MEDIA ROOTS — Proving the power of social networking, online writing, and blogging, the U.S. military is pushing to dismiss U.S. Marine Sergeant Gary Stein with ‘other-than-honourable‘ discharge as well as banning the Marine from all U.S. military bases, in violation of his First Amendment rights, for dissing Obama on Facebook. Until the dismissal is finalised, Stein has been removed from his San Diego post as a recruiter and reassigned to a desk job without computer access.
Messina
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RT — US marine Sgt. Gary Stein should be dismissed for criticizing President Barack Obama on his Facebook page: that is the verdict passed by a military board looking into Stein’s case.
Following a special hearing at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, the corps board recommended that the marine is given the other-then-honorable discharge stripping him of benefits. If the ruling passes, Stein will also be banned from any US military base.
Stain’s lawyers insist that their client, who superimposed images of Obama’s face on a poster for the movie called “Jackass”, did nothing more than exercise his right to free speech.
“We are truly surprised and disappointed but it was an honor to fight for a hero like Sgt. Stein and every other marine’s right to speak freely,” Stein’s defense lawyer marine Captain James Baehr said, as quoted by the Associated Press news agency.
Baehr stressed that Stein had, in fact, not broken any existing law.
Both the American Civil Liberties Union and United States Justice Foundation, two groups of which Stein’s lawyers are members, claim that his First Amendment rights are being violated.
However, prosecutor Captain John Torresala told the panel that the nine-year marine had repeatedly violated Pentagon policies which limit the free speech rights of service members. He said that Stein should be dismissed after ignoring a warning from his superiors about his Facebook activities.
Read more about Unlike: Marine ‘to be dismissed’ in shame for criticizing Obama on Facebook.
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Funny how the tyrant in chief can send your kids to death for all their illegal wars. Bath them in D.U.. Than steal their death benefits. But God forbid you say anything. By the way isn;t the party line we are fighting them cause they Hate our freedoms. Wow They can have our tyrany and we need our freedoms back. TIME TO TAKE BACK THE REPUBLIC. He was supposedly fighting for his rights as in the 1st amendment. Gee why was this the first one … must be important.
I believe wholeheartedly in every citizen’s right to free speech. However, the military is governed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. This is a very rigid doctrine regarding the proper behavior of our military. Bashing your Commander and Chief, the top ranking military figure in the chain of command, is a huge mistake. Every soldier agrees to follow the UCMJ when they enlist.
This solder took an oath to defend the constitution first and foremost. The constitution was put in place to prevent government from abusing their power. Every administration for the past 30 years has been guilty of abuse. It is only recently that the abuse has come to light due to the internet. The media never gave us the information needed to make honest decisions about how to serve. These solders stepped up when they thought we were under attack from a foreign threat. It turns out the threat could be from within. Remember (defend against foreign and domestic enemies.) If Obama signing NDAA and destroying the constitution doesn’t make him an enemy, what would?
I was a military brat and by an early age was very much aware that even grownups suffered restrictions on their freedoms of speech and certain behaviors the second they signed on the dotted line to join the military. That said, I’m a liberal. But this guy wasn’t just talking politics one afternoon. He considers President Obama the ‘enemy.’ Noone wants to see another bloody rampage on-base from some guy who had clearly been showing signs of cracking. But whatever they do, I think it’s very wrong to deny him medical benefits and mental health support as long as he needs it. There’s no going back on experience in the trenches, if he was actually in combat.
Two points… He didn’t just “diss” the Commander in Chief, he called him an enemy. And he also said, “Screw Obama and I will not follow all orders from him.” That’s not free speech. That’s refusing to do your job. And some would even call it treason against the United States.
Also… As the article says, this man is a RECRUITER. How would people feel if an known al Qaeda operative were a recruiter for the military? What, then, is the difference between al Qaeda and someone who declares our President his enemy?