If we are truly concerned with justice, America's moral integrity, and the well-being of the troops, know that war itself is atrocity. Know as well that these young men chose not to be murderers, but patriots willing to make great personal sacrifice in behalf of freedom and the values they held sacred; "children ardent for some desperate glory" convinced of " the old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est Pro patria mori."
Finally, we must see through the mythology, the lies and the deceptions, and understand that all who become tainted by war are victims. Consequently, the culpability of those we are so quick to condemn must be mitigated. While I do not justify or excuse the actions of these individuals, neither do I seek scapegoats in order to absolve myself of culpability and responsibility as a citizen of a democracy in whose name these warriors were created and atrocities committed. Consequently, if there is to be condemnation and punishment, let it begin with those whose incompetence and rapacious desire for wealth and power make unnecessary war inevitable, whose apathy allows the slaughter to continue, and whose blind allegiance and misguided patriotism hamper their ability to understand and appreciate the true reality and nature of war and its tragic and profound effects upon the warrior.
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