On June 27, 2009, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl sent an e-mail to his parents before he was captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan:
mom, dad
The future is too good to waste on lies. And life is way too short to care for the damnation of others, as well as to spend it helping fools with their ideas that are wrong. I have seen their ideas and I am ashamed to even be american. The horror of the self-righteous arrogance that they thrive in. It is all revolting. [...] [Three good sergeants had been forced to move to another company] [...] and one of the biggest shit bags is being put in charge of the team. [...] [My battalion commander was] a conceited old fool. [...] In the US army you are cut down for being honest... but if you are a conceited brown nosing shit bag you will be allowed to do what ever you want, and you will be handed your higher rank... The system is wrong. I am ashamed to be an american. And the title of US soldier is just the lie of fools. ... The US army is the biggest joke the world has to laugh at. It is the army of liars, backstabbers, fools, and bullies. The few good SGTs are getting out as soon as they can, [...]
I am sorry for everything here. These people need help, yet what they get is the most conceited country in the world telling them that they are nothing and that they are stupid, that they have no idea how to live... We don't even care when we hear each other talk about running their children down in the dirt streets with our armored trucks... We make fun of them in front of their faces, and laugh at them for not understanding we are insulting them [...] I am sorry for everything. The horror that is america is disgusting. There are a few more boxes coming to you guys. Feel free to open them, and use them.
Bowe's father, Bob Bergdahl, responded to his son's final message not long after he received it.
OBEY YOUR CONSCIENCE!
Dear Bowe, In matters of life and death, and especially at war, it is never safe to ignore ones' conscience. Ethics demands obedience to our conscience. It is best to also have a systematic oral defense of what our conscience demands. Stand with like minded men when possible. dad.
The US Army is now preparing to prosecute Bowe Bergdahl for desertion and other alleged crimes. It is likely they want to put him away as an example of what happens to anyone who risks following his conscience and refuses to go along with the show.
This whole thing has turned into a circus. I can't help but wonder what they were thinking when they traded other hostages or prisoners for him and now are trying him.
ReplyDeleteOf course it seems as if he's being tried for telling the truth; but it is so damn obvious.