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Pat Tillman's father to Army investigator: 'F— you … and yours'

Aug 13, 2010, 12:15 PM EDT

338 Comments

No story in recent years has been as baffling, disheartening and frustrating as that surrounding the death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, who was killed in a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan in April of 2004 as a member of the Army Rangers. And as much as we think we know about the facts surrounding Tillman’s death, apparently we don’t know the half of it. The Tillman Story, an already-controversial documentary on his death and subsequent military coverup, premiered in New York on Monday. On Aug. 20 it debuts in Los Angeles and New York.
The Weinstein Company, which is distributing the film, sent the Huffington Post two previously unseen letters written by Tillman’s father, Pat Sr., to Brigadier General Gary M. Jones (the man spearheading the investigation) as well as the Senate Armed Services Committee (which oversaw Jones’s work). They posted them today, and they’re really worth a read. There has been much focus on Tillman’s mom, Mary, due mostly to her book Boots On the Ground By Dusk: My Tribute to Pat Tillman, in which she examines the convoluted path of the military’s — and the Bush Administration’s — clumsy coverup. But the letters now shine a brighter light on the frustrations of the father, who time and again ran into brick walls trying to get straight answers on what happened to his son.


Excerpt from Tillman Sr.’s letters, via The Huffington Post:

“You are a General,” Tillman’s father writes Jones after being presented with a briefing book of his findings. “There is no way a man like you, with your intelligence, education, military experience, responsibilities (primarily for difficult situations), and rank… believes the conclusions reached in the March 31, 2005 Briefing Book. But your signature is on it. I assume, therefore, that you are part of this shameless bull****. I embarrassed myself by treating you with respect [on] March 31, 2005. I thought your rank deserved it and anticipated something different from the new and improved investigation. I won’t act so hypocritically if we meet again.

“The Rangers stand for something — to this day, in my mind, the best. None of the five (5) soldiers on the ground, nor anyone in a discretionary capacity involved in this “Briefing Book” deserves to be affiliated with the Rangers. If your uniforms are so decorated, you should remove those items.

“In sum: F*** you … and yours.”

Perhaps the most in-demand person at the documentary after-party on Monday was Russell Baer, an Army Ranger Specialist and good friend of Tillman’s who served alongside Tillman and his brother Kevin in Afghanistan.

In the film, Baer explains how his army commanders instructed him to lie to Tillman’s family about his death, propping up the myth that Tillman was killed during a Taliban ambush rather than by his fellow American soldiers.

And while the Tillman family cooperated with the documentary — Pat’s mother, Dannie, and father, Pat Sr. as well as younger brother Richard and his widow Marie all appear on-camera over the course of the film — none was in New York for the premiere.

“Their response was, ‘Why would we come to that?’” [director Amir] Bar-Lev said during a Q&A at Michael’s. “They have a really strong sense of what is public and what is private in a time when so many of us seem to have lost that.”

***
Pat Tillman’s Father To Army Investigator: ‘F— You … And Yours’ [Huffington Post]
‘The Tillman Story’ Premieres In New York [Huffington Post]

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  1. Todd - Aug 14, 2010 at 10:22 PM

    I thought that the Army Rangers were supposed to be the “elite” of the Army. If they cant tell the difference between a towel head and our troops…doesn’t sound very elite to me. Don’t they communicate ?? There is this little thing called a radio…shouldn’t everyone be aware of where each other is ?? Sounds like a bunch of newbies to me !!! He wasnt a very good safety for Arizona and an even worse soldier….What a waste !!!

  2. Retired Army - Aug 15, 2010 at 9:03 AM

    Todd- You ever been in a firefight? Shot at? Rocketed / mortared? I doubt it- it ain’t like playing checkers or playing computer games. YOU are the trash-talking waste who doesn’t know what the F you are talking about. One Ranger or paratrooper is worth 10 million of you. As Mr. Tillman said – “F you & yours.”

  3. Todd - Aug 15, 2010 at 9:39 PM

    Sure have. I was smart enough to shoot at the ENEMY …not our own guys !!! Ranger ain’t worth a cup of coffee if they can’t tell the difference. I guess they dont teach “Radio 101″ in Ranger school.

  4. TxGator15 - Aug 16, 2010 at 1:53 PM

    Tillman was a great football player and a good and decent human. Friendly fire is an accident. Learn from the situation and strive not to let it happen anymore and move on. Bushes fault? Good grief morons, give it up.

