Let Marine and family move past this episode

Now that the U.S. Marine Corps has decided to discharge Lance Cpl. David Motari of Monroe for flinging a puppy off a cliff in Iraq — a scene made infamous because it was videotaped and posted on the Internet — the blogosphere is once again lighting up (as opposed to enlightening) with condemnation.

A few thoughts:

— Motari’s punishment is appropriate, even though he had served in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The reprehensible act of cruelty shown in the 17-second video (and the fact that it was videotaped, suggesting Motari and at least one Marine with him found it amusing enough to share) isn’t in keeping with the honorable traditions of the Marines.

— This incident in no way soils the image of the corps. In fact, its disciplinary action, which followed what appeared to be a thorough (three-month) investigation, along with its clear statement deploring Motari’s behavior, shows that Marine leadership took the issue seriously.

— Motari, 22, will have to live with the consequences of his action, including a forced discharge. Like all young people who make mistakes, he should try to learn and grow from it, put it behind him and move on. The support of friends and family will help.

— His relatives, who were “living a nightmare” in March as their personal information was spread across the Internet by raging dimwits with nothing productive to do, didn’t deserve the grief they endured then and don’t deserve a repeat of it now. Yes, we live in a nation of strong human-animal bonds, but directing anger and threats of physical harm at Motari’s family is at least as reprehensible as what he did.

The vile nature of the attacks was hard to believe. Motari’s mother was even harassed at work, where calls were made for her to be fired. This is a local family that deserves empathy and gratitude for having a son sent to fight on the front lines of a war where more than 4,000 American military personnel have died. We agree that Motari exercised incredibly poor judgment, but he did put his life on the line for his country. Amid all the anger, that still needs to be acknowledged.

Sensible people will let the Marine Corps’ strong statement of condemnation would be the last word in this matter. Alas, such folks often seem scarce in the blogosphere.