Karilyn Bales went on the Today show this morning and told Matt Lauer that her husband is not guilty of killing 17 Afghan villagers and that he would never do something like that. Hey, I am a big believer in loyalty and standing by your partner but at some point you have to open your eyes that the government already paid the families $50K each and there are not a whole lot of other suspects popping up who could have done it.
Since the shootings, she has spoken to him twice, but neither time did she ask him about the charges. What did they talk about? The weather? How do you talk to him twice and not even bring it up for a minute.
I would think becuase their calls are recorded and she doesn't want to risk him incriminating himself. She just assumes he didn't do it.
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine what it would be like to be a soldier there. It sounds like he just went insane.
I have a hard time with this story.
@timebob - agreed
ReplyDeleteI think she's doing the best she can given her situation.
I saw the interview and thought it was sketchy that Lauer and Today were even interviewing her.
ReplyDeleteShe was asked and answered things that maybe should be left alone given the severely grave situation her husband is in.
The court of public opinion isn't going to affect his situation. This won't be a "jury of his peers kind" of trial if I understand it correctly.
I suppose she is mainly trying to garner donations to the Defense Fund I heard she's having set up.
Good Lord, what an awful situation.
Remember the exploded turret-gun incident when the military threw the soldier operating it under the bus? They had claimed it was a suicide/murder because the sailor was gay? Then they had to retract when it came out that the powder was old and had destabilized or some shit?
Fuckers will throw any soldier under the bus for their own war machine. Must keep those billions coming in, huh?!
So for that reason alone I do believe this could be "not what it seems," as the wife said this morning.
None of my family is military (well, since the Berlin Conflict era) so I have no idea how it must feel to have a husband sent back for a FOURTH frigging tour, and after brain trauma. Poor people...
I'm only going to say that this story is a huge mess all around.
ReplyDeleteDenial is a powerful thing.
ReplyDeleteI can understand how she would want to stand by her man, but accepting what happened and moving on is better. Maybe she's in denial? I can't stand when women publicly defend or deny the awful things their men do.
ReplyDeleteI don't find it odd at all that they didn't talk about the case. It means her husband's lawyer finally got a client that would LISTEN and not talk.
ReplyDeleteI can't tell you how many cases I have had ruined when the DA starts handing over recorded jail conversations.
And I agree that the cases SEEMS open and shut, but with the military, you can't ever trust what things SEEM like. My family is military. I love them. I support the troops. I do not trust the system.
If this was his fourth tour with BRAIN TRAUMA, then he may have pulled the trigger, but he isn't responsible, IMO. He shouldn't have been there. That's not the act of a mean person, that's an act of insanity. I feel terrible for everyone involved, the families and friends of those killed, this soldier and his family, and the communities that surround them both.
ReplyDeleteshe shouldn't be doing any media.
ReplyDeleteits a tragedy all around. putting any service person into a war four times is a recipe for tragedy. its just too much pressure and stress and he went crazy.
while I believe that he did it, the larger responsibility lies with a system that would allow or make someone to go back 4 times.
I agree with annabella that she oughtn't be giving interviews. I also read a transcript elsewhere and she seemed to be saying "this isn't him" in the sense that there is something uncharacteristic in his actions. And she's probably in denial, and it's just too much.
ReplyDeleteIt seems weird to me that she's giving interviews.
I'm with @Jennifer H. FOUR tours and the last one was after he'd suffered a brain injury and was told at that time he would not be fit to serve again but then the Military changed it's mind.
ReplyDeleteHmmmm - not the best circumstances to say the least and I feel that the gov't/military is partially to blame for creating a perfect storm.
Long time reader.
ReplyDeleteJust like timebob said, it's like he suddenly went insane. I thought along similar lines until I read this article this morning:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/25/robert-bales-malaria-drug_n_1378671.html
Took Larium 20 years ago for African safari (go if u have the chance - it's like being inside the discovery channel with booze and bacon). There were 7 people - we all took this stuff once a week. Everybody had a reaction - strange incredibly vivid dreams, sometimes night sweats. When I got back I researched - this drug is capable of doing brain damage to people - some permanent - they go insane and never get well. Some do get well. But it's dangerous stuff - people working in Africa would not take it - rather get malaria. It has a really bad rep. And there are less risky anti-malarials - but Larium is cheap.
That Joseph Kony movie guy - running down the street naked - he was in Africa a long time. I wonder if he took Larium?
That article states that it is unknown whether he ever took the drug, if I remember correctly. Pretty irresponsible of HuffPo. I'm all for him using available defences, but no one knows yet.
DeleteI can't imagine a scenario in which he doesn't serve significant time because I can't imagine a military jury or judge allowing that. It puts every soldier in jeopardy, not to mention the need for justice for the victims' families.
