Text 12897, 112 rader
Skriven 2007-03-05 06:37:45 av Vorlonagent (16340.babylon5)
     Kommentar till en text av rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
Ärende: Re: Interesting story to follow for B5 fans
===================================================

"Rob Perkins" <rperkins@usa.net> wrote in message 
news:C21058FE.5847%rperkins@usa.net...

>> "Absurdity" is too strong a claim.
>
> No, it really isn't. However foolish the actual invasion turned out to be,
> the Bush Administration acted within the framework of the War Powers Act. 
> To
> say otherwise after all this time, and all the analysis that has gone into
> it, really is absurd.

Bush had a de-facto declaration of war.  He had a blank check to fight the 
terror threat as he saw fit.  Congress gave Bush a very loose leash.


> Further, I think the judge really is correct about considering that 
> question
> out of order for a military court. Having a court which is subservient to
> the President's war powers declare a war illegal makes hash of certain
> constitutional separation of powers issues.

and would be insubordinate to say the least.  You don't lecture a superior 
officer.


> But for my money, if it really was Lt. Watada's conscientious belief that
> the war was an illegal military action, then his behavior in refusing to
> move was consistent with the conduct of an officer.

I don't.  Any halfway decent office knows what refusing to follow orders for 
political reasons does to morale and discipline.

This guy should never command so much as an army janitorial staff...and 
never will again.  He put his politics ahead of his duty.

Unlike the EA civil war, there are no hard ethical questions here.  The Iraq 
invasion might have been contrary to the UN Charter, might have been sold to 
the US public under falso pretenses, but it's not a soldier's job to be the 
arbiter of US foreign policy.

The Army *can't* let this guy walk and can't give him his designated 
punishment.  They have to be tougher on him or it will damage morale and 
discipline.


> But I don't think that's
> what the Army meant when they charged him with it. I recall that it had
> something to do with stuff he said at an anti-war rally. I don't know if 
> he
> was in uniform or not, but that might not make a difference to the Army;
> I've been told before not to say certain things while in uniform, for
> example, since press reporters treat uniformed military officers as
> spokespeople.

For practical reasons, the military puts limits on the politcal speech 
allowed a serviceman/woman in uniform.


>> However, I do agree that
>> there's some more information that it'd be nice to have. The main
>> thing I'd like to know is what the consequence is if he's found guilty
>> of this supposed crime.
>
> It's the equivalent of a criminal case, but it is subject to automatic
> review by civilian judges if the sentence is more than a year of
> imprisonment.

It's completely criminal and the Lts conduct is begging them to throw the 
book at him.  Probably so it would look like the big nasty Military coming 
down on a poor little guy.

>> For another thing, if a war is truly necessary in self-defence or
>> otherwise for a good cause, then why would a government need to
>> *force* anyone to fight in it?
>
> We don't have a conscription draft in the United States. Arguably, 
> Watada's
> disposition was considered settled by the Army when he signed his 
> commission
> contract, for eight years of service. The perspective of the U.S. Military
> is generally that the volunteering and conscience-wringing is done, when 
> the
> contract is signed.

It was.  Nobody asked this guy to join.  And he signed away some of his 
civilian freedoms when he did so.  A fact he is flouting in the name of 
politics.  He's now useless to his nation in any combat capacity.  There are 
punishments too extreme for what he's doing but spending most of his 
contract time counting pengiuns before serving his term in prison isn't. 
For discipline reasons, the Army has to come down on him.  Given politics, 
there's about a 50-50 chance they will.

The guy's been so public, I think he's expecting politcs to blunt the 
punishment that is rightly his.

What he's doing could easily translate into Iraq deaths.

-- 
John Trauger,
Vorlonagent

"Methane martini.
Shaken, not stirred."

"Spirituality without science has no mind.

Science without spirituality has no heart."

-Methuselah Jones
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