DDN's Jeff Bruce: 'Mission was worth the sacrifice'

Here is a column I can agree with 100%...

"I am not the type of person who enjoys being in the limelight," she replied. "I would rather be the person who helped get the limelight for someone else. I am truly happy and amazed by all of the public support I have received. I want to thank everyone who has written letters on my behalf to the senators, congressmen/congresswomen, President Bush, Lt. Gen. Metz (who will decide if she is eligible for clemency) and everyone else."

Does she see broader implications in how she has been treated for the message it might send the troops?

"I do not want to send the wrong message that it is OK to break the rules because it is not," she replied.

"The message I want to send to the troops (is) do the best job possible. When faced with situations that seem impossible, look around, ask for help and be resourceful. Never forget there are consequences for every action and decision you make."

Of course, it was for being too "resourceful" that Maj. Kaus got in trouble, using vehicles not assigned to her and not fessing up to that. While she acknowledges that she broke the rules, was what she did wrong in the moral sense?

"Morally, as the company commander, I am responsible for 150 soldiers and needed to ensure that they had resources available to complete the missions. The vehicles that were taken were left behind by units that had moved north into Iraq ahead of us. The broken down vehicle that was stripped for parts was left abandoned because it was broken. We took stuff that other units and soldiers left behind and put it to use for the Army."

Since she won't say so directly, I will: No, what she did was not morally wrong. Indeed, a strong case can be made that it was, in fact, just the right thing to do.

It was the right thing to do...be sure to let the President, your Senators, and Congressmen know how you feel about it.