Posted on Nov 3, 2017
The Bergdahl Sentencing and the Precedent it Sets
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The US Army Values are Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity and Personal Courage.
Former Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl apparently forgot these when, on June 30, 2009, he deserted his unit in Afghanistan, where he wanted to, in his words, “make the world a better place.” Former SGT Bergdahl also forgot that he was wearing the uniform of the United States Army, and that armies fight wars. He signed up. No one forced him into service, and no one forced him to continue service if at any point he decided he had had enough.
In the Army there are legitimate avenues of redress of grievances, and now more than ever before. Your chain of command, the Chaplain, a JAG (Judge Advocate General) officer, or even the highest commander above where you think your problem lies. SGT Bergdahl had whipped himself into an almost psychotic state of isolation, from his unit, from his battle-buddies and even from himself. In the end, the enemy seemed more desirable than the mess he had made in his foxhole.
The sentencing of SGT (now PV-1) Bergdahl is now complete. Instead of a 14 year sentence, sought by the prosecution, a sentence of time served, a reduction in rank, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge will have to do.
Although Bergdahl had plead guilty to desertion and misconduct before the enemy, the circumstances under which SGT Bergdahl was released, the trade of five Taliban leaders notwithstanding, has its own implications of treason. Some have said that Bergdahl has suffered enough, including his defense team. Some say he is not fit to live, let alone wear the uniform. Several witnesses have testified about their war injuries and losses they claim happened because of Bergdahl’s desertion. There were rumors but no evidence that SGT Bergdahl had given the enemy critical information about the unit, its operations and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). This would allow the enemy to anticipate the unit’s movements and tendencies, potentially deadly information. Some say, while searching for SGT Bergdahl, they were hit and men died. One man, a former Navy SEAL, claimed tearfully that his service dog was killed on one such mission, and others suffered crippling and career ending injuries. All of this was supposedly taken into consideration before the sentence was handed down by the military judge, Col. Jeffery Nance.
In my opinion, all this testimony is over-engineering. It’s all good, but shouldn’t be necessary to complete the project. Bergdahl deserted in a time of war. How do you maintain good order and discipline if you allow folks to just walk away? There is no claim of insanity. There is no plea bargain. There is no excuse. The punishment for desertion can be death.The reason for this goes back to the beginning of human conflict. If you run in the face of the enemy, you have abdicated your responsibility as a member of the group to help keep the group safe.
In our own Revolutionary War and subsequent conflicts, such as the Civil War, it wasn’t so much power and punch that won the day as it was which side would run first. Name a war or conflict, and what wins the day more times than not is the will to win or survive. Fight or flight. This is why the American Army is so effective; we are trained that in war the mission comes first. We are trained to never leave a soldier behind. We are trained to be good teammates. We are trained to care for each other, help each other and protect each other. And in the foxhole, when the bullets are flying, it’s about you and your battle-buddy, fighting for your lives.The bigger picture is that you are defending the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, part of the oath of enlistment that Bergdahl breached. But if you allow soldiers to run and then suffer inadequate consequences, what are you telling everyone else who swore that same oath? What then does it mean? In our politically correct, social media, “If it feels good, do it” society, oaths and promises seem blasé and passé. In fact, they are our lifeblood. If we let one instance of obvious and blatant desertion slip through the cracks, what then do we do with the next one, or the next? Kneeling for the national anthem and the absence of even one American flag on the opening night of a national political convention are not simply warning signs, they are signs of the apocalypse that feed the idea that Bergdahl did nothing wrong. That he is innocent of desertion because he was oppressed and that somehow his actions were free speech. It’s not about any of that. It’s about loyalty. The number one most important Army value, and value in life. The acronym constructed out of the Army Values is LDRSHIP (Leadership). The Army aspires to train every soldier to be a leader. In the American Army, even E-Private Zero, Snuffy Smith is expected to carry out the mission if all the leaders above him are incapacitated, in the spirit of Audie Murphy. Murphy, the highly decorated farm boy turned hero from WWII who was battlefield promoted from sergeant to second lieutenant and saved many lives with his heroism, over, and over again, all at 5’4” and 112 pounds, carried on with the mission, time and again. We owe it to the memory of all those who gave their lives in defense of this great nation. We owe it to those who were injured and may have died while searching for Bowe Bergdahl, and we owe it to the future of this nation that Bowe Bergdahl’s punishment fit the crime. But the punishment in this case has not fit the crime in any way, shape or form. The echo from this proceeding will carry far and wide, that the perceived suffering of one man, a deserter, held more weight than the entire history of the military of the greatest nation on earth.
