(Politics?) Watada Re-charged

[paularoid]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6436965,00.html

http://static.crooksandliars.com/2007/02/watada1.jpg

The Army refiled charges Friday against a lieutenant who refused to serve in Iraq, about two weeks after his first court-martial was declared a mistrial.

First Lt. Ehren Watada, 28, who refused to deploy with his unit last June, faces the same allegations he initially faced - missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officer - and could be sentenced to a dishonorable discharge and six years in prison if convicted. The Army has not set a date for a second court-martial.

“We're back to square one,'' Fort Lewis spokeswoman Leslie Kaye said.

Watada's first trial began early this month but ended abruptly when the judge, Lt. Col. John Head, said he did not believe the soldier fully understood a pretrial agreement he signed admitting elements of the charges. As part of that agreement, the Army dropped two of the charges against him, lowering his potential sentence to four years.

Watada's attorney, Eric Seitz, said he would seek to have the charges dismissed as a violation of the Constitution's protection against double jeopardy.

“When it's not going well for you, you can't just call a mistrial and start over again,'' Seitz said. “No matter how much lip service they give to wanting to protect my client's rights, that just doesn't exist in the military courts.''

Fort Lewis spokesman Joseph Piek said double jeopardy did not apply in this case because the first trial was never completed.

[DaveM]

My understanding is that Lt. Watada's defense includes a challenge of the legality of the Iraq war--after all, everyone in the military has the right and duty to disobey an illegal order. Not sure how well that will play in front of a military court, but I hope he succeeds. Surely those who lead out military must be aware by now of what fools they've been made of by our beloved Executive Branch.

I continue to be astonished at how many people persist in claiming that "victory" is possible in the Iraq war (and that if we don't "win", "the terrorists" will be marching down Broadway). What exactly would a "victory" constitute? And how would we know when it had been achieved?

When the utterly disastrous occupation of Iraq can no longer be seen for anything other than the tactical and strategic folly that it was and is, expect no lessons from the right wing. They will simply blame the "loss" on the dreaded "liberals" (much as many now say about the Vietnam War), and the parade of radio talk history via logorrhea will march on.

[Darlene]

I would like to commend Lt. Watada's courage to make a stand on an unjust war.
I have a yellow ribbon tied to my porch post. It is faded, frayed and falling apart because I don't want to take it down until all of our soldiers are home!
I am really tired of our people being killed and the money being spent that could do so much to help others at home and abroad.

Peace, Darlene