What, do they bite their nails? (Many people do, but it’s usually not a sign of sexual abuse.)
Perhaps they are encrusted with blood where they clawed at their molester. I doubt it, though.
I would value the opinion of Dopers who have been in the military.
You’re talking about 2 different things-- being a good soldier vs being a good human being. Sometimes they are not compatible with each other. That’s why I outlined two course of actions-- one for the soldier, and one for the “good human being”. But just make sure you know what you’re wading into when dealing with a completely different culture.
Would you step in to stop the marriage of a 9-year-old girl to a man when it was perfectly legal if you saw the child being taken, kicking and screaming, to the wedding? Would you shout down the man telling his wife she had to wear a burqa whenever she went outside? Where does this stop?
Wrong question.
As a human being, when does it start?
But a soldier doesn’t just have an immediate duty to follow orders, he/she has a larger duty to support and defend the Constitution, and in my opinion, a philosophical duty to do the right thing. There are certainly times in which these things can conflict, and there are times in which there is no clear course of action, but in the situation in which one witnesses an adult assaulting a child, I think there is a clear course of action as a soldier.
In the thick of combat, everything kind of evaporates but the duty to follow orders and fight with your comrades; but if I’m on patrol and witness a rape, that’s very different.
Probably at the assault of children. The marriage hypothetical (I’ll assume I see a party of people, some of which are dragging an uncooperative child towards a wedding setup) would be very difficult to deal with, I’ll admit, but I don’t think the previous hypothetical presents as difficult a choice.
Don’t be so sure. What do you think happens to the kid when he’s sent back to his parents? Maybe his parents sold him to the official, and now the official goes and extracts revenge. Maybe the kid actually prefers being one of the “dancing boys” to what his other choices are. And like I said, maybe in the light of day he’s “consented” to having sex, and he’s over the age of consent in that country.
I certainly would help any kid who came begging me for help, but I’m not so sure I’d know exactly when and where to interfere, uninvited, with cultural practices in Afghanistan.
What constitution? You think US soldiers are supposed to enforce the US Constitution in Afghanistan? I’d like to see a cite for that. Are they supposed to stop the government from executing any criminals unless they satisfy the SCOTUS’s criteria for what qualifies as the death penalty?
Those are all hypotheticals, all without evidence, designed to excuse doing nothing to alleviate the very real situation of a child being raped here and now. Is that what I should do if I see a child being raped-think of all the hypothetical situations that might excuse me doing nothing to stop it? Hey, if I think long enough about it, perhaps the situation will solve itself because the rapist will be done and on his merry way, right?
You seem to keep forgetting that no one saw a child being raped in the instance being discussed.
I wouldn’t know exactly when either, but I know that I’d have trouble living with myself if I witnessed a child being assaulted and didn’t help.
I was talking about duties in general, and the priority of duties, not that the US Constitution applies to Afghan civilians.
I thought we were discussing a hypothetical situation.
You know, I’ve masturbated for a quite a long time. I will never understand why some people feel they must become these violent sexual predators over some good selfie time. I know what I want, I don’t have to bother pleasing anyone, there’s no shame or embarrassment, and overall while its not perfect I’m not spending too much time thinking about where I’m going to get off next. WTF is wrong with these people that rape is preferable?
I’m not seeing how the US constitution has anything do with what a soldier should do when confronted with what seems to be a criminal act in a foreign country. Can you explain?
Maybe it’s getting a bit confusing as to when we are discussing a hypothetical and when we are discussing the topic in the OP. I never said a soldier, or anyone, shouldn’t try and stop a rape that he sees happening. But should he investigate whether a rape is happening in the private home of a citizen of a foreign country?
What, exactly is the soldier supposed to? Break into this guy’s house, kill his bodyguards (assuming he has some) and take the boy away? On what grounds would he have the authority to do that?
Now, you might claim that, as a decent human being, you should put your career aside and jump into the fray. I just think, in that case, that you should take a few minutes and make sure you understand what exactly is going on. You strongly suspect that a rape is happening, but you really don’t know for sure. You don’t know what this whole “dancing boys” thing is about. You’re an ignorant foreigner in a land you should even be in in the first place.
'Cause masterbation is a sin, doncha know?
A resounding yes, because in a war zone, situations are often more complicated than you think. Maybe the boy’s family did sell him to the official (or maybe he offered himself and later regretted it) and the official retaliates by killing the entire family (could be dozens of people before the body count is through). Maybe he tortures them first including the babies (since that seems to a an age minority that gets Dopers all a flutter with emotion). Maybe he throws the neighbors into the retaliation because his men have some spare time and new weapons.
Wow, I don’t recall housebreaking and bodyguard killing being part of your hypothetical scenario before. Is there anything else you’d like to toss in there? Maybe having to kill an older sister and/or brother who are trying to defend the family? How about if the boy is removed the officer will slaughter a pen full of puppies and kittens?
In a war zone, apparently any excuse will excuse any atrocity.
I was just pointing out that soldiers have more duties than to simply obey orders.
Not the way I do it 
That’s probably because you didn’t think this thru all the way, and it’s not part of the hypothetical. It’s quite common for the upper classes and government officials in Afghanistan to live in walled compounds with guards, so it’s likely that is what you will be dealing with if you reacted as you said you would to the situation in the OP. In fact, the story in the link is about abuse happening on an Afghan Military Base. This is not some house in the suburbs of Chicago.
As i noted earlier, you’re an ignorant foreigner in a land where you don’t belong.