So how did Santiago's death save lives?

If Santiago isn't a competent marine and keeping him on duty may costs lives, he just needs to be transferred. Not MURDERED. Also, the colonel's intension wasn't to kill him, but to train him(though I don't see how that will improve Santiago's performance at all). By that logic it is what the colonel did that put lives in danger. Saving lives by Santiago's death is simply the colonel's excuse for his crime, nothing sacred.

Men dying doing what? What war were we fighting?

There is no justification and never would be justification to execute somebody for being a bad soldier or marine. The armed forces have policy for how to deal with sub par people. Demotions, discharge. Something.

The entire premise that Jessop provides is retarded and there is no way he would be so stupid as to admit to a felony based on the logic that we need him on that wall. That is idiotic.

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Colonel Jessup is an extremist, fanatical quack, that's why.

That's not the message of the film. The left wing message of the film is that Jessop is not that unusual.

"As others have said, Santiago wasn't up to it. Lives could also have been saved my simply moving him to another area of the marines away from the front line where he was less of a danger to himself and fellow marines."

What front line? Why does everyone seem to forget that Cuba is not a combat zone?

Transferring Santiago would in Jessup's mind just have moved the problem elsewhere--he would still be a sub-standard Marine putting other lives in danger--just not at Guantanamo. Jessup did not like that approach---he preferred to "train" Santiago to be a better Marine. Of course
Jessup did not know of Santiago's true medical condition--and of course Jessup was a dick!

I agree, Jessup's "probably saved lives" speech made no sense.

And deep down, I think he knew it.

If a more reasonable person were in Jessup's shoes, they would have eventually looked past their own anger at Santiago's letters and dealt with the matter more calmly. I think the first logical conclusion is that a transfer would have been out of the question. Word would get out. The story would go that Santiago broke the chain of command, ratted on a fellow soldier in exchange for a transfer, AND IT WORKED. Imagine the message that would send to his troops. So, the only appropriate response would be a court-martial and dishonorable discharge for Santiago. That would send the right message, and frankly, Santiago kind of deserved it.

Jessup could have come to this conclusion on his own. So why didn't he? Because he could not get past his own anger at Santiago. He probably viewed those letters as a power-play to undermine his authority, a breech of the Marines' code so blatant and disrespectful it could not be forgiven. In fact, Nicholson's first scene in the movie definitely gave me the impression that Jessup identified so strongly as a Marine that he probably took Santiago's actions as a direct assault on his own manhood. When he said, "We're gonna train the lad," it's clear he didn't give a s**t about training anyone. He is bristling with anger, unable to think logically or sanely. This isn't someone who cares about training anyone. He very clearly wants Santiago to suffer. The Code Red isn't for training. He wanted to HURT Santiago. And when Santiago died, I don't think Jessup shed a tear. In fact, he holds contempt for Kaffee for "weeping" for him. In Jessup's warped mind, Santiago was a piece of s**t who got exactly what was coming to him.

Either Jessup took time to understand this over time, or not. Either way, his "probably saved lives" speech was complete BS a coward's ploy to hide behind words like "honor, code, loyalty" to justify his own sadism.