Kevin Benderman is a mechanic who is trained to fix Bradley armored vehicles. On December 20, 2004, he applied for conscientious objector status. Yesterday he made time to talk with us about his decision.

The following is the interview conducted by Omar Khan, editor and ‘forum’ manager of www.dahrjamailiraq.com.

Omar Khan: Kindly tell us your name and a little about your background—your age, where you live, where you were born and raised, where you went to school, things of that sort.

Kevin Benderman: My name is Kevin Mitchell Benderman. Currently I’m living in Hinesville, Georgia, with my wife, Monica, and my stepson Ryan. I was born in Alabama. I was raised between there and Tennessee. I’ve gone to various schools, and I’m currently studying Criminal Justice out of Ashworth College for a Bachelor’s Degree.

OK: A Thursday, January 13 CNN article whose subtitle tells of your “claim” that others “just don’t know how bad it is.” But that article gives none of your or any other observations of how bad it is. Can you take a few moments to tell us something about how bad it is?

KB: The things that I have seen in the war zone that I’ve been to—and I am referring to this as all war, because my father told me about things he saw during World War II, and I’ve talked to Vietnam War veterans, I’ve talked to Korean War veterans, and they’ve all told me similar things that they’ve seen. And that is how peoples homes are destroyed. That’s how people are destroyed. And just how insane, really, the entire thing is. War destroys everything in its path. It’s the most destructive force on the planet that mankind has come up with, I can tell you that.