It was inevitable. Everybody has a blog. Now, even a U.S. Navy destroyer has one.

The Pearl Harbor-based destroyer USS Russell started a Web log on March 24 as the ship deployed with the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group. As of yesterday, "The Destroyermen" had 17,297 hits.

The ship has about 275 sailors. The blog's mission statement is to "deliver an authentic, unvarnished, informative and entertaining account of life aboard a U.S. Navy destroyer."

Many of the entries are mundane, including reporting on a safety stand-down, figuring out what time to set the clocks to as the approximately 505-foot ship headed west, reports from a recent port call in Singapore, and the recurring "Eye candy for sailors."

No, not that. This "eye candy" is pictures of sailors training and doing their jobs.

But as of Saturday, a new and more serious tone was delivered under the entry, "War Beckons," a post by Lt. Cmdr. Chris van Avery.

"With our final port visit before we reach our destination now well in our wake, an overcast has descended upon the mood of the ship," van Avery's post said. "For the past month, there's always been something between us and there, whether it's a port visit, an exercise or an extra page on the calendar. No more."

Although van Avery does not say where the ship is going, he says the way ahead does include sandstorms, "the pounding, merciless sun and its evil twin, saturating humidity," and small threatening boats.

"No longer will the course of our day be mostly under our control and limited to drilling and training," van Avery's post said. "We'll become a workhorse, contracted out to labor for this or that. Hours will blend into days and days into weeks and everyone will lose count of how many ships we've queried and boarded, how many hours we've spent defending the carrier while it conducts its deadly business, and how many times a boat or aircraft came close enough to make the hair stand up on the back of necks."

WHERE TO FIND IT

The blog, at www.destroyermen.blogspot.com, is described as a private activity of crew members and civilians on the Russell. The site says the Russell's commanding officer knows ship members are operating the blog, and information posted is otherwise available through normal public affairs channels.

No government funds are expended, the site says, but government resources are used for what is usually everyday personal communication with family.

As the Navy and every other service have the resources and inclination to monitor closely such experiments, The Destroyermen already has received some high-ranking scrutiny.

Van Avery said in an April 21 post that a debate had been simmering as to whether the blog was an "official" military site or one run by sailors as private citizens.

Van Avery said he received an e-mail from a "Big Fish" that temporarily resolved the issue. It stated: "This is a good test case for us all to get smarter. ... There will be more to follow, but for now, I've got your back."

The note said the Navy chief of information, U.S. Pacific Fleet and Defense Department "are aware and approve."

Those following the site do, too, apparently. Here are a few of the reactions from readers.

Teacher from Nebraska:

"Great to hear that you will continue this site. I am a teacher in a rural part of Nebraska and I have used this site as an educational tool. Keep up the good work."

mduncan121286:

"I will cross my fingers and pray you all stay up and running. My husband is deployed with you all and this blog is a little crutch to help me through those difficult days. I can look at it and feel like I'm a part of his new life for the next 6 months. Stay motivated and keep up the hard work, see you all when you get back."

outdoorspro:

"I left the Navy in 1991, but just recently got back in. I must say that I have seen a great number of significant improvements in the overall professionalism and in the way sailors are treated. This is a good example.

Just another reason I'm glad to be back in."

ISSUES IN SOLDIER'S TRIAL

The issue of whether an Iraqi was or wasn't in U.S. custody when he was shot last June 23 by Schofield Barracks soldier Sgt. 1st Class Trey Corrales was key at his trial last week.

In a stunning verdict, a military jury acquitted Corrales, 35, of all charges, including premeditated murder.

A stream of fellow soldiers had testified Corrales told them to kill all military age males on the mission that night in search of roadside bomb planters near Kirkuk.

There was testimony that Corrales marched an unarmed Iraqi out of the house, tried to get him to take an AK-47 rifle, told the man to run, and then shot him.

"The detainee was in U.S. custody, and he was entitled to dignity and respect," said Capt. Laura O'Donnell, the chief prosecutor.

Corrales admitted that the man had been detained earlier in the house — something he said he didn't know until later — but somehow had escaped the attention of 16 to 18 soldiers in an elite scout platoon, and had moved to the backyard.

It was there that Corrales said he encountered an Iraqi. Acting instinctually based upon a perceived threat, Corrales said he shot the man.

Veteran Honolulu defense attorney Eric Seitz, who has handled hundreds of military cases, said the Geneva Conventions provide for the protection of a combatant who is disarmed and under the control of U.S. forces.

Additionally, once someone is captured, "anything you do to them at that point is totally within the realm of whatever human values you have."

"And if you believe in cutting off their testicles or torturing them, or whatever, then that obviously reflects upon the values of who you are and the society you represent."

So separate from treaty obligations, and as a nation purportedly guided by Christian principles, "you don't engage in that kind of conduct, even against your mortal enemies, once you've captured them." Conversely, Seitz said if a combatant is in custody and he escapes, theoretically he can become a combatant again and be shot.

Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com.