Speaking of war crimes

We heard the news the other day of William Calley's belated public apology for his mass murder at My Lai, but Sullyblog links to a fellow who saw Calley at the Kiwanis Club:

“There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai, “ William Calley told members of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Columbus today. His voice started to break when he added, “I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry.” * * *

I asked him for his reaction to the notion that a soldier does not have to obey an unlawful order. In fact, to obey an unlawful order is to be unlawful yourself. He said, “I believe that is true. If you are asking why I did not stand up to them when I was given the orders, I will have to say that I was a 2nd Lieutenant getting orders from my commander and I followed them - foolishly, I guess.” He said that was no excuse, just what happened.

William Calley, Jr:Some of his victims:Note the baby near the center, and the one in the purple shirt in the foreground.