James Branum; lawyer to malcontents
You’ve probably been wondering who is defending these “resisters” who are being prosecuted by the military during their court cases. For Victor Agosto, Travis Bishop, Robin Long, Cliff Cornell, and pot smoking deserter Ryan Jackson, it’s been James M. Branum, who calls himself the GI Rights Lawyer. He’s also a co-chair of the Military Law Task Force branch of the communist National Lawyer’s Guild.
So who is James Branum? In his own words;
If I had to describe myself, I would say that I’m an old style (as in cir. 1912) Oklahoma Agrarian Socialist. My primary political influenced has been the Jesus. I believe his way of radical peace, love and sharing could change the world. I also draw a great deal from the writings of Wendell Berry, Thomas Jefferson, Thoreau, Buddha and even Marx (but mostly second-hand when it comes to Marx). In modern terms, I guess I fit best in the Green Party, but I don’t really dig the way the Green Party (at least nationally does things), and in many ways fit better with the anarchist approach of the Catholic Worker Movement and the Wobblies.I believe strongly in both the sanctity of life, but take it further than many do. True peace includes both a spiritual element and an economic element, because true peace can only come when everybody had enough and no one goes hungry.
Yeah, that’s why Osama bin Laden attacked us – he was hungry. That’s why Saddam Hussein attacked Iran and Kuwait and his own people – he was hungry. That’s why the Serbs attacked the Kosovars – Milosevic was hungry. It all seems so simple, doesn’t it?
So, here’s Branum giving advice to the YouTube audience last year on “resisting”. He talks about people who didn’t do any jail time – unfortunately for his clients, none of the people who didn’t go to jail were Branum’s clients. He also discusses how liberating Thoreau claims he found prison – Branum’s clients will more than likely get that same feeling Thoreau felt;
Anyway, what has this lawyer, James Branum, done for his clients? So far, he’s had a 100% success rate getting them all imprisoned. In fact, he’s managed to get all of them max sentences. When I wrote about Branum last month, before the Victor Agosto court martial, he’d already had four clients get the max sentences. Since then, Agosto got 30 days, and now Travis Bishop got a year in prison.
Here’s one of the statements Branum posted after Bishop was convicted;
To everyone who still cares:
I can not say that a year in prison doesn’t scare me: I am terrified. I just cried in the bathroom so no one could see.
But still, though I am terrified, it would be scarier still to know that my fellow soldiers who feel as we feel would never find out what we are trying to accomplish had I not gone to prison.
Everyone who hears or reads this should know that I love you all, and my life is forever changed because of you.
Victor and myself are starting something big . . . and it is now up to all of you to continue on.
With all of my heart,
Travis [Bishop]
So, ya know, ya hafta wonder why these clowns are hiring an incompetent doofus lawyer that gets them the max sentence every single time. Why pay someone to do the exact same thing an Army lawyer would do for free?
I guess it’s because they ain’t all that bright – like Branum;
If all of Branum clients are in jail, it just makes it easier to visit them;
And in a movement that doesn’t require success, intentions are all that matter;
Category: Antiwar crowd, Liberals suck, Military issues, Phony soldiers, Usual Suspects
If there is one thing this country needs above all other things, it is a CO booted from the army after pissing hot to become a lawyer.
Ryan
The reason that you should be concerned about that slot is that is the one that someone else will have to fill. Meaning that if you went AWOL that they will have to find a replacement of someone who would not have to deploy. But because of your actions now has too.
Once again re-read both comments. Here is a hint; the both say the same thing. If you are going to use the WMD as a reason not to go to Iraq than what was the reasons why you joined in 2005? Ryan as far as why you became a CO I am not too interested in how you came to that choice when you went AWOL and came up hot on a drug test.
A CO system does exist, however it does not going to go according to your time line. So when you go AWOL or say pop hot. It stops becoming a CO issue but UCMJ one. The reason you got a Bad Conduct Discharge and prison time.
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/arreg2/blar600-43.htm
TSO–I see another Billy Jeff in the making.
