All the West Virginia cadets pictured giving a Nazi salute will be fired, governor says
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
All of the West Virginia correctional cadets seen apparently giving a Nazi salute will be fired, West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice announced.
The image, discovered in early December, shows the members of the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation Basic Training Class 18 with one arm raised. The text above reads "HAIL BYRD!" in a reference to a training instructor for the class, according to the state Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety.
The governor condemned the training group's behavior in a statement on Monday.
"We have a lot of good people in the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety," Justice said. "But this incident was completely unacceptable. Now, we must continue to move forward and work diligently to make sure nothing like this happens ever again."
Three staff members at the training academy will also be fired. Four other instructors who failed to report the photograph will be suspended without pay, he said.
Some of the cadets did it because they 'feared they would not graduate'
The Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety released the image, with the faces of the trainees and employees blurred, earlier in December. A number of employees were suspended amid an investigation into why the group picture was taken.
Jeff Sandy, cabinet secretary for the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety, recommended the cadets' firing to Justice.
He noted in his letter to the governor that some of the cadets "were aware of the connotations associated with the gesture, that they were uncomfortable with the practice ... and/or that they only followed what they perceived to be an order" because they feared they wouldn't graduate.
"Nonetheless," Sandy wrote, "their conduct, without question, has also resulted in the far-reaching and harmful perceptions that are the antithesis of the values we strain to attain."
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Holy crap what a bunch of morons, didn't any of them realize how badly this would go?
Apparently not.
There just isn't enough duct tape to fix this kind of stupid.
Sounds like a metaphor for the "United" States in general. We have so many that don't understand
the results and consequences, of their own stupidity, it truly is, or at least should be, concerning to us all.
There is more detail to this story.
The instructor told the recruits to give her respect as a "Hitler" like figure, then when the thing went bad she claimed to not know much about Hitler.
Good riddance.
Sounds real plausible
Anyone over the age of 20 who does not know much about Hitler has been living under a rock and had to have skipped history in high school.
Kassie byrd huh? Wonder if its any relation to Robert byrd, the Democrat KKK grandwizard and mentor to the Clintons...
Just can't avoid making something political, sad and pathetic.
Everything is political in one way or another.
Good.
Well it looks like Trump has found his next security detail.
Just can't avoid making something political, sad and pathetic.
I didn't realize this was a safety zone. Have my comment deleted if it bothers you. It won't hurt my feelings.
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Fucking amazing
Feel free to PM or chat me and pass on your comments. Sadly I didn't catch it before it was deleted.
What's missing in the lives of these people as they grow up that they think this is ok? How is it a whole room full of people were willing to do a thing like this? Just amazing.
Lol it's just a guess but I'm thinking multi generational inbreeding may be responsible
Fuck'em. Every single one.
In the final photo I counted four white fists and one black fist.
A black cadet said that those who knew better agreed to make fists and in the next photo at least 10 people did so.
Byrd made them do the photo shoot over after threatening disciplinary action.
I am not convinced that all of the cadets deserved to be fired for caving in to Byrd's threats.
I agree that the firings of the students was an overreaction, however threat or not they're still idiots for doing it
I am. These are future professionals and if they cave into threats now, they will later with the possibility of disastrous results.
Personally I don't think any of the cadets should be fired. These are students and just firing or expelling them doesn't teach them anything. Obviously some or all were either ignorant or fearful for their future with a job they had been accepted to study and learn to do.
We can't always blame it all on them, considering only 12 states require the teaching of the Holocaust, which means ignorance is rampant concerning Hitler.
I would require each of the students to have the opportunity to choose whether they wanted to learn why their actions were so disgusting or drop out of the program. A short, but intense course that will leave an impression on each of them may enlighten some or all of them to an extent that would be far more effective than expelling them and making them fair game for those who would like to increase their numbers.
And the course should be taught by people who will leave Trump and immigration out of the subject matter, since those on my side of the conversation are able to see a little deeper into this than those who have an agenda.
Those cadets were on their way to having immense power and responsibility. If they did not have the moral courage to speak out behind closed doors what makes you think they could do it when the stakes are life or death?
No, they do not have the moral fortitude to carry out the responsibilities of overseeing other human beings.