I read that our Aussie Diggers are under the pump again. Being accused of war crimes and our " esteemed " Prime Minister is on board with this disgraceful character assassination. The armchair experts who feel they have the right to condemn the actions of fellow Australians in the theatre of war.
Like so much of our lives these days, armchair experts are using personal opinion to write our laws, rewrite our history and redefine our future.
People and Governments have squandered 2020 and the wealth and mental health of all citizens because of a Medical Officer's opinion. One so called expert has allowed the Governments to avoid making decisions and taking responsibility.
Each time there is evidence of foul play in politics or in public policy, the decisions are passed on to a Royal Commission or a Board of Enquiry where some armchair expert will decide what is right, wrong or any shade of grey in between. And all is fuelled and fanned by the flames of Media Sharks on a feeding frenzy.
I read with some dismay this morning that Defence Force Chief Angus Campbell had announced the abolition of a squadron in the SAS, stripped medals from over 3000 troops who had served in Afghanistan, and he said that, in the future, all special forces soldiers in future would have to wear body cameras when on deployment.
“To the people of Afghanistan, on behalf of the Australian Defence Force, I sincerely and unreservedly apologise for any wrongdoing by Australian soldiers,” General Campbell said.
“And to the people of Australia, I am sincerely sorry for any wrongdoing by members of Australian Defence Force.”
You could have knocked me over with a feather. Without any charges or convictions, he is conceding?
It was in a war.
In the old days, there was a thing called collateral damage. Collateral damage is any death, injury, or other damage inflicted that is an incidental result of military operations. Think of Coventry when Churchill made the hard decision to sacrifice Coventry in order to win the war. Collateral damage.
Did these Australian soldiers commit war crimes or was it collateral damage? I don't know. I wasn't there. I have no right to pass judgement on these men. I did not live their lives, experience their nightmares or march in their boots.
Who knows what anyone would do in a position of extreme danger, mental stress and prolonged exposure to traumatic events? Thank God for your mates.
Did some of them do something wrong? Was it a deliberate act or a decision made under duress?
To me, this reeks of hypocrisy and yet another armchair expert passing judgement based on personal opinion and personal emotion.
When Breaker Morant faced the firing squad during the Boer War, was he a murderer, a soldier or a murderous soldier?
Back in the late 1800's, Britain had colonised Africa and reluctantly shared southern Africa with Dutch settlers, known as the Boers.Things heated up when gold and diamonds were discovered in the Boer occupied regions. Needless to say, Britain wanted the wealth. The Boers would have to go.
Loyal young men from the colonies, like Australia and New Zealand, volunteered to join the ranks of Brits who went to defeat the Boers and lay claim to the bounty that was seen as a treasure worth plundering for the motherland.
A young man who joined the Boer War was a bloke called Breaker Morant. Real name Edwin Henry Murrant, he was a bit of a scoundrel where women were concerned and was also a well known horse breaker, drover and penned bush ballads that were published in MSM at the time.
In 1901, one of Breaker Morant's squaddies was killed by a group of Boers. His mate's body was mutilated after death. Morant, outraged and fuming at the violation of his mate's body, took command of his squad and hunted the Boers down. He executed the leader of the Boer group that had killed and maimed his friend.
American Ambassador Chris Steven in Benghazi - raped and tortured to death
Soon after, 8 Boers apparently tried to surrender to his squad and he ordered them shot.
Morant and some of his squad members were charged with murder and
" Major JF Thomas was ordered at short notice to represent the accused. The trial began on 17 January 1902.
Central to Thomas’s defence was that the officers were acting on the orders of their superiors, right up to Lord Kitchener, to take no prisoners. However, Thomas was unable to substantiate that such an order had been given. Morant, Handcock and another Australian, Lieutenant George Witton, were convicted of murdering 12 prisoners. With Kitchener’s approval, Handcock and Morant were executed by firing squad on 27 February 1902. Witton was given a life sentence. He was released four years later." source
At his firing squad he apparently said:
Was Morant a murderer? Was it justified? I do not know. The only people that would have known were the people who were there.
Only a woman who has been raped can comment about how it feels to be raped. Only a child who has been abused can say how it feels to be abused. Only a soldier can say how it feels to be there on that day at that precise moment and only the person pulling the trigger can attest to how they felt at that time.
This is why we have laws. So that feelings can be taken out of the equation. Opinions can be dismissed. Emotions discarded.
Much like the election fiasco in America, the Trump team are drilling down into the LAW.
When Breaker Morant and his fellow Diggers were convicted of murder, they argued that they were following orders from Kitchener that may or may not have been given. To take no prisoners. There was no evidence to substantiate that claim.
Since the Boer War, there has been a decision known as the Yamashita Standard which asserts, “the highest-ranking officer is accountable for and should be prosecuted and convicted of the crimes of every officer and soldier under his command,"
Sometimes, the Law can be a bitch, can't it? I bet Kitchener would be not at all happy with that particular decision.
I remember reading, many years ago, that the person with the most credible evidence will receive justice.
We live in times when opinions, feelings and emotions are over riding credible evidence.
No matter what the outcome of the Brereton report, the fact remains that Morrison and Campbell have already GUARANTEED that these Diggers will be condemned to death by media hyberbole.
Like Cardinal Pell.
Like President Trump.
Death by Media is now a very clear and present danger. People being convicted without trial?
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