Situation: you are a US Army Lieutenant Colonel at war.  Your unit recently came under attack, and captured one of the men responsible for planning it.  The same reliable informant that helped you capture him tells you that another attack has already been planned which may take the lives of some of your men. The prisoner helped plan it, and knows all the details... but he's not telling.  The men under your command are in danger.  Their lives are your responsibility.  More than that, they're your men... practically family.  Question: how far will you go to get the information from your prisoner that you need to save the lives of your men?

Lt. Colonel Allen B. West, an artillery batallion commander with the 4th Infantry Division, had the answer... but it required him to make an incredible personal sacrifice.  Colonel West knew that he was within weeks of making the twenty-year mark that would allow him to retire.  He knew that the much higher retirement pay he would attain then would ensure the treatment his wife (a cancer survivor) needs.  He knew that the rules did not allow him to threaten his prisoner with physical harm.  But he also knew that the lives of his men were his to save... or lose.  He knew that there was no time to waste. 

Knowing all of this, Lieutenant Colonel West deliberately chose to put his career and retirement benefits on the line to preserve the lives of the men under his command, an act of self-sacrifice few men and women would commit.

He fired his pistol twice into a barrel to scare the prisoner into giving up his information. He did this so the lives of American soldiers would be saved. He did it so that he would not have to bury a man the next day.  Then, Lt. Col. West immediately reported his actions to his superior officer.

Col. West said the detainee then provided the names of two accomplices and told of another planned sniper attack the next day.
"I have never denied what happened and have always been brutally honest," said Col. West. "I accept responsibility for the episode, but my intent was to scare this individual and keep my soldiers out of a potential ambush. There were no further attacks from that town. We further apprehended two other conspirators (a third fled town) and found out one of the conspirators was the father of a man we had detained for his Saddam Fedeyeen affiliation."
http://washingtontimes.com/national/20031030-113114-2964r.htm

As a result of his actions, Colonel West was ordered to retire immediately -- forfeiting all his accumulated benefits -- or face a court martial and possible sentence of eight years.  He offered to retire at a lower rank, so he could retain some benefits, but the offer was refused by the bureaucracy.

I honestly believe this is the sort of instance in which the Commander-in-Chief himself needs to step in and allow Colonel West to retire without losing his benefits.  Anyone who wishes to can call the White House comment line at 202-456-1111 to make a comment, or email the President's staff at president@whitehouse.gov.  Tell 'em I sent you.