Navy Seal who allegedly shot Bin Laden says US military has abandoned him [View all]

Last edited Tue Feb 12, 2013, 03:07 AM USA/ET - Edit history (2)

Source: The Guardian

A retired Navy Seal who claims to have killed Osama bin Laden by shooting him three times in the forehead has accused the US military of abandoning him to his fate without any financial support, healthcare or security protection as he makes the hard transition to civilian life.

The former commando was a member of the team of 23 Navy Seals that stormed a house in Abbottabad, Pakistan, on 2 May 2011 and killed the world's most wanted terrorist, according to Esquire. An article in the magazine, written in collaboration with the Center for Investigative Reporting, tells the commando's story as apparently the last person to see Bin Laden alive.

But it is the Navy Seal's caustic comments about his treatment at the hands of the military as he seeks to make the shift back to civilian life that are attracting most attention. The "Shooter", as he is anonymously referred to, tells the magazine that after the Abbottabad raid he felt burned out and decided to take early retirement three years before the official requirement of 20 years' service.

As a result, he said: "my healthcare for me and my family stopped. … I asked if there was some transition from my Tricare to Blue Cross Blue Shield. They said no. You're out of the service, your coverage is over. Thanks for your sixteen years. Go fuck yourself."

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/feb/11/navy-seal-bin-laden-military-benefits

Edited to add link to Esquire article by Phil Bronstein "The Man Who Killed Osama bin Laden... Is Screwed"

