Alan: Could you please explain to me why an army chaplain would need a map of a prison and a list of all the detainees along with their interrogators? I can understand the list of detainees, but what possible bearing (to a minister) would the interrogators be? Is he not escorted so that he doesn't need a map showing the layout of the facility or the locations of the detainees?

While I also advocate taking a deep breath and counting to 10, I can't help but wonder if there is not enough smoke here to indicate there is a fire present.

I'm lookin' in the mayo jar for some insight here, but is it at all possible he wanted to contact friends and relatives of the interogators? Mind you, we've heard that some of the prisoners have not even revealed their names, so maybe they would like to put names with locations from the map? The names of the interogators strikes me as being a bit useless from the Chaplain's perspective.

There is no need for a chaplain to have transportable info about the ID of the prisoners, their locations in the prison, and ESPECIALLY their interrogators.

Consider: The chaplain gets to meet with these folks w/o supervision or (presumably) monitoring. IF CPT Yee was acting as an intermediary between the prisoners and outside parties, the practical consequence could have been to:

a) Inform terror organizations / foreign gov'ts about who is in Gitmo.

b) Make it more difficult to derive intelligence from prisoners, since the prisoners could be armed with information. I mean, how effective is it for an interrogator to claim that "Ahmed told us X" when the chaplain told the prisoner that Ahmed is safe in Waziristan?

c) If the interrogators' ID became public, reprisals could follow, not to mention whatever blowup occurs if some of those interrogators are from unexpected foreign intelligence agencies.

IF, I say again IF the charges stick, then Yee should enjoy a quiet neck stretch. Betraying his oath of office in a time of war is a very serious offense to society.

A final meal of bacon would be a good idea, too.

MG

PS: Full disclosure -- He and I have the same alma mater, though a few years apart. That really stings, too.

MG - You are made of stronger stuff than I. Yee's actions causes me more than a "sting." It causes me real pain. Perhaps it is the nature of a convert to be more gungho than one born to the faith and thus more willing betray their fellow Americans, yet I cannot but help believe that somebody who would have expended the effort to get into West Point, let alone graduate, would have a sense of loyalty and respect for our country and what it stands for. What did they do to him in Syria to (allegedly) betray even his own parents? (The "alledgedly" is because I'm trying to count to 10.)

Applying the 48-hour rule might be useful in this case.

MG,
Could there have been bullying at West Point? Could this guy have been acting out after years of torment at school? Perhaps the psychology of Columbine is in effect- an I'll get you guys back for this mentaility, stroked even further by those in Syria?

I've always those of those who would do us harm as having some kind of low-level mental disease, causeed by angst in the past. Dont get me wrong, a rabit dog needs to be put down know matter how he became rabit.

Humm.. So he’s raised Christian, graduates from West Point, converts to Islam, resigns from the military, goes to Syria for “religious training”, rejoins the military, as a Muslim Chaplin no less. Sounds to me a like a made for TV series about espionage.

I wonder how many more these we have in the military.

Adam,
You theory of motivation is very similar to my own. I always thought Bin Laden's hatred had more to do with his father, his rung on the pecking order, and his relationship to his siblings than the actions of a true believer out to preserve Wahabbi style Islam. Lack of love and attention by fathers is sure screwing up a lot of young men in this country. Less a rabid dog than a hangdog. Question: Does anyone know if guys like this chaplain would have had to undergo lie detector testing like other government employees in sensitive positions?

There is no excuse for treason/traitorous actions. I repeat, there is no excuse for treason. This is not a game, folks. This is life and death for all of us and our country. I should also include that in my mind this is a crime against all of western civilization.

This man knew right from wrong and he chose wrong! My goodness, he was on personal leave from Gitmo with classified info.

I just hope that the families of the interrogators are being protected.

There is no excuse for treason/traitorous actions. I repeat, there is no excuse for treason. This is not a game, folks. This is life and death for all of us and our country. I should also include that in my mind this is a crime against all of western civilization.

This man knew right from wrong and he chose wrong! My goodness, he was on personal leave from Gitmo with classified info.

I just hope that the families of the interrogators are being protected.

As for the 48 hour rule -- he's been in custody since 10 Sept. Does that date ring a bell with anyone?

If he is found guilty, the death penalty needs to be evoked. If he is guilty, he needs to be executed in a very public arena so the murdering scum realize we are dead serious in our fight. If he is guilty he has betrayed not only his country, but also all the troops who have died in the shit hole we lovingly refer to as ME. If he is guilty, I hope he rots in hell. God Bless America, our troops, and Mr. Bush.

