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http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/0...ethics_070503/
I really can't say that I'm surprised by this.
About 44 percent of Marines in a survey believe torture should be allowed if it would save the life of a fellow Marine, according to a 2006 military mental health assessment.
In addition, only slightly more than one-third of the nearly 450 leathernecks polled in Iraq last year — 38 percent — told members of the Mental Health Advisory Team that they believe all non-combatants should be treated with dignity and respect. That finding was notably lower than the 47 percent of soldiers who were asked that same question, according to briefing slides presented by the team of Army medical officers to Commandant Gen. James Conway on April 18.
The team was commissioned by U.S. Central Command. A copy of the study’s results was obtained by Marine Corps Times.
A Corps spokesman did not dispute the team’s findings. “We are convinced that in broad outline this is an honest, sincere and faithful effort that attempts to accurately capture what our Marines think and do in combat,” said Corps spokesman Lt. Col. Scott Fazekas. “It is one more set of data in a series that has taken on tough issues. We will closely consider the report and its recommendations.”
The study also found that 39 percent believe torture should be allowed to gather information about insurgents, and 17 percent said all non-combatants should be treated as insurgents.
Of surveyed soldiers, 4 percent reported hitting or kicking noncombatants when it was not necessary; among Marines, 7 percent reported doing so.
About one in 10 Marines reported mistreating non-combatants, the briefing slides said.
At the same time, Marines are racking up considerable combat experience, the study found. More than half of Marines, or 58 percent, polled have experienced roadside bombs or booby traps, and about the same amount found themselves on the receiving end of small-arms fire.
Troops with high levels of combat were more likely to engage in unethical behaviors than troops with low levels of combat, the briefing slides said.
The study’s findings go against Corps basics, said one retired general.
“Treating people with dignity and respect is a value taught to Marines from the time they enter their initial training and throughout their careers, so this result, to me, is inexplicable,” said retired Lt. Gen. Paul Van Riper, who formerly commanded Marine Corps Combat Development Command at Quantico, Va.
The study also found that only 40 percent of Marines said they would report a unit member for injuring or killing an innocent non-combatant, whereas 55 percent of soldiers affirmed that they would turn in a fellow soldier for wrongdoing.
Such statistics could indicate “a misplaced loyalty to other members of the unit vice a higher loyalty the Corps expects with regard to regulations,” Van Riper said. “If so, this is not a difficult problem to overcome with proper training.”
The three-month study began in August 2006, just two months after the Corps made “Warrior Ethics” refresher training mandatory for those deployed in Iraq, following allegations of battlefield misconduct in Hadithah and Hamdaniya.
In addition, only slightly more than one-third of the nearly 450 leathernecks polled in Iraq last year — 38 percent — told members of the Mental Health Advisory Team that they believe all non-combatants should be treated with dignity and respect. That finding was notably lower than the 47 percent of soldiers who were asked that same question, according to briefing slides presented by the team of Army medical officers to Commandant Gen. James Conway on April 18.
The team was commissioned by U.S. Central Command. A copy of the study’s results was obtained by Marine Corps Times.
A Corps spokesman did not dispute the team’s findings. “We are convinced that in broad outline this is an honest, sincere and faithful effort that attempts to accurately capture what our Marines think and do in combat,” said Corps spokesman Lt. Col. Scott Fazekas. “It is one more set of data in a series that has taken on tough issues. We will closely consider the report and its recommendations.”
The study also found that 39 percent believe torture should be allowed to gather information about insurgents, and 17 percent said all non-combatants should be treated as insurgents.
Of surveyed soldiers, 4 percent reported hitting or kicking noncombatants when it was not necessary; among Marines, 7 percent reported doing so.
About one in 10 Marines reported mistreating non-combatants, the briefing slides said.
At the same time, Marines are racking up considerable combat experience, the study found. More than half of Marines, or 58 percent, polled have experienced roadside bombs or booby traps, and about the same amount found themselves on the receiving end of small-arms fire.
Troops with high levels of combat were more likely to engage in unethical behaviors than troops with low levels of combat, the briefing slides said.
The study’s findings go against Corps basics, said one retired general.
“Treating people with dignity and respect is a value taught to Marines from the time they enter their initial training and throughout their careers, so this result, to me, is inexplicable,” said retired Lt. Gen. Paul Van Riper, who formerly commanded Marine Corps Combat Development Command at Quantico, Va.
The study also found that only 40 percent of Marines said they would report a unit member for injuring or killing an innocent non-combatant, whereas 55 percent of soldiers affirmed that they would turn in a fellow soldier for wrongdoing.
Such statistics could indicate “a misplaced loyalty to other members of the unit vice a higher loyalty the Corps expects with regard to regulations,” Van Riper said. “If so, this is not a difficult problem to overcome with proper training.”
The three-month study began in August 2006, just two months after the Corps made “Warrior Ethics” refresher training mandatory for those deployed in Iraq, following allegations of battlefield misconduct in Hadithah and Hamdaniya.
This is really strange - troops with high levels of combat are more often at the risk of harming non-combatants. 
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