I was glad to read about another walkout at Rutgers. While it's obvious that cutting class has no impact on our government, students kept a light shining on one of our government's many crimes that has become ignored, normalized and even glorified by many.
The illegal war of aggression based on lies and deception that dishonors and disgraces the U.S. and unites the world in hating us for an ongoing 5-year crime, makes Sept. 11 look like a bake sale. In addition to killing over a million people, wounding and terrorizing millions more, the illegal war violates the U.S. Constitution, the UN Charter, the Nuremberg Principles, the Geneva Convention and International Humanitarian law.
U.S. troops were betrayed, exploited, lied to, conned and coerced into following unlawful orders to take part in oppressing, terrorizing and killing people who were never a threat, with over 4,000 troops getting killed in the process and thousands more wounded.
American extremists howl of "winning" by means of a Nazi-like victory through domination, however, the illegal war-occupation is a global crime and a crime cannot be won, it can only be stopped. The people and mentality that created and carried out the illegal war can never be the solution to the problems it has created.
It shouldn't be discussed whether ROTC had classes during the walkout. People should be asking if ROTC instructors are teaching cadets that it is their legal duty under the Uniform Code of Military Justice to refuse and challenge unlawful orders. Since the illegal war began, only one soldier has had the sense and courage to do his duty, Lieutenant Ehren Watada. The military is supposed to be politically neutral, but not legally neutral and almost all troops never read or understand the Constitution that they blindly swear to "Support and Defend Against ALL Enemies both Foreign And DOMESTIC".
Supporting the rule of law is not a left vs. right or Democrat vs. Republican issue; it's about doing what is ethically and legally right. On the other hand, the flag wavers who scream "freedom" are often the biggest enemies of the US Constitution, liberty and the rule of law. And any authority that violates the rule of law has no validity.
If students are going to make a positive impact on campus, they have to figure out what they stand for and then take on the sources of illegal war, ignorance, fascism, etc. along with apathy. If true "higher education" is rejected, abandoned or negligently blundered within a university, especially by those who have the most likelihood of being part of aforementioned crimes, then the international accusations of the USA being a rogue state runs to the heart of our country.
Chad Hetman is a Rutgers Alumni and US Army Infantry Veteran, Captain. He enlisted in the NJ National Guard and was commissioned as an officer through Rutgers ROTC program.
