Ercille I. Christmas

America, Stop Eating Your Young
February 9, 2010

No, this is not an article about abortion of babies. This is about “aborting” the livelihoods and freedoms of too many of those we hired to protect and defend us.

Our soldiers, airmen, and Marines are sent out to fight a “War on Terror,” and increasingly, return to be locked up, instead of receiving tangible expressions of gratitude. Although the enemy remains the same, President Obama’s administration was a little too concerned with renaming this struggle against enemies who are dedicated to killing us. The struggle is no longer “War on Terror.” It has been designated “Overseas Contingency Operations.” What new name will be next? Will it be “Domestic Pulverization,” to more aptly describe the war being waged on our troops, in the name of “we the people”?  Do too good a job in killing and/or capturing terrorists, and face persecution?

When did political correctness invade the US Military? World War II surely could not have been fought with this new politically correct version. Probably half of the fighting forces in that war theater would have been incarcerated for being too successful, and Americans – those still alive,  would have all learned to salute “Heil" to Hitler. Will the new Marine slogan be the “few, the defeated,” instead of “the few, the proud”? There are just too many egregious examples of political correctness gone amuck, beginning to surface. Enough!

There is no dispute that those who break the law must be legally punished. That is not negotiable. But in dealing with people’s lives and livelihood, especially in this type of job environment, where a single bullet can bring an end to a career, or life itself, we must give every benefit of the doubt to our defenders. Evidence that could be potentially exonerating, as in the case of ILt Michael Behenna, should always be considered.  

Ironically when the shoe is on the other foot, and it is one of the enemy standing as the accused, then the cry goes out that Americans should not “rush to judgment.” The accused killer could have the weapon in his hand, shouting the usual words of “inspiration,”  as he kills, have made the requisite “farewell” video, and we should not rush to judgment? By that token, forest rangers who stumble upon a scene where a bear has half of the torso of a human being in its massive jaw, should not rush to judgment that the bear is a bear and the mangled human being is prey? No, in the politically correct twilight zone, the bear is a pussy cat strolling through the forest when this human being rushed up and stuffed half of his or her torso in the bear’s mouth! Now I get it. Political correctness is the willing suspension, or suppression, of unassailable evidence. 

 Well, in the real world of terrorist killers, we had better wise up and realize that a significant part of the modas operandi of the enemy being faced down, is to prevaricate – In plain English – to lie. We are willing to take the word of people steeped in a culture of deceit, death and dismemberment of innocents, over the word of a soldier we send out to take a bullet in our stead?  What is the message here? Go out and die (maybe we will throw you a parade), but don’t lay a finger on a terrorist?  In my heart, I don’t want to believe that any American can be that callous, but what am I to infer from the malicious persecution of US troops, by their fellow US citizens, to the delight of the cowardly enemy?

I faithfully wear my ILT Michael Behenna, www.defendmichael.com bracelet and I initiate conversations about this piece of “jewelry,” that I want to no longer wear, because my taking off the bracelet would mean that Ranger Behenna has been granted his freedom.  His freedom will be the only reason to separate the bracelet from my wrist! He should be immediately released and given a medal for ridding the world of a suspected terrorist. There are two e-mails that typify the efforts that I have been led, by my sense of fairness, to undertake what little I can on behalf of ILT Behenna. His case has placed an indelible mark on my heart, as representative of those we persecute. Both e-mails were sent to friends who are also supporters of ILT Behenna.

Folks:

I received a Christmas card from ILT Michael Behenna. I went to the Post Office to collect my mail and saw a Christmas card, and I joyfully thought that it is befitting that Ms. Christmas should be receiving Christmas cards in January! I began to read the card and realized that it was from Ranger Behenna.

My heart began beating fast and my eyes were threatening to tear up. My emotions were a mix of joy hearing from him, feeling that he is hanging in there, anxiety that his hearing had gone well, and hope that he is freed - soon. I am sure that he will not mind my sharing what he wrote:

I am truly thankful to you for sending me the money order and the articles you have written about me. What gives me hope for the future is the thought that there are people like you outside of these walls listening to my story and advocating for my freedom. So I want to thank you for the work that you have done on my behalf again. Thank you and Happy Holidays.

Sincerely,

Michael Behenna

I wish that I could do more. I wish that I could wave a magic wand and he is back home with his family. Instead, I will keep praying that God opens the hearts of his persecutors to end his imprisonment. I will keep praying that he remains emotionally strong and do not give his persecutors the satisfaction of feeling that they broke him.  I also will keep praying that once released that he chooses a profession through which he can leave a mark on this world. God allowed this to happen for a reason.

