Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has completed the final phase of his reintegration at an Army hospital in Texas and will return to "regular duty," the Army confirmed Monday.
Bergdahl was released from Taliban captivity May 31 in a controversial trade that resulted in handing over five Taliban detainees to the government of Qatar in return for his freedom.
Bergdahl was held captive by the Taliban for nearly five years after he went missing from his post in Afghanistan in 2009. As part of the reintegration process Bergdahl, 28, received therapy and counseling at an Army hospital in San Antonio, and will be assigned at the same base, Fort Sam Houston.
"He will now return to regular duty within the command where he can contribute to the mission," the statement said. "The Army investigation into the facts and circumstances surrounding the disappearance and capture of Bergdahl is still ongoing."
The statement did not specify what Bergdahl's assignment would be.
Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl has been assigned to investigate Bergdahl's disappearance from his outpost in Afghanistan in 2009. The Army had said, however, that the investigation would have to wait until Bergdahl's health had improved.
An Army fact-finding investigation conducted in the months after Bergdahl's disappearance concluded he walked away from his post of his own free will, CNN reported, citing an official who was shown the report.
But the report said there was no definitive conclusion Bergdahl was a deserter because that would require knowing his intent — something officials couldn't learn without talking to him, a U.S. military official has said.
Bergdahl's return to service comes after the Obama administration drew sharp rebukes from many Republicans — and even some Democrats — in Congress for making the swap. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., had been among those who expressed concern that the Guantanamo Bay detainees released in the Bergdahl deal could return to the battlefield and even kill Americans.
Last week Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., who heads the Armed Services Committee, released letters from each of Joint Chiefs expressing support for Bergdahl's "repatriation."
"Each of these military leaders emphasized a simple principle — America does not leave its troops behind," Levin said in a statement. "The unanimous support of the Joint Chiefs for securing Sgt. Bergdahl's release is a powerful statement on the importance of that commitment. I give great weight to their views, and I believe it's important for the American people to hear them."
5 years in captivity by the Taliban and he's cleared for active duty after less than two months of therapy and counseling? Holy shit, give that therapist a medal. *snark*
Ok but really, he's cleared for active duty so soon despite the (assumed) trauma of being a prisoner for 5 years AND the accusations of being a deserter? Huh...
My suspicion, after his "welcome" back into civilian life.
Being hunted by Fix news, right wing bloggers and general butters...
Going back to active duty is probably a welcome escape.
That said, going back after just two months IS freaking crazy,
It's a sad commentary on the state of "mental health" in the us military
Praying is another way of doing nothing helpful
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I have to wonder what kind of treatment he's going to get by the people he's stationed with on active duty. Surely the word's going to get around about how "This is the guy that walked off and got himself caught for 5 years?"
"It's you Americans. There's something about nipples you hate. If this were Germany, we'd be romping around naked on the stage here."
General Zod wrote:I have to wonder what kind of treatment he's going to get by the people he's stationed with on active duty. Surely the word's going to get around about how "This is the guy that walked off and got himself caught for 5 years?"
Cleaning toilets is a form of active duty, right?
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General Zod wrote:I have to wonder what kind of treatment he's going to get by the people he's stationed with on active duty. Surely the word's going to get around about how "This is the guy that walked off and got himself caught for 5 years?"
Cleaning toilets is a form of active duty, right?
I'm thinking more from his fellow soldiers than command.
"It's you Americans. There's something about nipples you hate. If this were Germany, we'd be romping around naked on the stage here."
I'm guessing the idea behind it is to get him back to some semblance of 'normal routine' with out Pt therapy. Stuck in a hospital with psych tx can eventually lead to some problems r/t PTSD and other mental issues where getting back to 'life' and normal routine helps.
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But as far as board culture in general, I do think that young male overaggression is a contributing factor to the general atmosphere of hostility. It's not SOS and the Mess throwing hand grenades all over the forum- Red
General Zod wrote:I have to wonder what kind of treatment he's going to get by the people he's stationed with on active duty. Surely the word's going to get around about how "This is the guy that walked off and got himself caught for 5 years?"
Only if they've been watching too much Fox News. The guy was AWOL from camp to allegedly buy contraband; if he hadn't been unlucky enough to run into the Taliban he'd have got what, a fine of a couple hundred dollars and a few weeks of punishment detail?
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-- (Terry Pratchett, Small Gods)
Replace "ginger" with "n*gger," and suddenly it become a lot less funny, doesn't it?
-- fgalkin
As for how quiakly he's returning to duty, I think it's kinda arrogant that we can say "two months therapy isn't enough" considering none of us know the guy and as far as I know none of us are psychiatrists/psychologists. Everyone reacts differently, maybe for this guy returning to duty is therapy.
