Comments on: US Army Deserter Seeking Refugee Status in Canada

By: carol mcl

carol mcl — Thu, 09 Dec 2004 09:23:22 +0000

Hhhmmm for some reason Tegan’s line did not show up in my response. THe line of his I
wanted to have included was “I was used as a dispensible pawn in the current president’s
political(possible even personal)neo-conservative agend”. After which should be:
?? Huh?? Dubya was not even president back when you served in Panama. What on earth would
Jeremy need asylum for in Canada? So he does a little jail time (maybe) for deserting.
Or not. Perhaps they�ll just choose to give him a general discharge so as to take the
wind out of his and others� sails. Either way he should take whatever comes, the
honorable way. After all he was not drafted, he chose to enter the Army. Anyone foolish
enough to think that by joining the military they are not also signing on to perhaps fight
and kill should the need arise when they are called to do so is too foolish to have a gun
anyways.

By: carol mcl

carol mcl — Thu, 09 Dec 2004 09:17:38 +0000

Tegan, you said of your service in Panama: current president�s political (possibly even personal) neo-conservative agenda.>?? Huh??
Dubya was not even president back when you served in Panama. What on earth would Jeremy
need asylum for in Canada? So he does a little jail time (maybe) for deserting. Or not.
Perhaps they’ll just choose to give him a general discharge so as to take the wind out of
his and others’ sails. Either way he should take whatever comes, the honorable
way. After all he was not drafted, he chose to enter the Army. Anyone foolish enough to
think that by joining the military they are not also signing on to fight and kill should
the need arise when they are called to do so is too foolish to have a gun
anyways.

By: Tegan

Tegan — Thu, 09 Dec 2004 02:04:21 +0000

I was once in the military. I served in operation “Just Cause,” better known as the invasion of Panama in 1989. Most people do not remember this war, especially the young adults currently serving in Iraq. The main purpose to the Panamanian invasion, we were told indirectly, was to remove a foreign consultant currently on the CIA�s payroll; an individual by the name of Manuel Noriega. Although, the main reason we were given for the invasion was to protect American interests in the Panama Canal (The “it’s best for the US” spin was even used back during Bush senior�s term). My mission was to search out and destroy any PDF (Panamanian Defense Force) troops who were loyal to Mr. Noriega. When the U.S. invaded, many of these Panamanian troops fled into the deep jungles of Panama, Costa Rica, and Columbia to escape the American onslaught. I spent many days traversing through thick jungles, searching for, and once located, destroying these individuals. I was 19 at the time, and didn�t think much about the consequences of my actions; I viewed it as my job, the way I was going to pay for college (…with the taking of other human life. On another note: I falsely believed I would not do any
combat while serving). Fifteen years later, I am aware of the fact that along with many others, I was used as a dispensable pawn in the current president�s political (possibly even personal) neo-conservative agenda. Funny, now that I think of it, the similarities between the invasion of Panama in 1989 and the invasion of Iraq today are ironic to say the least. If at the time of my service, I was more politically and socially aware/intelligent, I would be writing this comment from Vancouver B.C., but I�m not. Presently, Jerry Hinzman, much like myself while serving in Panama, is just another casualty of a government with its own political, ideological, personal, and highly arrogant agenda. I truly believe Mr. Hinzman has the right to decide if his life is worth being put at risk, being based solely on his disagreement with the political/personal agenda of a few individuals in public office. This is a free country, or is it?

By: POedCanadian

POedCanadian — Thu, 09 Dec 2004 01:33:25 +0000

Send him back to the US now. He is a volunteer, he wasn’t drafted, and if Canada wimps out and gives him refugee status, it makes a mockery of our system, and all real refugees

By: rabidfox

rabidfox — Thu, 09 Dec 2004 01:20:11 +0000

“Hinzman enlisted in the U.S. army three years ago as a paratrooper with the 82 Airborne
Division.” Last I heard, airborne was a volunteer only speciality. In fact, he could
have enlisted into the medical services had he really had a problem with shooting people,
or the MPs if he were really motivated by defense only. This guy is an exploitive jerk.