Ours Is History’s Best Behaved Military
Ralph Peters
August 3, 2007 — THE media love to trash our troops. Every crime alleged to have been committed by a soldier or Marine in Iraq is headlined until it seems that those in uniform are so busy with atrocities they haven’t got time to fight.
No accusation is too preposterous for “respected” media outlets to feature, and the left-wing press convicts our troops long before they see a courtroom. Our service members are portrayed (by those who never served) as a sadistic rabble.
But when you look at the facts - the hard numbers - a very different picture emerges.
While crimes committed by our troops can’t be condoned (and they certainly aren’t), official crime statistics make it clear that we have the best-behaved military in history - one that’s vastly more law-abiding than our general population.
The here-at-home numbers are readily available from public sources. So let’s compare some domestic crime rates with the misdeeds of those vicious storm-troopers of ours.
In the 19-month period - over a year and a half - from Jan. 1, 2006 until the morning you read this, misbehavior by our troops resulted in a total of 59 scheduled court-martials in Iraq - 21 of them general court-martials, which are reserved for the most-serious crimes (murder, rape, robbery, assault, arson and so forth). The other 38 were special court-martials, invoked for lesser offenses, such as disciplinary infractions or petty theft.
OK: 59 trials in 19 months, among an average troop population of almost 140,000. Compare that to civilian crime statistics back home, and it’s clear that any of us would welcome the chance to live among such model citizens - even though our troops are overwhelmingly within the age window where criminal behavior is most frequent.
Start with a city that Money magazine rated as “one of the 10 best places to live” in the United States: Ann Arbor, Mich. Home to a great university, the town has a population of about 113,300 - about 20,000 lower than our pre-surge troop numbers in Iraq.
In 2005 (the last year for which statistics are available), that ideal place to live recorded 1,476 crimes that, if committed by a soldier, would have required a general court-martial - plus a further 2,282 thefts and similar infractions that, depending on the details, would have been handled by either a general or a special court-martial.
Twelve months in Ann Arbor, 3,758 court-martial-equivalent trials. If all the crimes had been taken to court, which one doubts. Nineteen months in Iraq, under the complex stresses of combat? Fifty-nine court-martials. Guess that bastion of ethical liberalism in Michigan needs to go through basic training.
But let’s give peace a chance: The most dogmatically left-wing city in the United States is undoubtedly (the People’s Republic of) Santa Cruz, Calif. With a population of some 55,000 - about a third of our current troop numbers in Iraq - Santa Cruz, where the Age of Aquarius reigns, had 503 violent crimes in 2004 (the latest statistics available) and a total of 3,665 crimes that would qualify for court-martials.
Extrapolate those numbers to match our current troop strength, and you’d have a requirement for more than 10,000 court-martial equivalents. If Santa Cruz were as serious about punishing its criminals as our military is . . .
The military doesn’t do warnings and probation. If a soldier does the crime, he or she will do the time or pay the other relevant penalty - court-martials directly reflect the number of crimes committed. That means that our troops in a combat zone have had less than 1 percent of the crime rate in Santa Cruz - whose City Council in 2003 was proud to be the first in the United States to adopt a resolution denouncing the war in Iraq.
Nor are these hotbeds of peace, love and shirked responsibility alone in being criminal empires compared to the good order prevailing in our military. Take a genuinely decent American city, Lynchburg, Va., with a strong religious tradition, 11 colleges, universities and technical schools and a population in 2006 of 67,720 (about half the pre-surge number of troops in Iraq).
In 2005, Lynchburg suffered 857 criminal acts that would’ve demanded general court-martials in the military and a further 1,805 thefts, many of which would have resulted in special court-martials.
Yet Lynchburg is particularly well-behaved. The stats for many cities are far worse.
Now set those facts against the hypocrisy of so many in the media toward our men and women in uniform. Did any of the reporters wailing about the deplorable behavior of our troops in a half-dozen incidents over four years bother to put those crimes into perspective?
Our troops are performing remarkably well under difficult conditions, and our military does a solid job of screening out sociopaths. But, inevitably, some slip through (the private-for-life who recently conned The New Republic might qualify). And it’s the one scumbag among 10,000 honorable men and women in uniform who gets the press attention.
Of course, we rightly demand model standards of behavior from our troops, as we do from law-enforcement agents and officers. And today’s U.S. armed forces deliver, taking good order and discipline very seriously. We all should be proud of how selflessly and honorably our troops have served as the jackals on the home tear at the military’s carcass.
I learned an important lesson myself in digging out these statistics: I knew, of course, how decent our troops are. I served with them for almost 22 years (and testified at two court-martials in two decades). But on future trips to California - my favorite foreign country - I’ll be sure to give Santa Cruz a wide berth.
I’d hate to be the victim of an atrocity.
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This is so true-why do people seem to think of our troops as such horrid people? The vast majority of them are good,decent people and should be given respect. They are honorable, and should be treated as such.
August 3rd, 2007 at 4:00 amCities controlled by liberal lawmakers have the most laws, the most restrictions… along with the least amount of enforcement (or corrupt enforcement) and the highest crime rates. They do a better job at proving themselves to be inept leaders more than any of us ever could. Take a look at Los Angeles for instance. The state of New Jersey. Chicago. East St. Louis. I know the last one from experience - I grew up there. The place is friggin’ lawless.
That’s just off the top of my head. I’m sure there are more. You can find stats for it on the internet.
Funny how they think a bunch of feel-good legislation will solve everything, but they don’t approve of enforcing it unless it benefits them somehow.
