AWOL Soldier Who Returned Flees Again (Kyle Snider - "I came back in good faith")

[Hissyspit]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AWOL_SOLDIER?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US

AWOL Soldier Who Returned, Flees Again

By BRETT BARROUQUERE
Associated Press Writer

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A U.S. Army soldier who fled to Canada rather than return to Iraq has disappeared again, this time just a day after surrendering to the military.

Pvt. Kyle Snyder, 23, of Colorado Springs, Colo., told The Associated Press he was supposed to return by bus to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., from Louisville on Tuesday but didn't go. He said he went AWOL after Fort Knox officials told him he would be sent back to his unit, the 94th Engineer Battalion.

Snyder returned to the United States on Saturday, after his lawyer said he had reached a deal for Snyder to receive an other-than-honorable discharge. Being sent back to his unit wasn't part of the deal, according to attorney James Fennerty.

"I came back in good faith," Snyder said Wednesday by phone. "I put my trust in them one more time. Why should I put my trust in them again when I can just go back to Canada?"

He did not disclose his location.

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[IndianaGreen]

1. Bravo! One less canon fodder for the neocon wars!

This war may not end until our troops do what the Russian army did in 1917: arrest their leaders and storm the Winter Palace to topple the tyrant.

Mutiny or death!

[angry_chuck]

3. Bolshevik Style

That guy was surprised they lied to him? They want to send him back to Iraq so they can have him 'suicided' by a 'non-hostile weapons discharge' and then hide the evidence.

That's Bush style...Lie until it's not working then lie about having lied.

One days the lies shall crash down upon the Vulcans, engulfing them in a hellstorm rife with the malevolence and malfeasance befit such despicable despots.

Remember Samuel L in Pulp Fiction?

Ezekiel 25:17. "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you."

Who are the weak? Who is the shepherd? Who are the evil men?

Why is our shepherd evil?

What will we do?

[keopeli]

2. I can't believe this is my country.

The man came back in good faith with a deal that satisfied all parties, but the US military went back on their end of the deal.

Here is a good man who is young, caught up in a life or death struggle of moral decision making, and who chose to try to make amends so he could continue to be a citizen of the US. Now, he has fled and he'll probably never return.

I can only hang my head in shame at what our government has done to this man, and so many other soldiers who put their lives on the line for a flawed and illegal war policy.

I pray we can reverse this despicable trend by replacing our government.

[angry_chuck]

4. Profits over People

Neoliberalism and Global Order by Noam Chomsky is a good short read showing some of the blood lust behind our war profiteer admininstration and basically how neoliberalism will divide the rich and poor effectively subjugating all of humanity as well as the Earth to a small hegemony of corporate paymasters.

I hope Cheney has another heart attack soon...Let's all hope.

[keopeli]

5. I hope Cheney is gone as soon as possible, too.

Welcome to DU, and thanks for posting!

[Megahurtz]

14. Welcome to DU, chuck!

:toast:

[htuttle]

6. Sir, No Sir!

http://www.sirnosir.com/

[NaturalHigh]

7. I'm a little skeptical of his story.

I find it hard to believe that his lawyer had reached a deal for a discharge "Under Other Than Honorable Conditions". Normally, anyone who deserts during wartime is given at least a Bad Conduct discharge, if not a Dishonorable discharge.

For anyone not familiar with military discharges, an Other Than Honorable discharge is considered administrative, while a Bad Conduct or Dishonorable discharge is considered punitive.

[Katzenjammer]

9. Why? Regardless of what BushCo call it, this is NOT wartime.

War requires a formal declaration by Congress.

[AlwaysQuestion]

10. Who the hell cares!

Save your skepticism for big government who would take our young and make fodder out of them. I for one welcome the kid to Canada. Let's hope that our new $%^#@% government gives him and others like him(or her) a well deserved break.

[NaturalHigh]

11. I wasn't defending the administration...

or the war. I was merely pointing out that under the circumstances, an Other Than Honorable discharge would be unusual.

[AlwaysQuestion]

16. Mea culpa

Okay, so maybe I was far too fast at a retort--and got it wrong to boot--for that I apologize. I'm just very touchy about the subject of war and the useless waste of life it entails. What irks me the most is that those who start wars for their own personal agendas at the expense of the young and the innocent are far worse cowards than those they nail for getting themselves out of a war.

Again, sorry.

[NaturalHigh]

17. Don't sweat it.

I know this war is a touchy subject that evokes strong feelings from almost everyone here. While I'm far from a pacifist, I also feel that war should be a last resort.

[Recursion]

12. bad conduct/dishonorable requires a court martial

The CO can't just give the guy a BCD or dishonorable; if he would prefer to have this matter disappear quickly without too much fuss or press, he has to make it NJP and give him an administrative discharge.

[NaturalHigh]

18. Yes, that's true.

If I recall correctly, a Bad Conduct discharge can be given by a Special Court Martial, while a General Court Martial is necessary to give a Dishonorable discharge. However, many courts martial are settled fairly quickly be plea bargain with a military judge sitting alone.

[Recursion]

19. Yeah, but my guess is there's some info here...

...that the CO doesn't want getting above his level, if you know what I mean, and that means NJP for the good AWOLer. That's just total gut reaction on my part, but I suspect that this kid never would have gotten any kind of deal if he didn't have some dirt on someone.

[NaturalHigh]

20. Quite possible.

If he was really offered an administrative discharge, it must have been some pretty damning stuff.

[deutsey]

8. You fucked up...You trusted them!

:eyes:

[Megahurtz]

13. Go Go GO!!!!

:bounce:

[roody]

15. Que le vaya bien!