  5. BlackShoes - Aug 16, 2010 at 8:13 PM

    There can be countless ways a person fighting in a war could be injured or killed by enemy fire. War is hell and people are going to die on purpose and by accident… Thousands of people including children are killed in wars that are not even part of the war because of collateral damage. I don’t care how you spin it there will be deaths and injuries to people that it should not have happened to. For anyone here that can’t wrap their puny minds around that you have a serious issue and it is ignorance to the nature and chaos of war. Friendly fire unfortunate as it is happens and should just be told the truth about. Everyone here has an opinion and that is your right but too many of you really should drink a big ole cup of STFU and get back to your armchair because you don’t have a clue.

  6. karen - Aug 16, 2010 at 9:34 PM

    Friendly fire happens
    It happens in ALL wars
    Yes, it happened in my family
    You send KIDS out there to defend a country–they panic–things happen
    Was the Army right in there explaination? MAYBE NOT
    BUT THEN AGAIN–he volunteered and was not the only one
    ANYTIME YOU WOULD LIKE TO STEP UP AND DEFEND THIS COUNTRY–GO FOR IT

  7. chas - Aug 17, 2010 at 11:50 AM

    Pat Tillman was just another soldier like so many more that have gone before. The fact that he died by ‘friendly fire’ does not make him or his case any different than any of the other men, and possibly women, who died the same way. War is not surgical. The damage done is not as controllable as people would like to believe. I KNOW!! I am a Vietnam veteran who lost a friend in the same way. What is really irksome is that just because he was a celebrity football player people want us to treat Tillman’s death in a unique or special way. IT IS NOT and I, for one, will not ascribe to such ignorance, especially when it is based on something as utterly worthless as celebrity. Tillman signed up for the duty and took his chances just like I, my friend and countless others did. Furthermore his case does not warrant special treatment or ongoing media attention simply because of his NFL status. Alright already, he sacrificed a gazillion dollar career to serve his country. SO WHAT! My friend sacrificed more than money or fame to serve and he paid the exact same price!! Nobody spends their time reminding us of my friend’s death or dragging his face and name before the media at regular intervals. Was my friend any less important because he was not an over-rated athlete??
    What I mean to say I will say plainly; GET OVER IT!! Tillman was JUST ANOTHER SOLDIER!! Do you understand??? These constant and, by now, monotanous reminders of Pat Tillman are actually a disgrace to his name not an honor. They demonstrate what Americans truly love, monetarry gain and celebrity!!
    Did the Army cover-up the facts about his death? Probably. They might have what many cannot; that people in this country are so ridiculously obsessed with the fact of Tillman’s celebrity that they would react unreasonably to his death. They were right.

  8. Florida727 - Aug 17, 2010 at 3:29 PM

    I never served in our military, so I’m pretty ignorant regarding ‘friendly fire’ and what could or couldn’t have happened. what I do know though is Pat Tillman was one heck of a football player, and that’s why he was offered a multi-year contract worth millions of dollars. he chose to walk away from that because of what happened on 9/11. he chose to put his country ahead of his own self-interests. can you imagine LeBron or Shaq or Peyton or Eli doing the same thing. no knock on them as athletes, but how can anyone on this thread call out Tillman for giving up what he did to serve others?

  9. rider83 - Aug 17, 2010 at 6:02 PM

    So now it is ok for a pig in the white house to send the poor and middle class kids to die so the rich b*stards and the whores of congress can get richer!! This was never about defending America, it was about Israel running this country and ordering our pigs in congress to start a war for their benefit!! It is time our young thought twice about joining the military and being used to enrich the prostitutes of congress and the rich!! For every American soldier killed in the middle east we should kill 10 Israelis for getting us in this war in the first place! It wouldn’t be any different than murders committed by the Israelis of the palestinians!! Why is a religion allowed to run America and pretend they are a so called people which is crap! It is a religion and that is all it is!!

  10. Fred - Aug 18, 2010 at 12:57 PM

    There was some question as to how Tillman could have been an E-3 after only six months in the Army. It’s because he had a college education. I was an E-3 right out of Navy boot camp and it was for the same reason and I’m certainly no celebrity.
    I don’t think there would have been as much hate and discontent over this thing if the truth had been told from the beginning. I don’t blame the family for being bitter and angry about being lied to. The fact that the lies came from such high-level sources only made it worse.
    Why did he join? I heard a radio interview he gave where he said that he was joining because “I’ve never done a damn thing for my country.” He went on to say that he felt obligated to serve his country and that other people should, too. I see nothing wrong with those sentiments.

