Quote:
Originally Posted by Manx
That was not a simple yes or no question. But more importantly, it was a question concerning an entirely seperate debate - the debate of when war is valid. I am not nor have I been expressing my opinion on that topic, and assuredly there is no simple answer to such a topic.
If a soldier goes into battle, they are supporting the point of view expressed by those who have ordered them to go into battle. A morally sound soldier would refuse to go into battle if they do not share the point of view of the person who has decided to wage war.
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Actually they are not
supporting the point of view, they are simply executing instructions. No one sits around and debates the relative merits of each engagement and then votes on it. When someone joins the military they voluntarily relinquish some of their autonomy and acknowledge that they may be asked to perform some unsavory tasks, within the rules outlined by the UCMJ and elsewhere. Furthermore, if a "morally sound" soldier refused to fight in a particular battle and placed his fellow soldiers who did their job at risk, it would seemingly raise other moral questions as well, I would think.
I don't like the U.S.'s activity in Iraq any more than you; however, I feel the responsibility lies at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. and not in the barracks in Iraq.