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March 16, 2006
All things considered...
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Vietnam war deserter arrested 38 years on
Is this really the sort of thing the Bush Administration wants to encourage? 'Cause I can think of one or two guys who didn't serve all their time back then...
Posted by Mac Thomason at March 16, 2006 01:51 PM
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Comments
Didn't Carter pardon all of them? Or maybe that was just the draft dodgers.
Posted by: Poser at March 16, 2006 06:44 PM
Yeah. Though you'd think that in a civilized society there would be a statute on limitations.
Posted by: Mac Thomason at March 16, 2006 07:17 PM
Well, during wartime desertion is a capital crime. It'd be nice if Bush could pardon all of the those who deserted during the Vietnam War though. Then he could smile a silent sigh of relief.
Posted by: Poser at March 16, 2006 10:44 PM
Was Vietnam a "war" under the USCMJ? Congress never declared it. Is desertion a capital crime in times of any use of military force?
Posted by: JoeyT at March 17, 2006 04:42 AM
Carter did pardon all of them. But if you were an actual deserter after you had started military service, you had to apply for the pardon within a certain time frame (which has expired). If this guy had just dodged the draft, he wouldn't be in trouble right now.
The waste of taxpayer resources is what really ticks me off here. Especially when Putsch is one of those deserters himself.
Also, JoeyT, I would guess that means we haven't had any official wars in the US for quite some time now - Congress didn't declare war on terrorism, drugs, Haiti, Grenada, Panama, or Iraq either...
Posted by: (: Tom :) at March 17, 2006 07:51 AM
We haven't actually had a formal declaration of war since WWII. Congress only got their panties in a wad over Iraq because they say public sentiment was for the war. In the end they only passed a resolution to approve of military actions. I suppose they thought that would be enough to please the voters on both sides.
Posted by: joshq at March 17, 2006 04:52 PM
I meant they 'saw', not 'say, public sentiment was for the war...
Posted by: joshq at March 17, 2006 04:55 PM