  11. PATRIOTIC YOURS - Aug 18, 2010 at 6:28 PM

    THE US GOVERNMENT, LIKE MANY AROUND THE WORLD LIE ALL THE TYPE. YOU CAN’T BE A POLITICAN IF YOU DON’T LIE. IT’S LIKE A PREQUISITE FOR THEM SEEKING PUBLIC SERVICE. THIS IS NOT AN EXCUSE JUST A FACT. WHAT IS DISGUSTING, WE ARE TAUGHT AND INSTILLED IN US TO VALUES, MORALS, AND PRINCIPLES TO BE HONEST AND CARE FOR ONE ANOTHER. BUT YET, OUR LEADERS WHETHER THEY ARE GENERALS OR THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES FALL SHORT OF THOSE ATTRIBUTES IN PUBLIC SERVICE. THE US GOVERNMENT LIED IN THE PAT TILLMEN CASE, BRIAN MOSLEY, AND IS LYING TO IT’S REAL CONSTINOUS PRESENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES AS WE WILL AGAIN ENGAGED IN ANOTHER CONFLICT IN WAR AGAINST CHINA, RUSSIA, AND N. KOREA. THE ONLY WAY US GOVERNMENT STRENGHTEN ITS TIES, IS BY SEEING HOW FAR THE CAN FUDGE US UP OR ARSONOLES. IT IS IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY THAT I TOO WILL BE FORCE TO EXPOSE SOME TRUE TO SOME HEINOUS CRIMES BEING COVERED UP BY THE US GOVERNMENT, WHILE IT GIVES BILLIONS OF US DOLLARS TO PHILIPPINES AND OTHER COUNTRIES TO COMMIT HUMAN RIGHT VIOLATIONS AND TERRORIST ACT OF THEIR OWN.

  12. Judge - Aug 19, 2010 at 10:10 AM

    You zoned out people don’t seem to understand that this is NOT about Tillman… it is about a corrupt govt at the highest echelons, taking place in coverups. Corruption in the govt is pushing citizens toward war in the streets… an unread patriot act that is passed and allow our privacy to be exploited, a supreme court changing laws to allow big business to put as much money toward any candidates as they want, taking money from seniors that earned it through forced contributions of social security and medicare and then giving it to banks under some scurrilous agenda about helping americans, supremem court changing the law regarding emminent domain so tht private wealthy people can take your land even if you don’t want to see if they can “prove” that they can make more taxes on it than you, and ignoring the laws about illegal aliens while talking about jobs “no one wants”. This is corruption, socialism, depotism, and the military is but a symptom of it.

  13. Donna - Aug 19, 2010 at 11:20 AM

    I don’t believe that the Tillman family’s problem is with their son dying due to friendly fire. What they have a problem with is the lies that were told surrounding his death, and the extensive coverup to keep those lies concealed as not to embarrass the ones calling the shots.
    Most parents fear the possibility of their young soldiers’ safety in any circumstance related to war and the chances of them not coming home alive. But are we now so numb to this war that we feel a mother and father doesn’t deserve to know the circumstances surrounding their child’s death?
    It is a sad reality that his death probably couldn’t have been avoided but in order to gain closure and move on his parents should have been told the truth. It will be hard to get young men and women to enlist for this type of commitment if they can’t trust the upper brass to be truthful with those they leave behind.

  14. Omnipotent - Aug 20, 2010 at 10:07 PM

    To piggy-back on those with some common sense. I’m a two-time Iraq vet. Why would the governtment give one story about his death and then just weeks later, say they were incorrect? NO ONE PROMPTED THE GOVERNMENT TO DO THAT.
    The reason why those considered for the Medal of Honor take such a long time? It’s because the story is always told from different perspectives and everything has to be sorted out.
    Terrain, visibility, and the presence of an AMF soldier were primary contributors as to why Serials 1 and 2 fired on each other. If you read the report, it’s obvious that there was no cover-up.
    Leaders have to make decisions and they all knew Tillman was a football star. It reads as if the chain of command tried to play it safe with the release of information about his death. Some pieces of information moved faster than others and it is obvious that when the higher leadership started receiving conflicting information, investigations were started. It may take a few weeks to put together that information. Once it was clear that Tillman died of a friendly fire incident, the family was told.
    Leadership at different levels made errors in judgement and it was probably due to the celebrity of the soldier who died. When you’re in an environment like that, leaders have to make a 1,000 decisions a day that affect the lives of their soldiers. Wrong decisions were made. Read the official Inspector General report at the below link. Never trust the news, find the source and learn for yourselves.
    http://www.defense.gov/home/pdf/tillman_redacted_web_0307.pdf

  15. Omnipotent - Aug 20, 2010 at 10:19 PM

    @Jackie– You really need to lay off whatever drugs you are smoking! You can’t seriously believe in some sort of murder squad being sent out to kill one Ranger. His comments and inclinations bore no more weight than any other soldier. As soldiers, we have the right to disagree with our government, as long as we keep it professional. As soldiers we also know that the President is the Commander-in-Chief and we are to follow his orders and those of the officers appointed over us.

