Op-Ed
Courage to Resist
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Last weekend, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Washington, D.C. to protest the war in Iraq and call to bring our troops home now. Yesterday, a smaller but similarly energetic group gathered at Fort Lewis in the state of Washington. They were certainly there to protest the war, but they were also there for another important purpose: supporting those who refused to fight in Iraq.
The crowd gathered in support of Lt. Ehren Watada. The 28-year-old first enlisted in the U.S. Army immediately after September 11th, inspired by the rhetoric of the Bush administration to become “a defender of freedom.” Lt. Watada excelled in the Army, receiving exemplary reviews from his officers, who described him as having “unlimited potential.”
After serving in Korea for some time, Lt. Watada was reassigned to Fort Lewis to prepare for deployment to Iraq. Hoping to be as prepared as possible, he studied the history of Iraq, as well as the reasons the U.S. went to war there. From his research, he came to the conclusion that the war was based on “manipulated intelligence,” and thus was illegal.
This placed him in a precarious position. Leading soldiers into battle for an illegal war would be reprehensible, but refusing to do so would risk harsh punishment from the U.S. military.
On June 7, Lt. Watada announced that he would refuse to fight in an illegal war.
“It is my conclusion as an officer of the Armed Forces that the war in Iraq is not only morally wrong but a horrible breach of American law. Although I have tried to resign out of protest, I am forced to participate in a war that is manifestly illegal. As the order to take part in an illegal act is ultimately unlawful as well, I must as an officer of honor and integrity refuse that order,” he said.
“The war in Iraq violates our democratic system of checks and balances. It usurps international treaties and conventions that by virtue of the Constitution become American law,” he continued. “The wholesale slaughter and mistreatment of the Iraqi people with only limited accountability is not only a terrible moral injustice, but a contradiction to the Army’s own Law of Land Warfare. My participation would make me party to war crimes.”
Predictably, right-wingers were quick to denounce Lt. Watada as a coward and a traitor. However, it is clear that he is just the opposite. Rather than silencing his conscience to protect himself and his career, he resisted these unjust orders to fight in Iraq. Furthermore, Lt. Watada chose to announce his intention to resist in a public press conference. He knew this would result in exceptionally harsh sanctions from the military, but he risked this in order to give other soldiers the courage to resist the war as well.
For his brave decision, Lt. Watada has been brought before a court martial and currently stands on trial in Fort Lewis. He now faces up to four years in prison not only for his refusal to fight, but also for his public comments against the war, which the military outrageously terms, “Conduct Unbecoming an Officer.”
Lt. Watada is not the first to resist this war, nor will he be the last. Dozens of soldiers have publicly resisted the war thus far. Pablo Parades was sentenced to hard labor for refusing to leave for Iraq. His response to the sentence: “I’d rather do a year in a prison in the military than do six months of dirty work for a war I don’t believe in.” He is only one of many that feel the same way. Ivan Brobeck, Kyle Snyder, Suzanne Swift, Ricky Clousing — each one, and dozens more, have made the brave decision to publicly resist this war.
The military’s attempt to scare these brave soldiers into silence has failed. Instead, it has pushed many of them to become activists against the war. In addition to those who have refused to deploy, many soldiers and veterans have begun to speak out.
Despite the notorious difficulty in doing so, some have received the status of conscientious objector and turned their energy toward the anti-war movement. For example, Aidan Delgado, who was stationed in the infamous Abu Ghraib prison while in Iraq, has toured the country speaking out against the war.
Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), founded in July 2004, functions as a forum for those who have experienced this atrocious war to speak out against it. The organization calls for not only the immediate withdrawal of all troops from Iraq, but also for reparations for the Iraqi people and full benefits for returning soldiers.
In addition, thousands of active-duty soldiers have signed the Appeal for Redress, detailing their opposition to the war to Congress. This is likely a mere fraction of the soldiers who disagree with the war. Almost one year ago, a Zogby poll found that 72 percent of soldiers wanted to be out of Iraq within one year. With increasing violence in the region and public sentiment continuing to shift against the war, it’s likely those numbers are even higher today.
