Do you think this is right?

wombleboy05 · 05-03-10, 02:08 PM

"A soldier who refused to return to Afghanistan because he opposes the war has been jailed after admitting going absent without leave (Awol).

L/Cpl Joe Glenton, 27, from York, joined the Army in 2004 but absconded in 2007 after serving with the Royal Logistic Corps in Afghanistan.

He handed himself in after two years and six days' absence.

L/Cpl Glenton, who is based at Abingdon in Oxfordshire, was jailed for nine months at a Colchester military court.

He was also reduced to the ranks. "

Source - BBC News - Awol soldier L/Cpl Joe Glenton jailed for nine months

He had been sent to prision because he didn't go back to war. Do you think that is right? Forcing a soldier to go back to war. Especially after he has already been once.

**MJ10** · 05-03-10, 02:11 PM

Why is he a soldier if he's opposed to war?

I do think it's wrong though.

Nero · 05-03-10, 02:11 PM

Thats wrong. If a soldier doesn't want to fight, he doesn't want to fight. He probably doesn't want to return because he saw some terrible things over there. I have a friend serving in the US Marines and he is on his 3rd tour.

Larkino · 05-03-10, 02:12 PM

if it was ww2 he would've been shot for desertion

wombleboy05 · 05-03-10, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MJ10

Why is he a soldier if he's opposed to war?

I do think it's wrong though.

I'm guessing because he's already been once and expiranced it that he now knows what it's like and opposes it.

messyhead · 05-03-10, 02:34 PM

If he didn't want to go back, he could have applied for discharge. By going AWOL he was breaking Army law which is an offence and treated by court martial. The penalties for going AWOL are known about, so he should have applied to leave the Army rather than go AWOL.

In this respect, I don't think it is wrong that he was jailed.

If he didn't want to fight in a war, then he shouldn't have joined the Army.

wombleboy05 · 05-03-10, 02:37 PM

Surely he knew he wouldn't be discharged. Otherwise he would of done this and not got in trouble.

I don't know as I don't know about this kind of thing.

iFreeZone · 05-03-10, 03:18 PM

does he oppose war or does he oppose this one in particular....

SometingStu · 05-03-10, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Larkino

if it was ww2 he would've been shot for desertion

To me WW2 was different, that was a war that affected the whole world, and it was a man's duty to fight.

This isn't.

mikejoy1969 · 05-03-10, 05:30 PM

I don't think its wrong. He joined the army for cripes sake. That is what armies do !
Thats like a fireman saying Ooh I cant go in there there's flames in there !
Or a nurse saying i won't be in today in case i see some blood.

get a grip if you dont wanna fight dont join the bloody army.

Jon · 05-03-10, 05:30 PM

When the armed forces came to college to try to recruit us, one of the things ill never forget one guy saying was "when you join, you belong to us for 9 years" - if someone decides to sign up to the forces then they know what they are letting them selves in for.

I know of people in the Army/TA who have been discharged due to stress etc so if there was a valid medical/physiological issue I am sure it would have been handled fairly.

Harsh decision maybe, but it was the right one.

williamblah · 05-03-10, 07:50 PM

Without strict penalty for breaking rank, soldiers psychologically would not be able to follow the orders they are given blindly, which is what they are expected to do.

I am a pacifist, and so I believe that fighting is wrong full stop, however, as long as armies do exist, rules like this will be necessary.

alphawoo · 05-03-10, 10:28 PM

Not strict enough in my opinion, Should have to stay in prison untill he has served his compulsary nine years.

williamblah · 06-03-10, 01:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alphawoo

Not strict enough in my opinion, Should have to stay in prison untill he has served his compulsary nine years.

Mind if I ask why?

The reason for such strict punishments is to assist in the whole package of things used by the army to turn people into order-following machines, without which the army will simply fall apart. It is only necessary to be strict enough to do the above, if a human feels that they cannot take being in the army, why should they be put into prison? I wouldn't want my tax money being used to keep someone like that behind bars!

tronsmith · 06-03-10, 10:11 AM

I think it's absolutely right that he goes to prison. The role of our Armed forces is to protect our country. If this man wasn't made an example of and had been let off it would encourage others to go AWOL. Our military can't be a soft touch!

I would go further than Alphawoo and say that he should spend more time in prison than the rest of his mandetory service time. Some soldiers may think otherwise that it's best to stay in prison for a few years than potentially die in war.

