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1969
I, RALPH E. KENYON, JR., having sworn to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America, and having been subsequently commissioned an Ensign in the United States Navy, hereby set forth a carefully considered opinion concerning a specific prospective duty of a Naval officer, to wit:
Whereas: Article VI of the Constitution of the United States of America specifically states, "This Constitution and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance hereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or Laws of any state to the contrary notwithstanding."
Whereas: The Uniform Code of Military Justice specifically acknowledges the aforesaid whereas, by referring specifically to International Law in its definitions of jurisdiction, to wit: Article 802, (11) and (12) "...subject to any treaty or agreement to which the United States is or may be a party to or to any accepted rule of International Law."
Whereas: Scholarly definition of International Law is that International Law includes but is not limited to:
Whereas: The United States is a party to the International Treaties of the Geneva convention articles.
Whereas: The United States is a party to the treaty for trials for war crimes at Nuremberg.
Whereas: The Nuremberg trials established that under international law, officers are responsible for adhering to the principles of International Law during war as well as during peace time.
Whereas: The Nuremberg trials established that an officer is responsible for determining that his orders are lawful, to wit: An Officer is not absolved of his responsibility to determine the lawfulness of an order, by reason that he is acting under specific orders of his seniors.
Whereas: The full scale use of nuclear weapons will render a great portion of this globe uninhabitable by human beings as well as destroy the greater portion of the human race.
Whereas: In the event of the nuclear holocaust, the heritage of the human race will be severely limited and the survival of the humanity of the race is questionable.
Resolved: War crimes is a valid International legal concept.
Resolved: The Constitution of the United States of America supports International Law.
Resolved: The United States of America adheres to the international legal concept of war crimes.
Resolved: Nuclear war is an inhumane action which violates the right of protection of innocent civilians guaranteed under the Articles of the Geneva Convention.
Resolved: Nuclear war is an inhumane action which violates the principle of the protection of the rights of individuals and sovereign nations.
Resolved: Acts which directly lead to the release of nuclear weapons are war crimes.
Resolved: It is the duty of every officer of the Armed Services of the United States to absolve himself of the possible acts which directly lead to the release of nuclear weapons.
It is the carefully considered opinion of RALPH E. KENYON, JR. that it is his duty, in upholding the Constitution of the United States of America, to request that he not be assigned to a billet requiring acts which directly lead to the release of nuclear weapons.
Affirmed and subscribed by me on this Eighteenth day of February in the year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Sixty-Nine Anno Domini.