterday) Sec. Napolitano said that it is her job to be concerned about the threat of terrorism at home and abroad. That her intent is to teach law enforcement “situational awareness” which includes the risk that military veterans may commit terrorism. Over the past 24 hours in every interview I can find on her she consistently throws out the name, “Timothy McVeigh”.
Why is the Obama administration bringing up Timothy McVeigh? We know they closely control and monitor all statements of members of the administration except for the uncontrollable gaffe prone Vice-President Biden. Therefore we have to take the mentioning of Timothy McVeigh and the so-called leaked DHS report as intentional acts. What would be their motivation? The Obama administration is using the media enhanced urban myth of the crazed veteran to try and overcome the recent victories in preserving the rights of second amendment and to quash pro-military sentiments which negatively impact their plans.
The concept of the “crazed veteran” is very familiar to American culture. Screen icon Sylvester Stallone who is also Republican made an impact on the American public in the 1982 film “Rambo:First Blood” about a down and out Vietnam Veteran who responds with intense violence to mistreatment by law enforcement in a small town. To a great extent the film owes its commercial success in that the audience believed that such a “crazed veteran” was believable. Of course Rambo did not kill anyone intentionally and ultimately surrendered to authorities. The liberal media would change that.
Move forward to the 2006 when Irwin Winklers film “ Home of the Brave” with Samuel Jackson is released as an admitted anti-war film with an agenda as told by the film’s producer to the liberal Salon.com. It was meant to capitalize on the classic 1946 film, William Wylers “Best Year of Our Lives’ which dealt with adjustment problems for World War II veterans, but it takes a much different direction. Unlike previous movies, the main character in the film is a highly educated physician who has become an alcoholic and abusive to his family. The movie is saying that war will likely create a “crazed veteran” out of anyone not just from the traditional working class foot soldier. Also in this movie a veteran snaps suddenly threatening innocent strangers which is a significant difference from Rambo over reacting to an injustice.
In between these two movies, the bombing in Oklahoma City by decorated military veteran Timothy McVeigh occurred in 1995. At the time the nation was focused on the threat of terrorism world wide although there had been several incidents in the U.S. involving groups that were white supremacist isolationists. Notice how the administration now wants to link “white supremacist” to gun rights. While in the service he had been recognized for bravery in combat in the Gulf War but gradually afterward began to develop problems leading to his honorable discharge in 1992. No expert has ever testified in court that the pathological behavior of Timothy McVeigh was caused by his military training.
There is no doubt that the left has a severe bent against the military. Even though there have always been some moderate Democrats in the military, military service will usually produce a conservative Republican even among traditional Democratic constituencies such as minorities.
The concept of a “crazed veteran” can be useful to the left in achieving several of their political goals. Almost every week in a city somewhere in the U.S. you will read a story about a liberal group protesting the military recruiting at a public high school. Clearly many on the left make no attempts to hide their goal to disrupt military recruiting. Saying that military service will turn your son or daughter into a “Timothy McVeigh” can be a powerful spin tool.
Even though “Timothy McVeigh” used explosives for his terrorist acts everyone remembers Rambo using a gun. The left conveniently lumps all rifles into one category so that a military 50 caliber machine gun for them is the same as an assault rifle. Sec. Napolitano and the Obama administration want the American public to think about a “crazed Rambo” firing a weapon when they mention veterans or Timothy McVeigh.
Last year the New York Times printed a piece called “Across America, Deadly Echoes of Foreign Battles”which tried to portray that there was a rapidly increasing epidemic of violence and murder by veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq. They extrapolated without a sound scientific backing as noted by many experts who have reviewed the piece that veterans are twice as likely to commit murder or violence than a non-veteran. The Weekly Standard published a rebuke, “The Wack0-Vet Myth” including statements from the Veterans of Foreign Wars and other veterans groups which quoted actual statistics from the The U.S. Bureau of Justice showing “the vast majority of veterans not only remain completely law-abiding but go on to lead stable and productive personal, professional, and civic lives.”
Is there another reason to mention veterans or McVeigh? The President today is going to Mexico to meet with Mexican President Calderon who is asking the U.S. to reinstate the assault rifle ban. Mexico contends that most of the weapons it seizes come from the U.S. and that gun shows are providing the Mexican cartels with their weapons. Here again the administration knows that many veterans are gun enthusiasts and they want the public to connect this image to the “crazed veteran”. Never mind that machine guns, rocket launchers, and grenades are not commonly sold at gun shows and remain extremely restricted. The tracking system used to trace handguns and rifles to the U.S. is working and allowing law enforcement to find illegal dealers. However, what is not communicated in the press is that what they are talking about is the weapons they can trace, many of the weapons like true military munitions are untraceable and not coming from the U.S.
Its no accident that President Obama’s, Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel , was the key Democrat in crafting the assault rifle ban of the 1990’s. He and fellow Democrats came up with concept of defining sporting versus military weapons used to politically achieve the ban. Currently the Democratic Party is perplexed and frustrated about dealing with the NRA given the recent Supreme Court decision clearly affirming the right of individuals to own weapons versus the liberal view of only guaranteeing a state militia.
Experts in the field of behavior, namely psychiatrists and psychologists, say that many factors may play a role into what can turn a person into violent offender. Exposure to violence as an adult even the severe combat violence in war may not be as important a factor as events in childhood or drug abuse. Singling out veterans is a type of improper and unscientific profiling equal to saying that the police should round up African Americans because they might commit crimes. The tragedy of Timothy McVeigh is that our government must do more to offer treatment and benefits to treat conditions like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to our veterans. There is a very real danger that the effect of the recent statements of Sec. Napolitano and the DHS report will cause veterans to fear coming for treatment of mental illness because they will labeled as potential criminals. The adminstration would be well served to renounce these statements immediately and give out a strong message of support to our war veterans.
Dr. Tony Magana was raised in McAllen Texas, attended Texas A&M;University, and holds a doctorate from Harvard University. He has served in the United States Army Reserve. He is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