Well, to all of you. As much as I’d love to sit here and chat mindlessly back and forth with all you propaganda filled wonderful people, I have a life and this is taking up way too much time. I pissed hot after I was already in the process of getting out of the Army. I had already had like 50 or 60 counseling statements that I had advised my command I was intentionally building so I could be administratively discharged. Again, this was told before I ever received the first counseling and was testified to. Let’s make that clear again for everyone out there that obviously is seriously struggling with this new concept called reading. Once again everyone, everything told upfront, infractions committed, pissed hot at the end, AWOL, court-martial, activists support, articles and news stories, and now all you people talking about it like you know the story of my case and history better than me. It’s hilarious. The man that felt the need to give me the history lesson on Congress, Nato and the approvals for the wars, thank you for the FoxNews version of the incidents. For the truth, I encourage you to do some research. I just leave that at that regarding that topic, that’s just too hilarious to even justify a response to. I guess we need to clarify something else as well. Man, this is getting to be extremely redundant. I joined the military, and overtime evolved in my beliefs and became a CO, I did not join as one, I did not care either way about the WMD’s when I joined, or anything of that nature. I could care less either way when I joined personally, however, overtime through research, education, and my own personal beliefs evolving, I developed a different moral set. A moral set that no longer coincided with military life. I’m not going to sit here all day and respond to all of you people though, this is going nowhere and I feel like I’m talking to even less intelligent versions of Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity. Y’all can… Read more »
That is way too wordy, lets shorten down to the real stuff.
Blab, Blah, Blah…I pissed hot after I was already in the process of getting out of the Army. I had already had like 50 or 60 counseling statements that I had advised my command I was intentionally building so I could be administratively discharged….
Blah Blah Blah…Then he made another false statement regarding my case as well and was corrected on that. Lastly, although marijuana may be illegal, its illegality completely revolves around money with the government and has actually been proven to have successful medicinal purposes.
Blah Blah Blah…Also, going AWOL is illegal under UCMJ and some could argue breaking a contract is immoral, however, I feel that one’s obligation to their conscience supersedes any contract or legislation. Regardless of their legality or morality in you eyes, neither one harms anyone or kills anyone and is only impacting me,
So in short you intentional did everything possible to be discharged to include the drugs. Sounds like there was no effort at attempting to be a CO at all. You also new it was illegal and that the Military views would not change anytime soon. Lastly you still believe that your actions do not affect other people. They do, you do not see them.
Yes, in short I did everything intentionally to be discharged from the Army but not to include the drugs. I was already well on my way and my belief that there’s nothing wrong with marijuana just led me to smoke because I wanted to and I didn’t care. I do, however, think it’s a little questionable as to the negative connotation associated with people saying, “Oh, you did drugs”. It then sounds as if it’s this horrible thing associated with the broad term “drugs” when in reality, lets be serious, is marijuana really a harmful drug that should be so broadly classified to give a perception that, “oh, this person is on drugs”, absolutely not. My actions do affect people and I know they do, I just disagree with you in the manner that they affect people. I think that I may inspire other soldiers to stand up and say, “you know what, he’s right, killing each other is wrong, immoral and illogical. Especially, when throughout history it has ALWAYS been for the greed and power struggle of the elite. I hope we can at least agree on that. A lot of conservatives and liberals can usually agree that war is waged by elitist for money. If you don’t believe it to be the case ALL the time, then I’m sure you agree that the majority of the time it’s the case, however, I would respectfully disagree. Lastly, there was an attempt to be a CO, my method was to do anything possible to be discharged because there’s only one CO process and we’ve already covered in previous posts with a lengthy explanation of the lack of ethics and logic within it. So, my attempt at being a CO was telling my unit my beliefs numerous times and outlining what I would do to be discharged when they refused to discharge me based upon my beliefs or ensure that they would in the near future and then I carried out exactly what I said I would do. So, if I tell you exactly what I’m going to do and it’s… Read more »
You are going to make a great lawyer, I am sure. Because all laws should be followed only when they are just in the eyes of the one violating or following them. That is a good recipe for peace.
So, because your client felt that laws against litering, or giving their 2 year old vodka to stop them screaming, were arbitrary, they shouldn’t be convicted. Makes perfect sense. Let me know how that works out for you.