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Centurion: "Sir, I really think you should look at the other Battlestar."
Baltar: "What are you babbling about other...it's impossible!"
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He's an infantry soldier and being assigned to Fort Sam Houston for duty. Before you cry about how he was only "treated for 2 months" consider what kind of base he's been assigned to.
Hint: Fort Sam Houston isn't called the "Home of Army Medicine" for nothing.
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This is the price of war,
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And we risk all that is pure..." - Angela & Jeff van Dyck, Forever (Rome: Total War)
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The war continues on..." - Angela & Jeff van Dyck, We Are All One (Medieval 2: Total War)
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Getting back into a controlled daily routine can be highly helpful with therapy. Of course that only applies if the routine isn't too stressful or triggering the trauma again.
So if thats the case and he continues his therapy, this is actually a good thing.
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Don't think for a minute his therapy has stopped. The only thing that has happened is he's got things to do now. Before he was likely sitting at home (Be it in the barracks or base housing) talking to a therapist every day and catching up on the world. He might have been going stir crazy from inaction as he's active duty so it's not like he can hop a on a train to disenyland if he wants.
Giving him a nine to five even if it is just scutt work is most likely another part of his therapy rather than they have him scrubbing toilets and painting walls for 12 hours a day.
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Let the man serve ut his enlistment, someplace quiet and safe, then give him a honorable discharge. It's the only way this can end well.
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The news that Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl returned to active duty on Monday, just six week after he was released from Taliban captivity, was generally met with dismay. Twitter users wondered why a "traitor" was being allowed to serve in the military, and the family members of a solider killed while searching for Bergdahl said they were "furious." "This is another attempt to give credibility to a deserter to protect the decision to free five extremely dangerous Taliban," Sondra Andrews, mother of 2nd Lieutenant Darryn Andrews, told NBC News. However, while the Army framed Bergdahl's new status in a positive light, saying he is "a normal soldier now," the move might just be a prelude to disciplining the 28-year-old for desertion.
The Army said Bergdahl has "completed the final phase of the integration process" in Texas, where he was treated by military doctors. Since we learned just two weeks ago that Bergdahl was beginning to make supervised excursions to grocery stores and restaurants, many questioned whether he was ready to return to a full-time position. The Army said that Bergdahl "can contribute to the mission" in his new post, but it doesn't sound very demanding. He's been assigned a desk job at the headquarters of U.S. Army North, which oversees domestic defense, at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston in Texas.
Bergdahl is not under any restrictions and can "participate in the same on- and off-post opportunities as any other soldier," according to Army North spokesman Don Manuszewski. Though, he isn't being completely cut loose. He'll live in barracks with other soldiers "who are providing leadership and guidance." CNN reports that Bergdahl will also have a "sponsor" to help him adjust to military life, which Manuszewski said is routine for those new to the post. Officials said he's also likely to receive some leave time while serving in his new position.
An Army spokeswoman noted that the "investigation into the facts and circumstances surrounding the disappearance and capture of Bergdahl is still ongoing," which may actually be the reason he was put back on active duty. At the moment, Bergdahl has not been formally accused of any misconduct, and experts say he needs to be on regular duty for that process to move forward. "In order to charge him or deal with him in the military justice system, he needs to be a uniformed and serving member of the Armed Forces," Representative Duncan Hunter, a California Republican who sits on the House Armed Services Committee told the Washington Times. Geoffrey Corn, a retired Army officer who teaches at South Texas College of Law agreed in an interview with Northwest Public Radio. "Once he is discharged from the military, they can't bring him back involuntarily – to, for example, if they wanted to court martial him," Corn explained. "They would lose jurisdiction over him. So, they've got to keep him retained in the military until they make that decision."
Pentagon spokesman Army Colonel Steve Warren countered that "We’ve said from the beginning that the ultimate goal of reintegration is to return a soldier to active duty in the Army." But the next step for Bergdahl is to be interviewed by Major General Kenneth Dahl, who is investigating the circumstances of his disappearance from his base in Afghanistan in 2009. He's expected to finish his probe in August, and make recommendations about possible disciplinary action.
It seems Bergdahl is aware that returning to active duty brings him one step closer to possible charges. While he's refused to talk with his parents for unknown reasons, he's reportedly hired a private lawyer who will be with him when he's questioned by Army investigators.
tl;dr they can't bring up a court martial if they release him from service.
"It's you Americans. There's something about nipples you hate. If this were Germany, we'd be romping around naked on the stage here."
