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November 10, 2009 in Nation/World
Obama pays tribute to Fort Hood victims
Army Col. Kathy Platoni hugs Susan Young in front of a fallen-soldiers memorial before the start of a ceremony held at U.S. Army’s III Corps headquarters in Fort Hood, Texas, on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009.
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FORT HOOD, Texas — One by one, President Barack Obama spoke the names and told the stories Tuesday of the 13 people slain in the Fort Hood shooting rampage, honoring their memories even as he denounced the “twisted logic” that led to their deaths.
“No faith justifies these murderous and craven acts; no just and loving God looks upon them with favor,” Obama told the crowd on a steamy Texas afternoon. “And for what he has done, we know that the killer will be met with justice — in this world and the next.”
He did not name Maj. Nidal Hasan, the military psychiatrist accused of the killings.
As for the victims and the soldiers who rushed to help them, Obama said, “We need not look to the past for greatness, because it is before our very eyes.” He spoke at a memorial service before a crowd estimated at 15,000 on this enormous Army post.
The president and first lady Michelle Obama began an afternoon of consolation by meeting privately with family members of those killed last week and with those wounded in the attack and their families. Obama used his public remarks to put a human face on those who perished, victims ranging in age from 19 to 62. He also used his platform to speak indirectly to questions about whether the alleged shooter had ties to extremist Islamic ideology.
Thousands upon thousands of people, many of them soldiers dressed in camouflage, gathered to pay their respects and hear the president. The shooting killed 12 soldiers and 1 civilian, injured 29 others and left a nation stunned and searching for answers.
Below the stage where Obama spoke was a somber tribute to the fallen — 13 pairs of combat boots, each with an inverted rifle topped with a helmet. A picture of each person rested below the boots.
Even as Obama honored the dead, there was government finger-pointing over what had been known about shooting suspect Maj. Nidal Hasan’s background and whether he should have been investigated further.
U.S. officials said a Pentagon worker on a terrorism task force had looked into Hasan’s background months ago and had concluded he did not merit further investigation. Two officials said the group had been notified of communications between Hasan and a radical imam overseas and the information had been turned over to a Defense Criminal Investigative Service employee assigned to the task force. The two spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.
Obama remembered the slain not as shooting victims but as husbands and fathers, immigrants and scholars, optimists and veterans of the war in Iraq. He cited one woman who was pregnant when she was gunned down.
The president spoke to loved ones left behind, saying: “Here is what you must also know: Your loved ones endure through the life of our nation.”
“Every evening that the sun sets on a tranquil town; every dawn that a flag is unfurled; every moment that an American enjoys life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — that is their legacy,” he said.
He named and described each victim, including Chief Warrant Officer Michael Cahill, a physician’s assistant back at work just weeks after having a heart attack; Maj. Libardo Eduardo Caraveo, who spoke little English when he arrived in the United States from Mexico but earned a Ph. D and helped combat units cope with the stress of deployment; Pfc. Aaron Nemelka, an Eagle Scout who signed up “to do one of the most dangerous jobs in the service — defuse bombs.”
Later, the president and first lady planned to go to a military hospital to meet with those still recovering from injuries incurred during the attack.
© Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Ancient Roman wrecks found in deep water 
calvinandhobbes on November 10 at 11:04 a.m.
And yet the President said that he was “To busy” to go the the anniversary of the Berlin Wall falling even when he was invited by the head honcho of Germany to make a speech there.
MrNatural on November 10 at 11:25 a.m.
To confront tragedy and inspire healing takes a great person. I am very impressed with President Obama’s actions and his demeanor addressing this horrible incident.
SugarShane on November 10 at 4:21 p.m.
I think they chose they wrong person to speak, one of my key voting points for Obama was he said he was going to end the war. Then he shows up with a “sorry, these things happen” speech. He has the audacity to speak of honor when he is a coward and a liar, preparing to send 30k more of our boys to the front. Change no one believes in anymore.
calvinandhobbes on November 10 at 5:37 p.m.
i believe that he should send the troops to the front. this is the only thing that i agree with him on. i’ve never talked with a soldier who thinks that we should pull out. also, oboma is the first president to not go to the where the berlin wall fell on an anniversary.
jordanpallen on November 10 at 7:02 p.m.
Calvin, I suspect you have not talked to very many Soldiers.
“In the beginning of a change, the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.”
~Mark Twain,
calvinandhobbes on November 11 at 2:33 p.m.
if you want to start using quotes from famous people, then here’s a famous quote from Thomas Paine:
“These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of every man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. It would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as Freedom should not be highly rated.”