Moral Waiver

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All of the branches of the United States Military have minimum standards of education, age, physical condition and previous criminal convictions for recruitment. The routine exceptions to the criminal or behavioral components of these standards are known as moral waivers. It is generally agreed that such increase of moral waivers effectively lowers the standards of recruitment.

[edit] Current effect of military surge in Iraq

Maintaining higher troop levels in the face higher causalities required two changes in the army. Tours of duty were increased and the exclusions of volunteers with a history of criminal acts were relaxed. Both of these changes are expected to increase the probability of violence against Iraqi non combatants. A defense department sponsored report^[1] described increased length of tours leading to higher stress which increase manifestations of anger and disrespect for civilians.

Increasing use of moral waivers has implications for killing of non combatants: John D. Hutson, dean and president of the Franklin Pierce Law Center in New Hampshire and former judge advocate general of the Navy, said the military must tread carefully in deciding which criminals to accept. There is a reason, he said, why allowing people with criminal histories into the military has long been the exception rather than the rule. If you are recruiting somebody who has demonstrated some sort of antisocial behavior and then you are a putting a gun in their hands, you have to be awfully careful about what you are doing, Mr. Hutson said. You are not putting a hammer in their hands, or asking them to sell used cars. You are potentially asking them to kill people.^[2]