The fact that these guys are being charged with this is not a sign of top brass selling out grunts to be politically correct. It’s a sign that the US armed forces are functioning the way they should, and were always meant to.

If Secretary Gates would intervene in this trial he would be making a mockery of the rule of law and the values the US is founded upon. It is the type of action undertaken by a fascist government, not the democratically elected executive of the United States of America.

That said, I have sympathy for these SEALs – as some have said the kind of situation they were presented with in capturing this terrorist suspect (the latter part seems to be forgotten in this debate) must have been extremely difficult. And I may very well have acted in the exact same way. I have sufficient faith in the US justice system that this will be taken into consideration, as well as the inevitable opportunism from Mr Abed.

But if they (or I, had it been me) crossed the line, US servicemen are subject to the rule of law.

Don’t let anyone tell you that is in any way a sign of weakness – it is a sign of strength. It’s a message to America’s allies and enemies that it’s cause is true and that the US values justice, unlike its enemies, and that is something to be immensely proud of.