Crushing blow for army's good name

Guardian Unlimited | Crushing blow for army's good name:

"The decision, announced by the attorney general late last night, to prosecute British soldiers for war crimes under the International Criminal Court Act, is a crushing blow for an army known and respected worldwide for its peacekeeping prowess and discipline."

I really do have mixed opinions about this and we also have a similar problem with reports of drugs and suicides on military bases. I look at it this way. We are basically dealing with a group of people who were brought up as haves. They were brought up to be non violent and they have been brought up more than any other group not to be aggressive and not to be physical. Of all the people sent into war zones I would have thought that the group in their 20s is the least equipped for dealing with it because of all their anti gun, anti fighting, social equity , social justice platforms of childhood. They then find themselves in unthinkably violent situations trying to survive and keeping the name of their regiment and country intact. I can well imagine that many of them have found it impossible to stay stable and because they haven't had the childhood which helps them deal with hostility and violence, they have then run on instinct. It does not excuse them, any more than it excuses them for taking drugs to try and enable themselves to front up and deal with what are ostensibly hideous and stomach curdling operations. These people are then totally reliant on more competent colleagues to walk and talk them through "protocol" and survival . If that fails because the situation they are dealing with is out of hand, then yes, you get the Lord of the Flies behaviour which we all understand because we studied the book. To that extent we should understand and be compassionate.

In addition, we have a world which is in constant crisis. We have no harmony and stability and the boundaries appear to have gone because we have been through a post modern era and we are still deconstructing. There are signs we don't like this any more but we haven't yet found the road to lead us back to balance and boundaries. It then comes as a shock that the police, the army, the navy, the air force, in short, the people we look to stabilise our society when we feel it is out of control, are experiencing the same problems we are facing out here in the chaos management. It shocks us to think the police and military are also dealing with people who are amoral, destructive, anti social, negative. To me, it means our society is showing signs of considerable strain and instability when the mlitary organisations haven't found a way of controlling cruelty and upholding the honour. We haven't had training in honour for a long time. Why do we expect it? We have been very self centred. So when our military people think they have been let down and feel like they have failed then it is how we have been as a society and to expect it all to fall into place because that's how it used to be ignores the fact that society isn't about families and school ties and loyal workers any more. It has been fragmenting . In many senses we are dealing with a generation gap. Older people are judging things by the values they had inculcated into them which most younger ones do not have. They have been brought up surrounded by materialism, consumerism and self esteem.

If we try anyone, then everyone who is guilty of unthinkable cruelty needs to be tried. The truth is, C'est à la guerre comme à la guerre. War is like war. If you don't want behaviour like this, don't go to war. War is not civilised. And don't invade other countries.But it has happened, it's still happening, so I guess my point of view on all of this is to look at how it occurred and why it occurred and whether it could have been avoided, given you have who you have and you are unwelcome in the place you went. What are you going to do about gratuitous killing and cruelty? An honourable person looks to stop and avoid it and that is why they are honourable.