Two Marines under fire after desecration of Taliban bodies

Staff Sgt. Joseph W. Chamblin and Staff Sgt. Edward W. Deptola of the United States Marine Corp are being prosecuted for a stunt they pulled against dead Taliban members. These two Marines were captured on film for urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban members. Now, they are being court-martialed for their exploit act. The incident occurred in July 2011, in Afghanistan. According to CNN, “The incident did not come to light publicly until this past January when a 39-second video showing the incident was posted on several websites, including YouTube”(U.S. Marines Charged). This situation is very profound, because without the use of multimedia these two Marines would probably not be facing prosecution today.

Now, lets take a step aside for a second. I understand that this video clip is probably not fabricated and in fact did occur. But it is very interesting to point out that with all the editing software systems that are available to the market, a video similar to this situation could have easily been tampered with. This can be a scary thought, because Taliban members might be able to fabricate video clips of other U.S. soldiers and get them caught up in a similar situation that these two Marines find themselves in today. With the publication of this video clip some soldiers may feel that they won’t be able to fully express their actions in battle. Now urinating on dead bodies of the opposition, one might see it as an appalling action. But what if a soldier is in situation that will require them to act out in a similar appalling action to defend and save their life. Will they feel that someone could be filming that particular instance and they wouldn’t act in that manner because of the fear of later consequences? Now, this is just a hypothetical situation but what if it means the outcome of life and death of a soldier.

            Back to the issue that is at hand, there are many ethical and moral statements that can be brought to our attention. I understand that urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban members was not an honorable undertaking on these two Marines part. I would like to believe that these Marines and other Marines would hold themselves to higher standards, which they are taught within the Corps. In war situations soldiers who have killed the opposition should respect the bodies of the dead. The ethics and morals in war should be upheld, when killings have occurred. Also these actions by these Marines have placed other Marines and U.S. Soldiers at risk. Since the video has been published on the internet, Taliban members who have internet access can see the actions of these two Marines. In that sense other Taliban members might feel the need to retaliate against U.S. soldiers.

            Even though the actions taken by these two Marines are viewed as unethical in war situations and they should be held to higher standards; I feel it is important to point out that Taliban members on the other hand have taken far worse actions against U.S. soldiers.

            With all that information laid out, what side of the table would you sit on? Should these Marines be court-martialed? Should their actions be seen as heat of the moment expressions of anger, and be excused? What are your thoughts and concerns? 

                                          Video of US marines urinating on Taliban sparks outrage

Bibliography

Craggs, Ryan. "U.S. Marines Urinating On Taliban Video Brings Criminal Charges." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 24 Sept. 2012. Web. 25 Sept. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/24/marines-urinating-taliban-video_n_1910267.html?utm_hp_ref=world>.

Staff, CNN Wire. "Two Marines to Face Court Martial over Desecration of Taliban Bodies - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, 24 Sept. 2012. Web. 25 Sept. 2012. <http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/24/us/marines-abuse-court-martial/index.html?iref=allsearch>.