Again and again, those who oppose the war are lambasted for not supporting the troops. Just last week, fellow Sun columnist Billy McMorris ’08 wasted his thousand words on that tired rhetoric, making the offensive and utterly false claim that “it is no secret that Leftists do not just hate war or Bush: they hate our soldiers.”
Despite these false assertions, it is clear that many soldiers want this war to end as quickly as we do. If we truly want to support them, we should recognize their wishes to come home now. It is our duty to label those soldiers who resist the war not as traitors but as heroes.
Well that's all well and nice
Except that Lt. Watada joined the Army in June 2003, and not "immediately after September 11th," as you claim.
See:
http://starbulletin.com/2006/11/20/news/story08.html (see the very last sentence).
You may recall that by June 2003 Bush had already declared his idiotic "Mission Accomplished," but at the same time, this is a far cry from Watada being forced to go to Iraq when he was already in the military for a long time. He signed up so he could go to Iraq and this was well after the US was entrenched there.
Also, look at the timing. He decides this war is wrong right before he is supposed to ship out in 2006. At that point he had been in the Army for 3 years and we all knew well before Jun '06 that the pre-war intelligence was at best faulty and at worst manipulated to favor going to war.
If he wanted to be brave, he should have tried to quit well before his own ass was on the line as a show of support for his fellow soldiers. Instead, he waited until he was close to being in harms way, and that is what makes him a coward.
Oath of Service versus illegal orders
Soldiers take an oath of service requiring them to defend the U.S. Constitution. If they are then given orders to perform illegal acts, like fighting an illegal war, they have to choose whether to disobey their oath or their orders - not an easy choice.
The last time there was an illegal war, half a million American troops deserted [source]. Along the way, the military did its best to quash soldiers' First Amendment rights. Here is a telling quip from the 1968 court martial of Pvt. Ken Stolte Jr. and PFC Daniel Amick; it is an exchange between defense attorney Francis Heisler and their apprehending officer: [testimony]
Facts?
A question, when an article starts out in a fashion which is demonstrably untrue:
"Last weekend, hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Washington, D.C. to protest the war in Iraq and call to bring our troops home now."
Why should one continue reading?
Military Families Voice of Victory
This is more than just one man refusing to deploy. It's a coordinated effort by a 5th column of Leftist to undermine our troops, our war effort, and President Bush-- and Lt. Watada is its willing pawn.
Rebecca Davis, Cofounder of Military Families Voice of Victory (www.mfvov.org), issued the following statement on the announced plans by Army 1st Lt. Ehren Watada to disobey orders to serve in Iraq:
"On behalf of the members of Military Families Voice of Victory, and as a mother of three sons who have served honorably in Iraq and Afghanistan, I am demanding the Army prosecute Lt. Watada to the fullest extent under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
"The refusal by Lt. Watada to obey lawful orders to serve in Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom will surely encourage al Qaeda in Iraq to continue terrorizing the Iraqi people and attacking U.S. and coalition forces, and encourage al Qaeda and allied terrorist forces around the globe to wage war against America and Western civilization.
"Lt. Watada has chosen to ally himself and accept financial aid from Not in Our Name, a front group for the Revolutionary Communist Party. He has also accepted aid from other anti-American organizations that have expressed support and/or given material aid to terrorists in Iraq.
"Lt. Watada is not standing on principle, nor is his stand valiant. He is a coward and a traitor. His actions will only serve to get his fellow soldiers killed so that he can save himself and become famous."
"Illegal" War?
Interesting concept, that. If it is true, why haven't the leaders of the current Congress made that claim? Oh, I forgot, the war was authorized by Congress, and continues to be funded by it. Never mind. Hey, I've got a great idea! Let's all refuse to pay our taxes because we are funding an illegal war and killing all those innocent people. Don't forget to tell our parents who pay for the privileged lives we lead not to pay yheir taxes, too. I'm sure we and they are all willing to go to prison for taking a stand against this ilegal war. Back up your empty rhetoric with action, and perhaps we can take you seriously.