Letter submitted to the Honolulu Advertiser, but not published

Russell Robison (6/22) condemns Ehren Watada’s refusal to deploy to Iraq as “opportunistic morality,” but Watada is committed to a far more profound principle. War escapes being judged mass murder, if it is state sanctioned and just in cause and execution, following centuries of critical reflection by Christians and others. In condemning this war as unjust Watada is in the company of a large and growing percentage of the US and world populations, including leaders like Jimmy Carter and Kofi Annan.

Watada faces the consequences of violating his oath, if it is illegal to refuse to participate in illegal activity. However, what about President Bush’s repeated violations of his oath, the Constitution, and national and international laws? This Commander in Chief is responsible ultimately for an unjust war sacrificing more than 2,500 lives of American military and injuring physically and/or emotionally many times more. Since the initial terror (“Shock and Awe” bombing), Bush’s unjust war has killed or injured many thousands of innocent Iraqis. If Watada faces several years in prison, then how many does Bush owe, and what about the rest of his incompetent, immoral, and illegal regime which prefers threats and weapons of mass destruction to diplomacy?