Lt. Watada in an Embarrassment
I don’t think I have ever read anything so full of crap as Lt. Ehren Watada’s op-ed in the Honolulu Advertiser. Sometimes when someone opens their mouths you know from the depths of your being that the person is full of it. Lt. Watada is obviously seeking an even greater audience as he tells of why he made the decision to disobey orders sending him to Iraq. I must apologize to my readers, it is not often that I get angry, but this op-ed really got my goat.
My name is Ehren Watada. I am a U.S. Army commissioned officer. Currently, I am awaiting charges for refusal to participate in the illegal war and occupation in Iraq.
I was born and raised in Hawai’i. As a child, my family instilled in me a moral sense of right, wrong and giving of one’s self. As a young man, I worked my way through college, appreciating the value of earning my own education. I haven’t always lived a perfect life, but I have tried to live it to the best of my ability.
Get over yourself already. I worked my way through college too. Big deal. Except I made it through college with a wife and four kids. Others have had to face even more challenges to make it through college. It time to grow up laddie.
When I decided to be military officer, I chose to lead by example and put the needs of others before myself. Joining the Army is a choice I will never regret: My decision to reject unlawful and immoral orders in spite of the danger, has taught me the true meaning of sacrifice. I hope that my example shows other soldiers that they, too, have the freedom and the duty to choose right over wrong. (snip) (emphasis added by TRS)
You have got to be kidding me, ‘danger,’ ‘sacrifice.’ You want to know real danger? It is what these men and women face in Iraq and Afghanistan on a daily basis. You dod not face danger, not real danger. You want to know real sacrifice? Look at the men who have left their wives and children at home to fight a war when we were attacked on 9/11. That is sacrifice. How about the men who are injured in battle and struggle to remain with their comrades in arms still fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan? That is sacrifice. How about the soldiers who have lost limbs, or their sight and struggle every day just to keep going? That is sacrifice. How about the wife at home who takes care of her wounded soldier every day because of her love for him? That is sacrifice. What Watada is facing for refusing to go to Iraq is not danger or sacrifice, its justice.
My mind and my moral compass were in turmoil. For me, the turning point came in January 2006. It was not the startling revelations of U.S. Rep. Jack Murtha that swayed me. Nor was it the countless articles written by veterans, former officials, nongovernment agencies and journalists exposing the criminality of the war. Instead, I as a leader could no longer stand the pain and suffering of so many soldiers, families, and Iraqis on the basis of a lie.
I wanted to be there for my fellow troops. But the best way is not to add to the death and destruction. It is to help oppose this unlawful war and end it so that all soldiers can come home.
What a load of b/s. Watada’s hero, John Murtha, could have written the op-ed it is so full of dishonest, unpatriotic nonsense. For every article written by those saying it was wrong for us to go to war, I can find one saying we should. Most of the former generals say we should have gone into Iraq. On Watada’s side—six.
Never in my life did I ever imagine I would have to disobey my president. But I have come to the conclusion that participation in this war is not only immoral but a breach of American and international law. Article VI of the U.S. Constitution makes all international treaties the law of the land. Therefore, the invasion and the continued fight against an indigenous insurgency are unlawful because they violate Article 2 of the U.N. Charter, U.N. General Assembly Resolution 3314, and the Nuremburg Tribunal Charter prohibiting wars of aggression.
You have got to get the facts right. Most of the insurgents are not indigenous, unless the military is lying too. The only way for the War in Iraq to be in violation of U.N. General Assembly Resolution 3314 and/or Article 2 of the U.N. Charter is if the war itself was a war of aggression. This argument is wrong on so many fronts. First, since this war was a continuation of the 1991 Gulf War because of Saddam Hussein’s violation of armistice, it is not a war of aggression. Second, Iraq had 14 UN resolutions in 12 years. He violated them all. Third, he continually shot at US and British warplanes which were enforcing the no-fly zones in northern and southern Iraq. I could go on.
The Congressional Authorization of Force against Iraq has no bearing because its basic premises are untrue. Furthermore, there is vast evidence of numerous violations of international conventions by occupation forces and occupier-trained forces. Though I may never be punished for these crimes, I must as an officer of honor and integrity refuse to take part in them. (emphasis added by TRS)
So now our soldiers decide whether pre-war intelligence is correct and which wars are legitimate. If Watada had been around when Pearl Harbor was attacked, there might have been two no votes declaring war on Japan.
But in the end, Lt. Watada says he is in the right because of ‘evidence of numerous violations of international conventions by occupation forces.’ I think he is safe from any prosecution by the UN. I am truly embarrassed to call this guy a soldier. Just thinking that some day Watada will call himself a veteran makes me feel dirty. This guy is an embarrassment and a coward. He makes me sick.
Hat tip: BlackFive
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