Even with all the wars the US is presently involved in and all the shady activity that goes with that, it’s fairly unusual for the military to get around to charging personnel with war crimes. When they do, however, military commanders try to emphasize the importance, both to show the military doesn’t let everyone get away with everything, and to deter personnel from ignoring the chain of command.
On Friday, however, President Trump knocked out three of those war crimes cases with full pardons. The White House statement said they wanted to give US soldiers the “confidence to fight.”
Maj. Matthew Golsteyn was being held on charges of murdering an Afghan detainee. He repeatedly admitted to doing so. Trump had repeatedly expressed support for Golsteyn and for the killing.
Golsteyn was told by an Afghan tribal elder that the murder victim, Rasoul, was Taliban, and detained him on that basis. The military required Rasoul’s release after the maximum time of detention without charges, so Golsteyn let him go, and ambushed and murdered him outside the base. Golsteyn has recently tried to rebrand this as a legal ambushing, arguing that he suspected Rasoul was “trying to rejoin the Taliban” since he was released.
Lt. Clint Lorance was convicted of two murder charges for ordering troops to murder Afghans on motorcycles. He had been serving 19 years in prison. The killing was detailed in the Starz documentary “Leavenworth,” where platoon members discussed the killings.
SEAL Edward Gallagher was facing a murder charge for posing for a photo with a corpse, in addition to already being found guilty of posing for the photo in general. Trump not only pardoned Gallagher, but restored his rank to Chief Petty Officer.
The Pentagon’s commanders are deeply concerned about these moves, and had been trying to talk Trump out of them. They argue that military discipline will suffer if soldiers believe they can ignore military rules on the assumption of a pardon.
Trump’s position is built around showing that he is so pro-military that he can excuse war crimes, including murder, on the basis that the soldiers are supposed to be killing the enemy anyhow, and it’s unfair to judge just how they kill.
Evil. Pure Evil.
And who they kill.
So when the enemy executes our POW’s will they be pardoned?
If they’re on Corporal Bonespurs’ Buddy List, they will be.
“His punishment included a reduction in rank from chief petty officer to 1st class petty officer, which would have cost him about $200,000 in retirement funds. His family and defense team were fighting to have his rank restored.”
The Don was pissed Gallagher might lose some of the tax payer donations to his retirement fund. The Don does have his priorities in order.
oh SNAP! finally somebody who reads between the lines
Who is above the law? https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e696f81fcb751c4b60e0d7f9387e5db6092841e2136d631c25219287b90abe80.jpg
The bombs will stop dropping when the other side learn to fight back properly
How’s that? By buying bombs of their own from the Amrican military-industrial complex? SwampLanders and Trumpatistas would just LOVE that, wouldn’t they?
I was thinking more along the lines of them learning to shoot down the bombers.
Ahhh. i’m sure our M-IC can accomodate them on that, as well. Highest bidder, and all that… .
We have to ourselves, individually become what we want this place to be. We must refrain from joining military forces,teach our kids to eschew mass maniac organized violence,and its bookend the flag… https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/06ffbad8c3f5f59e3a938bdff427532366ac4618e8318c788bce55b20c7f1664.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/14676198c02f365792e3f6d103d24418c55badd70d83bfb062c683349fd988c5.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a6443674858b542e0c3cbcbe63e81549320515bef49a4ecdfd9ad0cc49214118.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/50e368c45a3fc3c1637419e74a256af1ac0ec97c01253b3b1ef45078510da89d.gif
Apparently the author is ignorant about the fact that the US, the biggest warmonger and war criminal on the planet…… is not a signatory to the International Criminal Court ( ICC )
At present 124 nations have ratified the Rome Statute and are members of the ICC Assembly of States Parties.
While the US played a central role in the establishment of the Rome Statute that created the ICC, the US is not a State Party.
And therefore the US and it`s soldiers around the world can`t be tried for it`s many war crimes at the International Criminal Court…and continues to wreak havoc on earth…. in the name of ” freedom & democracy”.
Thats the biggest crime against humanity.
Partially correct.
The ICC’s jurisdiction extends to crimes in states that are party to the Rome Statute, even if the actors come from countries that aren’t.
That’s one reason the government of Israel, which signed the Rome Statute but then never ratified it, threw a shit fit when Palestine joined the Rome Statute — IDF actions in Gaza and the West Bank now fall under ICC jurisdiction.
As do US military actions in Afghanistan, chemical attacks launched on civilians across the US-Mexico border, etc.
True. In addition, the lack of US participation is actually a fact providing evidence to support prosecution in international fora. One of the things that must be proven is that the US would not itself pursue the matter in its own ways. and the in-your-face refusal to participate in the institutions of international justice is some evidence of that.
i’d say it’s far more than just “some evidence of that.”
Thank You for that clarification. So, like i asked above: How does one go about making an ICC prosecution happen?
“When fascism comes to America …”
It came. It did those wars. Now don’t just blame the lowest ranking guys who can be found, who were sent to commit the crimes.
