Bergdahl Is Set to Resume Life on Active Duty

[happyslug]

21. A Major General is investigating why he was captured????

Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is a Sargent. If the army was looking only at him, a Captain or other officer SENIOR to him (and that is ALL Commissioned Officers) could be assigned to do the investigation. The only restriction is that the investigating office MUST be SENIOR to anyone who MAY be CHARGED.

Thus why is a MAJOR GENERAL doing the investigation? Major General is a two star General (Outranking Brigadier General, but lower then Lieutenant General, a "Full" General and not used since WWII General of the Army. That implies that someone is looking into some Colonel's actions in the case, or more likely inaction. Why was Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl permitted to take the walks he was captured on? Was he armed, or unarmed? (I believe the reports was he was unarmed, but then why was he NOT restricted to barracks OR required to take a weapon with him?).

Something is up, and I do NOT think it is a Court Martial of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. If he should be Court Martial has already been decided for those facts are well known. i.e. He took walks when things became to stressed for him, for it was a way to relieve that stress. That is understandable and not on its face illegal. The real issue was he told NOT to take these walks. Then that would be a simple case of disobeying orders. If he was permitted to take such walks in areas where the Taliban were active, why did he NOT have a weapon? Remember he had taken such walks BEFORE and always came back, thus his command structure knew or should have known of this tendency and addressed it. I suspect that is why a Major General is in charge of the investigation, who issued what rules on the issuance of weapons AND what restrictions on movement of the troops, were imposed on the troops by whom. Issuing such restrictions on movement AND distribution of weapons is at least a Captain's job, and in most cases a Colonel's.

Now the actual insurances of weapons and imposing the restrictions on movement are done by the NCOs, but the overall rules are set by the command structure. i.e. your Sargent may be able to release you to do as you want, but ONLY within the confines of the orders to that Sargent to what he can do. If the Colonel says no one outside the barracks after 1800, the NCOs can NOT overrule that order. If the Colonel says no one outside passed midnight, but the NCOs can imposed earlier times, your NCO can still say no one outside the barracks after 1800. If the Colonel says the NCOs can NOT impose an earlier time, then it is Midnight no matter what the NCOs want.

Thus I suspect some general policy as to people leaving the barracks OR the issuance of weapons of people who do is in question. Such decisions are made by Commissioned Officers, generally field grade officers (Majors, Lieutenant Colonels and Colonels). Something is up and it deals with Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl but I suspect it also deals with others, some of whom wear field grade insignia.