Winter Soldierizing

The following comes from Jack Dresser, Ph.D., Behavioral Scientist, Co-founder, Lane County Veterans for Peace: Capt., US Army (psychologist, Vietnam era)
Squadron 13 ; Veterans Against Torture via G.I. Special-Military Project, Volume: 6B Issue: 16 Ft. Dix, you can read it in Word or in PDF for the rest of the News Letter.

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In the winter of 1777-78, after suffering three terrible defeats by the much larger British force and marching hundreds of miles, the 11,000-man Continental Army retreated to a winter headquarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Food was in desperately short supply, 2,000 men were without shoes, and many were without blankets. Typhoid fever, dysentery, malnutrition and exposure claimed some 2,500 lives that winter.

American Patriot morale had declined severely and whole militia companies had deserted to return home. Those that remained to weather the arduous winter formed powerful bonds that led them to eventually prevail in our war for independence.

Of these men and the 700 women who fed, nursed and warmed them through that winter, political activist and revolutionary thinker Thomas Paine wrote, “The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of all men and women.”

Those that endured have come to be called the “winter soldiers.”

As veterans, we once swore to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” We do not foreswear that oath upon removing the uniform.

Two Vietnam Veterans visit the My Lai Memorial, Vietnam.

Upon that basis in 1971, following prosecution of Lt. Calley for the My Lai massacre in Vietnam, over 150 honorably discharged, many very highly decorated members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War {VVAW} gathered in Detroit to share their stories. Remaining faithful to their oath beyond their obligated service and harkening back to Paine’s words, they named this the “Winter Soldier Investigation.”

Atrocities like My Lai had ignited popular opposition to the war, but political and military leaders insisted that such crimes were isolated exceptions.
The members of VVAW testified at that time on the systematic brutality and war crimes they had witnessed and inflicted upon the people of Vietnam, stating that unspeakable atrocities such as “free fire zones” were in fact US government policy, violating the Geneva Conventions and other international treaties which are defined by Article VI of the Constitution as “the supreme law of the land.”

Asked by Chairman William Fulbright to present their findings before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Lt. John Kerry delivered ringing testimony on behalf of the group. He explained, “We who have come here to Washington have come here because we feel we have to be winter soldiers now. We could come back to this country, we could be quiet, we could hold our silence, we could not tell what went on in Vietnam, but we feel because of what threatens this country, not the reds, but the crimes which we are committing that threaten it, that we have to speak out.”

Kerry concluded his testimony, “We wish that a merciful God could wipe away our own memories of that service as easily as this administration has wiped away their memories of us. But all that they have done and all that they can do by this denial is to make more clear than ever our own determination to undertake one last mission - to search out and destroy the last vestige of this barbaric war, to pacify our own hearts, to conquer the hate and fear that have driven this country these last ten years and more... And so when thirty years from now our brothers go down the street without a leg, without an arm, or a face, and small boys ask why, we will be able to say ‘Vietnam’ and not mean a desert, not a filthy obscene memory, but mean instead where America finally turned and where soldiers like us helped it in the turning.”

But thirty years have passed and America has failed to turn.

Thirty-two years later, America launched another equally brutal, equally mindless, equally unjustified attack on the nation of Iraq, again in violation of international treaty laws - the UN and Nuremberg Charters - that prohibit wars of aggression, and once more violating Article VI, the “Supremacy Clause,” of our Constitution. So once again winter soldiers are needed.

Thankfully, a current generation of outraged veterans is arising and a Winter Soldier II investigation is scheduled for March 13-16 in Washington, DC, where members of Iraq Veterans Against the War {IVAW} will replicate the model of their VVAW predecessors. All other peace organizations nationwide have been asked to suspend public events during that time so that media attention can be focused on this testimony. Information about the event may be found on the group's Web site.

“Over 30 years later,” IVAW states, “we find ourselves faced with a new war, but the lies are the same. Once again, troops are sinking into an increasingly bloody occupation. Once again, war crimes in places like Haditha, Fallujah and Abu Ghraib have turned the public against the war. Once again, politicians and generals are blaming 'a few bad apples' instead of examining the military policies that have destroyed Iraq and Afghanistan.”

IVAW is planning to provide live broadcasting of the sessions for those who cannot hear the testimony firsthand.

Our blue-and-white Veterans for Peace bus, “Squadron13 Deployed,” will be there - our gas budget willing - following a 3,400 mile coast-to-coast awareness raising tour taking the southern route around the Rockies.

We will film and post on YouTube as we go and as we witness.

Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan

On the 22nd 'War Comes Home' posted a DKOS diary on Information on Live Streaming Audio Feed to 'Winter Soldier II' on KPFA with feed available at the War Comes Home website as well.

