The Bigsibling Blog

Marine Cpl. Adam Kokesh served two tours of duty in Iraq. He is a great man. He put himself in harms way and faced the possibility of death each and every day for those two tours. He is a great American. He deserves to be honored, and deserves each and every right that we enjoy – and he fought for. Kokesh is about two weeks shy of his departure from the Marines. His current status is what is called “Individual Ready Reserve.” This means – as far as I can tell – that he is technically still a Marine, and can be called up to serve, but that he is not currently on active duty. He lives at home, travels where he chooses, and does not report to anyone in the military regarding his daily activities.

The Marines are looking to give Kokesh a “General Discharge” instead of an “Honorable Discharge” because they believe he violated Marine rules regarding the wearing of uniforms without permission. Kokesh is claiming the Marines are violating his free speech rights. Kokesh was in an anit-war demonstration in Washington, D.C. In the demonstration he was wearing his Marine uniform – but with his name tag and insignia removed. The Marines sent him a letter saying he might have violated a rule regarding troops wearing uniforms without authorization. Kokesh reportedly responsed with a letter that said “[unmentionable] you” (according to the Shanin & Parks radio program on KMBZ 980 AM).

By contrast, let us look at Marine Cloy Richards. He did the same thing Kokesh did, wearing his uniform at an anti-war rally. But when the Marines contacted Richards, he agreed not to wear his uniform without authorization again, and the Marines let it go at that. They did not prosecute him. They did not alter his discharge status. Richards presented himself as a cooperative man of honor. Kokesh, on the other hand, lashed out with obscenities and presented himself as a man without honor, who is uncooperative, and generally not the kind of person the Marines would consider worthy of an “Honorable Discharge”.

This case is not about free speech as Kokesh and his attorneys want to make out. It is as simple as him not following rules. Until discharged, Kokesh is still a Marine, whether on active duty or not. He is still a Marine. He is collecting his Marine pay and benefits (meager as those are) and he should still be subject to the Marine rules and regulations. In no way does prohibiting him from wearing his uniform detract or impair his freedom of speech.

Really, Kokesh brought this whole thing on himself. If he had responded in a civil manner to the Marines notice that he might have violated rules, this whole thing would probably not have ever happened. But if he had, we wouldn’t be talking about him would we? So, his terse, obscene and completely uncalled for and uncivil remark has given him his fifteen minutes of fame. I hope he enjoys it well.

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Technorati Tags: Adam Kokesh, Marines, Civility, Duty, Honor, Discharge, Trial, Anti-War Protests

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