On a personaly level it's a shame that he is going to prison for opposing a war but for the good of this country we need to have armed forces which will protect us rather than flee in the face of danger.

sgll · 06-03-10, 10:53 AM

i think its wrong... why? cos the soldiers dont get paid knowwhere nr as much as they should for risking their lifes.. they do alot and still get treated like crap.

wombleboy05 · 06-03-10, 12:57 PM

But soldiers were made to think they will be properly equiped in war.

They are not at the moment. Equipment is not what it should be.

ElectroGirl · 06-03-10, 01:01 PM

I'm sure many or even all soldiers wish to be home with their families too. But he signed up, and he knew what he was in for..

Genesis · 07-03-10, 10:51 PM

that is seriously messed up..

tronsmith · 09-03-10, 10:12 AM

It's not messed up. We don't want all of our troops (who protect our country) to all run home because they don't want to go to war. As someone said before, it's like a fireman not going into a burning building because there's fire in there.

05-03-10, 02:08 PM	#1
wombleboy05 iPod 20gb Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 591	Do you think this is right? "A soldier who refused to return to Afghanistan because he opposes the war has been jailed after admitting going absent without leave (Awol). L/Cpl Joe Glenton, 27, from York, joined the Army in 2004 but absconded in 2007 after serving with the Royal Logistic Corps in Afghanistan. He handed himself in after two years and six days' absence. L/Cpl Glenton, who is based at Abingdon in Oxfordshire, was jailed for nine months at a Colchester military court. He was also reduced to the ranks. " Source - BBC News - Awol soldier L/Cpl Joe Glenton jailed for nine months He had been sent to prision because he didn't go back to war. Do you think that is right? Forcing a soldier to go back to war. Especially after he has already been once.

05-03-10, 02:11 PM	#2
MJ10 Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Thatcham, Reading Posts: 14,581	Why is he a soldier if he's opposed to war? I do think it's wrong though. __________________ 2011 Winner of Best Site Award and Grammanazi Award. Runner up for Member of the Year 2011 Spoiler Received from FreebieJeebies: £1,854.03 Amazon Vouchers (£275) \| Wii Black & Game (£200) \| Textbooks (£40) \| Samsung T220HD (£200) \| WiFi Printer (£38) Samsung R580 (£689) \| Belkin Case (£15) \| Catlike Whisper Plus (£102) \| JVC Hi-Fi (144) \| Kenwood Microwave (£62) 2xHDMI (£5.03) \| Omron Scales (£30) \| 2xBluRay (£10) \| Kitchen Crockery (£44) Received from KUDOS: £1,920.50 Philips Hi-Fi (£138) \| iPhone 4 Case (£4) \| SEO Book (£13) \| Russell Hobbs Kettle (£40) \| 3D HDMI Cable (£11.99) Samsung UE40D6530 3DHDTV - BD-D6500 3D BluRay Player - Skype Camera - 2x3D Glasses and BluRay Film (£946) Wireless Headphones (£55) \| 1TB HDD (£55) \| IceAge DVD Box Set (£10) \| BluRay Blank Disk Package (£26.48) Harry Potter 1-8 BluRay (£32.30) \| Nike+ Running Package (£35) \| HDMI Cable (£5) \| Extension Lead (£18) Russel Hobbs Iron (£20) \| Brabantia Ironing Board (£55) \| Just Dance 3 (£23) \| TV Aerial Cable (£2) Samsung UE32D5520 HDTV (£380) \| Amazon Voucher (£51) Received from Xpango: £180.94 Affiliate Bank Transfer (£32.20) \| Affiliate Bank Transfer (£49.74) \| Apple TV (£99) Received from Affiliates: £263.20 Amazon Affiliate - Voucher (£263.20) ^^ See what I have received and how I'm doing ^^ Free iPhone \| Free iPhone \| Free iPhone 4S \| Sign Define App \| Freebie Proof Photo Blog Total Received: £4,218.94 plus Current Stats: 117 green 21 pending Spoiler Free Games Consoles \| Gaming Deals \| Sony Vita

05-03-10, 02:11 PM	#3
Nero iPod 30gb Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Cheltenham England Posts: 1,493	Thats wrong. If a soldier doesn't want to fight, he doesn't want to fight. He probably doesn't want to return because he saw some terrible things over there. I have a friend serving in the US Marines and he is on his 3rd tour. __________________

05-03-10, 02:12 PM	#4
Larkino Call me Vlad Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: South London Posts: 9,503	if it was ww2 he would've been shot for desertion __________________ Free Xbox 360 S \| Free Wii \| Last.FM

