Upset with milbloggers’ reaction to Haditha

Brogonzo is upset with milbloggers reaction to Haditha thus far.

In general, the reaction to the allegations of Marines slaughtering Iraqi civilians in Haditha has been reprehensible, and I’m uncomfortable with the idea of being associated with a group of people who in many cases are busying themselves with shrugging the incident off, making excuses for the Marines involved, or claiming that those killed were probably insurgents who had it coming anyway.

My response: we’re all entitled to our opinions, but only a military court is entitled to determine what crimes, if any, have been committed, render verdicts and determine punishment. It’s healthy to debate morality, discuss use of appropriate and inappropriate force, and so on. However, much of the current discussion about Haditha, and Iraq, is tainted by people who would enjoy being watching the country fall into civil war just so they can say “I told you so.”

Murdering unarmed civilians is certainly a morally bankrupt act that should be punished. We have mechanisms in place for that, and the gears are turning. Criticizing a possible atrocity on one side of a conflict without giving equal attention to a much higher volume of atrocities on the other side of the conflict is also morally bankrupt.

If you doubt that there is a bias, do a Google search for insurgents should be held accountable. Top results:

Any hint of bias there? It’s completely evident from the above that the anti-war public demands the same level of accountability for war crimes from all sides in this conflict, right? Self-righteous suicide because of an inability to scale events and put them in context seems to be the modus operandi of certain segments of the population – making those segments as dangerous to the chances of seeing any long-term success in Iraq as the insurgents themselves.
Murder is wrong. Period.

The slanted, biased coverage of Haditha is also wrong, and possibly far more damaging to the overall chances of long-term success in Iraq. When those who are willing to write lengthy op-ed pieces condemning the entire military justice system and the whole chain of command from the President on down demonstrate equal willingness to devote their ire, scorn, ridicule and castigation to proven and alleged war crimes by the insurgency, I will rest easier.
We should talk about Haditha. We should constantly re-examine our own morality as a society. We should talk about the rule of law. We should talk about rules of engagement. We should hold ourselves to a higher standard, and we do. That’s what makes us who we are – it is what distinguishes us from most other societies on the face of the earth. In our society, every citizen has human rights inlcuding a day in court when accused of a crime. That includes Marines who risked their lives serving in Haditha. If there was a cover-up, that should be rooted out and those guilty should be punished severely. But we should let the system work.
That’s not what I see and hear happening. I hear a lot of speculation. Plenty of inneundo. A heap of accusations. Calls for resignations. None of which are appropriate until the facts have all been properly assembled and disseminated.
As a milblogger, I feel it is my duty to let the military justice system do its job before I judge this case from an individual perspective. Meanwhile, I plan to quietly pay attention during my ethics class.