Former Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl apparently forgot these when, on June 30, 2009, he deserted his unit in Afghanistan, where he wanted to, in his words, “make the world a better place.” Former SGT Bergdahl also forgot that he was wearing the uniform of the United States Army, and that armies fight wars. He signed up. No one forced him into service, and no one forced him to continue service if at any point he decided he had had enough.
In the Army there are legitimate avenues of redress of grievances, and now more than ever before. Your chain of command, the Chaplain, a JAG (Judge Advocate General) officer, or even the highest commander above where you think your problem lies. SGT Bergdahl had whipped himself into an almost psychotic state of isolation, from his unit, from his battle-buddies and even from himself. In the end, the enemy seemed more desirable than the mess he had made in his foxhole.
The sentencing of SGT (now PV-1) Bergdahl is now complete. Instead of a 14 year sentence, sought by the prosecution, a sentence of time served, a reduction in rank, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge will have to do.
Although Bergdahl had plead guilty to desertion and misconduct before the enemy, the circumstances under which SGT Bergdahl was released, the trade of five Taliban leaders notwithstanding, has its own implications of treason. Some have said that Bergdahl has suffered enough, including his defense team. Some say he is not fit to live, let alone wear the uniform. Several witnesses have testified about their war injuries and losses they claim happened because of Bergdahl’s desertion. There were rumors but no evidence that SGT Bergdahl had given the enemy critical information about the unit, its operations and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). This would allow the enemy to anticipate the unit’s movements and tendencies, potentially deadly information. Some say, while searching for SGT Bergdahl, they were hit and men died. One man, a former Navy SEAL, claimed tearfully that his service dog was killed on one such mission, and others suffered crippling and career ending injuries. All of this was supposedly taken into consideration before the sentence was handed down by the military judge, Col. Jeffery Nance.
In my opinion, all this testimony is over-engineering. It’s all good, but shouldn’t be necessary to complete the project. Bergdahl deserted in a time of war. How do you maintain good order and discipline if you allow folks to just walk away? There is no claim of insanity. There is no plea bargain. There is no excuse. The punishment for desertion can be death.The reason for this goes back to the beginning of human conflict. If you run in the face of the enemy, you have abdicated your responsibility as a member of the group to help keep the group safe.
In our own Revolutionary War and subsequent conflicts, such as the Civil War, it wasn’t so much power and punch that won the day as it was which side would run first. Name a war or conflict, and what wins the day more times than not is the will to win or survive. Fight or flight. This is why the American Army is so effective; we are trained that in war the mission comes first. We are trained to never leave a soldier behind. We are trained to be good teammates. We are trained to care for each other, help each other and protect each other. And in the foxhole, when the bullets are flying, it’s about you and your battle-buddy, fighting for your lives.The bigger picture is that you are defending the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, part of the oath of enlistment that Bergdahl breached. But if you allow soldiers to run and then suffer inadequate consequences, what are you telling everyone else who swore that same oath? What then does it mean? In our politically correct, social media, “If it feels good, do it” society, oaths and promises seem blasé and passé. In fact, they are our lifeblood. If we let one instance of obvious and blatant desertion slip through the cracks, what then do we do with the next one, or the next? Kneeling for the national anthem and the absence of even one American flag on the opening night of a national political convention are not simply warning signs, they are signs of the apocalypse that feed the idea that Bergdahl did nothing wrong. That he is innocent of desertion because he was oppressed and that somehow his actions were free speech. It’s not about any of that. It’s about loyalty. The number one most important Army value, and value in life. The acronym constructed out of the Army Values is LDRSHIP (Leadership). The Army aspires to train every soldier to be a leader. In the American Army, even E-Private Zero, Snuffy Smith is expected to carry out the mission if all the leaders above him are incapacitated, in the spirit of Audie Murphy. Murphy, the highly decorated farm boy turned hero from WWII who was battlefield promoted from sergeant to second lieutenant and saved many lives with his heroism, over, and over again, all at 5’4” and 112 pounds, carried on with the mission, time and again. We owe it to the memory of all those who gave their lives in defense of this great nation. We owe it to those who were injured and may have died while searching for Bowe Bergdahl, and we owe it to the future of this nation that Bowe Bergdahl’s punishment fit the crime. But the punishment in this case has not fit the crime in any way, shape or form. The echo from this proceeding will carry far and wide, that the perceived suffering of one man, a deserter, held more weight than the entire history of the military of the greatest nation on earth.