05-03-10, 02:34 PM	#6
messyhead iBook Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Glasgow Posts: 2,266	If he didn't want to go back, he could have applied for discharge. By going AWOL he was breaking Army law which is an offence and treated by court martial. The penalties for going AWOL are known about, so he should have applied to leave the Army rather than go AWOL. In this respect, I don't think it is wrong that he was jailed. If he didn't want to fight in a war, then he shouldn't have joined the Army. __________________ Newbie's - Want to build a Website? Look here for help. Received about £1600 worth so far! Spoiler 16GB Ipod Touch from Ipods.Giveaway 2 x Nintendo DS Lites from Gifts.Kudosnetwork Nintendo Wii from Nextgen.Giveaway Nintendo Wii from Gifts.Kudosnetwork Wii Games - Tiger Woods 09, Mario & Sonic Olympics, PES2008 and Mario Kart Buffalo 1TB Drive from Gifts.Kudosnetwork Sony PSP Lite - from Gifts.Freebiejeebies Phillips Steam Generator Iron - from Gifts.Freebiejeebies £51 Amazon Vouchers - from Gifts.Freebiejeebies £560 in Bank Transfers Free Nintendo Wii \| Free Ipod Touch \| Free PS3

05-03-10, 02:37 PM	#7
wombleboy05 iPod 20gb Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 591	Surely he knew he wouldn't be discharged. Otherwise he would of done this and not got in trouble. I don't know as I don't know about this kind of thing.

05-03-10, 03:18 PM	#8
iFreeZone Mini Mac Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 7,364	does he oppose war or does he oppose this one in particular.... __________________ Free iPod

05-03-10, 05:30 PM	#10
mikejoy1969 iPod 20gb Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 709	I don't think its wrong. He joined the army for cripes sake. That is what armies do ! Thats like a fireman saying Ooh I cant go in there there's flames in there ! Or a nurse saying i won't be in today in case i see some blood. get a grip if you dont wanna fight dont join the bloody army. __________________ Gifts.RI Conga line sign up and get two greens back. Checkout my site www.freeipod4.me.uk

05-03-10, 05:30 PM	#11
Jon MJ lady with maracas Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Leeds Posts: 12,799	When the armed forces came to college to try to recruit us, one of the things ill never forget one guy saying was "when you join, you belong to us for 9 years" - if someone decides to sign up to the forces then they know what they are letting them selves in for. I know of people in the Army/TA who have been discharged due to stress etc so if there was a valid medical/physiological issue I am sure it would have been handled fairly. Harsh decision maybe, but it was the right one. __________________

05-03-10, 07:50 PM	#12
williamblah iPod 60gb Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Colchester, Essex Posts: 1,635	Without strict penalty for breaking rank, soldiers psychologically would not be able to follow the orders they are given blindly, which is what they are expected to do. I am a pacifist, and so I believe that fighting is wrong full stop, however, as long as armies do exist, rules like this will be necessary.

05-03-10, 10:28 PM	#13
alphawoo iPod 30gb Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: England Posts: 1,032	Not strict enough in my opinion, Should have to stay in prison untill he has served his compulsary nine years.

06-03-10, 10:11 AM	#15
tronsmith iPod 60gb Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Brighton Posts: 1,663	I think it's absolutely right that he goes to prison. The role of our Armed forces is to protect our country. If this man wasn't made an example of and had been let off it would encourage others to go AWOL. Our military can't be a soft touch! I would go further than Alphawoo and say that he should spend more time in prison than the rest of his mandetory service time. Some soldiers may think otherwise that it's best to stay in prison for a few years than potentially die in war. On a personaly level it's a shame that he is going to prison for opposing a war but for the good of this country we need to have armed forces which will protect us rather than flee in the face of danger.

06-03-10, 10:53 AM	#16
sgll iBook Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Brizzle Posts: 2,504	i think its wrong... why? cos the soldiers dont get paid knowwhere nr as much as they should for risking their lifes.. they do alot and still get treated like crap.

06-03-10, 12:57 PM	#17
wombleboy05 iPod 20gb Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Surrey Posts: 591	But soldiers were made to think they will be properly equiped in war. They are not at the moment. Equipment is not what it should be.

06-03-10, 01:01 PM	#18
ElectroGirl Mini Mac Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Plymouth! Posts: 5,666	I'm sure many or even all soldiers wish to be home with their families too. But he signed up, and he knew what he was in for..

07-03-10, 10:51 PM	#19
Genesis iPod 30gb Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Soon to be in Florida. Posts: 1,065	that is seriously messed up..

09-03-10, 10:12 AM	#20
tronsmith iPod 60gb Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Brighton Posts: 1,663	It's not messed up. We don't want all of our troops (who protect our country) to all run home because they don't want to go to war. As someone said before, it's like a fireman not going into a burning building because there's fire in there.