Name:   MrHodja - Subject:   What do former military people here Date:   11/26/2019 2:30:26 PM

That is a tough call, with considerations aplenty weighing on the decision. While we take pride in doing the honorable thing, there really isn't a whole lot about war that is honorable. One needs to consider the conditions we place our warriors into...raw, they die or I die situations, with horrors many can't take without having severe PTSD.  One needs to ask if it is fair to use peacetime norms to form judgements on wartime  events.

in the case of Gallagher, he was acquitted of the murder charge but convicted of having his picture taken with a dead enemy.  Was that bad judgement?  Yes, that is dishonoring the enemy fighter as a human being.  Is it understandable?  I think you would have to look at Gallagher's previous service to determine if it was a one-off to an otherwise honorable career or another in a series of questionable acts.  If the latter, pulling his pin might be warranted.  However, if a one-off you need to consider what it might do to the SEALs as an elite fighting force. It could negatively affect morale. It could make it hard to recruit new SEALs.  

Whether Trump should have jumped in is debatable.  It tells SEALs that he has their back.  Might it embolden others to commit such acts? Maybe but I wonder if that one symbolic gesture would be enough to turn the SEALs into a bunch of dirty scumbags.

In my cybersecurity work we often have to answer questions with "it depends".  I think that is probably the best answer here, and would have to consider many variables before coming up with an answer.