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Quickly as I have to run to work...
Belief is not particularly relevant to Watada's case. He would have had to show that he not only believed the order to be illegal, but that it was. It is not something he was in a position to do.
Also, it is really ridiculous to suggest that Watada's men would cease to obey him and instead take orders from his superiors. It doesn't work like that in the military. First nobody is going to obey orders to do what you suggest is happenning (though the military is like a cross section of our society so you have some criminals that need to be policed). Second, he would be relieved of his command before his superiors gave his men orders despite him. It doesn't happen. If his commander felt that Watada wouldn't faithfully obey an order he would be relieved on the spot. Also, to suggest that high-ranking officer are going to order a bunch of joes to commit war-crimes is preposterous. Not only would they most likely not obey, you would hear about it on the news right away. Just because someone isn't anti-war doesn't make them evil.
And no, command responsibility doesn't go both ways. It just doesn't.
I addressed this in my last post, but you restated your position again without answering mine.
The UN security council does not, at this point in time, have to authorize a war for it to be legal. They have passed a resolution to eventually make that so, but it hasn't happenned yet. Furthermore, there is not, at this point in time, anything criminal about waging a war of aggression. Which would mean that there is nothing actually illegal about the Iraq war, even by your own standards.
The UN could pass something stating that you shouldn't wear cowboy boots. Unless they criminilize doing so it isn't a crime.
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"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery." - Winston Churchill
"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act out their dream with open eyes, to make it possible." Seven Pillars of Wisdom, T.E. Lawrence
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