Assembling the Pieces at Fort Hood

by: Richard Allen Smith

Fri Nov 06, 2009 at 09:42:40 AM EST

So here is what we know for sure: Yesterday, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist at Darnell Army Medical Center, entered the Soldier Readiness Center at Fort Hood, Texas and opened fire on his fellow Soldiers with two handguns, killing 13 and inuring 28. All of the injured are in stable condition today. Major Hasan, earlier reported to have been killed, was shot four times by a civilian police officer who was also shot and is in stable condition. Major Hasan is in stable condition and on a ventilator.

Major Hasan, originally from Virginia, gained an undergraduate degree from Virginia Tech after which he entered the Army and began pursuing a career as a mental health professional, performing his internship and residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.  Major Hasan was later transferred to Fort Hood where he recently received deployment orders to Afghanistan. He was not happy about this.

If anything breaks, we'll continue to update here throughout the day.

UPDATE 0946 EST: Spencer Ackerman at the Washington Independent reports on possible religious utterances and justifiably encourages due caution:

Ft. Hood's commander, Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, said today that there are unconfirmed reports that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan shouted "God is great" in Arabic before opening fire yesterday at the Army base. Again: we will soon be able to hear Hasan's motivations in his own words. Even if he shouted such a thing, it would no more reflect on his co-religionists than does the fanatic who murdered Kansas abortion provider Dr. George Tiller and who happened to consider himself a devout Christian does on his co-religionists. It's worth remembering that nearly all mass shootings in this country are committed by white men. Do we have a white-man problem on our hands?

UPDATE 1133 EST: A day after we learned that Major Hasan has never deployed, cable news still pushing PTSD angle. Idiots. Some also arguing that treating PTSD patients may have disturbed him (PRE Traumatic Stress?). Ridiculous.

UPDATE 1135 EST: PRESIDENT OBAMA: Flags at federal vacillates to be flown at half staff until Veterans' Day.

UPDATE 1145 EST: Nader Hasan, first cousin of Major Hasan, sent this statement to the Washington Post:

"As Nidal Hasan's first cousin, and because his parents are no longer alive, I wanted to issue a statement on behalf of my family. We are shocked and saddened by the terrible events at Fort Hood today. We send the families of the victims our most heartfelt sympathies.

We, like most of America, know very few details at this time. Here is what we do know about our cousin. Nidal was an American citizen. He was born in Arlington, Virginia, and raised here in America. He attended local high schools and eventually went on to attend Virginia Tech.

We are filled with grief for the families of today's victims. Our family loves America. We are proud of our country, and saddened by today's tragedy. Because this situation is still unfolding, we have nothing else that we are able to share with you at this time."

UPDATE 1215 EST: More comments from MAJ Hasan's family:

WASHINGTON - The family of the suspected Fort Hood shooter says "the actions of their cousin are despicable and deplorable."

Kim Fuller, a spokeswoman for Nidal Malik Hasan's family says relatives in Northern Virginia are reaching out to law enforcement Friday to offer insight. Authorities have said Hasan is suspected in Thursday's mass killings at Fort Hood military base in Texas.

Hasan's family said in a statement Friday that his actions don't reflect how they were raised in the U.S. Military officials are still trying to piece together what may have pushed the 39-year-old Army psychiatrist, trained to help soldiers in distress, to turn on his comrades.

UPDATE 1223 EST: Captain Reis Ritz gives a first person account of the scene inside the Fort Hood emergency room:

UPDATE 1226 EST: Fox News hosts are suggesting that Muslim Soldiers receive "special screenings". A dumb fucking idea, not the least of reasons being that Major Hasan's records indicated he had "no religious preference", so he wouldn't have been screened anyway.

UPDATE 1237 EST: To add to the item above: Being that he is an officer, MAJ Hasan at least has a SECRET security clearance, which means he did receive additional screening.

UPDATE 1430 EST: GI Kate has this to say about the hoopla being made of Hasan's shooter being a female police officer:

I know a huge deal is being made about a female officer shooting Hasan and ending his rampage. Really? After what this country has been through it's still surprising that women can defend themselves? Shoot? We don't just curl up in corners and wait for others to rescue us. Police Sgt. Kimberly Munley did what she was trained to do. I don't understand why this continues to blow peoples minds. If there is doubt women can handle situations like this then stop training them...or shut up and let them do their jobs.

UPDATE 1434 EST: Military now observing moment of silence for Fort Hood victims, to be followed my press conference with SECDEF Gates Army Chief of Staff General Casey and Army Secretary John McHugh.

UPDATE 1448 EST: Douche bag reporter asks question about this being a signal that the Army is to small broken. Maybe those things are true, but it has nothing to do with this incident with a Major with over 10 years time in service and has never deployed.

UPDATE 1456 EST: New York Times has a live feed of the press conference on their front page.

UPDATE 1457 EST: General Casey said he is concerned about the potential for a backlash against Muslim Soldiers. Encourages leaders to keep Soldiers informed and not rush to judgment.

UPDATE 1501 EST: General Casey: At this time no operational impact due to shooting. Shouldn't prevent units from deploying.

UPDATE 1507 EST: Just a thought: We're going to see a lot of these awarded, and rightly so.

UPDATE 1619 EST: Robert Mackey of NYT's The Lede has some fascinating notes on an interview with MAJ Hasan's next door neighbor. I know, these things are usually pointless but this one is worth a look.

UPDATE 1640 EST: Liz Robbins has details on some of the fatalities from the shooting which were confirmed by the victim's families. The Army has not yet identified the casualties.

Update 1709 est: A C-17 will carry the 13 fatalities to Dover AFB for autopsies tonight. As of now, no family had elected allow media coverage.

Update 1740 est: CNN reports Hasan called a neighbor twice early yesterday morning asking him to turn on his wi-fi service. Weapons used identified as a revolver and a pistol which used a 5.7mm round.