In the Brig
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Scheller posts on FB (quoted in entirety in case it gets taken down):
Fear cannot exist in the pursuit of love and truth. I believe in love. I believe in America. I believe in strength. I believe in honesty. I believe I am ready to go to jail based on these beliefs.
First you pulled the chain of retirement. I broke that chain. Then you pulled the chain of family stability. That chain also broke. All you have left is the threat of Court Martial. “It’s a felony Stu. No one wants that. It will ruin your whole life.” But you never understood me. I’m comfortable going back to Cincinnati and working at Applebees again. Do you want freedom fries with that?
“Effective immediately upon your receipt below, you are hereby ordered to refrain from posting any and all material, in any form without exception, to any social media. In this context, the term 'social media' shall be construed very broadly to include any medium by which you may share information with groups of people. It includes more traditional forms of social media (e.g., Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn) as well nontraditional methods one might use to circumvent established social media (e.g., mass emails, group text messages, electronic bulleting boards). You are also prohibited from communicating through third parties or proxies.” What happens when you communicate an order that stipulates you to stop communicating? Remember… I have only spoken truth.
Another truth… WE don’t want our children abused in the same failed systems. The systems remain, despite their repeated failures, because key holding hypocrites have safe haven within the system. “Why not just get out and say that Stu? Why not stay quiet and work within the system?” WE say this to you… if you are making a difference on your current path… why is the Republic in decline? The Apathetic American convinces himself to apply pressure in other ways only because he can’t see the invisible chains. The keyholders refuse to take accountability when it is so obvious. They are unable or unwilling to do what is right. But WE are not like the Apathetic American. WE have faith. WE believe what you stand for can only be defined by what you’re willing to risk.
They need US scared. They need US silenced. They need US divided. Fear, division, and ignorance facilitates control. WE the people are not republican/democrat, black/white, straight/gay, christian/atheist, mask/nomask, police/community, wallstreet/mainstreet… so on and so on. We are Americans. Adjectives are not required. Don’t dim your light to walk into their darkness. Walk into their darkness and light shit up.
President Trump. I was told by everyone to kiss the ring because of your following and power. I refuse. While I respect your foreign policy positions, I hate how you divided the country. I don’t need or want your help. You do not have the ability to pull US together. You may even win the next election. But your generation’s time is running out. Tell your son to stop tweeting about me. Your whole family knows nothing about US or our sacrifices. I could never work with you. I’d rather sit in jail and be released with a dishonorable than make compromises in my beliefs.
President Obama. Great at speeches… obviously weak in any intestinal fortitude. President Bush Jr. great at speeches… obviously ignorant in thinking he could import democracy. President Clinton. Great at bringing Congress together… obviously morally bankrupt. This includes his wife.
General Mattis. The warrior monk. We all know you became a monk because you are gay. To be clear, my generation don’t care about sexuality. We are better than that. But our generation does care about honesty. You brought to my Infantry Officer Course 1-06 what can only be described as a female prop. It was uncomfortable for all of us. As soon as you left, we all knew you were a liar. We were young, but not stupid. Back then Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was still a policy. We understood why you lied. But as the policy was rescinded, and we continued to hear the rumors, it bothered us that you kept up the lie. You weren’t a monk. You were dishonest. And for all your talk about the 5-3-5 and counter-insurgency… can we go back and review the record? The academics loved you. You talked about reading books all the time. The only problem… you didn’t win any wars. Maybe you should have read different books.
General Petraeus. The counter-insurgency genius. We all know you went to Yale. We all know that you walked around the wars without PPE. But what if you used that education to offer insight on the ineffective nature of counter insurgency? You led Iraq and Afghanistan because you were such an influential leader. However, history demonstrated you didn’t have the insight of George Bush Sr. who knew when to pull out of a military campaign once the objectives were achieved. History somehow forgot George Bush Sr.’s genius. If you were half as smart as him, you would have recommended an efficient withdraw much sooner than the long wars you promoted. But that would have marginalized the theory of your genius. And without your celebrity… there are no adulterous escapades.
General Flynn. You gave interviews about me. Pretending to understand me. You are the same as the rest. You were caught in a lie. My generation is sick of your lies. We are not the same. Stop speaking my name as if you understand me. You could never understand US.
PHDs teaching at military academies. Bill Lind just wrote an article about my moral courage titled The View from Olympus: The Scheller Affair and Moral Courage. Let me be clear Mr. Lind, despite your contributions to the Marine Corps, you could never understand me. And my contempt for the academics who have attached themselves to the military machine runs deep. I will never relate to a person who refused to fight in the arena, yet feels entitled enough to offer opinions as if the lions should listen. Critics. Mr. Lind… General Berger’s opinion matters more than yours, despite your condescending opinion towards him. Please let all the PHDs in the military education system know the same. And tell General Gray to get off the MCU stage. He had his turn. Maneuver Warfare is outdated. It’s not attrition vs. maneuver. It’s decentralization vs. synchronization. And the critical question of where that balance occurs is the question you failed to address in the current version of MCDP 1. Marines all think decentralization should occur at the lowest levels despite a deeper understanding of how to maximize combat power. But I’m sure your generation of deep thinkers knew that…
To General Alford adjudicating my legal situation. When I briefed you in July you said, “We have an entire generation of LtCols who don’t know how to make decisions. They feel the need to ask permission.” Ask Tom and Sung, they were there. My generation is sick of being bullied. Maybe my generation knows a little bit more than you think. We’ve watched you play politics for 20 years. You thought we were too stupid to learn?
