In a May 28 interview for ABC’s “This Week,” Murtha added, “I will not excuse murder, and this is what has happened.” and “There has to have been a cover-up of this thing. No question about it.”

Oddly, an Associated Press story on June 9 referred to Murtha as one having “a reputation in Congress as a strong friend of the military.” Even if one agrees with Murtha, it is almost laughable for anyone to suggest that a man who accuses U.S. Marines of murdering in cold blood before the facts are in, could possibly have a reputation of being a strong friend of the military. Even if the involved Marines are ultimately found guilty, the Corps’ motto, “always faithful” has been spat upon by Murtha, and done so while Marines were legally under the presumption of innocence.

How is it “murder,” and why does there “have to have been a cover-up” if we don’t yet have all the facts? It’s simple. It must be “cold-blooded murder,” and there has to have been a “cover-up” for Murtha’s sake to justify his personal political agenda and what’s left of his reputation. An ex-Marine officer (I say, ‘ex,’ because he has now relinquished the honor of being a former Marine), Murtha has disgraced himself in the eyes of many, perhaps most, Marines. Now all he has is his party.

And why do the actions at Haditha have to be a result of a “wrong war” or “failed policy” as the reporter who phoned me suggested? The answer lies in either a total lack of understanding of military conflict, or a rush by so many to politicize the as-yet unverified information as Murtha himself has so shamelessly done.

People – like the reporter who phoned me, Mr. Murtha, and others – will believe what they want to believe (with “want” being the optimum word here) then they will go to great lengths to attempt to justify those beliefs, even when the verdict is still out and some evidence begins to suggest otherwise. And when politics are at stake, people will sell their very souls to justify what they want to be true.

It becomes dangerous when those people have the power to influence the thinking of millions.