I suppose it is with tongue firmly in cheek that some folks are trying to rationalize the actions of Yee. Surely nobody has had an ideal life. We've all been teased or taunted for some reason or another: we're the middle child, the oldest child, the youngest child, and all the other nonsense that has been spewed to explain why we are not responsible for what we do.

The bottom line is that we are each responsible for our own actions. If it is true that Yee betrayed his fellow countrymen, than he must pay the consequences -- regardless of his birth order, his religion, or if his classmates picked on him. Perhaps his time in Syria or his Syrian wife influenced his thinking -- but seeds can only take root in fertile ground. (Still counting....)

adam,

"Bullying at West Point?"

Life at the Academy is much different than what one might see in (really) old movies. Since the days when D. MacArthur was Superintendent, the Academy has moved toward instilling a professional soldier ethic in cadets, and that included getting rid of frat house type hazing initiations.

A lieutenant would be unprofessional if s/he were to bully a soldier. Likewise a cadet bullying another cadet. It can still happen, but is far more trouble for the bully than it is worth.

While one can speculate about what motivates CPT Yee, they are irrelevant to the case. Most likely, his conversion experience was quite powerful -- otherwise, it wouldn't be much of a convesion experience.

CPT Yee is entitled to greater protections as a defendant in a military court than in the federal system, and the likelihood of prosecutorial grandstanding is much less than outside the military -- after all, the prosecuting attorney's chain of command goes to the officer who convenes the court martial. The charges are serious, and evidence exists to substantiate them -- otherwise, they would not have been brought.

I'll leave it to an Army JAG officer to fill in the specifics.

MG

dont pass judgement until you get the facts.
richard jewell

I may be only half-smart, but what need does a chaplain have for the names of interegators? Or a map of the holding areas? I don't like to prejudge, but this sounds mighty fishy.

Psychological profiling is not meant to escuse action, but to understand motivation, how a person thinks, and what their actions and reactions may be as a result of what they are thinking. Of course, they should be held accountable. Even Bush should and will be held accountable.

amandavirginia

clinton has the blood of thousands of muslims on his hands from his lack of action in Kosovo, yet he has never been "held accountable". And, he still has the balls to go over there and speak at the dedication to the memorial for the victims of the serbian slaughter. Just wow. Mr Bush has nothing to be held accountable for. Due to previous administrations lack of action, he has been left to deal with their mess. Hence the reason why clinton has been so quiet. I'm damn glad to call him my Commander in Chief. God Bless America, our troops, and Mr Bush.

CNN is reporting that a US Airman with an Arab-sounding name was arrested about a month ago; he had a laptop in his possession with classified information. It seems this also took place a Gitmo, and the inference fro mthe CNN report is that this earlier arrest led to the arrest of the Chaplain.

CNN is also saying that more arrests are expected.

/// I always thought Bin Laden's hatred had more to do with his father, his rung on the pecking order, and his relationship to his siblings than the actions of a true believer out to preserve Wahabbi style Islam.///

///Could there have been bullying at West Point? Could this guy have been acting out after years of torment at school?///



I can't believe what I'm reading here. I will make one comment.



We continue to entertain the illusion that Bin Laden and his ilk have some legitimate axe to grind at our peril. I have come here for many months and I think these are two of the most outrageous comments I have ever seen, and I've seen a few.

Let me make something very clear to amandavirginia, because adam, at least seems to understand the nature of rabid dogs: There are people coming to kill you, your children, your neighbors, and your way of life, and I assure you, they will not be doing the angst-ridden soul searching for excuses for their behavior that you seem to be doing.

I will say that I do not believe for one......second.......that Bin Laden and his ilk are anything other than evil, as in the absence of good, that of which we are all very, very capable. And even if you do believe that there were factors in his family or "insert pathetic excuse here" that have contributed to the making of the man, remember this:

Osama Bin Laden and CPT Yee, the children may not have had a choice, but Osama Bin Laden and CPT Yee, the adults.....................most certainly did.

They, and only they, are responsible for their behavior. Not their father, not the schoolboy bullies. And they, and only they, should be held accountable, as should their ideology which perpetuates these choices.

To make a suggestion that circumstances excuse their actions not only put you and the rest of us in mortal danger by ignoring the reality of what we face, but it also spits on the grave of those whom were murdered by them. It makes me sick.

johhnyM,

Ditto, dude. I don't give a shit what you went through growing up. It is what you do in adulthood that makes you who, or what, you are. Yeah, some people have shitty parents, give me abreak.

I would like to get more inofs about

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