General Donovan, thanks for finishing my fitrep multiple months late as soon as I hit the news. Is it safe to assume you processed the report when I hit the news so that you didn’t look bad? It’s about your optics, it’s never been about US. But if your angry about me speaking the truth, send your Regimental Commander to come find me again. You could have him repeat, “If you interrupt me again, I’m going to fillet you. I will cut you in half.” “I’m going to work you like a slave. I’m going to work you like a dog. I’m going to work your dick into the dirt.” Ask Lobo… he was there for some of it.
Task and Purpose, despite your factually incorrect article about my legal right to prefer charges on General McKenzie (which still has been denied by the same people trying to hold me accountable… even after the news of the drone strike), you don’t understand me. I do plan to bring the whole system down. Yes, Task and Purpose, I am brave enough to say it again. What say you now?
What happens when all you do is speak truth and no one wants to hear it. But they can probably stop listening because… I’m crazy… right?
Col Emmel please have the MPs waiting for me at 0800 on Monday. I’m ready for jail.
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I have to say, he doesn't sound completely rational to me.
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@doctor-phibes said in In the Brig:
I have to say, he doesn't sound completely rational to me.
I agree.
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Brushing aside a groundswell of popular support that included a large number of lawmakers on Capitol Hill, the Marine Corps said Wednesday it was moving ahead with plans to court-martial Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller for his outspoken and viral criticisms of how the top brass handled the Afghan war and its chaotic ending.
The Corps confirmed that prosecutors will lay out six charges next week when Lt. Col. Scheller‘s trial begins inside a courtroom at Camp Lejeune, N.C. A 17-year veteran with multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan under his belt, he has been charged with several offenses in the Uniform Code of Military Justice for going public with his scathing comments on his superiors.
The lieutenant colonel is accused of contempt toward officials; disrespect toward superior commissioned officers; willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer; dereliction of duty; failure to obey an order; and conduct unbecoming an officer.
Lt. Col. Scheller, who was released Tuesday after spending about a week in the brig even before charges were filed, was said to be “doing great” and is “energized by the support of rank-and-file Marines,” according to a source familiar with the case. He has been inundated with messages from fellow combat veterans who support his demand for accountability, the source said.
The charges, which came after the Corps reportedly refused to let Lt. Col. Scheller voluntarily resign from the service, stem from several social media messages this summer where Lt. Col. Scheller offered stinging rebukes of government and military leaders over the nation’s Afghanistan policies. He called for resignations from top Pentagon officials and dereliction of duty charges against Gen. Frank McKenzie, commander of U.S. Central Command.
When his commanding officer ordered him to quit, the lieutenant colonel went on the Web to talk about that as well.
In a Sept 2 Facebook post, Lt. Col. Scheller said the “system” needed to be broken apart and rebuilt. The experience showed him how hungry Americans are for “honesty, accountability, and reform” across the government.
“We need fresh blood and perspective. It’s time for a new generation to assume American power,” he said. “Follow me and we will bring the whole [expletive] system down — in a Constitutional manner — with one loud voice.”
Lt. Col. Scheller’s first video was posted shortly after a suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul that killed 13 U.S. troops, mostly Marines, and dozens of Afghan civilians. He was immediately relieved of his assignment as the battalion commander of advanced infantry training at Camp Lejeune.
Despite a reprimand and a direct order to stop, Lt. Col. Scheller went on to post a number of videos and written statements to social media, criticizing both Republican and Democratic figures for the mishaps in Afghanistan.
“Posting to social media criticizing the chain of command is not the proper manner in which to raise concerns,” USMC Capt. Sam Stephenson, a spokesman for USMC Training and Education Command, said in a statement about the decision to seek a court-martial.
“Orders and directives regulate the conduct of members of our military and ensure good order and discipline.”
A number of Republican lawmakers rallied to his cause after Lt. Col. Scheller was sent to the brig even before any charges were filed against him. Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas called the military’s treatment of him “shamefully political and retaliatory.”
The social media wars over Lt. Col. Scheller‘s case continued to smolder Wednesday when word of the legal action came down.
“Thirteen U.S. service members killed in Afghanistan during Biden’s surrender; 10 innocent civilians — including 7 children — killed by a U.S. drone strike. And yet, [Lt. Col. Scheller] is the one facing a court-martial because he dared to demand accountability from military leaders?” Mr. Gohmert tweeted Wednesday afternoon.
