The third Navy SEAL up on charges of assaulting a terrorist in custody has also been found not guilty. PO 2nd Class Matthew McCabe is a free man, but even so, in the larger scheme, the enemy can claim a victory.
Three of our elite warriors, Navy SEALs, were taken out of the action on the say-so of a known terrorist. The argument that it is an effort to rehab our troops' image in the wake of Abu Ghraib is hogwash. The enemy sees actions like this as weakness, and weaknesses are to be exploited in times of war. It's not about getting convictions, although that would be a nice little cherry on top for them, it's about taking people out of the game. In this, they were extremely successful.
This will not be the last accusation of abuse - it's in the al Qaeda handbook. And if the trials of these three SEALs have proven anything, it's that the ruse works.
Hopefully our military will take these claims of abuse with a boulder of salt from now on. There is a difference between holding yourself to a higher standard and allowing yourself to be sabotaged and undermined.
It's a fine line, but there is no doubt that if any military in the world can walk that line, it's ours.
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