"Liberal Views" force soldier out of military

[Theophylact]

A letter to the Sumter Item:

Liberal views force soldier out of military

I am writing this in response to a series of letters published by The Item, beginning with my own letter on March 14, 2003 titled "Bush Shows Arrogance Not Leadership." In it, I discussed the relevance of United Nations approval prior to the War in Iraq, as well as the consequences of "going at it alone." Following the printing of my letter, a pair of readers retaliated by attacking my loyalty and ability to "cover their son's back." The more striking of the two had this to say:

"If Sgt. E-5 Ferriol is who he says he is and is in the job he claims he is in, I think about now he will be in front of his commander answering a lot of questions concerning his loyalty, the enlistment oath and above all the oath he took to get the security clearance to be in the job he claims to be in. I would not want a person with his views in a foxhole next to me nor could I rely on intelligence analysis he performed that might get me killed. I took what I think is the correct action, cut the article out of the paper, wrote a cover letter and sent it to the DoD for action."

I would like to take this opportunity to let Mr. Simpson know that I am who I say I am and I was in the job I said I was in. I honorably served my country for eight years in the United States Marine Corps; providing honest intelligence analysis and collecting countless awards and promotions throughout my career. I was also a leader and mentor to scores of young men and women. In those eight years, I sacrificed more of myself for this country than most men and women ever will in their lifetime. But, thanks to the zeal and quick judgment of this individual, I am no longer serving our beloved country. His forecast was correct. Following his letter to DoD, I was brought up on charges of "Disloyal Statements" under Article 134 of the UCMJ (Uniform Code of Military Justice). Not because anything I wrote was disloyal, but because of my political views and how they differ from Mr. Simpson and others like him. The unfortunate aspect of this is not my demise, but their inability to understand or accept the opinions of others as different from their own. Nonetheless, I was forced to retain an attorney and undergo weeks of scrutiny before being cleared of the charges. I was, however, never allowed to work in Intelligence again; forced to separate the Marine Corps over threats that I would not be allowed to reenlist. Never mind the fact that there is not one single negative mark on my entire eight years of service (the letter incident was considered "hush-hush" so not even that made it on my record), or the fact that every one of my superiors stood up for me during this time, praising my abilities and loyalty to this country. None of that mattered; only my "liberal beliefs."

Also unfortunate is that I am not alone in this situation. We now live in a climate of political correctness and false patriotism where anyone who goes against our president is immediately labeled as disloyal; unpatriotic; a traitor; a liberal. Consider the recent scandal involving the White House CIA leak. Because Mr. Wilson disagreed with our President and publicly acknowledged this, his wife's cover was conveniently blown so she could never work as an intelligence operative again. Also consider the smear campaign that ensues after every major political figure speaks out against President Bush; how all of their dirty laundry is quickly hung out to dry. Maybe you should also consider the Dixie Chicks, who received death threats and were boycotted because of their differing "liberal" views. And yet another unknown story is of a struggling solo artist by the name of Julia Rose who tours the northeast playing her guitar and singing in bookstores. She made a lone comment regarding President Bush and is now banned from playing in every Borders bookstore in the northeast. And what was her terrible comment that led to her banishment? Nothing more than the President has "chicken legs."

So, I am not alone. There are countless other upstanding citizens whose views correlate with mine. And if I had it to do all over again, nothing would change. I would still write that letter and I would still complete my service standing tall and proud. I don't have a disloyal bone in my body and most likely never will. Having said that, it's a shame that because of my political views this country lost one more honest service member protecting its borders. In closing I would also like to make one more point. In my letter I said, "… what you failed to state was that with a new war in Iraq, terrorism will not only 'exist' but flourish. The terrorists are winning, and with a unilateral step into war, they will have the biggest recruiting boom in the history of al-Qaeda." As sad as it is, not one of my assumptions have been proven incorrect. So maybe it's not my "liberal views" that will get people killed, but a zealous leader quick to judge.

Adolf Hitler put it best when he said, "What good fortune for those in power that people do not think."

SGT. ROBERT FERRIOL
Former Marine Corps Intelligence Analyst
Sumter

General Jerry Boykin, however, is still Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence...

[wallie_x]

Also consider the smear campaign that ensues after every major political figure speaks out against President......;

Yep, right out of the Clinton play book.

[M_Six]

The attitude that those who disagree with government policy and say so publicly are traitors is exactly the attitude that allowed Hitler to rise to power. In the early years of Nazism, those who spoke out were so severely treated that others who felt the same way were driven into hiding or worse, into complicity. Now I AM NOT comparing the present administration to Nazism. But speaking your mind is not unpatriotic. Quite the contrary. It is those who excoriate dissenters who are unpatriotic. It is the love of country and the fear of losing many of the freedoms that make this country special that leads folks like Sgt. Ferriol to speak their minds.

[Pexster]

Very eloquently put, M-Six!

[Knothead]

Originally posted by M_Six
But speaking your mind is not unpatriotic. Quite the contrary. It is those who excoriate dissenters who are unpatriotic. It is the love of country and the fear of losing many of the freedoms that make this country special that leads folks like Sgt. Ferriol to speak their minds.

Well said, buddy!

As I was reading the article, I was thinking the same thing...like, "Hey! THIS guy is the one I'd want next to me in a foxhole! THIS is the REAL patriot, a guy who puts his best views forward, regardless of personal interest!"

It's sad that this capable Serviceman was laid low by such false patriotism.

But at least he still has his Honor.

[RADAR1797]

I dare say that we do not have the whole story here. I had a professed communist in my squadron and while I found his thought process childish at best, he was not persecuted or drummed out of the Air Force. If his views trancended letter writing (BTW his letter was contrary to the UCMJ, but would have usually waranted a reprimand not discharge) such as insubordination, disorderly conduct, or behavior destroying the moral of the unit, etc... the commander would have to take action to maintain good order and discipline. Given that this story only has one side of the situation, I would caution jumping to conclusions. After all commanders are not empowered to let the troops run the show.

-RADAR

[super gerbil]

People please don't turn this into a 3 page arguement

[Knothead]

Hi, RADAR, well, maybe this is only one side...but it's a pretty compelling side, though.

There's also the point that Sgt Ferriol was working Intelligence, so maybe they're a little more "jumpy" there, and if so, it's understandable.

But I WOULD tend to take the (overwhelming) support of Ferriol's superiors as a fact; and to that end, I feel a great wrong was done here...in that, Sgt. Ferriol should still have his job. That's all.

[MTAtech]

This is nothing new. My father-in-law was dismissed from the army in Korea because his parents had socialist leanings in the 1930's.

Hey, it's a way to get out of a combat zone, though.

[Droppyale]

Like MTAtech said, at least he's not taking a risk of dying for no reason anymore.