He got a year confinement...that's all I know for now.  He probably got the maximum punishment, which will include reduction in rank, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and either a general or a bad conduct discharge.  I don't know that it was an act of strength to plead guilty, Janders, I think it was probably to avoid a lengthy trial and subsequent details that would have come out at trial.  Sivits had a ADC (military eqivalent of public defender) who was obviously aware of the furour over the abuse and who advised his client well.

He did get the maximum penelty, which I think he deserved.
I am just saying that it seems like a lot of others in the case are passing the blame, saying they were made to do it, ect. I just think that he didn't pass blame which would be the easy thing to do. He apoligised to the Iraqi people and said he was guilty and it was wrong.

Frankly I think it's sad that taking responsibility for your own actions has become an unusual and admirable course of action. Ducking your responsibility should be the exceptional and shameful course, not the common and normal one.

I agree with cita, the pass the buck mentality of most people is degrading and a definite sign of immaturity and lack of personal responsibility.

Although wrong in the strictest sense of the word, lets not get to out of hand. These soldiers didnt kill anyone, or do anything remotely Saddam like, it's pathetic how much of the world is decrying the U.S. Soldier, but many are quick to defend Saddam.

It's being 'decryed' because we in the US have held ourselves to higher standards.  Would this treatment of prisoners have received such attention if the perpetrators had been Iraqi?  No, it would have been expected.  Us Americans, however, consider ourselves to be civilized and refined in our methods, and we like to think that we are not 'animals'.  When behaviour like this surfaces, we are outraged because we think we are better than that. 

Not to mention that fact that it's embarrassing.  Here we are, on our pedestal, telling the whole world to follow our example as far as humanitarian treatment of people goes....and we get caught with our pants down like this.

Don't think that I'm taking an ani-American stance on this because I'm not.  I'm more patriotic than quite a few people I know, and I'm not even a US citizen!

I hate to be the pessimist, but my impression was that he was pleading guilty and accepting responsibility as part of a plea bargain.  His goal was to get a reduced sentence and the oportunity to stay in the military.  In return, he would testify against his fellow soldiers.  I'm not sure how commendable I think taking responsbility is when you are doing it to save your own backside while hanging others out to dry.

These soldiers didnt kill anyone

Do I read completely different newspapers than the rest of the world?  Investigations are ongoing into the deaths of a number of prisoners, three of which were at Abu Ghraib.  Here's a link to the USA Today story on it: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-05-04-prisoner-deaths_x.htm

but many are quick to defend Saddam.

I would love to know who you think is defending Saddam.  Even the antiwar movement agrees that Saddam was evil.

America, a country that strongly advocates democracy and liberation for all people must practise what it preaches. Hence, not to deny that acts of abuse have taken place is a step in the right direction. Still at the fore and duly respected. Hence, for it to remain there as a model for which battered countries; ravaged by evil regimes, can look up to is what it should strive to continually do. Never letting its guard down and inadvertently letting its people down. In the international arena where every move or decision made, is highly scrutinised, hence, word or deed has to always and unceasingly be exemplary.

For the soldier that confessed and pleaded guilty, my heart goes out to him. Leading by example is crucial at this juncture. Hopefully, through his actions, he could inspire more to come forward. Let justice be done and more importantly, the American sprit and what people of the free world hold dear are preserved.

I wonder who had the idea that it would be a good idea to document the treatment of prisoners.

One would think that if prisoners were photographed, someone would get their hands on those photographs.

Regardless of whether or not the captors had a reason to pick on the captives, it shouldn't have been photographed.  That was really stupid.

Regardless of whether or not the captors had a reason to pick on the captives, it shouldn't have been photographed. That was really stupid.

Well said, Jamie!

Regardless of the chain of events that led to the actual abuse, they were idiots to have taken pictures of it.  Stupid. Dumb.

Mind you, that seems to have been pretty much par for the course at Abu Ghraib.