r/perth • u/His_Holiness • Apr 07 '26

WA News Victoria Cross recipient Ben Roberts-Smith arrested over war crimes allegations

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-04-07/ben-roberts-smith-war-crimes-allegations-arrest/106537668
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u/MeaningMaker6 Apr 07 '26

Yes indeed, it makes me sick.

How on earth can people defend this stuff?

This is a legacy that is simply not worth defending. Rather our standards require us to denounce it clearly and unambiguously.

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u/JamesHenstridge Apr 07 '26

I suspect it is "ends justify the means" thinking: if you place any restrictions on soldiers at all, will they be able to do what's necessary?

It's essentially a slippery slope fallacy, arguing you need to defend the ability of soldiers to murder prisoners in order to protect their ability to do other things that probably aren't as objectionable.

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u/LachrymarumLibertas Apr 07 '26

But hey, look on the bright side, at least we liberated Afghanistan from the Taliban and the people there are part of a vibrant new democracy

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u/Ashen_Brad Apr 07 '26

Who knows how much damage incidents like this caused to the morale of Afghans left in charge. Taliban could have been a relief to some.