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 239
This is a horrible precedent for Military discipline and will only encourage the behavior in the future from future Soldiers. The fact he has his lawyer now arguing that the Dishonorable Discharge should be changed to General is even more sickening.
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PO3 John Jeter
If I recall correctly, as a result of a federal lawsuit in the 60's, a dishonorable discharge triggers an automatic appeal. The process allows the discharge to be upgraded to a point where the label 'dishonorable' with the associated stigma are removed. The argument being that a dishonorable discharge was equivalent to a life sentence of hardship and discrimination. The truly disheartening part of that is that he will be eligible for health care and possibly VA disability benefits if he is granted his appeal request. His lawyers are arguing that he has (of course) PTSD, and is also suffering from a mental condition that prevents him from reasoning out his options for a given goal.
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
The compassion for this poor victim is potentially endless. Bergdahl "Go fund me" is around the corner.
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I suspect that the Judge here will get a 'not so subtle" message that he is now terminal in current grade and will quietly disappear into retirement.
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Capt Gregory Prickett
Which would prove Bergdahl's claim of unlawful command influence on appeal, and allow him to have the case against him dismissed entirely.
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SPC Christopher Perrien
I'll give you a pass because you are old MSG . LOL Don't you recall "Wade E Roberts?
That hurt morale/espirit de corps worse than this incident. Of course we had more morale to lose.
That hurt morale/espirit de corps worse than this incident. Of course we had more morale to lose.
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Each era of our military’s history has its defining and symbolic moments. The South Vietnamese officer executing the NVA soldier with a handgun or the naked children with napalm burns will always represent the resistance and confusion about the Vietnam War. I am afraid Bergdahl will be representative of the current war because in spite of all of the selfless service of military service members, will represent how our nation just doesn’t get behind wars anymore. The Afghanistan War could have been a short and well defined response to 9/11 but instead it turned into the longest war in our history. Civillian leadership of the military works when conflicts are well defined and short. Anything more results in pundits creating media that undermines the statements of our leadership. Bergdahl is emblematic of Obama thinking he was smarter than the Generals and the Generals acting dumb. We need a policy that no war can last more than 1 year...period!
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
We make war that we may live in peace. President Trump has turned the Global War on Terror into opportunities for PEACE.
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One thing that surprised me about this was I discovered there was an ulterior motive for the swap of the five prisoners. At first I was thinking along the lines of pretty much every military member thinking he got the deal of the lifetime and the outrage over this. One day at work when all this happened I was at lunch where I work (its a high tech pharmaceutical company) when I heard a couple of people laughing about it. Thinking I would set them straight about it, I asked them what they thought was so funny about it. These two guys explained to me about a project they worked on as interns ten years ago, right after 9/11. Both of them have multiple PHD's in various fields and are rocket scientist type smart. They were part of a team that invented a gps like tracking device that is the size of a grain of rice. It is injected next to the carotid artery and holds a small explosive charge that if tampered with or commanded, goes off. Its a small charge just designed to make the person bleed out internally. It can be placed without the patient knowing its there. Drug them until they pass out, inject it under the beard, and put them back in the cell and they don't know there tagged. They are then tracked by satellite. Not only does the CIA know where these guys are at all times, but they have the ability to kill them at any time.
While I understand the disdain of the administration for the deal, do not underestimate the cunning of the intelligence community.
While I understand the disdain of the administration for the deal, do not underestimate the cunning of the intelligence community.
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
Punishment? Just deserts. Punishment is when one is faced with the totality of their actions and then a sentence is brought forward. Mitigating circumstances? I say no, none. The fact that the whole posture of the mission in the area changed because of his actions, whether or not people died or were wounded looking for him, is enough of a SNAFU that there are no mitigating circumstances that would come close to being equal with CHANGING THE MISSION. Bergdahl's behavior became the catalyst for disaster, and ended up in exchange for five Taliban LEADERS, who are now part of a "peace negotiation team." One soldier should not be so important, especially one who deserted. He's lucky to be alive.
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I wonder if you would feel the same if you had been a Taliban POW in a cage for five years.
