WASHINGTON — The Army on Saturday blamed a computer mix-up for recruitment letters mistakenly sent out over the holidays to the families of 275 officers killed or wounded in action in Iraq.
“Every Army leader is just sick that this happened,” said Gen. Richard Cody, the Army’s vice chief of staff. “This is an inexcusable mistake. Five years into this war, the Army can do better than this, and we will.”
Senior Army leaders were frustrated and disappointed by the blunder, and the Army immediately began contacting each family to offer a personal apology, Cody said.
The Army used the wrong database, he said, when it generated a mass mailing between Christmas and New Year's Day to more than 5,100 officers who recently left the service.
Included were letters to 75 officers killed in action — more than a third of all Army officers who have died in Iraq since the war began — and 200 more wounded in action. The letters encouraged the officers to consider returning to active duty.
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/nation/01/07/7armyletters.html
“Every Army leader is just sick that this happened,” said Gen. Richard Cody, the Army’s vice chief of staff. “This is an inexcusable mistake. Five years into this war, the Army can do better than this, and we will.”
Senior Army leaders were frustrated and disappointed by the blunder, and the Army immediately began contacting each family to offer a personal apology, Cody said.
The Army used the wrong database, he said, when it generated a mass mailing between Christmas and New Year's Day to more than 5,100 officers who recently left the service.
Included were letters to 75 officers killed in action — more than a third of all Army officers who have died in Iraq since the war began — and 200 more wounded in action. The letters encouraged the officers to consider returning to active duty.
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/nation/01/07/7armyletters.html