  16. Tiger - Aug 21, 2010 at 2:16 PM

    28 years in the Army, 4 of those in war. Friendly fire was always a concern in every situation. It happens more frequently than anyone knows. When bullets start flying they are not discretionary about who they hit. It happens a lot. And, as a commander, if I am advised that such-and-such was actually hit by his own troops in a firefight, I do NOT include that in my after-action reports. The thinking is, “just don’t get caught in a direct lie.” So, one simply omits the information. Contrary to popular belief, there is no “lie by omission.” My thinking on it was always, “so what? He was killed in action. Who really cares where the bullets came from. He’s dead as a result of a firefight.”

  17. Alan Mandell - Aug 22, 2010 at 8:56 PM

    What a pathetic response. Immature and decidedly unAmerican!

  18. cb - Aug 23, 2010 at 11:21 AM

    Sad? Thank god some people are speaking out about this waste of human life…

  19. Patrick - Aug 23, 2010 at 1:24 PM

    Please, Please, Please
    We all regret that Pat Tillman died serving his country. He made a decision to quit football and join the armed services. But he is not the only solider ever to die by friendly fire, or otherwise, in serving his country.
    Why do we continue to hear about his foul mouthed Father and Brother, his Mother on talk shows and memorials, books and documentaries after all this time.
    Have we ignored or forgotten all the thousands of other Sons, Brothers and Nephews who have given their life in the service of our country. Enough is enough. Can we please move on from Pat Tillman…

  20. Wild Flower - Aug 23, 2010 at 5:23 PM

    Actually America really cares about Kim Kardasian and Paris Hilton not any stupid wars. Get Serious folks!

  21. Wild Flower - Aug 23, 2010 at 5:38 PM

    I am just looking for two or three more seasons of American Idol and the Kardasians. The rest is just Bull, tu sabe!

  22. Ryan - Aug 24, 2010 at 4:06 PM

    I hope you get shot with friendly fire all over face!!

  23. cheryl adams - Aug 24, 2010 at 5:04 PM

    You need to back off and show some respect for people who have died for you.

  24. mrtibbs - Aug 24, 2010 at 6:10 PM

    It is well-known that Pat Tillman was going to come out against the Iraq War which he called “so f–king illegal to Baer as they watched the “shock and awe” on TV, which would have been a huge problem for Bush. Bush made him a poster boy for patriotism when he joined up after 911, and now he was coming home to call Bush a douchebag for invading Iraq (and we’re still looking for those WMDs baby!) Pat had a confirmed appointment with leftie professor Noam Chomsky when he got back from A-stan, so he could get his facts straight when he spoke.
    Meeting with Chomsky
    http://www.commondreams.org/views05/1007-22.htm
    Peace mom Cindy Sheehan or the Dixie Chicks against the war is one thing, Bush could just laugh at them. But Pat Tillman, football star, genuine hero (gave up $3 million contract to hunt bin Laden) and all-around man’s man, would have been the draft-dodger Bush’s biggest nightmare, and probably would have got him impeached. So Tillman had to die.
    Three bullet holes closely spaced to the forehead from 10 feet away is what the military doctors said, who asked for a criminal investigation but were denied. There is no way this is anything but an execution. The other soldiers are scared because they have been told that their children are in danger if the don’t shut the f up, and they know these guys mean business. Now the first soldier to die in Iraq after Obama declared “combat is over” has been announced, a rocket attack. Nice end of combat!
    Pat Tillman’s blood cries out from the grave for justice. Only we the living can give it to him. Call for the prosecution of Bush Cheney for lying us into Iraq.
    Pat didn’t believe in God, and was an avowed atheist. He believed if everyone just did what they were supposed to do here on Earth, we wouldn’t need one.
    call your congressman 202-224-3121 (switchboard) re-open Tillman investigation.
    http://www.prosecutionofbush.com/

  25. Dave - Aug 25, 2010 at 10:05 AM

    Bob, you’re an ass. I went INTO the Army as an E-3. It can be done. Don’t look for reasons not to honor this soldier.
    I had the opportunity to hear Mary Tillman on the radio this morning talk about the documentary and Pat. God bless the Pat and the rest of the Tillman family.

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