Two brothers serving in the Army take different views on a possible war with Iraq

By JOHN GEROME
The Associated Press
3/5/03 11:52 AM

Brothers Travis and Taylor Burnham are both in the Army yet find themselves on opposite sides of a looming conflict with Iraq: one is willing to fight and the other is not.

Travis, 24, is stationed at Fort Drum, N.Y., where he applied for conscientious objector status in January. Taylor, 27, is a combat engineer in Kuwait waiting for a potential invasion of Iraq.

"I know how a mother might have felt in the Civil War having sons on both sides," said their mother, Judith "J.P." Burnham, a social work professor at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tenn. [...]

Well, whatever you say, but that really only works if one of the boys IS ON THE OTHER SIDE!

Travis describes himself as a pacifist. In high school, he was kidded about being not aggressive enough for sports. During basic training, he refused to chant "kill" with the other soldiers. More recently, he marched in anti-war protests and spoke openly about his objections.

"I'm opposed to taking the life of another human being," he said. "I understand there are situations where we react to human instincts and in self-defense, but to aggressively and collectively destroy another human life, my conscience won't allow me to do it." His mother says older brother Taylor has reservations about the war, too, but understood when he enlisted that doing his duty might mean using violence. [...]

Let's stop here for a moment. Our armed forces are voluntary. No one is compelled against his or her will to enlist. The Army doesn't really make a big secret out of the fact that it has big, big numbers of guys carrying real rifles which shoot real bullets, and helicopters, and tanks, and mortars, and mines, and cannons, and rockets, and grenades, and $500 hammers, and all sorts of other stuff that are intended to be used with the express purpose of agressively and collectively destroying another human life. (What a shock!) With this, why would someone who is a conscientious objector enlist in the first place?

In joining the military, the two men followed the example set by their father, Jeff, and oldest brother, Preston. They enlisted in peacetime to earn money for college, gain discipline and see the world.

Travis joined the Army in 1999 after he dropped out of college and ran out of money while traveling in Europe. He sought help from his father to return home.

"I told him I'd send him $300 if he'd join the Coast Guard," recalled the elder Burnham, an engineer and a member of the Coast Guard in the 1960s. "I think it's a good thing for young men or young women to join the military, learn a skill, get some discipline and contribute to the country's safety."

Hmm.

But the Coast Guard had a 22-month waiting list and Travis was impatient. He signed up for a five-year hitch with the Army and is now assigned to the 10th Mountain Division as a photojournalist.

"It was the Clinton administration, the economy was strong and war didn't seem to be on the horizon," Travis said. "Not once did any of the recruiters I spoke with mention war, enemy, shooting or death."

Ah, the Clinton Administration. Nuff said, I suppose. In any event, Travis, they probably didn't mention anything about war, enemy, shooting, or death since the sergeant assumed that as you walked in under your own power and could carry on a conversation, you could probably figure out THAT STUFF WAS SELF-EVIDENT!! (And for what it's worth, in 1999 when dain-bramaged Recruit Burnham mustered in, the Army was engaged in some sort of activity somewhere called Kosovo. I think there might have been something about it on TV or something, but I guess he missed it. You know, the economy was so good and all...)

[...] The Army is investigating [Travis'] conscientious objector application. The process involves 26 steps and usually takes at least 90 days. Travis has already been interviewed by a chaplain and a psychiatrist.

The Army can refuse him, grant him a discharge or move him to a position where he would be unlikely to have to fire on an enemy -- like the position he already has.

"We can't push him much farther back than being a public affairs guy," said Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty of the 10th Mountain Division. "He's a photojournalist. I don't know of any photojournalist in the history of the U.S. Army who has ever killed anybody."

Just a tip here, folks. If the only reason you are enlisting in the army is to get free college money and snappy berets and a pass to the PX, AND you think it's really, like, mean to have an army that might actually use all the heavy ordnance lying about, then it might not be the best idea to sign up.
posted by Terry at 1:42:00 PM