Neo-Nazis are in the Army now

[struggle4progress]

Why the U.S. military is ignoring its own regulations and permitting white supremacists to join its ranks.
Editor's note: Research support for this article was provided by the Nation Institute's Investigative Fund.
By Matt Kennard

... Army regulations prohibit soldiers from participating in racist groups, and recruiters are instructed to keep an eye out for suspicious tattoos. Before signing on the dotted line, enlistees are required to explain any tattoos. At a Tampa recruitment office, though, Fogarty sailed right through the signup process. "They just told me to write an explanation of each tattoo, and I made up some stuff, and that was that," he says. Soon he was posted to Fort Stewart in Georgia, where he became part of the 3rd Infantry Division.

Fogarty's ex-girlfriend, intent on destroying his new military career, sent a dossier of photographs to Fort Stewart. The photos showed Fogarty attending white supremacist rallies and performing with his band, Attack. "They hauled me before some sort of committee and showed me the pictures," Fogarty says. "I just denied them and said my girlfriend was a spiteful bitch." He adds: "They knew what I was about. But they let it go because I'm a great soldier."

In 2003, Fogarty was sent to Iraq. For two years he served in the military police, escorting officers, including generals, around the hostile country. He says he was granted top-secret clearance and access to battle plans. Fogarty speaks with regret that he "never had any kill counts." But he says his time in Iraq increased his racist resolve ...

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2009/06/15/neo_nazis_army/

Our commander-in-chief needs to direct the military to separate from these wackos. Domestic security is threatened by giving them military training

[zbdent]

1. these are the types who really really REALLY wanted to work at Gitmo

and the other places which were not revealed ...

[mucifer]

2. there is also evidence of gang acitivity in the US military in Iraq

http://abcnews.go.com/International/Story?id=1918660&page=1


"Evidence of gang culture and gang activity in the military is increasing so much an FBI report calls it "a threat to law enforcement and national security." The signs are chilling: Marines in gang attire on Parris Island; paratroopers flashing gang hand signs at a nightclub near Ft. Bragg; infantrymen showing-off gang tattoos at Ft. Hood.

"It's obvious that many of these people do not give up their gang affiliations," said Hunter Glass, a retired police detective in Fayetteville, North Carolina, the home of Ft. Bragg and the 82nd Airborne. He monitors gang activity at the base and across the military.

"If we weren't in the middle of fighting a war, yes, I think the military would have a lot more control over this issue," Glass said. "But with a war going on, I think it's very difficult to do."

Gang activity clues are appearing in Iraq and Afghanistan, too. Gang graffiti is sprayed on blast walls – even on Humvees. Kilroy – the doodle made famous by U.S. soldiers in World War II – is here, but so is the star emblem of the Gangster Disciples."



What a mess. Can the soldiers come home now?

[Blue_Tires]

9. sadly, that has also been going on awhile...

L.A. gang members encourage members with relatively clean backgrounds and criminal records to enlist...while in service the members learn weapons, explosives, marksmanship and tactics which they bring home and teach to other gang members (and almost certainly make solid contacts for black-market military toys)

[Blue_Tires]

10. sadly, that has also been going on awhile...

L.A. gang members encourage members with relatively clean backgrounds and criminal records to enlist...while in service the members learn weapons, explosives, marksmanship and tactics which they bring home and teach to other gang members (and almost certainly make solid contacts for black-market military toys)

[Solly Mack]

3. K&R

Not just neo-nazis either....many different gangs

[Auggie]

4. What happened to our military?

[struggle4progress]

6. W

[90-percent]

11. What happened to our military?

Uh, I would say they've lowered their entrance requirements EXTREMELY, so as to get any available warm body's to serve.

As I understand it, almost HALF the people serving in Afghanistan and Iraq are MERCENARIES - private contractors working for corporations.

MERCS do a lot of the support stuff, not to imply they are all contract killers.

The incredible number of contractors to me shows America has a problem recruiting the best and the brightest to enlist?

Supply and demand.

-90% Jimmy

[BolivarianHero]

5. These are types we should keep Gitmo open for...

The idea of White supremacists suffering brings me pleasure.

[Blue_Tires]

7. they've been in the army for years...

supposedly that was where McVeigh was first exposed to them at Ft. Bragg (there were a bunch of stories on it at the time)...and they weren't exactly new around Bragg way back then, either...

[shadowknows69]

8. They have been. When I drove cab I used to meet scads of these assholes.

[Lint Head]

12. I guess when it comes to racist scum DADT is out the window.

:dem:

[struggle4progress]

16. There's probably a good soundbite there and maybe even a clever dual-petition drive

[rug]

13. As long as they're not gay.

[kristopher]

14. A couple of years ago

the Marines were denying reenlistment to people who had tattoos. I heard the story anecdotally and the details weren't clear, but the impression of the Marine telling me about it was that it was a generic ban and not one that could be "explained away". Neither of us understood the reasoning at the time but the OP makes sense of the policy.

[Gwendolyn]

15. I was once hassled and really frightened by a couple of older Vietnam Vets...

who weren't happy with my choice of friend. They managed to separate us on a sparsely populated street, and was told they didn't go to war so our white women would end up with the $%^&% enemy. I wanted to say "thanks for fighting in China" but thought it best to get away unscathed instead. So, this is nothing new... just the tats are.

And it is FAR from only white supremacist groups infiltrating the military. As others have said, it's the whole gang thing in general that's disturbing.

[sarcasmo]

17. This isn't new, I was in the Army in the 80's and they were around.