Oh, and if all else fails, try the Chewbacca defense.
RJ, you said this: I think that I may inspire other soldiers to stand up and say, “you know what, he’s right, killing each other is wrong, immoral and illogical. Especially, when throughout history it has ALWAYS been for the greed and power struggle of the elite. I hope we can at least agree on that.
Well, no, we can’t agree on that. If that were true, then please explain why you, or anyone, joined an organization whose purpose is to kill? Also, you need to explain how the terrorists are doing this for the “elite”? Then, please explain how freeing 50 million people was done “for the elite”? Explain how a carrier battle group provided potable water, food, medicine, air transport, plus search and rescue during the Tsunami for thousands of people.
You talk as though you are reading straight from a World Workers Party propaganda pamphlet. You also have no clue what the vast majority of people think. about service to their country.
Did you have your “beliefs” before you signed on the line and raised your right hand? If you did, then you joined the military for what? The education benefits? Free food, clothing, housing? A job? People that do that are the lowest life form in the food chain. Did you think that the military was going to spend all that time, effort, and expense on you just so you could say “I’m not into this anymore” and then have you expect to be just let out with no harm no foul? What kind of fucked up thinking is that?
If you had a CO packet even started, what makes you think even for a second that this would help you. Doing drugs will require additional time to process your punishment. More time when you went AWOL. Seems that if you did not break any rules that people would believe you as far as wanting to be viewed as a legitimate CO. Rather then a typical problem solider that is doing everything possible not to do his job and deploy. It does not matter what you think about pot, while you are in the Military you will be punished for it if you use it. Also the random drug tests also will get you caught, so just do not do it.
I am becoming highly doubtful of your CO application by the way that you have handled everything else. This things take time and do not go by your time line. Also if you want to talk about waste money, how about the money spent on having your Article 15 for your failed drug test, to conduct the trial for going AWOL and not to forget the money to hold you in prison while you got paid a small portion of you monthly take home. All of that was done because of YOUR actions.
No the slap in the face is how you want to try to cover the fact that you messed up by playing the blame game on those that honor their contracts by deploying. Oh that Bad Conduct Discharge will be following you for the rest of your life, so have fun with that.
I have to ask, what do you to at your job and what’s the name of the company?
TSO,
You’re an idiot and your analogy is piss poor. You cannot logically argue that there is a moral argument are logic to support giving your child vodka. However, a very valid moral argument can be made for someone that believes in nonviolence and has reached a point in which that belief functions the same as a religious belief would in another person. That’s just idiotic to even try to draw a comparison there. Secondly, I never said that I shouldn’t be convicted, in fact, I was convicted and served my sentence with no qualms. I simply challenged the law in which I believe to be unjust and immoral through civil disobedience.
Old Trooper,
I’m not even going to warrant you with a full response because most of what you said was just foolish because you failed to read the previous comments regarding what happened and when I came into my beliefs, the CO process, and so on and so on. However, it still is entertaining to see the conservative try to blast me and looking like an idiot because he did what they so commonly do, fail to read. You cannot take the moral high ground as to liberating 50 million people if you’re referring to Iraq, when the United States put Saddam in power in the first place. In addition, we had no issue with him killing thousands upon thousands of people over nearly 25 years as long as he pumped us oil. So, to take that high ground as a justification after the initial reasoning was WMD’s and nothing to do with that, is absurd and a mockery. In the end, we’ll secure land for military bases in Iraq, control the resources, and probably put a Walmart and McDonald’s in. It’s the process of occupation and the result of modern warfare. So, let me guess, we’re liberating them just as we “liberated” most of Latin America right? Redundantly responding yet again, I did not have the beliefs when I joined but rather evolved over the course of my service.
A conscientious objector in an all volunteer army? you sir, are a pus filled, vile sack of maggot vomit — We’re all so sorry it wasn’t the four year free ride to the University of your choice you were probably banking on when you joined, dirtbag but those are the breaks.
Go cry to your liberal professors about it, pussy.
[…] haven’t had an opportunity to discuss James Branum (background here and here) lately because I’d heard he’d been keeping his nose clean and actually helped soldiers […]
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