Please keep the prayers and support up, for Michael and his family, who suffer along with him. Today it is Michael and the others that we know of. Tomorrow, persecution could come closer to home.

On January 22, 2010, I received an update about ILT Behenna’s clemency hearing, where his sentence was reduced by five years. I was steamed and fired off this second  e-mail:

Friends:

This is the first e-mail I opened this morning, and my first reaction was anger and I was going to fire off an angry e-mail blaming the "broken" Military justice system , for the continued incarceration of ILT Michael Behenna!

But I am not. Instead this is a call to arms, metaphorically speaking. This is a war against "political correctness," and we have to win!  I think the thing that sticks in my craw more than anything is the comparison between the way we are persecuting our defenders and coddling terrorist suspects, even at Gitmo. I hope that Michael is getting "culturally appropriate meals," and time out to pray every two minutes! But, this is America....a mixture of blessing and hurting. Blessing will win out!

ILT Behenna can probably take some measure of comfort that he is not Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, who seemed to have inspired the politically correct faction of the Military brass to try to shine their medals with his persecution.  He has been tried from Alaska to Zimbabwe, in terms of time and number of trials!  For four years Lt Col Chessani was pursued through Military Courts. Yet no conviction was secured. Col Chessani could now exhale a giant sigh of relief! No. Our government does not give up that easily when it comes to the persecution of one of its Marines! So Lt. Col Chessani was next hit with an Administrative hearing, something called an ABI.

The President of Thomas More Law Center stated:

"The government's persecution of this loyal Marine officer continues because he refused to throw his men under the bus to appease some anti-war politicians and press, and the Iraqi government.” 

Members of Congress are getting involved, as the persecutions continue, the latest case involving three Navy SEALs.  Congressman Dan Burton wrote:

“...we have created a culture within our armed forces where our military personnel are now more concerned about protecting themselves from legal jeopardy for every action or statement than they are about fighting the enemy. Our troops and these SEALs need to be bold and decisive in combat, not hesitant and over-thinking every action for fear of prosecution.”

I would agree. Couple this “culture” with the rules of engagement, the Karzai 12, for conducting warfare in Afghanistan, and we will soon have more US troops incarcerated than terrorists. Some of the dirty dozen, er Karzai 12, include the following. Foreign troops, of which US troops are part, must be accompanied by the Afghan National Police and/or Military, on searches. US troops are not allowed to take on the enemy if civilians are present. In that country, how does one know who is the civilian? US troops must warn villagers prior to searches. There is nothing like getting a heads up on a search for terrorists, is there? US troops must “trust and verify,” before they shoot at the enemy. That is my take on another rule, which prevents US troops from firing at the enemy unless the enemy is preparing to fire first? That must be working out really well – against US troops.  Sounds to me like both a Catch 22 and a “catch and release,” which means US troops are screwed.

Are we suffering from “terrorism myopia”? If so, let us stop this pretense of fighting a “war.”  If we no longer have the fortitude or will to defend ourselves then the proud and mighty USA should regress to the times of the Barbary Coast pirates, or follow the modern day lead of the UN and Britain, and pay off the enemy.  Apparently, this tactic and the idea of conscripting members of the enemy class in Afghanistan, to form part of the government, are to soon be in the works?

 I could be wrong, but somehow I remember that the last time the Taliban was the government in Afghanistan, sometime in September of 2001, an “incident” occurred. Ah yes. It was September 11, 2001, when 19 men, seemingly created by a Dr. Frankenstein of terror  in Afghanistan, and all members of a certain religion, having made one last trip to the strip joints of their choice, went off and murdered almost 3000 citizens, primarily citizens of the US, and even including members of the religion of the murderers.

If defeatism is going to be the order of the day, tell that to the troops who are maimed for life. Tell that to the almost 5400 troops who have given their lives in this Overseas Contingency Operations, War on bloodsucking cretins who want to kill us all! Tell it to Sgt Eddie Jeffers. Somehow, I don’t think that defeatism is part of the fabric of the soul of the true America, especially the America of the ones who let us “borrow” their kin to serve. Sgt. Eddie Jeffers gave up his life so that we can live.  Put down that television remote, and let us show his family that “hope (no longer) rides alone.”