THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, U.S.A.
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume V, Issue # 274, November 12, 2003
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
WHAT THE WEST CASE DEMONSTRATES:
BUREAUCRACTIC RIGIDITY & POOR JUDGEMENT PERMEATE
GOVERNMENT, & EVEN THE MILITARY IS AFFLICTED
& HAS ITS PRIORITIES WRONG
By Nicholas G. Jenkins
Silly me to assume that ends mattered more than means in the United States military. I thought in war, staying
alive was paramount.
Apparently not so in the Army, where Lieutenant Colonel Allen B. West faces an Article 32 hearing, possible court
martial, and up to eight years in prison because he fired
a gun to frighten an Iraqi resister into spilling the beans
about attacks on American forces. Colonel West’s methods saved American lives (including, quite possibly, his
own), but the process-obsessed Army doesn’t appear to care. What insanity.
What happened is this. In August, Iraqi guerrillas attacked members of the colonel's unit in northern Iraq.
American soldiers detained an Iraqi policeman who helped plan the attack and interrogated him (unsuccessfully)
for several hours. Colonel West then took over the questioning and, to put a little fear of Allah into the detainee,
twice dis- charged his nine millimeter handgun. He fired the shots away from the prisoner but evidently they did
the trick, because soon thereafter the Iraqi not only gave up the names of three guerillas involved in the attack,
but revealed details of an impending sniper attack as well. The shooting was forgotten about until Army
investigators got wind of it during a climate-command investigation of the brigade, at which point the 42-year
old African-American was charged with one count of aggravated assault. His choice–leave the Army now and
lose retirement benefits, or potentially face a court martial.
Now I wouldn’t advise wielding a rod during interrogations, especially if the goal is to obtain a confession that will
hold up in an American court. But an Article 32 hearing? A possible court martial? Up to eight years in prison?
Forced retirement? No way.
Fact is, Colonel West got the job done. He obtained the names of three Iraqi guerillas who had already attacked
American forces and learned about a planned sniper attack– all invaluable pieces of information. Knowing all this
undoubtedly saved American lives (and probably some Iraqi lives, too). Last I checked, saving lives of Americans
is what American soldiers are supposed to do.
I’m guessing the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Human Rights Watch, and sundry other peacenik groups
will see it differently, and we’ll be hearing from them soon enough. Their refrain will be some version of the tried and
tested (but still non- sensical) “we’ve-stooped-to-their-level-therefore-the-terrorists-have-won” poppycock. Don’t
buy it.
Terrorists don’t win when we play tough. They win when they kill Americans, plain and simple.
Listen also for something along the lines of “Colonel West’s conduct shocked the conscience.” He may have
offended some Victorian sensibilities, but I don’t find firing two bullets away from someone to be as shocking as
firing them at someone, which is exactly what this Iraqi and his cohorts had designs on doing. Personally, my
conscience would be shocked if I knew American deaths could have been prevented if only the Army’s had
played hardball with an enemy combatant it had in its custody.
Humanrightsniks can be forgiven their ignorance. But the Army has no excuse. At bot- tom, the Army’s position is
that, given the choice between not getting the confession and getting it but by unconventional means, it would
pick the former. But not getting the confession means American soldiers would have needlessly died, which
means that, to the Army, process matters more than American lives. Not exactly a message that will inspire
Army recruits, if you ask me.
Perhaps the judge advocates in Iraq have forgotten because the New York Times does- n’t remind them every
day, but Colonel West and his brethren are at war. Not a war by name, like the war on drugs or the war on
poverty. A real guns-and-bullets, lose-and- we-stick-you-in-a-box-and-fly-you-home war. Their enemies
conspire to kill them, and they do so at the rate of at least one troop a day (the New York Times makes sure we
remember). Our soldiers, in turn, are permitted to shoot and kill their enemies. With this prosecution, the Army is
saying that it is okay for soldiers to kill a would-be Amer- ican killer, but put a little fear in them? See you in court.
Lest you have doubts, sup- pose this incident had occurred in early September, 2001. Suppose instead of an Iraqi
resister, Colonel West interrogated an al-Qa'ida terrorist. And suppose instead of a planned sniper attack, the
interrogation was about a plan to hijack commercial air- planes and fly them into tall buildings and government
offices. Only the most rabid Blame America First-er could argue the ends wouldn’t justify the means in that case.
Conceptually, I don’t see the difference.
Frankly, firing a few shots to make a bird sing doesn’t strike me as a big deal. Colonel West was hardly playing
gulag guard. He didn’t torture or maim the man who would kill him. Heck, he didn’t even take Allah’s name in vain.
I’ve seen worse on NYPD Blue.
Don’t get me wrong! I like gun-free discourse as much as the next guy. But the Army’s job is to win wars, not
worry that a man who planned to kill American troops might have had a momentary lump in his throat. Colonel
West’s situation–like the Guantanamo detainees case before it--shows that the ever-spreading cancer of
process-above-all- else is spreading to the military. For Americans who wants to win wars, that should be of
considerable concern.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
American Government -- The Federal Bureaucracy
The Middle East & the Problem of Iraq
Page Two
Page One
The Problem of Rogue States:
Iraq as a Case History
Islamism & Jihadism -- The Threat of Radical Islam
Page Three
Page Two
Page One
War & Peace in the Real World
Page Two
Page One
Islamist Terrorist Attacks on the U.S.A.
Osama bin Laden & the Islamist Declaration of War
Against the U.S.A. & Western Civilization
Islamist International Terrorism &
U.S. Intelligence Agencies
U.S. National Security Strategy
Nicholas G. Jenkins is the Founder and Managing Editor of of TheFence.Com.
Copyright 2003 SierraTimes.Com
Reprinted with Permission of SierraTimes.Com
Reprinted from SierraTimes.Com
October 31, 2003
SierraTimes.Com
URL:
http://www.SierraTimes.com
Return to Top of Page
Go to the WEBSITE INDEX
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE,
Public Issues & Political Controversies
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE,
Volume V, 2003
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE,
Subject Matter Highlights, Page Two
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE,
Subject Matter Highlights, Page One
Return to POLITICAL EDUCATION Homepage
This is not a commercial website. The sole purpose of the website is to share with interested persons information regarding civics,
civic and social education, political science, government, politics, law, constitutional law and history, public policy, and political
philosophy and history, as well as current and recent political developments, public issues, and political controversies.
POLITICAL EDUCATION, CONSERVATIVE ANALYSIS
POLITICS, SOCIETY, & THE SOVEREIGN STATE
Website of Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr.
Government, Politics, Public Policy, Legal Issues, Constitutional Law, Government & the Economy, Cultural Values, Foreign Affairs,
International Relations, Military Defense & National Security, Geopolitics, Terrorism & Homeland Security, American National Interests,
Political Systems & Processes, Political Institutions, Political Ideologies, & Political Philosophy
INDEX FOR THE ENTIRE WEBSITE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Conservative & Free-Market Analysis of Government, Politics & Public Policy, Covering Political, Legal, Constitutional, Economic,
Cultural, Military, International, Strategic, & Geopolitical Issues
Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity