New U.S. Commander Upset by Comments From Troops in Iraq

RapidCreek

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Wed Jul-16-03 08:49 PM
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New U.S. Commander Upset by Comments From Troops in Iraq

Edited on Thu Jul-17-03 04:24 PM by Skinner

General Unrest
New U.S. Commander Upset by Comments From Troops in Iraq

ABC NEWS
Tuesday Jul. 16, 2003 - The new U.S. war commander today took exception with American soldiers who, angry over extended tours of duty in Iraq, criticized Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in televised interviews on ABCNEWS.

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"None of us that wear this uniform are free to say anything disparaging about the secretary of defense, or the president of the United States," said Gen. John Abizaid, the head of U.S. Central Command.

But several of the wives of soldiers from the 3rd Infantry Division who talked to ABCNEWS said today that their husbands spoke the truth and they wanted those views heard.

"They feel that their mission is completed. They feel that they came, did what they went over there to do. And, I mean, they're done," said Rhonda Vega, whose husband is Sgt. Felipe Vega.

Sgt. Vega, in the interview with ABCNEWS' Jeffrey Kofman, said it was not easy to maintain morale in his platoon when the Army keeps changing the orders. "They turn around and slap you in the face," he said. When asked if that's the way it feels, he said, "Yeah, kicked in the guts, slapped in the face."

Another soldier who was interviewed, Spc. Clinton Deitz, said he had a message for the defense secretary. "If Donald Rumsfeld was here," he said, "I'd ask him for his resignation."

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Officially, a non-commsioned soldier cannot be court-martialed for making such comments. And here is why....

The Limits of Free Speech in the Military:
Can Public Expressions of Discontent by U.S. Troops in Iraq Be Punished?

By DEAN G. FALVY

Thursday, Jun. 19, 2003

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As if the fruitless hunt for weapons of mass destruction and persistent rumors of intelligence manipulation weren't annoying enough, the Pentagon faces a new headache: rumblings of discontent from soldiers in the field.

The putative liberation of Iraq has turned into grinding, dangerous occupation duty - exacting a steady toll in lives and morale. And some disgruntled troops have begun complaining about ambiguous missions and delayed homecomings.

Perhaps the most colorful comment came from Pfc. Matthew C. O'Dell, an infantryman stationed in Iraq. According to The New York Times, O'Dell told a reporter, "You call Donald Rumsfeld and tell him our sorry asses are ready to go home. Tell him to come spend a night in our building."

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On first glance, Private O'Dell might seem to be imperiled by Article 88 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. It prohibits "Contempt Toward Officials," and it's possible that O'Dell's comments could be read as contemptuous toward Rumsfeld.

But a closer look shows that O'Dell's comments fall outside Article 88, which states:

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

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Abizaids assertion that a non-coms verbalized criticism of Rumsfeld is punishable under the UCMJ is nothing more than pure unadulterated bullshit and he goddamn well knows it. It is one more slap in the face to our military, one more lie, and one more attempt by this administration to terrorize Americans into docile servitude.

Odd don't you think, that the "liberal media" failed to nail his ass to the shit house wall after this utterance. I would surmise they never will either. We woudn't want to many dog faces calling a spade a spade, while they're working as security gaurds for Kellog Browne and Root.

I have mailed the major networks and complained about their lack of interest in protecting the legal free speech rights of those non-coms who are risking their lives in Iraq....I would encourage you to do so also.

Rapid Creek