*sigh* Is five years in Taliban captivity seriously not enough punishment for whatever fuck-up he may or may not be guilty of?
There are hardly any excesses of the most crazed psychopath that cannot easily be duplicated by a normal kindly family man who just comes in to work every day and has a job to do.
-- (Terry Pratchett, Small Gods)
Replace "ginger" with "n*gger," and suddenly it become a lot less funny, doesn't it?
-- fgalkin
Zaune wrote:*sigh* Is five years in Taliban captivity seriously not enough punishment for whatever fuck-up he may or may not be guilty of?
If he was careless or negligent, then no it's not. His alleged activities resulted in the deaths of fellow soldiers. That is a firing-squad offense if this had been a conventional declared war.
Why, exactly? If that were absolutely true then any commander who ever made a decision - not even a wrong, necessarily - would be up against the wall; you can only be shot for desertion or treason, and it wouldn't be practical to prove either charge. Realistically the only thing he could really be charged with is being AWOL, which is punishable by dishonorable discharge and two years in prison as a hard maximum, if I remember correctly.
“Heroes are heroes because they are heroic in behavior, not because they won or lost.” Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Again, like I said, had this been a time of war, then it could be considered desertion of one's post leading to the deaths of fellow soldiers. You can legally be shot for falling asleep at your post, let alone deliberately deserting it. Going AWOL and deserting your post are two totally different things, especially if deserting your post resulted in friendly casualties (which it did).
Now to keep things in perspective, it's still not clear yet if he deserted while on patrol or guard duty, or if he was off-duty and just decided to cross the wire and leave. That detail is very important in deciding what to charge him with (if anything).
Can you cite somebody being shot under the current UCMJ for falling asleep at their post? I was reading the rules rather differently, but might have missed something.
UCMJ Article 86 Section 3 wrote: If the member is on guard or watch duty and then leaves their post without authorization, with the intent to abandon the post:: Bad-conduct discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, reduction to the lowest enlisted grade, and confinement for 6 months.
That's the one that defines the different degrees of AWOL-ness and their punishments; what makes an act desertion is the intention to leave permanently. That, I think, could not be satisfactorily proved, and the only other way to shoot somebody for leaving their post is to call it Misbehavior Before the Enemy, for which the standard of proof requires not only a declared war but imminent or current contact with the enemy, not simply wandering off a base. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a military lawyer, or indeed any kind of lawyer, but it doesn't seem to me that Sergeant Bergdahl could be reasonably shot even in a declared war and definitely not in whatever they're officially calling the current nonsense.
“Heroes are heroes because they are heroic in behavior, not because they won or lost.” Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Esquire wrote:Can you cite somebody being shot under the current UCMJ for falling asleep at their post? I was reading the rules rather differently, but might have missed something.
The UCMJ rules don't say "If you fall asleep at your post we can shot you" but dereliction of duty in a time of war can be a capital offense and what the sleeping watchman would be charged with.
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Borgholio wrote:His alleged activities resulted in the deaths of fellow soldiers. That is a firing-squad offense if this had been a conventional declared war.
How? They died in rescue operations; not because the Taliban were aided by Bergdahl, not because they exploited his leave to enter the base, not because he let them in. They were in conventional military operations; even if we assume Bergdahl was never captured, they'd get killed elsewhere or their Humvee would hit an IED or something similar. Sometimes, there truly isn't anybody to blame.
Rescue operations that would not have been needed had he not walked off the base.
They were in conventional military operations; even if we assume Bergdahl was never captured, they'd get killed elsewhere or their Humvee would hit an IED or something similar.
"We shouldn't hold him responsible for people dying because he wandered away from base since they would have been killed anyways..." Really? What the fuck are you smoking?
Bergdahl was an idiot who pulled the stupid move of walking off base alone and got snatched for his trouble. While he was the reason the rescue efforts were mounted, command could've easily just gone "eh, fortunes of war" and let him stew if it wouldn't have produced an appalling political SHTF scenario. However, rescuing one's military comrades in captivity is one of the basic principles of the American military, most armies around the world actually, so that wasn't really an option (that, and the political SHTF).
From a military perspective, Bergdahl isn't responsible for the deaths of those who went looking for him because a.) he didn't tell them to do it, and b.) they were just doing their jobs. The chance of getting shot in the ass is part of that job, regrettable as it is. So that's not what he would be charged with.
Now if he had actually given away information to the Taliban or helped them kill Americans, that would be one thing, but as far as I know he didn't tell them anything they didn't already know anyway.
So that's why the main charges that would stick are dereliction of duty and possibly desertion (if they can prove that Bergdahl didn't plan to come back to base).
