More Abu Gharib Fallout

FORT HOOD, Texas Feb 2, 2005 — Sgt. Javal Davis knew all along he was wrong to step on the hands and feet of prisoners at Abu Ghraib on a warm night in November 2003. None of his superiors told him to do it, he said, he simply snapped under job stress.

Davis, a former guard at the Baghdad prison, recounted daily mortar attacks and hostile detainees armed with homemade knives. On the night in question, he said he got mad when a female guard was hit in the face with a brick thrown by a prisoner.

“It just got to me,” he told a judge Tuesday. “I just lost it.” (source)

You know, this is the first soldier I have heard who has done the honorable thing. He has admitted truthfully his involvement in what happened at Abu Ghraib Prison. I admire that.

This story became available on February 2, 2005, just a few days ago. Since then, Sgt. Davis has been sentenced to six months in a military prison, reduction in rank to private, and a bad-conduct discharge. The bad-conduct discharge is a severe punishment. Many people do not realize this. It means it will most likely follow him the rest of his life and will be a factor in future employment, among other things. He also will not be eligible for any governmental benefits, such as health care from VA facilities or educational benefits.

FORT HOOD, Texas Feb 5, 2005 - Sgt. Javal Davis doesn’t have to serve much prison time for abusing detainees at Abu Ghraib in late 2003, but once his incarceration is over, so is his prized career as a soldier.

A nine-man Army jury on Friday sentenced Davis to six months in a military prison, reduction in rank to private and a bad-conduct discharge.

The jurors deliberated more than five hours to arrive at their punishment for Davis, a former Abu Ghraib guard who admitted stepping on the hands and feet of handcuffed detainees and falling with his full weight on top of them. (source)

It’s a sad thing to see some young man’s career ruined by something like this. He was there and one thing that we have to realize is that sitting here and writing about it is a far cry from what this man went through. He was there. I was not. One of his fellow soldiers was hit in the face with a brick thrown by a prisoner. How would I have reacted? I’m sure with anger. What would I have done? I’d like to think that I would have been professional and kept my composure about it all, but I can’t make that assumption. A lot of factors go into what it’s like to be in a situation where you are in a hostile environment where you can be killed in an instant if you ever let your guard down. Day after day, that has to grind you down and fatigue you. When that happens, anything can happen. The smallest things can set you off.

So, I’m honestly not surprised at all by what Sgt. Davis has said, and I do understand, to the point I can understand, what may have been going through his head when he participated in these deeds.

But the blame really doesn’t belong to him. The blame belongs to an administration that put it’s soldiers in a situation of having to deal with these situations without adequate planning, resources and equipment, and the number of soldiers in the country.

And, the blame falls with us. ALL OF US. We allowed this administration to do this, to lie about the reason we invaded this country in the first place. “Weapons of mass destruction” was simply a smoke screen. In fact, there were plans to take out Saddam Hussein before 9/11 ever happened. The attack on our country was merely a convenient smoke cover. We have not held this administration accountable for the lack of ANY weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq. It’s as if we don’t give a damn.

In the mean time, the careers of the soldiers who did this are ruined. Some of that is valid, but it’s no excuse to not go after the real culprits in all of this; President Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Condi Rice, and yes, Colin Powell. Colin Powell has been a huge disappointment for me. Early on, he told the President, “If you go into Iraq, you will own this war.” Meaning, if it turns out that there was no cause to gut the country, the President would pay the price. But guess what, it doesn’t work that way in Washington. This President and his administration can lie their way out of anything, because we will not hold them accountable.

And when it looks as if there may be a price to pay for anyone in the administration, it’s always good to say, “But we’re protecting traditional marriage from the gays... and what about all of my faith-based initiatives that I’ve put through, all the while respecting the line of the separation of church and state? Oh and also, did I say that the war is Iraq is hard work?” It all works for him.

When the abuses of Abu Ghraib were made public, I was outraged. In fact, I took the photos of the abuses, and published them on this site. The photos are getting a huge number of hits. I did not do this to humiliate my country. I did this because I believe America cannot go into a country touting freedom, only to end up being the oppressors. We must be better than this and I remember a day when we were better than this.

Many of the comments left with the photos are filled with hate and disgust. I have chosen not to edit them. Perhaps there is value in having people air their misgivings and frustrations. But one comment did get my attention, and is really the reason I am talking about this:

From: just a soldier (Tue Feb 1 15:43:03 2005) I was at the abu gharib prison, I understand what happened there was taken to far but take into consideration the abuse our soldiers were put through apon capture, at least there heads werent chopped off.

What most people dont understand these prisoners were the worst of the worst that is why they were at this facility. Many of them killed or took part in the killing or maiming of US soldiers. If any information could be gained that could have saved my life, i’ve got no problem with humiliating a bunch of criminals.

You go ahead and pitty these terrorist that we were sent to protect iraq from to begin with. Its a different story though when an iraqi police officer sneaks a pistol in to the prison and someone you know gets shot because of it. It is easy for those who have never been to war to judge the action of those in the actual war.

The lower enlisted are being hung out to dry, but you expect a general to take the fall.

My response to the comment:

From: Administrator (Bill) (Tue Feb 1 23:09:47 2005) I’m not trying to paint one side of the story here. I do wish you had left your email address. I was touched by your comments and do think we need to hear from the soldiers as well.

I wanted your email address because I was going to offer to place a full article written by you on the site. If you read this, please consider it and send me your address.

I also feel the hateful rhetoric displayed in some of these comments is truly unfortunate. I try to have the site provide information. The ideas expressed are my own, but I do try to learn from others. And you are right, I wasn’t there and I do not know what happened. I would like you to describe it, if you would.

The administration tried to side step the issue by saying that the prisoners at the prison were the “worst of the worst”, suggesting that, even though these disclosures were bad, the prisoners somehow deserved this punishment.

My question is this. If the prisoners were the “worst of the worst”, why is it that 90% of them were released after this scandal broke out? The reason that was given when the prisoners were released was that, at the time they were first captured, there was a lot of chaos in Iraq, and that they herded up people they thought were bad people. It later turned out that the 90% held in Abu Ghraib, and put through the torture, were innocent. At least, there was no evidence to charge them with anything. And if we really do want to install democracy in Iraq (at lease, our definition of it), than we have to at least accept that, in the absence of evidence, the people released from Abu Ghraib, were innocent. We can’t just lock up people and torture them for no reason. Or can we?

Even with that, the administration said, “In times of war, bad things happen.” That statement is as stupid as the President saying over and over during the presidential debates that the war in Iraq is “hard work”.

“In times of war, bad things happen.” And we, the American People, let him get away with that. To dismiss what happened at Abu Ghraib as “bad things happen” is just not good enough. Or is it? We turned around and re-elected the man again to a second term in office, ALL BUILT ON LIES.

This is democracy?

Other reading on this:
Army Spc. Charles Graner convicted in Iraq prisoner abuse
Support Our Troops
Amnesty Condemns US for War on Terror Torture
U.S. Soldier Gets 8 Years for Iraq Jail Abuse
Living in the Land of OZ