It was disingenuous for Klimkewicz to offer to clear land mines without carrying a weapon, because he knows "every Marine a rifleman." Any mine-clearing operation requires covering fire, in case of an enemy ambush. It would place his life and the lives of his fellow Marines in danger if he were unarmed in such a situation.
The complete facts of this case have not yet been reported. Klimkewicz applied for CO status immediately before his unit deployed for the first Iraq cycle, which was immediately AFTER HE RE-ENLISTED. Again, let’s make the timing very clear: during his first enlistment, he converted to the Seventh Day Adventist church. But he decided to re-enlist AFTER his conversion. He swore an oath when he reenlisted, and part of that oath was swearing he was not a CO, but one month later, as soon as he learns he needs to go to Iraq, he’s a CO? He was permitted to stay home from that deployment while his CO package was considered. Fourteen months later, his application was rejected, and he was returned to full duty. His unit had returned from Iraq and gone back again in the meantime, and he was called upon to deploy as a casualty replacement. He refused to go, refused to train to go, and when given one last chance to follow a direct order to draw his weapon, still refused to follow a lawful order.
No matter the sincerity of his beliefs, he was not a CO. The Marine Corps cannot function as an institution if there is a muddy "middle ground": CO, not CO, and not CO, but we won’t punish you for refusing to obey a lawful order because you don’t want to.
It was disingenuous for Klimkewicz to offer to clear land mines without carrying a weapon, because he knows "every Marine a rifleman." Any mine-clearing operation requires covering fire, in case of an enemy ambush. It would place his life and the lives of his fellow Marines in danger if he were unarmed in such a situation.
The complete facts of this case have not yet been reported. Klimkewicz applied for CO status immediately before his unit deployed for the first Iraq cycle, which was immediately AFTER HE RE-ENLISTED. Again, let’s make the timing very clear: during his first enlistment, he converted to the Seventh Day Adventist church. But he decided to re-enlist AFTER his conversion. He swore an oath when he reenlisted, and part of that oath was swearing he was not a CO, but one month later, as soon as he learns he needs to go to Iraq, he’s a CO? He was permitted to stay home from that deployment while his CO package was considered. Fourteen months later, his application was rejected, and he was returned to full duty. His unit had returned from Iraq and gone back again in the meantime, and he was called upon to deploy as a casualty replacement. He refused to go, refused to train to go, and when given one last chance to follow a direct order to draw his weapon, still refused to follow a lawful order.
No matter the sincerity of his beliefs, he was not a CO. The Marine Corps cannot function as an institution if there is a muddy "middle ground": CO, not CO, and not CO, but we won’t punish you for refusing to obey a lawful order because you don’t want to.