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107 replies	Author	Time	Post
Navy Seal who allegedly shot Bin Laden says US military has abandoned him [View all]	alp227	Feb 2013	OP
Isn't that how all U.S. non-officer military are treated? nt	valerief	Feb 2013	#1
Probably, but not with 'Go fuck yourself.'	elleng	Feb 2013	#5
The military says "go fuck yourself" all the time...	actslikeacarrot	Feb 2013	#24
Sounds like he doesn't know what he signed up for,	elleng	Feb 2013	#25
No. People are free to leave.	kestrel91316	Feb 2013	#17
exactly	shanti	Feb 2013	#33
He couldn't hang in there for three more years?	Scairp	Feb 2013	#74
I thought the very same thing. My goodness what is he complaining about. Everyone knows	southernyankeebelle	Feb 2013	#78
As a civilian Army employee	Alcibiades	Feb 2013	#100
He had to stop working because his has allot of back problems. Serious problems	southernyankeebelle	Feb 2013	#103
It sounds like he is working then	Alcibiades	Feb 2013	#105
I also come from a long line of veterans. My dad served in WWII, Korea and was	southernyankeebelle	Feb 2013	#106
That's what I'm thinking.	CANDO	Feb 2013	#98
No. We don't all get to do an Audie Murphy, but grind out 20 and the bennies aren't bad.	sarge43	Feb 2013	#28
He has no proof that he was the one that killed Bin Laden and so what if he did? It was his job.	xtraxritical	Feb 2013	#57
The same for most Americans, you quit your 'job' and you lose your work benefits.	Sunlei	Feb 2013	#72
I don't risk my life for my employer, though. nt	valerief	Feb 2013	#80
Anything that sheds light on this problem, experienced by so many, is a good thing.	NYC_SKP	Feb 2013	#2
Right, SKP,	elleng	Feb 2013	#8
He probably had to strike while the iron was hot, so to speak. After 3 years his	CTyankee	Feb 2013	#26
Right, yank,	elleng	Feb 2013	#31
Looking forward to my 4th day in captivity tomorrow. City still CLOSED.	CTyankee	Feb 2013	#35
Glad you've got the necessities!	elleng	Feb 2013	#37
Oh, and heat and electricity, which I am thankful for!	CTyankee	Feb 2013	#43
where do the critters (esp. dogs)	LibGranny	Feb 2013	#63
I don't have one but I worried about that when the snow first fell...	CTyankee	Feb 2013	#64
I had a dachshund for 15 years and she HATED snow!	LibGranny	Feb 2013	#65
Their dog is pretty little too, and very short, tho not as much as a dachshund.	CTyankee	Feb 2013	#68
It was definitely cringeworthy!	LibGranny	Feb 2013	#70
lol, reminds me how dachshunds all love to burrow under the blankets but not in the snow :)	Sunlei	Feb 2013	#73
Oh yeah, she had a knack for rolling herself up	LibGranny	Feb 2013	#93
Sorry, doubter here.	elleng	Feb 2013	#3
I thought the same thing	matt819	Feb 2013	#12
I'm actually a little surprised any of these SEALS are speaking about the raid	Siwsan	Feb 2013	#21
My cousin was a Seal in the 1st Iraq war. He said, " we took out their mines (at sea),	Dustlawyer	Feb 2013	#95
The 'Go fuck yourself', line.	atreides1	Feb 2013	#19
Yeah, plus you don't say that the head Team 6 SEAL	Ter	Feb 2013	#85
Sh*t, you don't say that to ANYONE!	elleng	Feb 2013	#87
He resigned. He didn't retire. There is no 'early retirement' provision for military benefits	Siwsan	Feb 2013	#4
Seriously - where's he been?	Kber	Feb 2013	#7
I wonder if he's got a bit of a 'But I'm a hero!' complex?	AtheistCrusader	Feb 2013	#49
That's the vibe I get	Siwsan	Feb 2013	#52
I'm going to say this, unpopular as it may be:	TwilightGardener	Feb 2013	#6
Factual is good, 'popular' or not.	elleng	Feb 2013	#9
I am guessing it's coming as a shock to him to be treated like	TwilightGardener	Feb 2013	#20
I don't know if I want to believe this or not	madokie	Feb 2013	#10
Post # 4 discusses: 'No early retirement.'	elleng	Feb 2013	#16
If he is indeed the guy that killed OBL	Burma Jones	Feb 2013	#11
He needs to keep that part of his identity hidden, though.	TwilightGardener	Feb 2013	#14
True 'dat....	Burma Jones	Feb 2013	#22
Republicans may make you a hero while you are in active duty status	AsahinaKimi	Feb 2013	#13
Who is responsible for ruining the Veterans Job Bill that was in Congress last year? GOP.	DhhD	Feb 2013	#15
They would have let him sit at a desk and evaluate video games if he wanted.	bluedigger	Feb 2013	#18
Early retirement for the military is twenty years.	John2	Feb 2013	#23
If he no longer wanted the job I wonder what he could have done.	tammywammy	Feb 2013	#34
Exactly	Scairp	Feb 2013	#75
Yes. I believe you are spot on this one.	glinda	Feb 2013	#47
Sorry! But welcome to the world MOST Americans live in, without military job security. nt	patrice	Feb 2013	#27
Twenty years does not even come close to retierment in the civilian world.	xtraxritical	Feb 2013	#60
Tell me about it & The days of lots of us keeping a job even 10 years are way LONG gone, so it	patrice	Feb 2013	#61
Part of this is his own doing	sdfernando	Feb 2013	#29
I've seen other guys quit the military and face this reality - 'Hey, where's gravy train?'	toby jo	Feb 2013	#30
Looks like he made a bad decision, and now regrets it.	Ikonoklast	Feb 2013	#32
Got that right. None of us asked him to enlist, & retirement at 20 is the perk dangled to keep him…	Journeyman	Feb 2013	#36
Did he expect to get an exception?	Solly Mack	Feb 2013	#38
My question here is....	Tommy_Carcetti	Feb 2013	#39
I have a feeling it's the latter, not the former. n/t	tammywammy	Feb 2013	#44
+1	Blue_Tires	Feb 2013	#45
Early retirement? No such thing.	sarge43	Feb 2013	#51
So sad...	ReRe	Feb 2013	#40
Not Sure What To Make Of This	DallasNE	Feb 2013	#41
Yes, welcome to the last forty years	Downtown Hound	Feb 2013	#42
Siwsan posted: I'm actually a little surprised any of these SEALS are speaking about the raid	TexasProgresive	Feb 2013	#46
I'm thinking the cat was let out of the bag once some people started	Blue_Tires	Feb 2013	#53
I recognize the 20 year requirement but....	Swede Atlanta	Feb 2013	#48
When you commit murder for hire for the biggest organized crime faction on the planet	jimlup	Feb 2013	#50
No--that's your truth. Are you suggesting the President committed a "wanton crime" ordering	msanthrope	Feb 2013	#71
Yes... it is really fairly simple if you are capable of seeing beyond the accepted propaganda.	jimlup	Feb 2013	#84
If it was a "wanton crime", then fuck yeah civil disobedience.	NYC Liberal	Feb 2013	#91
What civilian job does commando train you for?	MrSlayer	Feb 2013	#54
He gets 5 years of healthcare on quitting for being combat vet	uhnope	Feb 2013	#55
He "retired" before his time...	SoapBox	Feb 2013	#56
well, that's how they do it.	Dyedinthewoolliberal	Feb 2013	#58
No offense to the Seal, but..........	mrmpa	Feb 2013	#59
Book deal coming up, probably complete with phony NYT's Bestseller support for dishing on the	patrice	Feb 2013	#62
Welcome to the world the rest of us live in	high density	Feb 2013	#66
The guys on that raid obviously rate high on the list of targets for terrorists' revenge.	tclambert	Feb 2013	#67
I agree with you on the extra security. n/t	Adsos Letter	Feb 2013	#88
If they all kept their mouths shut like they were supposed to, it wouldn't be a problem.	Incitatus	Feb 2013	#102
Gotta raise the BS flag on this one.	MyTwoSense	Feb 2013	#69
There is an "eaarly retirement" for some individuals.	IggleDoer	Feb 2013	#101
Welcome to the corporate war machine.	liberalmuse	Feb 2013	#76
Cogs don't get healthcare....	DeSwiss	Feb 2013	#77
The Esquire article is a good read.	merh	Feb 2013	#79
I read the article too	fujiyama	Feb 2013	#89
Message auto-removed	kanooga	Feb 2013	#81
I'm pretty sure he can get healthcare at any VA	NNguyenMD	Feb 2013	#82
It makes me wonder what the REAL shooter is doing these days	tavernier	Feb 2013	#83
"If" there is a shooter...	Ter	Feb 2013	#86
I'm sure he has options, he just needs to get up and do the work	Franker65	Feb 2013	#90
Question	RobinA	Feb 2013	#92
No--I don't think Special Forces guys are expected to keep doing it for	TwilightGardener	Feb 2013	#94
Thanks For Your Response nm	RobinA	Feb 2013	#99
It is a "volunteer" specialty, like being an aircrewman.	MADem	Feb 2013	#104
He should have hung in for three more years. Does he really think he deserves a bounty?	marble falls	Feb 2013	#96
Everybody and the world knows you don't get shit for doing anything less than 20 yrs.	Baclava	Feb 2013	#97
Presume that he is telling the truth and Killed OBL - thanks for that. But the service didn't	24601	Feb 2013	#107