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| Fifth Column |
| Anti-Iraq War Protester, Now Running For Congress, Claims Honorable, Not General Discharge |
| 2010-03-08 |
| An Iraq war veteran will be kicked out of the Marines days early with a general discharge after he wore his uniform during an anti-war demonstration, the military announced Wednesday. The military said Lt. Gen. John W. Bergman, commanding general of Marine Forces Reserve in New Orleans, agreed Monday to give Marine Cpl. Adam Kokesh a general discharge, based on the recommendation of a panel that met last week at the Marine Corps Mobilization Command in Kansas City. A general discharge is one notch short of honorable. Kokesh got in trouble after The Washington Post published a photograph of him in March roaming the nation's capital with other veterans on a mock patrol. A superior officer e-mailed Kokesh, saying he was being investigated because he might have violated a rule prohibiting troops from wearing uniforms at protests. The demonstration marking the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq was aimed at bringing the experience of the war home to Americans. Kokesh, a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, responded to the superior with an obscenity, prompting the Marines to take steps to remove him with an "other than honorable" discharge. This is an older news story, as I am not posting the link to his campaign in New Mexico for congress, as he does not deserve hits on his page. However, on it he claims an Honorable discharge. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose |
| #7 No Gulf Bravo, we get honorable discharges too. |
| Posted by: Mr. Bill 2010-03-08 22:45 |
| #6 I was interested, so I checked out his web site. I think he is running as a Ron Paul Republican. In his writing he comes off as smawmy. I bet he is a real political animal. |
| Posted by: penguin 2010-03-08 18:28 |
| #5 Lurch was an Officer. Officers resign their Commissions instead of receiving discharges. |
| Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC 2010-03-08 17:41 |
| #4 Re #2: Isn't that what John Kerry (probably) did? He was probably discharged with something other than an honorable discharge after he participated in the Winter Soldier lie sessions. And he met with the North Vietnamese during the peace negotiations. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2010-03-08 17:25 |
| #3 Corporable Klinger would have been jealous. |
| Posted by: gorb 2010-03-08 16:54 |
| #2 For example, someone who has fulfilled their military obligation but gets out before the official end of their enlistment might get a general discharge under honorable conditions. It basically means you were fired but it doesn't result in the loss of any benefits. Also, he may have had the discharge upgraded to Honorable. That can usually be done in about 75% of cases by sending a letter to the DoD after you have been out for 6 months to a year. |
| Posted by: crosspatch 2010-03-08 16:54 |
| #1 One can receive a "General Discharge under Honorable Conditions". |
| Posted by: crosspatch 2010-03-08 16:47 |