Posted on 06/15/2008 5:19:33 PM PDT by Jet Jaguar
A month after US army reservist Matthis Chiroux publicly refused to deploy to Iraq, the former sergeant on Sunday set himself up for possible prosecution by failing to report for active duty with his unit in South Carolina.
"Tonight at midnight, I may face further action from the army for refusing to reactivate to participate in the Iraq occupation," Chiroux told reporters in Washington.
"I stand here today in defense of those who have been stripped of their voices in this occupation, the warriors of this nation...", Chiroux read from a statement as his father Rob, who had travelled to Washington from Alabama to support his son on Father's Day, stood beside him.
Last month, Chiroux rejected an order calling him back to active duty in Iraq, saying he considers the war "illegal and unconstitutional."
Chiroux served five years in the army, with tours in Afghanistan, Japan, Germany and the Philippines.
He was honorably discharged last year and was placed in the Individual Ready Reserves (IRR), a pool of former soldiers who can be "reactivated" in a national emergency or war.
Prior to the Iraq war, IRR members were rarely recalled to active duty, according to the Military Times, an independent newspaper for members of the US armed forces and their families.
"Many believed they never would be called -- but when the army found itself stretched by unexpected combat demands in Iraq in the summer of 2004 it began issuing mobilization orders," Military Times wrote in an article published a year ago on Sunday.
According to the paper, hundreds of IRR members "refused to report or simply ignored their mailed mobilization orders."
Matthis' father Rob, a rocket scientist who lives in the army town of Huntsville, Alabama, said mobilizing IRR members was a form of back-door draft.
"If our country is in such a dire emergency that we need to conscript manpower, congress has to vote to reinstate the draft," the elder Chiroux told AFP.
"But they won't do that because if congress said we need to bring back the general draft, the war in Iraq would be resolved very quickly," he said.
"Moms and dads, who represent millions and millions of voters, would say: wait a minute -- you want to draft my kid? Iraq's got to stop."
He is using the GI benefits, but does not want to honor his commitment in getting those benefits. Also note that he only served in Afghanistan for one week:
“Matthis Chiroux is a member of the Army Individual Ready Reserve, he was on active duty for about five years before being discharged July 2007, he then moved to Brooklyn. He started college at Brooklyn College in January.
Matthis Chiroux “grew up all over the south” but from about 10 years old until he joined the military he lived in Auburn Alabama. Military recruiters where in contact with Matthis as early as eleventh grade. Matthis’ reasoning behind enlisting into the Army is very similar to almost all young people, opportunity. Matthis’ turbulent relationship with his family caused him to leave home at a very early age, almost immediately after he graduated from high school. Matthis’ decision to leave home at that early of an age severely limited his options, as time passed and his option began to dwindle even further he enlisted into the army in mid June about one and a half months after he graduated high school.
Matthis’ Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) was 46 Quebec, which is Public Affairs Specialist/Writer. His duties included planning executing and producing news stories. Primarily print stories and photographs for use on the web or in print publications.
Matthis served in Japan on the island of Okinawa, after Japan he served two years in Heidelberg Germany while there he served as a strategic communicator for the U.S Army Europe Headquarters, a major command Headquarters, and while there he traveled extensively throughout Europe, he also served in Afghanistan, for about a week. Matthis went there to cover a story about a unit of American soldiers who were part of a training unit designed to help soldier perpare for combat at training bases specifically Hoensfeld Germany and they were deployed under the direct command of Romanian battalion.
Matthis also served on the island of Palawan in the Philippines, in support of a bilateral military exercise conducted between the United States Military and the Filipino Military.
Matthis said throughout the whole experience the only thing that kept him going was the thought that three or four or five years from now he would be in college and that would make it worthwhile. In February of 2008 Matthis received orders from the Army requiring him to report back to active duty on June 15th for a yearlong deployment in support of operation Iraqi Freedom.”
http://veterantestimonies.blogspot.com/2008/05/matthis-chiroux.html
The “benefits” are one and the same of your initial period of service. Whether you enlist for 2, 4, or 6 years you commit to a total of eight years of service when you enlist. It’s in the contract, most people just fail to read it.