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
I wouldn't have left my post. Bergdahl should not have been considered a POW. He was an admitted deserter. He probably left post looking for heroin anyway. That's how they controlled him. He's a complete disgrace.
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There are always mitigating circumstances which are considered in sentencing. The dirty little secret in Bergdahl's case was he spent five years of being sexually abused; That is what the Islamist do to Infidels. First they beat the crap out of them, then rape and torture until mentally broken. He was their "ho" for the entire time he was captured. It is easy to armchair the results of a sentence. I believe he got what he deserved as being a marked man the rest of his life. Who would hire him? Who are his friend? Probably none. He only has his family for the short term. He will have a lonely life unless something happens. He will carry his personal prison the rest of his life. Opinions vary....
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
"His family . . . The rest of his life . . . ." Something those who lost their lives looking for him don't have. How about those mitigating circumstances?
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MSG Danny Mathers
I personally know of lives lost over stupid things, starting with Vietnam up to the present. This is a subject where there is no right answer. I do pray for the families that lost loved ones looking for Bergdahl. Only God knows if he was ditrectly responsoible. I lived with survivors guilt many years from combat action in Vietnam which I faught hand to hand with the NVA; I did nothing wrong except not getting killed! My point is Bo will carry the weight of their souls until the day he dies. Now really, do you beileve the governments account? There is a reason he is not rotting in prison...................
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MSG David Villasenor
MSG Danny Mathers - the little faggot probaby deserted because he was looking for someone to make him their bitch. he was craving dick.. sick coward bitch.
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The info we DON"T have is this: Was Bergdahl acting under secret CIA orders? Remember that he DID provide valuable intel upon his debriefing. And also remember the state of the VA. Our politicians routinely ask for volunteers and then throw us in the meat grinder without support. (just look at the VA again.) it IS possible that the CIA recruited him for this special Op and then abandoned him. (probably not LIKELY, but still...) Look at Benghazi: where an Admiral was relieved of duty for ordering his Task Group to aid the 4 soldiers who were defending the Embassy. an ADMIRAL was relieved of duty for doing the right thing! Look at the FBI and all their "terrorist sting operations", where the FBI recruits people , trains them, provides them with weapons, bombs, etc... and then let those people commit terrorist acts so the FBI can follow them to bigger fish. I'm just saying that our politicians and spy groups have a track record of recruiting grunts to do the dirty work, and then hanging them out to dry on their own. IF this was a CIA op, then the wrong person was on trial, and Bergdahl was hung out to dry. But, that's a BIG IF. And it's an IF that wouldn't be declassified for at least 50 years, so WE may never know the truth...
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
I'll keep an open mind on your theory. However, I think what is more likely is that Bergdahl provided ZERO valuable information. By his own admission, especially in the last several years before his release, he was isolated and had little contact with anyone other than his jailers. Intelligence is like fruit, it spoils rather quickly once off the vine or tree. I doubt seriously he had even an iota of information that had any value whatsoever. Bergdahl was a washout. War does things to people. It's not a natural or normal environment, and those who do not accept that can get themselves and others killed. He did the right thing. Leave and then don't come back. Too bad he didn't do it through his chain-of-command, IG, Chaplain or other legitimate avenue of redress of his grievances. I say, "Off with his head."
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Bergdahl was a deserter, not a traitor. Treason requires actions the t wow cause great harm to the United States. He was a off in an infantry unit. What kind of information did he have that would cause that kind of damage? Likely zero.
Brgdhal is screwed for life... as he deserves, but what is it that you want to do to him that would assuage your anger... because that is what th is is about. Your anger. Your feelings. Berghal is probably the least of your worries
Brgdhal is screwed for life... as he deserves, but what is it that you want to do to him that would assuage your anger... because that is what th is is about. Your anger. Your feelings. Berghal is probably the least of your worries
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MAJ Montgomery Granger
Meh. Not that angry, just disappointed that the judge seemed to feel mitigating circumstances outweighed the admitted crime. That's his job, but from the outside looking in it was crazy. Treason requires either giving aid or comfort to the enemy. Bergdahl's goal was to aid the enemy, and no matter the value of the information, if his intent and actions were treasonous he should have been charged and found guilty of treason, IMO. The bedrock of discipline and order and effectiveness in the military is loyalty. Without it, we're just another bunch of stiffs in cammo. With it, we can conquer the world, IMO. Thank you for your comments, Cpl.
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