Witch Hunt or Valid Court-Martial Case?

[thedrifter]

12-02-2003

Witch Hunt or Valid Court-Martial Case?





By Ralf W. Zimmermann



There is no question that the Iraq war is stuck in a painful guerilla phase. Notably, guerilla war is more dangerous for America than industrial warfare.



Why? It doesn?t allow you to celebrate immediate victories and reinforce positive changes. As progress and setbacks take ever more rapid turns, the American public?s mood suffers. As casualty numbers gradually mount, warriors and politicians often turn on each other and then on themselves.



A typical such case is the hotly debated case of Army Lt. Col. Alan B. West, former commander of a U.S. artillery battalion, saddled with the mission to police the streets of Saba al Boor, Iraq. The Army has recently charged West with communicating a threat and aggravated assault for firing a pistol to scare a detainee into divulging information. The prosecutor offered West the following deal: Resign short of twenty years of retirement to avoid a painful court-martial and the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence.



West rightfully refused. Who would want to lose all retirement benefits so close to twenty years in uniform? In his opinion, he did what was right when he fired his 9-mm. pistol twice to scare a detainee into talking. West claims that as a result of the coercion, the detainee provided two names of possible attackers. His actions could have prevented a deadly ambush.



Since the Army began courts-martial proceedings, many military advocates (some without a day in uniform) and conservative papers have rallied around West. They believe West did exactly what should have been done ? make the enemy talk at any price, as often happened in Vietnam.



Most emotions aside, a more objective look seems in order. I?d have to say that the case of West is once again an indicator of systemic problems in our Army. It wants to fight a war by the book but isn?t able to produce the specialized manpower, tools and training for that by-the-book warfare.



First, an artillery unit isn?t fully qualified for military police work or grunt missions until it undergoes very specific retraining. Yes, it should happen as a home-station routine but when you look at unit training schedules, grunt training usually takes second seat to considerations for others drills and family support group indoctrination.



To mitigate mistakes and accidental shooting, the Army then applies excessive rules of engagement, often endangering the lives of the troops. And don?t even forget the below-average quality of our human intelligence people and translators. Unless these guys are properly trained and speak the right dialect, no information you pull is reliable.



Common sense is the other overlooked issue. West?s actions fall far short of common sense and were overly theatrical. As a commander of almost 600 artillery personnel, there should have been plenty of other qualified officers and seasoned noncoms to conduct a ?quality interrogation,? giving the commander a bit of a standoff range. Instead of being the guy tried for detainee abuse, he should have been the one directing the overall operation and the ?proper? (exploiting all limits of the box) interpretation of the rules of engagement. I actually suspect that one of his ****ed-off subordinates initiated the investigation after observing a much less than professional approach.



Combat is messy, especially in an urban setting against pesky guerilla forces. The Army must acknowledge this fact and give West the benefit of the doubt. What truly strikes me as odd is that while his division commander wants to see West hang, there has been no mention of his brigade commander, the immediate superior.



Why not? Shouldn?t he have a position, especially since he most likely passed on the charges?



To expeditiously end the bloody media campaigns and internal witch-hunts, West should be let off the court-martial hook. No one was actually killed. Probably not totally free of guilt, the officer should be allowed to retire or serve on a staff.



Although he showed lack of common sense, he acted under pressure and in the constant fear of suffering combat deaths among his unit. During Operation Desert Storm in 1991, I witnessed quite a few senior officers ? who had been wonderful administrators in peacetime ? turn into nervous maniacs when faced with the possibility of enemy contact.



Nonetheless, the chain of command can?t ignore that somehow, before hitting Iraqi dirt, West served his country well for over 19 years.



Contributing Editor Lt. Col. (U.S. Army, ret.) Ralf W. Zimmermann is a decorated Desert Storm veteran and former tank battalion commander. Since his retirement, his columns have regularly appeared in Army Times and other publications. His recent novel, ?Brotherhood of Iron,? deals with the German soldier in World War II. It is directly available from www.iUniverse.com and through most major book dealers. Zimm can be reached at r6zimm@earthlink.net or via his website at www.home.earthlink.net/~r6zimm.


http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/...8.9513458475681


Sempers,

Roger

[BLUEHAWK]

In all the reports I read, or saw, on this matter, never once was there a hint of purposeful maniacal bad conduct on the part of this officer.

The Army needs to (in Scout's inimitable manner of speaking) find their meanest baddest senior CO to give West a memorable ass-chewing, and then shake his hand and hand him his well-earned pension.