Abusing Our Privates and Others of Higher Rank

The history of the world has been pretty ugly. For millennia, women (and some men) have been the victims of the genericrape, pillaging and looting that seem to attach to so many descriptions of war or other parallel forms of conflict. In third world rebellion, rape is standard operating procedure. Even for “legitimate” military efforts, there is a tradition of voluntary (“camp followers” as in our Civil War) and involuntary (as with German concentration camp captives and Korean “comfort women” maintained by the Japanese in World War II) prostitution that refuses to die. For members of our own military, abusive and forced sex are seemingly a normal part of their “honored” tradition. It is just accepted as a part of “stress relief” in a very dangerous profession: the infamous “boyz will be boyz” defense.

But why, in a modern world, where we are asking for women to bear a great responsibility in combat operations, is there the slightest justification for maintaining a barbaric and dehumanizing tradition? Why are military commanders so severely threatened that they absolutely resist, let’s say “willing to fight tooth and nail,” against any semblance of a neutral system that monitors sexual misconduct? They steadfastly refuse to circumvent “the chain of command” to allow neutral investigators and prosecutors to address a problem that without the slightest doubt continues to plague the military without any real proof that the military is doing anything material to stop the abuse.

At least we are beginning to report more incidents, even as we are doing very little to prevent sexual assaults in our military: “A recent Pentagon report said as many as 26,000 military members may have been sexually assaulted last year, up from an estimated 19,000 assaults in 2011. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York has been leading efforts in Congress to overhaul the way the military justice system handles sexual assault cases.” Huffington Post, June 13^th. But Congress isn’t budging. The system remains unchanged despite many efforts to create another method, outside of the chain of command, for U.S. military victims of sexual assault to claim justice.

Take this most recent example of the problem: “A high-profile New York Air National Guard airlift wing has promoted sexual abusers instead of punishing them, according to the retired officer who handled claims of sexual assault in the unit… ‘I can tell you from my firsthand experiences in this position, the program is BROKE, the commanders do not protect the victims or allow any follow up medical assistance,’ retired Lt. Col. Sharon Dwyer Stepp wrote in a letter she provided to The Associated Press on Thursday. ‘The perpetrators do not get punished, but instead are promoted.’” Huffington Post.

But even within the military, those charged with investigating and enforcing bans on such sexual assault have been alleged to be perpetrators as well: “Lt. Col. Jeffrey Krusinski  [an Air Force officer who led a sex assault prevention unit], 41, was arrested early [May 5^th] in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, accused of grabbing a woman's breasts and buttocks, Arlington County police said… According to the police log posted on the Arlington County web site, the woman fought off a ‘drunken’ assailant in a parking lot about 12:35 a.m. when he tried to grab her again before she called authorities.” CNN.com, May 7^th.

With so many sexual assaults, Republican Senator and former presidential candidate (a veteran), John McCain, is deeply disturbed at the problem and fears that it will impair the military’s ability to attract the best and the brightest women from becoming soldiers and sailors: “‘Just last night, a woman came to me and said her daughter wanted to join the military and could I give my unqualified support for her doing so. I could not,’ McCain, an Arizona Republican, said during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing examining whether all serious sexual crimes should be removed from the chain of command. ‘I cannot overstate my disgust and disappointment over continued reports of sexual misconduct in our military. We’ve been talking about this issue for years and talk is insufficient.’

“McCain also said: ‘At its core, this is an issue about defending basic human rights but it's also a long-term threat to the strength of our military. We have to ask ourselves: if left uncorrected, what impact will this problem have on recruitment and retention of qualified men and women?’” NBC News, June 4^th. President Obama even addressed the issue as part of his commencement address to the Naval Academy (pictured above), but as Commander-in-Chief, you’d think he could do more. This isn’t a partisan issue; it’s a question of what’s right, of our own moral mandate and quest for military dignity! Congress, get off your butt and stop this activity now! Not in the chain of command… that doesn’t work, never has. Deal with it!

I’m Peter Dekom, and enough is enough already!