In the meantime, if I were his lawyer i'd ask the wife to stay off TV.
Don't have time to watch the video, but I seem to recall hearing on the news that he had prior anger issues, and he called her after the incident and only said that something really bad had happened. How could you not ask what it was?
ReplyDeleteI feel more sympathy for the people he killed and the relatives and friends they left behind.
ReplyDeleteHow do we believe anything in the media or from the govt anymore? I love America, but I don't trust my govt.
ReplyDeleteMy husband has been over there, it is a hard life anyway you look at it. When you and if you do get to talk to them EVERYTHING is monitored. I can see why she did not ask his anything. My heart goes out to his family and the Afgan families . No one is going to understand this situation unless you have been over there or have a close family member that has served. Let all the facts come out, before you judge anyone, innocent until proven guilty. In my opinion , he snapped whether it was prescription drug induced or just mental break. Too many families have been broken by these deployments. I support what we are doing over there, I have heard many good and kind things our troops are doing. I have to ask why aren't they reporting on Maj. Nidal Hassan????? What he did was just as bad.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe how many people have sympathy for this man. It's unreal, he murdered 17 people, 9 of which were sleeping children!! And yet people keep saying how traumatic it must be for him being over there! There's no excuse for murdering a child, none what so ever! Yes he's been on tour to Iraq & Afghanistan 4 times but that's his job & when he joined up he knew what type of war he was going into. Stop making excuses for a child murderer you wouldn't do it for someone like John Wayne Gacy so why do it for him?
ReplyDeleteit was only a matter of time till something like this occurred. you have hired killing machines deployed for 2,3,4,5 tours.
ReplyDeleteshit is bound to get to you OR dude had a thirst to kill. either way, prosecute to fullest extent.
Denial is a powerful drug, but it never let anyone off the hook, really. I'm sympathetic, to a point. It can't be easy facing that your loved one did a monstrous thing. But if you are presented with facts and still choose to deny or defend terrible acts, then you share some guilt. She should get with Jerry Sandusky' wife. I'm sure they'd have a lot to not talk about.
ReplyDeleteDon't waste one second of your time sympathizing for this guy. He has a record as a securities swindler. He stripped elderly people of their assets and left them penniless - and THAT is why he entered the military - because he couldn't work in finance anymore.
ReplyDeleteHe's over $1 million in debt. He has a criminal record, not just the swindling, but also domestic violence and hit and run.
He's a sociopath, pure and simple.
He may not be a good man, but multiple tours of duty are insane.
ReplyDeleteIn the case of his wife, ignoring the facts does not change the facts.
There is an article on the Huffington Post today that points out that anti-malaria medication can cause psychotic violent episodes. It is often given to soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq.I don't know if he was given this or not, but it is not supposed to be taken by men with head injuries. So, she might be right. Just because someone is bad with their finances does not make them a serial killer. As far as I know, he did not have a violent history with his family. It sounds to me like he snapped from stress, a brain injury or this medication. Horrible situation for all sides, the families of those children and villagers and his own family.
ReplyDeleteEmma, you said it perfectly, and Jax, absolutely. There are always horrific war crimes reported against both sides in every war. So does anyone know the actual death toll of Afghan's since we all decided to butt in and help them? And if the Afghan's want us out are we prepared to bow out with some grace.
ReplyDeleteI have to wonder how America or Australia would respond to these conditions?
http://costsofwar.org/article/afghan-civilians
It is worth repeating, stop making this guy a victim.
http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/Robert-Bales
ReplyDeleteMaybe when he was her husband and at home he was different, but war can snap and change people.
ReplyDeleteShe could just be shocked and in denial - I know that if someone I loved and thought I knew did something like that, of course I would hope for any possible explanation that would make them not guilty, I don't think that's going to happen for her though.
What a horrific situation. The picture of the mourners standing over burnt corpses broke my heart
Why don't you all watch the film RESTREPO. It might give you "non serving, but all knowing" a little insight.
ReplyDeleteShe is in a massive amount of denial and it's a natural, self-protective reaction of the human psyche. The average sane person will employ a sophisticated sort of mental gymnastics to avoid facing such a horror. It's not a choice for her at this time and hopefully, in time, she will be in a place where she is able to accept what happened and grieve. I don't envy her; her life as she knows it is over and will never be the same. It's probably incredibly difficult for a woman to comprehend that her husband, and father of her children, went on a mass killing spree, *killing* children (and adults). It's incomprehensible. I'm so sorry for everybody touched by this tragedy, including the killer's wife and kids. That's quite a legacy to live with.
ReplyDelete