I love a good conspiracy theory.

U.S. Army Maj. Stefan Frederick Cook is refusing to deploy to Afghanistan because he doesn’t acknowledge President Obama as the rightful president of the United States. Cook is being represented by Orly Taitz, who is also arguing Alan Keyes’ birth certificate case against Obama’s presidency.  

Birth certificate conspiracies aside, what about the ethical responsibility Cook holds as a soldier? Can his stand be compared to those soldiers who were morally opposed to Bush’s policies and the war but acknowledged him as their Commander-in-Chief? Isn’t his ethical obligation to serve the United States of America, whether or not he personally believes Obama is legally the president? After all, pending a completely out-of-this-world ruling that Obama is not qualified for the office, he is the official head of state.  

A federal court hearing will take place later this week. I’m curious to see what the consequences of Cook’s actions are. It’s not that I would want anyone denied their legal day in court (even those with a fair bit of craaaaazy), but I’m pretty sure the U.S. military takes refusal to deploy a bit seriously.