Traitors, Terrorism, and Truths

Lots of negative press for the 3rd Infantry Division and Fort Stewart, thanks to a single traitorous Soldier. He is a young private and cavalry scout who was radicalized by ISIS and terrorist ideology. Fortunately, he was neither exceptionally qualified nor was he in a position to provide specific and critically harmful information. Another bit of fortune is that the JTTF intercepted him, entered into discussions with a member of U.S. counterintelligence, was arrested, and is now in custody awaiting prosecution for his crimes.

“As we allege today, Bridges, a private in the U.S. Army, betrayed our country and his unit when he plotted with someone he believed was an ISIS sympathizer to help ISIS attack and kill U.S. soldiers in the Middle East,” said William F. Sweeney Jr., head of New York City’s FBI office.“

There is a saying that one “aw shucks” flushes a thousand “attaboys” right down the toilet. In a world where cancel culture and manipulative media hold significant influence, it is very easy to focus public opinion on the negative and aberrant in our military, our society, and our own lives. While it is important to remain vigilant and to acknowledge that such people exist and activities occur, it is also important to remember that Soldiers like this do not represent “us” as a whole.

As I’ve often explained in the three decades since I first pulled on combat boots, the military is a slightly curated microcosm of American society. We don’t perfectly match the demographics of the nation, but we are getting there. We weed out or “vet” those who seek to join our ranks, and to the extent possible, we mold Soldiers from the better half of American society. Criminal background, mental and physical aptitude to serve, and other factors are used to screen applicants and bar entrance to those who are poorly qualified. The quality of that military recruit reflects a snapshot in time. In the months and years after that, life (and sometimes war) happens.

It is not appropriate to paint every Soldier with the misdeeds and lack of honor displayed by this individual any more than it is correct to assume that every Soldier in the Army and 3rd Infantry Division ranks is as heroic or selfless as SFC Alwyn C. Cashe. Each Soldier is a human, with all of the potential for greatness and all of the frailties of humanity. We are not robots or automatons, and we fight the same personal and professional battles every day like every other American. Honorable service is a choice. How and when you end your service is a choice. How you choose to serve or to view those who do is a result of the wolf you choose to feed.

So let’s recognize that dishonorable Soldiers and actions exist, and be thankful that we have mechanisms to try to manage that. However, let us not forget the SFC Alwyn Cashe’s and the SFC Paul Smith’s, who are also representative of the service and sacrifice so many Marne Soldiers have shown so often and for so long.

#3ID #RockOfTheMarne #OIF #OND