Number 97

Kentucky's 97th sacrifice to the Iraq/Afghanistan clusterfucks is an Army Ranger from Tollesboro in Lewis County, along the Ohio River upstream from Cincinnati.

From the Courier:

Specialist Christopher Shane Wright, 23, died Aug. 19 in Konar Province, Afghanistan, after insurgents attacked his unit using small arms fire.

Wright, an automatic-weapon gunner assigned to Co. C, 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment based at Hunter Army Airfield, Ga., had enlisted in the Army in 2005, according to the military.

SNIP

Wright is survived by his father, James Cochran and stepmother, Michele Cochran of Tollesboro, Ky., and his mother, Linda Dennis of Jeffersonville, Ind. Linda Dennis could not be reached for comment Monday.

“Everybody loved him — he always had a smile on his face,” said Michele Cochran, who, along with his father, own Tollesboro Supply and T-City Pizza. Tollesboro is near Maysville, Ky.

The article included this paragraph:

Wright died in a fire fight that “ultimately killed three Taliban who were reportedly responsible for the deaths of two other U.S. servicemen,” according to a statement from Col. Michael Kurilla, commander of the 75th regiment.

That description is eerily similar to the one originally put out by the Army describing the death of Ranger Pat Tillman, who actually died in a friendly fire incident - the kind that is almost impossible to avoid in the impassable mountains along the Pakistan border where Wright, too, died.

If you still harbor hopes that the Afghanistan clusterfuck contains a sliver of redeeming quality, go see The Tillman Story. It's in limited release and may require a long drive, but it'll be worth it.