Posted on 01/18/2007 8:25:13 AM PST by RDTF
The nation's first Army officer to refuse deployment to Iraq urged the public in a statement Wednesday to "stop the war so that the death and sacrifices of American soldiers will not be in vain" after a major legal setback in his court-martial proceedings.
First Lt. Ehren Watada, who is based at Ft. Lewis near Seattle, faces six years in prison for failing to deploy to Iraq last year with his Stryker brigade and for criticizing President Bush and the war in statements to the media and at a peace convention.
The 28-year-old Honolulu native has argued that the war is illegal because Bush did not obtain proper authorization for it, and that Army rules and the Nuremberg principles adopted after World War II required Watada to disobey orders to participate.
On Tuesday, however, Lt. Col. John M. Head, the military judge in the case, rejected Watada's request to debate the legality of the war at his court-martial next month. Although Watada's attorney, Eric Seitz, had sought to open the question so the soldier could explain why he defied his deployment orders, Head ruled that the war's legality was a political question irrelevant to the charges at hand.
Head also rejected motions to dismiss charges of "conduct unbecoming an officer" related to Watada's criticism of Bush and the war.
Seitz had argued that the 1st Amendment protected Watada's remarks. But Head disagreed in his written decision, saying that courts have ruled that soldiers do not enjoy the same degree of free-speech protections as civilians.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Can I volunteer for the firing squad?
Another loud mouth who thought being in the military would be all about free tuition and cheap airfare to Europe. I guess he prefers that we civilians have to fight Al Qaeda here on our streets than that his precious self that volunteered to be our nation's muscle might have to fight them over there in Iraq. Good riddance. You're disgrace. Now you can spend the rest of your unemployed, shameful life in a ditch in Crawford Texas with Cindy Sh-thead.
If the guy is a 1LT, he must have joined up since the start of the war, I assume. Why would he volunteer, and now refuse deployment? What a scumbag, in any case.
Unless he was a Hudson High grad, or a mil scholarship case, in which case he hould have opted out a long time ago.
Is he too stupid to realize that he isn't helping himself here? I hope they continue to add charges on to his case until he spends the rest of his life breaking rocks in the brig.
Watada Muqtada....Hakuna Matata.......ta ta.....
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
This less-than-a-human-being is a disgrace. He gives a bad name to all who wear the uniform.
Nope, before he gets to spend the type of time you describe with Ali-Shehan, first he's going to get an all expense stint at Leavenworth.
There are some people who join the military because it's a job that allows a person to retire after 30 years. An 18 year old can retire at 48. That's pretty young to be free and still get a retirement check to live on.
When it's time to actually do what they were hired to do, they have a temper tantrum. It was suppose to be an easy ride. They really didn't want to defend the country. They wanted the pay check and the goodies.
This man knew what his job was. He wanted to dance without paying the piper.
LOL. Good one.
A sucker's born every minute and Watada is just another sucker of the leftist, anti-war moonbats in this area. He's a traitor and sissy to boot. I hope he gets max time in military prison to contemplate the legality of his own behavior.
I would guess he is planning to marry rich, run for the senate, and eventually lose a close race for president.
30?
Try 20 - seriously.
Very few people, only the most senior officers and enlisted, are even allowed to make it to 30. The average retirement about 10 years ago was around 23-24 years. Lots of E-5/6s and O-4s are forced to retire at 20 unless they have changed to time in service caps.
It's 20 years. You can retire after 20. My husband will be eligible for retirement at 40, not that he will.
HOWEVER, in the Marine Corps at least (don't want to claim knowledge of other branches, I'm not sure what their policy is), they have an up or out policy. If you do not reach SSgt by 13 years, you will be getting out, I'm not sure what it is for Officers, I can't reach my husband to find out, but they have a rank/time specification as well.
This helps to weed out people (it isn't a perfect system, I know, but a guy this obvious in his idiocy would never make it) like this. You also only have so many times eligible to be passed over for promotion before you would be unable to re-enlist.
unable to re-enlist should be unable to re-enlist or be re-comissioned.
Works for me!
Daddy is a big-time barking moonbat. One has to wonder whether the kid was so spineless, the lunacy finally rubbed off or if he agreed with daddy all along.
Baloney! What does he think that resolution that John F'n Kerry and Hillary voted for was for? Sending them cupcakes! If he thinks it takes a U.N. resolution (absurd)then what does he think Resolution 18 and 19 were for?
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