Put his @$$ in Leavenworth.
Agreed.
When I was in USMC boot camp in 1974 a recruit at the rifle range tried to send an M16 round home in the mail. Our recruit battalion had an early morning formation specifically to give him a send off to Leavenworth for that infraction.
This deserter deserves at least that treatment.
This attitude is the functional equivalent of "I've got mine, to hell with America."
“IRR is nothing like the “reserves”. There are no monthly meetings, no uniforms, no pay. There is no compensation for the loss of your civilian job if called back up. It is essentially a draft list of veterans that have fulfilled the active duty requirements.”
Wrong.
Once you sign the contract, you have an 8 year MINIMUM OBLIGATION.
So if Joe Snuffy signs up and serves 2 years, he has a 6 year IRR obligation.
If he signs up for 4 years he has a 4 year IRR obligation.
IF he serves 8 years on active duty he has no obligation.
If he joins the Reserves or National Guard for the remainder of the term of his contract he will have no IRR obligation unless his MOS is in critical need such as translators or other specialized MOS’s that the military doesn’t have the time needed to train new people for a here and now mission.
I say shoot the guy for cowardice.
What part of "Individual" "Ready" or "Reserve" don't you understand?
And by the way, how much of that enlistment/re-enlistment bonus did you turn back, seeing as this so-called 'occupation' is such a problem for you?
Should be a choice of .223, .308, .45, 9mm, except he's not worth even the 15 cents the (handloaded) round would cost.
Throw in some prison time as well. Give him a background that no decent employer would want to touch.
I say shoot the guy for cowardice.
Have you ever thought what you call "cowardice" is simply someone that's feed up with playing "nation builder". Defending your country is one thing. Playing cop or carpenter is something altogether different. Why should someone that has fulfilled thier active duty requirements be subjected to recall for anything other than a national emergency or a real declaration of war?
He volunteered, he knew the terms. He quits; he suffers the consequences.
End of Story.
Since my hitch in the Army ended in 1969, I’m a little out of touch with how things are today. I have a question for someone to answer. When did the obligation become eight years? Mine was six years - three active regular Army, three inactive reserve (no meetings or drills) and the end of the six years I received my honorable discharge in the mail and all ties were broken, barring the outbreak of a world war or something.
Although voluntary military service in peace time is an admirable and necessary thing, I can’t imagine signing up for an eight year obligation unless you already had decided that a military career was what you wanted. After all, eight years is nearly halfway to retirement. I know I’d be more than a little PO’d if I kept getting jerked in and out of civilian life at the whim of somebody at the Pentagon, regardless of what I’d signed up for. Would I honor my commitment? Of course, just as I did forty years ago. But I doubt if there’d be much rah-rah spirit in me.
As this thing has dragged on, my thinking has begun to change. If this is a real war, get the damned thing done and keep the politicians out of it. Then bring these people home to complete their obligation where we have a real national emergency - on our southern border.
He did five years active and was relieved from active duty last year. He still has two more years of his eight year obligation to fulfil. He is in the Individual Ready Reserve and has been recalled. It is unfortunate, but he is required to report. He will be prosecuted and may serve a few years in prison. He knows this very well and hopes that the bad publicity of the case will help him. It won’t work.
Now it didnt say his father worked for NASA, my guess his father has a still in huntsville, produces "rocket fuel" lol
they do have "combat camera" they actually go out on mission with the door kickers. This type of person is usually always in the Jag or PAO, liberal coward that is. BUt I do know some liberal cameramen that man'd up and did an outstanding job. that being said photojournalist shouldnt be a crital job skill.
This man was not discharged, he was put in IRR which is esentially inactive reserve status and subject to recall up to the end of his eight year obligation.
This is nothing new, it has been this way for decades. Not taking either side but that’s the way it is and has been.
Court Martial... Leavenworth... Dishonorable Discharge. In that order. Problem solved.
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