dagblog - Comments for "Manning Eligible for Parole Less than 10yrs"

The Atlantic has a really

artappraiser — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 03:48:59 +0000

In reply to According to your Today show

The Atlantic has a really interesting article on the new PREA protocol that the military statement says the brig will be following; I hadn't read anything about this, and it definitely colors the Manning story, especially about timing:

How Will Bradley Manning Be Treated in Prison as a Woman?
The former Army private, now known as Chelsea, is starting a 35-year sentence at an encouraging time for transgender inmates.
By Terry Schuster, Aug 22 2013, 5:03 PM ET

[....] the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). Although the law was passed by Congress 10 years ago, it was enforced for the first time earlier this week, when every state in the country had to demonstrate compliance with the new set of federal regulations [.....]

if I ever do time, pleeze

jollyroger — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 02:34:22 +0000

In reply to I don't know what to think

if I ever do time, pleeze Jesus, let it be in a woman's joint...wait, what? operation? never mind, carry on, then.

He's not the first, though

ocean-kat — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 02:31:44 +0000

In reply to I don't know what to think

He's not the first, though he's the first still on active duty. Though Manning isn't really on active duty now I guess. Probably technically he is.

I don't think its a scam. I think its likely he's sincere in his desire atm. If he were to get the extensive conciling you refer to who knows what the outcome might be.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/04/transgender-navy-seal-ident...

Transgender navy Seal reveals identity struggles in long military career

A 20-year veteran of the US navy has come out as transgender, describing her experiences serving in the military serving as a man undergoing a gender identity struggle.

Kristin Beck, formerly Chris Beck, served on three elite Seal teams and had 13 deployments. In her book, released digitally on 1 June, Beck said that she started hormone therapy when she retired from the navy in 2011.

The US Department of Defense blocks transgender individuals from serving in the military on medical and psychological grounds..

I don't know what to think

Ramona — Fri, 23 Aug 2013 01:15:06 +0000

In reply to According to your Today show

I don't know what to think about this new Manning revelation. Did anyone know this before he came out with it today? It could be that he wants to spend his years behind bars in a women's prison, where life might be a little less harsh. I just don't know.

My own belief has always been that he should serve some kind of sentence, but it's pretty clear he also needs some serious psychiatric help. Not because he's trans-gendered but because he shows all the signs of someone whose thoughts and emotions are out of control.

When I worked at the psych unit at U-M Hospital in the seventies we had one of the first sex change clinics in the country. Nothing happened until teams of clinicians did a complete physical and psychiatric evaluation lasting several months to a year or more, and if the applicant showed any signs of hesitation or emotional instability the program stopped. Very few operations took place, compared to the numbers of applicants.

If Bradley does become Chelsea it will not happen easily, without some deep digging into the reasons for making the decision and a complete evaluation of his emotional health. I wonder if something as exquisitely life-changing could actually take place in prison? Has it ever been done behind bars before? Knowing how skilled and devoted his transgender team would have to be, I doubt it.

I sincerely hope he can find some peace, wherever or whoever he is.

According to your Today show

artappraiser — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 20:14:59 +0000

In reply to The military is very

According to your Today show link, it sounds like we will soon be finding out whether being in transgender transition is going to be clearly labeled a debilitating illness by the military or not.

Coombs says

he is "hoping" that Fort Leavenworth "would do the right thing" and provide hormone therapy for Manning. "If Fort Leavenworth does not, then I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure they are forced to do so."

And they say:

"Inmates at the United States Disciplinary Barracks and Joint Regional Correctional Facility are treated equally regardless of race, rank, ethnicity or sexual orientation," the statement reads. "All inmates are considered soldiers and are treated as such with access to mental health professionals, including a psychiatrist, psychologist, social workers and behavioral science noncommissioned officers with experience in addressing the needs of military personnel in pre- and post-trial confinement.

"The Army does not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery for gender identity disorder. The USDB has implemented risk assessment protocols and safety procedures to address high risk factors identified with the Prison Rape Elimination Act."

I don't think this can be brushed under the carpet. Partly because we shouldn't forget that there is a staunchly pro-military LGBT activist community, the one that fought the "don't ask, don't tell" battle. This excerpt from an Al Jazeera America article reminded me of that:

Manning's announcement and the Army's stated policy prompted outcries from even the soldier's critics, who argue that the military should include hormone therapy as part of healthcare coverage for inmates.