Rubbish. A War Crime is a War Crime. Just like Torture is Torture. And if our guys can do it and get away with it, then why can’t the other guys? i say that as a retired US Army Master Sergeant, if that adds any relevance to the comment.
Well, that’s 3 votes he can count on….
So if it’s ok to kill innocent civilians in their own countries – don’t be surprised when it happens inside Trumpmerica.
Bingo.
Maybe they can be indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court at the Hague? Its remit is for suspects whose own countries can’t or won’t prosecute. This is a clear case of a country not punishing war criminals for political reasons. I think it matches the criteria.
Certainly sounds like it. How does one go about making that happen?
Wiki says someone has to refer the case to Office of the Prosecutor of the court. That referral can be made by any country that has signed up to the treaty, or the UN security council, or the Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC. I’ve no idea of how the pre-trial chamber of the court works in practice.
So that probably means that a government has to file the charges; and not individual or groups of citizens, i guess. Hmmm. Interesting.
The blind and blatant worship of authority figures like cops and soldiers has always been a cornerstone of fascism. The message Trump is sending by absolving these state sanctioned butchers is simple; “We are above the law. We kill who we want. Criminal and downright immoral behavior becomes honorable when committed by our hands.” Once again, Trump is not changing the state, but revealing the ends it inevitably leads to. All fascism begins with the state and every state ends up resulting in fascism. We fight this evil by dissolving the architecture of authoritarianism in a vat of anarchist revolution. Dissolve the prison system. Dissolve the standing army. Dissolve the state.
Where are the prosecutions of Dubya and Cheney, Rumsfeld and Bolton and Wolfowitz? They not only knew of abuses, they reviewed the transcripts of torture. The men who wrote the defensive memos for them to do that are now a Federal Judge and a Prof at a “liberal” law school.
So where are the war crimes prosecutions? Some low ranking soldier sent to do the crime for them? Fine, issue pardons. Those prosecutions were of the wrong people anyway. Don’t let those prosecutions pretend to address the crimes, and so cover up the lack of prosecution of the real criminals.
Excellent points all; but prosecuting those War Criminals ain’t gonna happen anytime soon. Not unless and until ~ like the Germans and Japanese after WWII ~ the US is defeated and destroyed in a War. And then it will be too late, and who would care?
I’m trying to think of another way than major US defeat followed by prosecution done by our victorious enemy. That is really far too late. It is also a cure every bit as bad as the disease, given the available enemies.
Our current politics has nobody who would do it. Even our reformers wouldn’t attack that apple cart.
Perhaps our allies could turn on us. The EU might do a Pinochet, if we really offend them in some other ways. Not much chance, really.
This is pretty hopeless.
The whole thing, Mark, goes back to how this GWOT got started in the first place: back to 9/11.
Let me ask You some bullet-to-the-bone questions:
Do You think the American government told the truth about the Tonkin Incident that got us into Viet Nam in 1964?
Do You think that government told the truth about Kuwait’s “Incubator Babies,” that got us into Kuwait, Iraq, and the whole ME via DESERT STORM back in 1991?
Do You think SwampLand told the truth about Saddam’s WMDs, that got us into the 2d Gulf War in 2003?
Given the history of the Lies this government has told in order to get us into another War, do You think the American government told the truth about 9/11, that got us into the GWOT, PATRIOT Act, mass warrantless surveillence, etc, in 2001?
And no; that does not make me a “9/11 Truther.” That makes me a student of history and what i like to call a “9/11 Skeptic.”
No, no, and no, and there is good solid evidence now for every one of those no’s.
On 9/11 I have not seen anything I consider to be good solid evidence. It could well exist, but so far remain effectively secret. I do have suspicions. However, suspicion is not fact, and for the other no’s, we now have solid fact.
Skeptic? That’s fair. Alert for any evidence, for sure.
Evidence re: 9/11? Check this out: http://www.consensus911.org/what-is-best-evidence/
Thanks for the cite. “Best evidence” has not yet reached the level of good solid evidence.
I don’t believe the Warren Report either, which I read in its entire long book bound published form. However, on that one, I still don’t actually know what happened. I just have suspicions. Same with this.
What about the 9/11 Commission Report? Have You read that in its entirety? Or the FEMA and NIST Reports on the collapses of WTC-1, -2, and -7?
Did they reach Your standard of “good, solid evidence”? If so, where?
And if they did, Your standard is in serious need of serious re-evaluation and revision.
Or was Popular Mechanics’ froth piece and the endorsement of the media, academia, Hollywood, and the military-industrial complex/surveillance-secrecy-security-safety panopticon good enough for You?
NOBODY actually, really knows what really actually happened on 11/22 or 9/11.
The best way to learn about the latter would be to send Cheney, Bush the Lesser, Rumsfeld, Rice, Mueller, Gates, and the rest of that scum to Guantanamo for a little “enhanced interrogation” of their own. On live. global i-net streaming.
blow-back is gonna be a bitch for america for decades
Trump can and will, go to Hell.
These Pardons will help the recruiters select cream of the crop applicants for Wars ahead.
Nailed it.