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Editorial -- 4/26/99
Some of you may have heard of the case of Air Force Captain Joseph Belli. For those of you who have not, allow me to present a brief background.
Two years ago, Capt. Belli met and fell in love with a younger woman. There were two major problems: He was married and she was enlisted. Long story short, he refused to break off the affair when ordered to do so, divorced his then-wife, and married the enlisted woman.
In the meantime, his Commander-in-Chief, a serial sexual harasser, was having an affair on the job with a woman half his age. There is no need to detail the Lewinsky and other affairs here, considering that the news media inundated the public with more than they wanted to know for over a year.
But, Clinton has gotten off virtually unscathed, with most people feeling that it is a private matter between him and his wife.
In contrast, prosecutors say Belli deserves jail time. What total, blatant hypocrisy!
I am not condoning adultery and the chain of command must be protected in the military. But this case reinforces the feelings of the average American that there are two standards of justice in this country: One for the rich and powerful, and one for the rest of us.
Besides that hypocrisy, there are many officers married to enlisted personnel. I worked with a Woman Marine Staff Sergeant that was married to a Lieutenant. Obviously these officers were all guilty of fraternization at one time, yet they were unpunished. If they prosecuted everyone in the military for adultery (which is in the Uniform Code of Military Justice) we would have one helluva personnel problem.
Let's get real, people. If it were no big deal for Clinton to have oral sex with a woman that he obviously didn't give a damn about, then how can a man be sent to jail for committing adultery with a woman he later marries?
Let's go after the harassers, rapists, child abusers, molesters, etc. and leave the consenting adults the hell alone.
For more evidence of how full of crap this country has become, please see the following:
Big Brother legislation proposed by Treasury
Is American foreign policy influenced by racism and religious intollerance?
Privacy issues
Your considered opinions are solicited. Ignorant flames will be ignored.