Liberals are in no position to call anyone savage, uncivilized, or anything of that nature. They themselves have no self-control. I think it was here that I read about some guy who parked his Hummer out somewhere and it got fucked up in the middle of the night by some asses who got offended at the gas mileage or some shit. Or the countless stories I hear of the “Support the troops” ribbons stolen from cars and the cars keyed or otherwise vandalized, just because someone doesn’t approve of the war or the military in general. And God forbid you don’t agree with their “beliefs”. They proceed to call you all sorts of names. Of course, we call them names too. The difference is that they earn their labels - they whine like little spoiled brats in a grocery store if you even show the slightest sign of disagreement, while they call us names simply because we don’t follow their irrational train of thought, if you could call it that.
If I sound off-track or sound like I’m rambling up there, it’s because I’m sleepy. I’ve forgotten most of the things I said time and time again as I’ve been typing. It’s 0600 and I ain’t been to sleep.
August 3rd, 2007 at 4:06 amWith that said, most of the servicemen in our military are honorable. The fact that these idiot liberals continue to denigrate their service says something about their character, or lack thereof.
August 3rd, 2007 at 4:10 amFuck the media. Every time they spout their crap they are knocking not only our CURRENT military, but EVERY PAST Soldier & Marine that has EVER served. Most of which go on to become not only Police Officers, Doctors, Lawyers, Engineers, Teachers (__________ Insert profession here).
August 3rd, 2007 at 5:41 amThe safest neighborhoods I have EVER lived in were located ON a military base.
This is no surprise to me as I work with our soldiers everyday, and being a veteran myself I can say that our military men and women are the most honorable people I have every met. They make me very proud to be an American!!!!!
August 3rd, 2007 at 5:42 amOurs Profession (the military) is the most honorable profession compare to other so called countries that have mandatory drafts, poor training, and lousy pay/benefits. On top of that most of these so called 3rd world armies have NO HONOR, NO MORALS! But do the so called bias media check on these unhonorables insurgents who rape, kill, pillage?!! Sometime I ask myself what side are these “A Holes (media) are on!
August 3rd, 2007 at 5:45 amThe nicest, most civil and mannered people I meet in my job at the VT DMV, in descending order:
1. US Service personnel
2. Foreigners
3. Out-of-staters
4. The locals
Think about it!
August 3rd, 2007 at 6:23 amPlease don’t do one of those extrapolations on Philadelphia, the region may decide to put a wall around the city.
August 3rd, 2007 at 6:44 amIt would be interesting to compare those stats to, say, Vietnam, WWII, WWI, and the Civil War. Anybody?
August 3rd, 2007 at 8:41 amjoe friday once said (when he did an internal affairs investiagion of a “dirty cop”) “it is too bad that the police dept. has to get their men fm the human race”.. there will always be a certain % that will be bad,, and when u compound that with the stress of combat and loneliness fm ones loved ones for an extended time personalities are bound to change,,i am sure that the troops at abu ghraib were decent people till they were put in charge of terrorists who would kill 40 kids in a sec…our military is also a stricter society than our normal liberal life style… proud MARINE & air force dad
August 3rd, 2007 at 8:48 amWe could have been like Rome. Instead of subjigating the world or conquering it…we freed the oppressed, and gave their governments back to them.
How many times in the last 100 years has America been called upon to save an oppressed nation? Let’s review shall we: Europe(twice), The Cold War, Kosovo, Bosnia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Afghanistan, Iraq, Greece.
America has done more for the Muslim world than any Muslim nation has.
Our military like all militaries has bad apples in it from time to time…and you notice how fast we get rid of them?
The military is a highly professional organization, which demands far more from its members than many civilian organizations do.
The lefties continue to attack the Profession of Arms, because most of them have never served…or much like Kerry and Webb, got out under less than honerable circumstances.
Some of the worst crtics of the military are those who received Chapter 10’s 13’s or were Court Martialed out.
And of course, there are the lib professors who played their military-industrial-complex games back in the 60’s as hippies and continue to spread the “love” to their mush-headed young minions. (note sarcasm)
Then there was John Kerry’s poor attempt at a joke(Yeah sure Heinz-Ketsup man );which was beautifully answered by an NG unit from the Midwest.
We’re not just a cut above the rest, we are the best.
There has never been, and probably never will be again, a military such as ours, that uses might for good rather than evil.
God Bless the US Military our CIC and the USA.
August 3rd, 2007 at 9:28 amYou know, I just LOVE seeing those photos of our troops with the little kids. Hubby and I sent a bunch of Beanie Babies to an outfit called “Beanies for Baghdad” a couple years ago, and the photos we saw of the little ones receiving these little toys from our troops were just priceless. Oh yes, and the smiles from those officers who just happened to have one or two of them near their desk were kinda cool too
…ahem.
Our troops are just the BEST ANYWHERE!
August 3rd, 2007 at 12:20 pmI agree that we have a well behaved military, but this premise is just plain stupid. It proves nothing to say we had very few courtmarshalls, so soldier crime rates are low for a few reasons. First off soldiers in active duty are almost constantly supervised in one way or another, they don’t have time to break laws. Plus just because there are few dourt marshalls going doesn’t mean bad things aren’t being done (again I think our military is great, I’m just critiqueing the article). The military disciplines soldiers in many ways other than courtmarshal as well, this just doesn’t match up to civilian courts.
August 3rd, 2007 at 2:10 pmWhat they all said already. Over and over again.
Our soldiers are the best.
The left needs shut up about the few and look at the vast overwhelming majority of our military. Their performance of their duties and the accomplishments made speak for themselves if they would only report the truth for once instead of trying to win the next election with their propaganda against our troops.
August 4th, 2007 at 10:44 am