The Pipe Hitter Foundation, an organization founded by former Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher, is helping raise money for the defendant’s legal bills, the military publication Stars & Stripes reported Wednesday. Mr. Gallagher’s 2019 court-martial on war crimes also became a cause celebre for conservatives. He was acquitted of most charges and allowed to retire as a SEAL chief petty officer after President Trump personally overruled Navy officials and criticized their handling of the case.
Lt. Col. Scheller was ordered into pretrial confinement at Camp Lejeune because Marine Corps officials judged him a flight risk and believed he would continue to engage in what they considered his “serious criminal misconduct.” While in an individual cell, he was not held in what authorities said could be called ‘solitary confinement.”
He was allowed recreational time for at least two hours a day and could talk to other prisoners and staff, although at a social distance in accordance with COVID-19 protocols. Prisoners in the brig are afforded all rights and privileges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, including receiving visits from lawyers at any time, officials said.
“If the generals in charge of the Afghanistan debacle thought a week in an air-conditioned jail cell was going to stop his calls for accountability, they are sorely mistaken,” a source close to Lt. Col. Scheller said.
My opinion?
If you disagree with the choices made by your superior officers, you have two choices:
- Obey and STFU
- Resign
There's a third choice - speak out, and face the consequences.
Seems the Lt. Colonel chose #3.
ETA: I'm not agreeing, or disagreeing, with what he posted. But, as a member of the armed forces, there are protocols to be followed, and it seems he broke them.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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@george-k said in In the Brig:
But, as a member of the armed forces, there are protocols to be followed, and it seems he broke them.
Yep . . . where is all this rebellion against orders coming from?
Oh yeah. Social media.
And yes, I agree he sounds not quite-quite. The kindest thing you could say is that this is some sort of stream of consciousness happening. Maybe a psych eval; maybe a medical discharge? Dunno.
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@doctor-phibes said in In the Brig:
I have to say, he doesn't sound completely rational to me.
Isn’t this the guy that they were expressing concern over his well being at the beginning of all this? Everybody dismissed that as a cheap stunt…
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@catseye3 said in In the Brig:
Yep . . . where is all this rebellion against orders coming from?
AFAIK, there were no orders related to his station in the military.
He was complaining about the policies/procedures of the military/government in general.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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@lufins-dad said in In the Brig:
@doctor-phibes said in In the Brig:
I have to say, he doesn't sound completely rational to me.
Isn’t this the guy that they were expressing concern over his well being at the beginning of all this? Everybody dismissed that as a cheap stunt…
I seem to think some people thought the references to his mental health might have been an Orwellian-style tactic to shut him down and lock him up. Personally, I thought at the time that there was a pretty good chance he was struggling with something a bit more than just disliking the way things had gone.
I'm no expert, but...
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@doctor-phibes I think you may have been right.
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Unfortunately, that will disqualify all of his points, some of which are worthy of consideration.
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@george-k said in In the Brig:
My opinion?
If you disagree with the choices made by your superior officers, you have two choices:Obey and STFU
ResignThere's a third choice - speak out, and face the consequences.
I agree. For most countries, the military is the same. They cannot allow an obvious show of not following orders.
It can be battle decisions, getting vaccinated, the type of uniform to wear, etc.
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@lufins-dad said in In the Brig:
Unfortunately, that will disqualify all of his points, some of which are worthy of consideration.
It's clear that the US operation in Afghanistan has been anything but a roaring success. Obviously, everybody is so busy blaming the other side for their part in the disaster that nobody is actually thinking that maybe, just maybe, this isn't the fault of one or two guys, but is actually a longer-term, and bigger problem.
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The U.S. Marine who posted videos on social media criticizing military leadership and the Biden administration’s withdrawal of military assets from Afghanistan was issued a letter of reprimand and a forfeiture of $5,000 worth of pay for one month, after pleading guilty to all charges during his court-martial hearing this week.
Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller Jr. pled guilty to all six misdemeanor-level charges Thursday, including willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer, dereliction in the performance of duties and conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.
The judge, on Friday, said he would have given a two-month forfeiture of pay, had it not been for the nine days Scheller spent in pre-trial confinement. Scheller was freed from the brig last week where he was being held for violating an agreement to stop posting criticism on social media.
The judge said he does not condone Scheller’s offenses, but noted his 17 year USMC career, saying that prior to his social media incident, he was an officer with an outstanding record – a record, he said, he weighed heavily.
The letter of reprimand was much less than what was recommended. The prosecution recommended a forfeiture of $5,000 of pay for 6 months and a letter of reprimand. The maximum penalty could have been forfeiture of 2/3 monthly pay for 12 months and a letter of reprimand.
Sounds like he got off pretty light.
I have no idea what military jurisprudence is like, and how much latitude the court has in sentencing. The fact that the judge took his 17 years of service into consideration is interesting. That would never happen (would it?) in a civilian court.
