A lieutenant stationed at Ft Lewis, Washington has said that the war in Iraq is immoral, and that he will refuse any deployment order. He claims that he is “not against fighting in wars, just this particular war.”
SEATTLE - As thousands of Fort Lewis Army troops prepare to head back to Iraq, one of their officers is making a stand.A lieutenant says he is going to refuse to go, saying it’s an unjust war. Anti-war groups are rallying to his defense.
Lt. Ehren Watada of the Stryker Brigade writes, “I refuse to be silent any longer. I refuse to watch families torn apart, while the President tells us to ‘stay the course.’ I refuse to be party to an illegal and immoral war against people who did nothing to deserve our aggression.
“I wanted to be there for my fellow troops. But the best way was not to help drop artillery and cause more death and destruction. It is to help oppose this war and end it so that all soldiers can come home.” – signed LT.
His name had been kept a secret until now, but Lt. Watada’s father confirms that his son is taking this bold step and told the Honolulu Advertiser newspaper that he’s proud of his son.
Fort Lewis says since the lieutenant hasn’t done anything official yet, there’s no violation. But should he decide to go ahead with this, he could be charged with ‘desertion’ or more likely with ‘missing the movement’ of his unit.
It’s happened before with a sergeant who refused to go. Sgt. Kevin Benderman was sentenced to 15 months for refusing to go to Iraq.
Lt. Watada asked for reassignment and tried resigning his commission, but the Army refused. His attorney tells us from Hawaii that Watada is not against all wars, just this one.
“I’ve been doing this for nearly 40 years and I’m somewhat astounded that in the context of a war that is becoming increasing unpopular that they are relatively unsophisticated in addressing these issues,” said attorney Eric Seitz from Hawaii.
This doesn’t sit well with fellow soldiers.
“We’re here to serve our country and fight and that’s his job,” said Private Nathan Hanson. “It’s his duty.”
Anti-war protestors, many of which demonstrated at the Port of Olympia recently, are rushing to his aid. They have put up a Web site believing he’s the first commissioned officer to refuse to go.
The lieutenant says he’ll make his intentions official Wednesday at noon and that’s when his defense team will kick into gear.
You can find the story here.
This just sickens me. This soldier, this officer, has sworn an oath to defend the constitution of the United States. Under that very same constitution, he is bound to obey the legal orders of the officers appointed over him. Not just the orders he happens to agree with.
If he decides to follow through with his threats he will be subject to punishment under the Uniformed Code of Military Justice, and will be facing significant prison time. Prison time at sunny Fort Leavenworth no less.
If anyone is wondering whether the military is serious about prosecuting such activities, you may look back to Operation Desert Storm and see how many last-minute “conscientious objectors” ended up doing several years behind bars. Seems like a pretty high price to pay just because you happen to have a difference of opinion with the president.
The other thing that upsets me is that he will soon become the latest media darling—probably eclipsing Cindy Sheehan. Wouldn’t surprise me one bit. And this guy doesn’t have a leg to stand one, yet he’ll likely be painted a “victim of conscience” or some such drivel.
Make no doubt about it, there are a very large number of liberals that are serving in the military today. In private they have no problem expressing their criticism of the president and his policies. Yet these people recognize their duty, and execute it to the best of their abilities. The liberals in uniform who show up every day and bust their hump doing their jobs—no matter who happens to be president—are the ones that ought to be respected. They undestand their responsibilities and their oath. They drive on each day, knowing that they serve a higher calling than merely executing the orders of the current administration.
I understood my oath under Clinton, and Quilly understood his under Carter. We disagreed with those administrations, yet we soldiered on. We obeyed every legal order, and when we disagreed with policy, we did it in private. Then on election day, we made sure to send in our absentee ballots. We didn’t throw a public hissy fit. We didn’t refuse orders. We didn’t run to the local political opposition groups looking for support. We simply did our jobs.
This officer is a disgrace. He needs to do the honorable thing and shut his mouth. Then go back to his unit and do his job. And he better do it before he gets himself into deep, deep, shit.
(H/T Stop the ACLU)
Marcus
He even has his own pathetic fan club website. http://www.thankyoult.org/
I vote another weenie poster boy for the commies…er…Left.
I think he should get locked up for a very long time. I didn’t like what teh Clinton Administration was doing. That was part of the reason that I chose to leave the service. I was not under obligation, and I did not make a pubic announcement of it.
That’s the way its supposed to be for the protection of the nation.
Can I be the first to take off my Kelvar, remove one of my sweat soaked tac gloves and slap this bitch in the face with it while calling him a coward? It will be a loooong line, and I have better shit to do today.
I’ll bring beer and lawn chairs, some things are worth the wait.