Soldier Charged Could Get Death

[Troubleshooter]

FORT LEWIS, Wash. - A National Guardsman attempted to provide the al Qaida terrorist network with information about U.S. troop strength and tactics, as well as methods for killing Army personnel, the military alleged in charges made public Wednesday. The charges could lead to a death sentence.

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/...tml?ESRC=eb.nl

[wolf]

Treason in a time of war has always been a capital crime, hasn't it?

[Troubleshooter]

Originally posted by wolf
Treason in a time of war has always been a capital crime, hasn't it?

Yep, but we're not at war.

If he is guilty he should fry though.

[wolf]

Funny, sure looks like armed conflict ...

Yes, I understand the technical legal difference regarding the declaration, etc.

[Troubleshooter]

Yeah.

He, if guilty, could have caused the loss of many, many lives.

So, if guilty...*insert drum roll here*

[tw]

The problem here is the credibility of the source. For example, all accuastions of spying in Guantanamo turn out to have been quietly dismissed because evidence was as reliable as proof of WMD. For example, one so called 'spy' must be punished anyway. So they found evidence of adultery - even though he was not married. This to protect the credibility of the prosecution rather than promote justice.

So far, it appears this Fort Lewis man may actually be guilty. Based upon prosecution history, that would be quite surprising. But since so many accused - including the Chinese man working in a nuclear arms research facility - were no where near to guilty, then we must ask same about this case. Credibility in a system where lying to get a conviction is so common - credibilty of the accusers must be taken into account.

[Troubleshooter]

In low-level non-judicial punishment, things worked well while I was in.

That being said, high-profile items like this are an issue because the political angle makes it volatile.

[tw]

Originally posted by Troubleshooter
That being said, high-profile items like this are an issue because the political angle makes it volatile.

You are simply repeating what the Union of Concerned Scientists reported today in a year long study signed by... well read the report from http://www.uscusa.org and summarized in the NY Times. This same problem is widespread throughout the Federal government - a problem that did not exist 4 years ago. Due to this Federal government wide problem - even deeply entrenched in the SEC - then every high profile claim of treason, fraud, or other major crime must be questioned for 'special interest' interference:

from NY Times Scientists Say Administration Distorts Facts More than 60 influential scientists, including 20 Nobel laureates, issued a statement yesterday asserting that the Bush administration had systematically distorted scientific fact in the service of policy goals on the environment, health, biomedical research and nuclear weaponry at home and abroad.

The sweeping accusations were later discussed in a conference call organized by the Union of Concerned Scientists... On Wednesday, the organization also issued a 38-page report detailing its accusations.

The two documents accuse the administration of repeatedly censoring and suppressing reports by its own scientists, stacking advisory committees with unqualified political appointees, disbanding government panels that provide unwanted advice and refusing to seek any independent scientific expertise in some cases.

"Other administrations have, on occasion, engaged in such practices, but not so systemically nor on so wide a front," the statement from the scientists said, adding that they believed the administration had "misrepresented scientific knowledge and misled the public about the implications of its policies."

Honesty and justice has been replaced by political agendas and campaign contributions - on a scale never seen before even by the Nixon administration.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Give him liberty or give him death. People that join the military give up far more than they know.

[Troubleshooter]

Originally posted by xoxoxoBruce
Give him liberty or give him death. People that join the military give up far more than they know.

Except for the occasional, and probably unsolicited, round of ass-golf prisoners actually have it better than members of the military.