They gently scan your brother man
Still gentler sister woman,
Though this may gang a kennin wrong
To step aside is human
One point must still be greatly dark
The moving why they do it.

Burns


The entire question of Lt. Calley and the My‑Lai massacre involves more than a simple case of murder. It questions the very roots of war, law, and even the government itself. The trial has been shaded and covered and vague here and slanted over there so much it is hard to distinguish the truth. There is no end to comments both for and against Calley:

"He killed unarmed civilians." "He was under no direct order." "He was looking for someone to kill." "He could have done something else." "He's responsible for war prisoners." "He defied the natural instinct to protect a child, therefore he is an unnatural person." "He's blood thirsty." "It wasn't bad enough he killed, but he ordered the others to kill first."

"He was under orders." "What about every other man who has killed a civilian in war?" "What about a man who drops a bomb? Hiroshima for instance." "Why pick on one man, when they all were to blame." "Calley is being

used as a scapegoat to let the world know we do the right thing even if it costs us an American." "The people could have been armed." "It was done during wartime." "Blame the war and the government, not one man who was forced over there."

Everyone has heard some of these statements; what is the real truth? According to the law, Calley is guilty of murdering 102 civilians at My‑Lai. Who are we to question the law?

We are citizens with a right to question and a right to a free opinion. The "Calley case" is much like the trial in Lord Jim; they didn't ask him why he jumped ship and left hundreds of pilgrims to die; they asked only if he did. That seems to be the case with Calley. No one seems to know why he did what he did, maybe because no one has bothered to ask. The questions that were put to him when he was on the stand failed to clearly bring this point out. Too much emphasis was placed on "if" that should have been placed on "why."

The question of "why" is not used enough in every facet of life. Even in school we don't bother to ask "why." Do they ask why a student cut a class before they take some kind of action? Do we ask why some teacher gives an assignment before we decide that it was unfair? Maybe we are afraid of the truth.