troops to support
U.S. Army First Lieutenant Ehren Watada has refused to deploy to Iraq on the grounds that the war is illegal. He has offered to serve in Afghanistan, or resign his commission. The Army's having none of it; they've charged him not only for not deploying, but for insulting Bush. If convicted on all counts he could serve more than seven years. From ThankYouLt.org:
On July 5, U.S. Army First Lt. Ehren K. Watada was formally charged with three articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice: two counts of contempt towards officials (Article 88) - specifically President G. W. Bush, three counts of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman (Article 133), and one count of missing movement (Article 87). If convicted of all six charges by a general court-martial, Lt. Watada could be sentenced to over seven years in a military prison.
Lt. Watada’s lawyer, Eric Seitz, said: "We expected the missing movement charge, but we are somewhat astounded by the contempt and conduct unbecoming charges. These additional charges open up the substance of Lt. Watada's statements for review and raise important First Amendment issues. We are delighted that the Army has given us the opportunity to litigate these questions." ...
Even before Lt. Watada refused to ship out to Iraq on June 22, the Army was focusing their investigation on his speech. The formal charges confirm that the Army’s primary objective is silencing Lt. Watada’s dissent.
I find this fascinating. I do think the military is trying to send a message that dissuades other soldiers from taking such a stand, but by doing so they're also opening up the possibility that they'll lose on these grounds. And if, to be acquitted, Watada has to show that the Iraq War is illegal, he'll have no shortage of expert statements to support that. Lawyers have been stating that it is since before it began. I don't expect a military trial to hand down a ruling that agrees that the Iraq War is illegal, but the question will now be raised in people's minds, and that can only be good.
I also have an enormous amount of respect for Lt. Watada for staying and standing trial, risking prison, rather than high-tailing it to Canada like many of those denied conscientious objector status. Don't get me wrong, I sympathize with them, but since they weren't drafted, it's possible to argue that they should have noticed war was bad before they joined the Armed Forces. And Lt. Watada's stance is not that morally, he can't participate in war; it's that morally and legally, he can't participate in this war. His stand marks the Iraq War as the egregious breach of international law it is, and reminds us all how even as it fulfills all the cliches about war being hell, it's different. Not just unnecessary or unwise. Illegal.
Homelessness a Threat for Iraq Vets. Funny how the yellow ribbon car magnet crowd never seem to mention these men and women. Maybe that's because supporting them would require them to actually do something.
A picture made him a hero. Then his life fell apart. About James Blake Miller, whose instant celebrity has made returning to his life after Iraq all the more difficult.
Miller's image became a symbol of steely resolve, of weary-yet-determined struggle, of the toughness of the American fighting man having a cigarette break before finishing the job. It captured a moment when most Americans still thought the invasion of Iraq a worthy undertaking.
Now Miller is a different symbol in a different time. As the war has dragged on, Miller's life has collapsed in the face of post-traumatic stress disorder. He draws a disability pension for his condition and his personal life is a wreck. He suffers from nightmares, panic attacks and survivor's guilt. Despite the immense goodwill of a grateful nation, Miller has slumped into struggle and despair. Last week came the news that he and his childhood sweetheart, Jessica, were getting divorced.
Marlboro Man is no longer an icon for the American warrior ethic. He is a symbol of pain and suffering and the enormous problems endured by veterans returning home. He has become the public face of shell-shock. No longer the victor, Miller has become one of the war's victims.
He shouldn't have to be a symbol at all, but he is: a symbol of what we've done to hundreds of thousands of soldiers in this unnecessary (illegal) war.