The lesson learned here...is for leadership to keep their mouth shut and wait for facts to emerge. If the final report said friendly-fire...then don’t argue with that. Facts are very nice to have in your hand and work with...I don’t think this affair with Tillman was capable of facts. But the real bottom line...his relatives were going to generate heat no matter what happened...even if we spoke only the truth...and thats the real sad part of this story.
I think another lesson is that SOCOM is not the place for celebrities. I laud Tillman's desire to serve his nation in the time of war; however, in the arena of personnel assignments the needs of the Army should always have precedence over the desires of the individual. An exception was made for Pat Tillman, and now the chickens (and stars, and full birds) have come home to roost.