Interesting Globe and Mail Article by Terry Weber 8 Feb 06
My Comment:
Does a soldier have a choice about who they are going to fight or not? That's the fundamental question. It doesn't matter what the details of this particular conflict are. Do they have a choice? The traditional answer is no. Details of it being a 'just war' or not don't really play into this I'm afraid. A civilian can have that discussion and so can civilian governments, soldiers can't. As a matter of fact that's the point, the military is directed by civilians, they make decisions about right and wrong for the army. The Americans as a people can 'decide' the war is wrong at the ballot box at the next election. This soldier needs to be sent home to face courts martial. As much as we might sympathise with him over fear of being killed and the collosally stupid waste of life this conflict is. In the end he's a soldier in the army of an ally, unlawfully absent from his unit. Being a soldier is about fighting who you are told to fight, when you are told to fight, where you are told to fight and when necessary giving up your life at the direction of others. If you can't deal with that truth don't volunteer.
