LOL, Veil of Secrecy. The policy of not allowing pictures of caskets goes
back to when Clinton was in office.



"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Finally, the American public can see the price of Bush's folly...photos
of the caskets of soldiers killed in his war.

Here's a followup to the Seattle Times story that broke through the
Pentagon veil of secrecy about our new generation of disposable
soldiers. There's also a website with dozens of similar photos.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...coffin22m.html


I think it outrageous the military thinks it appropriate to conceal the
cost of war from the citizens of this country. Screw the hypocrisy of
the military establishment.





Woman loses her job over coffins photo

By Hal Bernton
Seattle Times staff reporter

A military contractor has fired Tami Silicio, a Kuwait-based cargo
worker whose photograph of flag-draped coffins of fallen U.S. soldiers
was published in Sunday's edition of The Seattle Times.

Silicio was let go yesterday for violating U.S. government and company
regulations, said William Silva, president of Maytag Aircraft, the
contractor that employed Silicio at Kuwait International Airport.

"I feel like I was hit in the chest with a steel bar and got my wind
knocked out. I have to admit I liked my job, and I liked what I did,"
Silicio said.

Her photograph, taken earlier this month, shows more than 20 flag-draped
coffins in a cargo plane about to depart from Kuwait. Since 1991, the
Pentagon has banned the media from taking pictures of caskets being
returned to the United States.

That policy has been a lightning rod for debate, and Silicio's
photograph was quickly posted on numerous Internet sites and became the
subject of many Web conversations. Times Executive Editor Michael R.
Fancher yesterday appeared on ABC's "Good Morning America" news show
with U.S. Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del., who supported the Pentagon policy
prohibiting such pictures.

As a result of the broader coverage, The Times received numerous e-mails
and phone calls from across the country — most of which supported the
newspaper's decision.

Pentagon officials yesterday said the government's policy defers to the
sensitivities of bereaved families. "We've made sure that all of the
installations who are involved with the transfer of remains were aware
that we do not allow any media coverage of any of the stops until (the
casket) reaches its final destination," said Cynthia Colin, a Pentagon
spokeswoman.


Tami Silicio's photo fueled a debate over a U.S. policy on casket images.

Maytag also fired David Landry, a co-worker who recently wed Silicio.

Silicio said she never sought to put herself in the public spotlight.
Instead, she said, she hoped the publication of the photo would help
families of fallen soldiers understand the care and devotion that
civilians and military crews dedicate to the task of returning the
soldiers home.

"It wasn't my intent to lose my job or become famous or anything,"
Silicio said.

The Times received Silicio's photograph from a stateside friend, Amy
Katz, who had previously worked with Silicio for a different contractor
in Kosovo. Silicio then gave The Times permission to publish it, without
compensation. It was paired with an article about her work in Kuwait.

Silicio, 50, is from Edmonds and previously worked as an events
decorator in the Seattle area and as a truck driver in Kosovo. Before
the war started, she went to work for Maytag, which contracts with the
Air Mobility Command to provide air-terminal and ground-handling
services in Kuwait.

K
In Kuwait, Silicio pulled 12-hour night shifts alongside military
workers to help in the huge effort to resupply U.S. troops. These
workers also helped transport the remains of soldiers back to the United
States.

Her job put her in contact with soldiers who sometimes accompanied the
coffins to the airport. Having lost one of her own sons to a brain
tumor, Silicio said, she tried to offer support to those grieving over a
lost comrade.

"It kind of helps me to know what these mothers are going through, and I
try to watch over their children as they head home," she said in an
earlier interview.

Since Sunday, Silicio has hunkered down in Kuwait as her employer and
the military decided her fate.

Maytag's Silva said the decision to terminate Silicio's and Landry's
employment was made by the company. But he said the U.S. military had
identified "very specific concerns" about their actions. Silva declined
to detail those concerns.

"They were good workers, and we were sorry to lose them," Silva said.
"They did a good job out in Kuwait and it was an important job that they
did."

Landry, in an e-mail to The Times, said he was proud of his wife, and
that they would soon return home to the States.