Sgt Bowe Bergdahl released

[tankie]

Tankie,

Unsure of the first.

As for the second he was a PFC in rank when he went missing. He is a sergeant today because it is American policy that POW/MIA are automatically promoted at each elligible date while in captivity. So at the earliest eligible date while he was in captivity he was promoted to Specialist/E4 and Sergeant/E5.

In additiona all pay and benefits continue. If thee are dependents they receive it (wife, etc). If not then all pay and allowances are banked and given to the serviceman upon return to freedom.

And while the speculation is rampant I want to remind one and all that Sergeant Bergdahl has not been charged and/or convicted of anything. As of this moment his service is honorable.

And even if he was the biggest scumbag soldier you NEVER leave a comrade behind.

Cheers A/R , my first ref to propaganda was i suppose , rhetorical ?? but ref to a PFC , to a brit soldier , thats one weird way of getting promotion ???

[Albany Rifles]

Tankie I understand the promotion confusion. It grew out of Code of Conduct post Korea. The idea was that if you are a POW you are still a combatant and to keep the fight going any way you could....similar to Allied airmen in World War 2. To match this the promotion system was put in place to reward continued good service. Time as a POW is always assumed to be honorable service until such time an investigation proves otherwise.

That is why I am reserving ALL judgement in this case.

[tankie]

Thanks , that clears that up then A/R , a clear concise explanation , not bad ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,forra yank

[tankie]

BBC news , is saying his family have received email death threats ???

[Minskaya]

Bergdahl says he was tortured by Taliban captors
June 08, 2014
By Lolita C. Baldor - Associated Press

PARIS (AP) -- A senior U.S. official says Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl tells military officials that he was tortured, beaten and held in a cage by his Taliban captors in Afghanistan after he tried to escape. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to discuss what Bergdahl is saying while being treated at a U.S. military medical facility in Germany. The official says it is difficult to verify the accounts Bergdahl is providing about conditions of his captivity in the hands of the Taliban. He was released a week ago after nearly five years in captivity. The New York Times reports Sunday that Bergdahl is not yet emotionally prepared to return to his family. His release in exchange for five Taliban militants from Guantanamo Bay has ignited a political firestorm.

Source

[Minskaya]

If we leave the circumstances of Bergdahl's capture behind, what we also have here is a clash of conflicting values. The first is to never leave a soldier behind. The second is to never negotiate with terrorists. With asymmetrical warfare with non-state actors becoming a norm rather than the exception, it seems to me that compromising the non-negotiation value may be the only pragmatic methodology to never leave a soldier behind. Although it is idealistically distasteful to barter with pirates and terrorists to reclaim soldiers and citizens, history is replete with exemplars.

I think Obama et. al. did the right thing here, but I also think it troublesome that Congress was not consulted in accordance with US law. I consider the excuses put forward thus far rather tenuous and shallow. I also think the aftermath concerning the possible reintegration of the Gitmo Five into terrorist activity and the conduct of Sgt Bowie Bergdahl will take many months and perhaps even years to apportion.

[Mihais]

NATO is getting out.Getting POW's back denies the reason for a future Rambo 2 Returns movie and all the drama surrounding these things.
As for the Talibans released,they have 0 practical importance.

[Minskaya]

A few more musings.

I think Obama's Rose Garden announcement with Bergdahl's parents was inappropriate and cheesy.

US intelligence has multi-source information of Bergdahl's behavior in Taliban captivity.

If Bergdahl is charged with offenses under the UCMJ, the military will not go easy on him.

[Pedicabby]

[Doktor]

Bowe Bergdahl: America's Last Prisoner of War by Michael Hastings | Politics News | Rolling Stone

Old date, but still can be interesting read. To remember the emotions.

[Albany Rifles]

Pedicabby


I see nothing humorous in that and find it quite offensive in fact.

And I don't give a rats ass for the source. Doesn't make it right.

[Doktor]

I would Court Marshal him. Would clean the air if he did something bad or not. If he did, let him be punished and get over it, if he didn't, move on.

[citanon]

A few more musings.

I think Obama's Rose Garden announcement with Bergdahl's parents was inappropriate and cheesy.

US intelligence has multi-source information of Bergdahl's behavior in Taliban captivity.

If Bergdahl is charged with offenses under the UCMJ, the military will not go easy on him.

At least he attempted to escape, or so we hear. I don't recall him ever releasing any anti-US statements while in Taliban captivity?

We're probably going to hear the story of a guy who deserted, went over to the taliban, changed his mind, tried to escape, resisted attempts to exploit him, etc. Perhaps a person who's conduct during captivity was more honorable than actions leading up to capture. It will be quite muddled.

Maybe Sgt. Bergdahl's alleged desertion need to be balanced against honorable service while in captivity. We won't know until the investigation is complete, but if that is the case, I think Sgt. Berghal has at least partially redeemed himself. I think that he and his parents have been through enough. I don't think the threats against his parents are right.

Now that's the human side.

But on the side of US policy and the administration's conduct, I find several aspects of this very questionable. If it was ONE taliban guy traded for him, I think we would not hear the same criticism today. The fact that there were FIVE high level guys who are probably going back there to be big heroes and leadership figures. That's different. That's questionable. The second fact that there was no congressional notification, not even to the leadership of the select committees, that's very questionable. The fact that the administration now states that Taliban threats kept them from a legal duty to notify congress, in effect admitting that the Taliban was able to subvert the US political process via threats, that's further questionable.

I don't think Americans object to prisoner trades to getting our guy back, but doing so in a way that endanger US personnel and convey weakness is a mistake. They should have done this better. No matter where you stand on this issue and how you feel about Sgt. Berghal, there's no getting around the fact that the US got out maneuvered on this by the Taliban and the Haqqannis. Make no mistake about it, this is a victory for our adversaries.

[JAD_333]

Citanon:

If I recall correctly the Taliban made some videos with Bergdahl dressed in uniform complete with helmet criticizing US involvement in A-stan. They must have provided the uniform because Bergdahl left his uniform and equipment behind.

Obama's people screwed up the public side of this affair from the gitgo, and they keep on stubbing their toes. If the truth were known, Obama probably didn't inform Congress of the trade as the law required because Congress might have balked at the price of 5 Taliban heavies. Now he's throwing in excuses like Bergdahl was in bad health and he may have been tortured for trying to escape.

I agree with trying to get back one our POWs. The price bothers me less than the precedent. But Bergdahl wasn't kidnapped. He walked into the hands of the Taliban.

If Bergdahl was a hero, people wouldn't be bitching so much. But even if he is a deserter, as seems to be the case, leaving him there to rot by way of punishment goes way beyond our duty to afford him due process.

[citanon]

Citanon:

If I recall correctly the Taliban made some videos with Bergdahl dressed in uniform complete with helmet criticizing US involvement in A-stan. They must have provided the uniform because Bergdahl left his uniform and equipment behind.

I was not aware of that. This puts him in an even worse light.

Obama's people screwed up the public side of this affair from the gitgo, and they keep on stubbing their toes. If the truth were known, Obama probably didn't inform Congress of the trade as the law required because Congress might have balked at the price of 5 Taliban heavies. Now he's throwing in excuses like Bergdahl was in bad health and he may have been tortured for trying to escape.

I agree with trying to get back one our POWs. The price bothers me less than the precedent. But Bergdahl wasn't kidnapped. He walked into the hands of the Taliban.

If Bergdahl was a hero, people wouldn't be bitching so much. But even if he is a deserter, as seems to be the case, leaving him there to rot by way of punishment goes way beyond our duty to afford him due process.

Agreed.