Taking responsibility: Why I Support Lt Watada.

Nuremberg Trials prosecuted on the war crimes acted out by the Nazi officers. In essence, the officers were put on trial for not acting on their conscious rather than blind obedience. The immoral actions of killing Jews and other "undesirables" should have been stopped by the "middle management" [the officers carrying out Hitler's orders].

The question is: how does one know if their order is immoral? And who decides? It is easy to judge in hindsight or after the fact [e.g., Holocaust] but how does one know in the midst of the action and the decisions have to be made?

No commanders or even man made laws will help you make the right moral decision. Only moral source like the Bible can offer any meaningful guide.

Anyway, I don't know what Lt Watada is basing his moral guidance on, but if he decides his orders are immoral then I'd say good for him: at least he has counted the cost and made his intensions known clearly and will take whatever is coming to him.

Copyright 2006, DannyHSDad, All Rights Reserved.

Update 10PM:

Here's another take on Lt Watada: "Karen Kwiatkowski: All Hail Lt. Watada!"