Abu Ghraib scandal suspect was just “following orders”

Abu Ghraib scandal suspect was just “following orders”

The lawyer for a soldier court-martialed for abusing detainees at Iraq’s notorious Abu Ghraib prison said Friday his client was just following orders, and that his superiors are those who should be tried. “Our defense is that Specialist (Charles) Graner was following orders,” said Guy Womack, the military policeman’s civilian attorney in the court martial proceedings that started at the Fort Hood army base in Texas Friday.
Critics have pointed out that his defense bore similarities to that of Nazis tried at the Nueremberg war trials, many of whom claimed they were only following orders.

It’s interesting to note that the lawyer said his client was “following orders” but the press have inserted the “just” in a way that makes it appear that Graner or the lawyer used that word.

“I was following orders”
and
“I was just following orders”
are certainly similar, but the latter is one step closer to Nuremberg. It’s amazing what the press can and does do with one simple word.

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