Bowe Bergdahl Avoids Prison Time

[drbrumley]

Bowe Bergdahl Avoids Prison Time, Will Receive Dishonorable Discharge
#Bergdahl
https://t.co/hFIsMRkPha https://t.co/eGCMHqI7Zu

Sent from my SM-G920V using TOL mobile app

 

[Tambora]

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the soldier who deserted his Afghanistan outpost and was then held captive in brutal conditions for five years, received no prison time but was reduced in rank to private and will be dishonorably discharged from the army, a military judge ruled Friday.

 

[WizardofOz]

Time to write a book, probably

 

[fool]

He washed out of the Coast Guard before entering the Army.
Shouldn't we have one standard for our service people?

In 2006, Bergdahl entered basic training in the United States Coast Guard but was discharged after 26 days for psychological reasons and received an "uncharacterized discharge".[3]

 

[Tambora]

 

[annabenedetti]

President Donald Trump’s scathing criticism of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will not prevent the soldier from receiving a fair sentence for endangering comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan in 2009, a judge ruled Monday.

The judge, Army Col. Jeffery Nance, said the court has not been directly affected by Trump’s remarks. Then-Republican nominee Trump repeatedly called Bergdahl a traitor on the campaign trail and suggested that he be shot or thrown from a plane without a parachute. Trump revived those comments when Bergdahl pleaded guilty on Oct. 16 by saying at a news conference that he thinks people are aware of what he said before.

After walking away from his post, Bergdahl was held by Taliban allies for five years. He pleaded guilty to desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. He faces a maximum of life in prison.

The judge said he would consider Trump’s comments as a mitigating factor in the sentencing. Other mitigating and aggravating factors that he could consider include Bergdahl’s mental health and serious wounds to service members who searched for him.

 

[kmoney]

Bowe Bergdahl Avoids Prison Time, Will Receive Dishonorable Discharge
#Bergdahl
https://t.co/hFIsMRkPha https://t.co/eGCMHqI7Zu

Sent from my SM-G920V using TOL mobile app

Do you like it?

 

[Tambora]

Do you like it?

I think it was too light.
The man was a deserter.
And other men were injured and died that searched for him.
Not to mention his actions led to Obama releasing 5 Taliban criminals in exchange for his release from the enemy that caught him during his desertion.

It's impossible to not sympathize with his ordeal as captive of the enemy.
But he was guilty.

 

[glorydaz]

I think it was too light.
The man was a deserter.
And other men were injured and died that searched for him.
Not to mention his actions led to Obama releasing 5 Taliban criminals in exchange for his release from the enemy that caught him during his desertion.

It's impossible to not sympathize with his ordeal as captive of the enemy.
But he was guilty.

I totally agree. Six men died, and others seriously injured. And five of the worst of the worst were released. That sailor who took pictures of his sub's interior got a year for crying out loud. :nono:

 

[kmoney]

I think it was too light.
The man was a deserter.
And other men were injured and died that searched for him.
Not to mention his actions led to Obama releasing 5 Taliban criminals in exchange for his release from the enemy that caught him during his desertion.

It's impossible to not sympathize with his ordeal as captive of the enemy.
But he was guilty.

I haven't followed this case closely but I tend to agree with this, considering the danger he caused.

 

[Interplanner]

Yesterday on NPR, the attorney for Bergdahl (subconsciously) avoided comment on the outcome by obsessing about Trump's tweets. He thought that Trump's tweets (mostly during the election campaign) was worse than Bergdahl's betrayal!

On balance, the next NPR interview was a co-member of Bergdahl's division, though not involved. His comment was moving: "When you bond in a division, politics are out the window. You don't really think about the country or countries you are fighting for; it is more intimate. You are fighting for each other. To betray another one of your division, in that setting, cannot be forgiven."

 

[annabenedetti]

Ironic that a draft-dodger is calling the court-martial decision by a military judge, "a complete and total disgrace."

The complete and total disgrace is Trump's interference.

The judge had to make a difficult decision, but it was his job to make it.

 

[rexlunae]

He washed out of the Coast Guard before entering the Army.
Shouldn't we have one standard for our service people?

No, not one standard across the board, but it's hard to imagine why the Coast Guard would reject someone for psychological reasons that aren't at least as much of a concern in the Army. I would say that the Army's needs for psychological stability are greater than those of the Coast Guard, generally.

 

[rexlunae]

Remember when conservatives were upset about the (mostly overhyped) claim that Barack Obama had politicized the IRS to target conservative groups (despite the fact that Obama himself wasn't involved, and liberal groups were also targeted, and the IRS admitted the mistake when it came to light and changed policy). Trump's longing to control the FBI and the Justice Department and military justice is exactly what conservatives accused Obama of, except that these organizations have even more power to ruin people's lives. Executive agencies should not be politicized in this way, because it is authoritarian and dangerous to a free society.

If Trump keeps jumping the gun on the justice system, he's going to undermine and destroy quite a number of prosecutions. And it is, all by itself, an impeachable offense, should Congress ever take an interest in the rule of law again.

 

[Tambora]

This was interesting to watch.
6 men from his platoon speak up.

 

[fool]

No, not one standard across the board, but it's hard to imagine why the Coast Guard would reject someone for psychological reasons that aren't at least as much of a concern in the Army. I would say that the Army's needs for psychological stability are greater than those of the Coast Guard, generally.

Looks like we knew he was an odd bird. It's possible his head wasn't right.

 

[fool]

Remember when conservatives were upset about the (mostly overhyped) claim that Barack Obama had politicized the IRS to target conservative groups (despite the fact that Obama himself wasn't involved, and liberal groups were also targeted, and the IRS admitted the mistake when it came to light and changed policy). Trump's longing to control the FBI and the Justice Department and military justice is exactly what conservatives accused Obama of, except that these organizations have even more power to ruin people's lives. Executive agencies should not be politicized in this way, because it is authoritarian and dangerous to a free society.

He's the Chief Executive. He's in charge of the Executive agencies.
He's asking the same questions the American people are asking. Why isn't Hillary in jail?