Soldiers Behaving Badly

[unhappycamper]

Soldiers Behaving Badly
by Barry Yourgrau | Aug 2 2007 - 6:41pm


War, it can just bring out the worst in people...

On Monday 22-year-old Army PFC Jesse Spielman pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, arson, and "wrongfully touching a corpse" (a gruesomely suggestive phrase heretofore unknown to me). Also "drinking." Court-martial on more serious charges awaits.

~snip~

There was also the recent journal dispatch online at TNR by an American GI in Iraq, who describes himself and his buddies as behaving, well, very badly -- insulting and harassing a disfigured young woman at base (like Neil LaBute pigs in fatigues); going around wearing a piece of a dead child's skull as a wig; running over dogs for kicks.

The right-wing media attack force -- and is there anyone more despicable on military matters then Fox's smiley Bill Kristol? But to be fair various military bloggers wrote as well -- immediately got all up in arms (you might say). How could such despicable doings be presented just in a semi-introspective journal entry, as opposed filed as a misconduct report? Outrageous, a slander of our young valiants over there on the front line of the War on Terror, "fighting courageously (wrote Bill Kristol) in a just cause ... our best and bravest, fighting for all of us against a brutal enemy in a difficult and frustrating war." (Ah..."difficult" and frustrating," that's a way to put it)

Not to be flip, exceedingly flip about terrible things (civilians behaving badly?)...but excuse me? That very excellent commentator Digby wrote a tremendously powerful piece on this Behaving Badly uproar, asking in a nutshell: Have you never read -- way back in junior high even -- about the appalling bestial realities of what war really does to people? Classic books like, say, All Quiet on the Western Front? Do you think it's all John Wayne Jr. over in Iraq, despite a few stinky apples? All gritty everyday gutty "professionals" -- the "future leaders of this country" (Bill Kristol) -- doing a hellacious gutty job?


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uhc comment: This is a good read on the subject.

[iamahaingttta]

1. Oh, those poor, stupid suckers...

Those kids got put into that meatgrinder on purpose. They got put into that meatgrinder to kill as many people as possible, because they're sitting on our oil. They got put into that meatgrinder to get their own asses killed, because they are useless eaters. The corporatists want as many of us dead as possible, and those poor stupid suckers who were dumb enough to join up to go kill some ragheads are as much victims as they are tools. History is not going to be kind to any of us.

[atreides1]

3. Another Free Pass?

You're generalization on how all of these "suckers" are stupid shows what you don't know. While I would agree that some of them are very stupid, that label would be applied to the rookies, what's the excuse for the veterans, for the NCO's and officers who have been in the service for some time?

I would suggest that some of these "suckers" may actually enjoy what they do, perhaps they were raised to believe that if you're not an American then you're below contempt, maybe some believe that they are fighting against godless heathens who need to be destroyed so that the light of Christ shines over the world!

Perhaps it's just the mere fact that some enjoy killing "ragheads" because the only good Arab is a dead Arab. So they're not all suckers, some maybe, some console themselves with the myth that they are "following orders", others leave their humanity in the states before deployment, perhaps in fact
they had no humanity to begin with, but they're not all "suckers"!

As for history not being kind, remember that initially history is written by the winners, and only after the "fairy tales" are published the truth finally comes to the surface, as an example I would point to the initial story of Wounded Knee, the truth didn't come out until over 100 years later.

[UKProPeace]

4. Well said 100% support what you say

One brave British soldier, stated exactly what he thought of those who regard Iraqis as "untermenschen", he refused to fight alongside them....those "people" should not be supported, or excused, or enabled:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/03/12/nsas12.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/03/12/ixhome.html
Excerpt from article:

"After three months in Baghdad, Ben Griffin told his commander that he was no longer prepared to fight alongside American forces.


He said he had witnessed "dozens of illegal acts" by US troops, claiming they viewed all Iraqis as "untermenschen" - the Nazi term for races regarded as sub-human.

The decision marks the first time an SAS soldier has refused to go into combat and quit the Army on moral grounds......"

[UKProPeace]

2. "Wearing a piece of a dead child's skull as a wig"!?

Sick, sick sick, no excuse for that...Still, the "support the troops" brigade will no doubt be along in a moment.