When you joined the military, you took an oath to defend the Constitution. And that means the whole Constitution, not just the parts you deem worthy of defending. I don’t care whether or not you think some parts of it are broken. You don’t have the right to make the decision to obey only the parts you like. Nobody does. Nobody is above the Constitution. Not Sgt. Vela, not you.
When you volunteer to join the American Armed Forces, you represent America. And that means you have a duty to act like an American. That means here, in another country, or on another freakin planet. If it’s wrong here, it’s wrong there.
In your title of United States Marine, there is a reason that United States comes before the word marine. They are doing something wrong if they are training people to think that anything or anyone is above their country and it’s laws. You serve your country, not your buddies.
@M36:
Unit, Corp, God, Country. I would imagine the Army follows a similar doctrine.
The point is that you cannot be an effective fighting force if you can’t trust the guys watching your back.
So, trusting the guy watching your back means helping him cover up a murder? You can’t trust anyone who murders an unarmed man. I think your concept of trust is a bit skewed.
@M36:
Better to be tried by 12 than carried by 6.
And if this situation had happened in America, things would be different because the man probably would not be going back home to tell the local terrorist mullah where our location was.
Bullsht. If they were so worried about local terrorists being led back to their hideout then why did they let the son go? Why didn’t they kill him, too? They knew what they did was wrong. Legally. Morally. Wrong. That’s why they planted the weapon on him. The ONE fcking thing that makes us better than the terrorists is that we can stand up and say that we don’t murder innocent people. If we can’t say that then we don’t belong there because we are no better than they are. And that’s a disgrace to this country and everything it stands for.
I know that situation is royally f*cked up. And I don’t want to see anyone die, especially another American. But if you get faced with the choice of dying for your country or murdering an innocent person then you need to choose dying for your country without a second thought because that’s why you are there. The innocent are what you are fighting to protect. That’s your job and it’s the price you pay for the respect you get from the American people and the reason you’re called heroes.
Sgt. Vela wasn’t a hero, he was an executioner. It made me sick to think that he had the balls to ask for mercy from the court and the man’s family when he had no mercy for the man he killed. He deserved a lot worse than he got.