Josh Seefried -- an Air Force officer and co-chairman on the board of directors of OutServe-SLDN, an association of LGBT members of the military -- has been critical of Manning's actions, but said in a tweet that Manning has "the right to receive proper medical treatment."

"I took a very aggressive stance on not honoring Chelsea Manning at any LGBT pride parades," Seefried said in an email to Al Jazeera. "But that does not change the fact that everyone deserves access to proper healthcare."

"Military medicine and treatment is behind the times and it needs to catch up," he wrote.

Some of them will no doubt be assisting Coombs in this new fight. And it might just be the case that Manning himself wants to push the envelope on this just like he wanted to do with his document leaks. Announcing this today, on the "Today Show," like a thunderbolt, certainly suggests that to me. What other reason for going big time public at this time?

The military is very

Orion — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 19:24:13 +0000

In reply to A real question is how did

The military is very different than it was decades ago - service is no longer mandatory, now there are all sorts of incentives to bring people in. Unless you have a debilitating illness, I doubt they would just turn you away.

A real question is how did

rmrd0000 — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 18:08:01 +0000

In reply to I think you are being overly

A real question is how did Manning make the cut to become a soldier? Things could have been predicted to end badly.

I think you are being overly

Orion — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 17:52:58 +0000

In reply to I will veer away a bit before

I think you are being overly sensitive in whatever you were trying to say about my statement. That the first response he has in receiving this harsh penalty is to say that he is now a woman just adds to a world that has obviously gone completely Looney Tunes.

It is almost certain, that

Resistance — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 17:16:48 +0000

In reply to I will veer away a bit before

It is almost certain, that Manning will be persecuted. Look how veterans react, when they hear the name Jane Fonda. Or to observe a major league baseball pitcher, deliberately throw a baseball to hit and hurt A- Rod, because he didn't agree with the actions of that one.

Manning exposed the emperor and there will be a price paid, for humiliating the emperors court. Learn the lesson well slaves; DO NOT humiliate those in power, believe everything they tell you and if you have proof that those in power have lied or mislead, keep it to yourselves; or else. 'Perpetuating lies and misleading objectives; in order to keep the masses in the dark, is your duty soldier"

I will veer away a bit before

A Guy Called LULU — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 15:47:50 +0000

In reply to It looks like he's found a

I will veer away a bit before I am through this comment. My first reaction to what you said as introduction to the linked article was to see an un funny joke, un funny to me that is, about Manning's sexual issues. I assume it was said at least somewhat jokingly. I might laugh at the same joke told in a different context about a different person at a different time so I am not intending some political correctness slam against you, just sayin'.
Next, though, I thought some more about something that has come to mind almost any time I have thought about what sentence Manning might get and now about what sentence he did get.

"...a way to keep himself occupied in the meantime..."

Manning got a severe sentence by any 'fair' standard I can imagine. The very best Manning can reasonably hope for is seven more years of confinement. Seven years. At best. Maybe. Possibly. IF he passes every new test thrown at him by his incarceration.The three years he has just spent are far beyond what I can imagine enduring. The next years are not going to be a pick-nick. They may possibly be no worse than for any other inmate, that's plenty bad enough, or they may be horrible.
Manning has passed every hard test of ethics, morality, and courage that his military situation presented to him. Lots of soldiers have done worse even if their only failing was to stand by complicitly while others acted overtly. Now he faces seven years living among a criminal population of ex soldiers. My instincts tell me that that population has a higher percentage of actual criminals and criminals of a more anti-social nature than do most civilian prisons. A very high percentage of active military consider Manning to be a traitor. His guards are likely to be hostile but may not do anything overtly wrong. They might likely look the other way and complicitly say nothing when they see wrong things happen to someone they don't like anyway, someone the weight of their national culture and their local tribal gang tells them to despise for several reasons. Manning might look as much like fair game to them as did so many Iraqis to so many of the soldiers who operated in the same theatre as he did. Manning may experience a version of the Chinese curse. He may have an interesting life. He may stay occupied.

I voted for Bradley Manning today. I voted to say that he has done enough, he has done his duty. He has paid a price worthy of respected citizenship and freedom. It is time to let him go.
My vote today, though almost certainly as pointless as most of my votes have been, was finally one that was not for the lesser of two evils. And yes, I cannot help but think about what else I know, that I know it will get me on at least one list I don't want to be on. That is the Presidents email list, even if none other.

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/restore-united-states%E2%80%99...