"So this monster could get out in 10 years... how exactly are we demonstrating the moral high ground here? Surely you cant call this a youthfull indescretion... It is rape and murder to cover up the rape of a 14 year old girl..."

Well, far as I know he was facing the death penalty, but apparent got 100 year sentence with possibility of parole in 10 years.
http://english.pravda.ru/news/world/23-02-2007/87701-us-soldier-0

Did he get less punishment than other criminals such as say Charles Mason who also has a parole hearings?

And:
"The military judge hearing the case, Col. Stephen R. Henley, issued a sentence of life in prison without parole, the maximum for the charges. Under military law, the defendant is given the lesser sentence unless he violates terms of the plea agreement, which requires Cortez to testify against others charged in the case."

"Cortez was found not guilty of more serious charges of premeditated murder and conspiracy to premeditated murder.

Pfcs. Jesse Spielman, 22, and Bryan Howard, 19, await courts-martial. Green, who is accused of being the ringleader but was discharged from the military before being charged, will be prosecuted in a federal court in Kentucky. "

"U.S. Soldier Gets 100 Years For Rape-Slay
AP) A U.S. soldier was sentenced to 100 years in prison for the gang rape and murder of an Iraqi girl and the killing of her family last year.

Sgt. Paul E. Cortez, 24, also was given a dishonorable discharge on Thursday. He will be eligible for parole in 10 years under the terms of his plea agreement."
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/22/iraq/main2506877.shtml

"One of the most disturbing facts about many murder cases is that the perpetrator is often a repeat offender. Why are they repeat offenders? The Manhatten Institute reported that the average prison term of murderers released in 1992 was only 5.9 years. This country is paroling murderers after only 6 years. To put it simply, murderers that are paroled have the opportunity to kill again."
http://worldcommunity.com/wcj/pages/s.0017/t.38.html

So Cortez with a plea bargain in which will be used to get others supposively more responsible for the crime will get 10 year before possibility of parole. Meanwhile the average murderer in who is US civilian gets out on parole in 5.9. years.

Now we want US soldiers to hold a much higher standard of moral behavior than average American. And it does great harm to our nation when soldiers commit crimes, but out of a 100,000+ soldiers one can not expect that some of them will not commit criminal acts. What is important is that when such crime occur for these to be promptly and fairly be prosecuted- which appears to be the case here. It's no doubt that if compared to similar number Americans of same age group [who btw are not in a stressful combat zone] the US soldiers have a lower crime rate.