Let’s see....
First the word “smiting” is used to suggest the United States and specifically it’s Vice President is being punished by God. Further, there is more than shallow inference that Vice President Cheney deserves to die. This is almost worthy of a visit and question/answer period by the FBI.
Then, this same word “smiting” is used in reference to military chain of command issues and military quarters inspections.
Needless to say, the correlation between these events is not apparent.
Of course I do not have inside knowledge regarding reasons for any sudden perceived changes in military procedure, but I can come up with some plausible presumptive conclusions.
Fact #1:
Overall, direct contact with the mass media in the military or even in business is through designated official spokespersons, not rank-and-file individuals. This is not unusual, it is a very common and well-known practice.
Fact #2:
The article mentions problems such as help with paperwork, and observations of mold and rodents. Such concerns would better be directed where help can be obtained via the chain of command (in business or the military) instead of involving the press.
Fact #3:
Given that a large portion of the mass media likes to trash the President, trash their own Country, and do not seem to care if their political agenda causes more soldiers to die, one can easily understand why military commanders do not want rank-and-file soldiers speaking with the media.
It sounds like this is a general clamp-down and appears to be the result of an ongoing investigation into reported problems. To wit (bold emphasis added):
Quote:
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The Pentagon also clamped down on media coverage of any and all Defense Department medical facilities, to include suspending planned projects by CNN and the Discovery Channel, saying in an e-mail to spokespeople: “It will be in most cases not appropriate to engage the media while this review takes place,” referring to an investigation of the problems at Walter Reed.
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It sounds like a serious problem has been noted by military commanders and the issue is being taken care of.
A “smiting”? I really don’t think so. Just a problem that the military brass is clamping down on, exaggerated with a liberal anti-U.S. spin in a discussion forum.