More is now up at the Iraq Veterans Against The War-Winter Soldier website:

Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan will feature testimony from U.S. veterans who served in those occupations, giving an accurate account of what is really happening day in and day out, on the ground.

The four-day event will bring together veterans from across the country to testify about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan - and present video and photographic evidence. In addition, there will be panels of scholars, veterans, journalists, and other specialists to give context to the testimony. These panels will cover everything from the history of the GI resistance movement to the fight for veterans' health benefits and support.

When: Thursday March 13 to Sunday March 16

For those interested in watching or organizing around the proceedings at Winter Soldier, there will be a number of ways to watch and listen to the event.

**Live television broadcast via satellite tv, accessible through Dish Network as well as public access stations that choose to carry our broadcast - Friday and Saturday only

**Live video stream on the web - Thursday through Sunday { no site url given, as yet, on this video stream }

**Live radio broadcast via KPFA in Berkley California and other Pacifica member stations - Friday through Sunday

**Live audio stream via KPFA's website - Friday through Sunday

Please return to the IVAW website for specific details in the coming weeks.

You can find out more at the IVAW - Winter Soldier - Site, on the left you will find links to the needed information, as well as some embedded links in page text.

Winter Soldier I site page.

In February 1971, one month after the revelations of the My Lai massacre, an astonishing public inquiry into war crimes committed by American forces in Vietnam was held at a Howard Johnson motel in Detroit. The Vietnam Veterans Against the War organized this event called the Winter Soldier Investigation. More than 125 veterans spoke of atrocities they had witnessed and committed.

With Video Trailer and much more.

In the leadup to the present Winter Soldier we get words from one who participated in the one of the past.

Joe Bangert, Smedley Butler VFP, Star of "Winter Soldier" and "Sir! No Sir!" speaks at the Moonakis Cafe, Falmouth, Mass- 2/9/08- film by Paul Rifkin and David Souza:

Joe Bangert, a Vietnam Vet, of Vietnam Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace, who gave testimony at the 1971 Winter Soldier Hearings, lays the groundwork for Winter Soldier 2.

JOE BANGERT, WINTER SOLDIER


Visit IVAW-Iraq Veterans Against The War and Support These Brave Soldiers who have Served for You!

Nixon, and the government agencies under his control, tried to stop and slander the Soldiers of 'Winter Soldier I' and that continues today by his loyalist and those still bent on the twisted ideologies, from the very top to the tv and radio talking heads to the print media and today to the internet.

Who will be the first to Attack the Soldiers of 'Winter Soldier II', which 'chickhawk' will try to Slander their Service and their Testimony on the Realities of War, take your pick, plenty to choose from!!

By Dennis Serdel, Vietnam 1967-68 (one tour) Light Infantry, Americal Div. 11th Brigade, purple heart, Veterans For Peace 50 Michigan, Vietnam Veterans Against The War, United Auto Workers GM Retiree, in Perry, Michigan
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Bridging The Gap

There is a broken bridge that they call America
between the people and their government.
Stressed out cracked TV's, broken fractured newspapers
with jagged concrete facts that they call Iraq.

There's a broken bridge between our Soldiers
and what they were told they were fighting for.
There is a broken bridge across the Euphrates river
like a broken bridge across the Mississippi too.

Rivers of darkness and light that flow
a lightning bolt currents dark and dangerous,
pieces of humans lay at the bottom and who is responsible,
who does not care at all as the rain and sand
fall like teardrops trying to see through the murky waters,
trying to find a way out, trying to stop the bleeding,
trying to kill the cause and Americans
stand and watch the horror of civilization
pounded by combat boots, they want to stop it
but they doubt it like by voting the war away.

Captain Amerika still acting like superman,
the Statue of Liberty is cracking like the economy,
who cares about a war debt, put it on a Chinese credit card,
green back dollars going down and down drowning
another bridge falling into the water.

To the energy poor depression crashed civilians
of a war wreck they once called America,
the Answer is within our Soldiers
when they come back from another tour.

The Answer is within Americans
when they stand behind the Soldiers
when they refuse to deploy on a no way next tour.

Pete Seeger to Winter Soldiers



VVAW Dec 26th \'70
Once again Country living in Distress!

“ Every war, when viewed from the undistorted perspective of life's sanctity, is a "civil war" waged by humanity against itself."
- Daisaku Ikeda

al-Sadr Spoke, and......

Series of rockets fired on Baghdad's Green zone
Attacks come a day after al-Sadr orders extension of cease-fire

BAGHDAD - A series of rockets or mortars were fired toward the U.S.-protected Green Zone early Saturday, a day after radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his Mahdi Army militia fighters to cease attacks for another six months.

Anybody want to guess who will be blamed for these?

The U.S. military blamed what it calls Iranian-backed Shiite militias for a series of deadly rocket attacks in Baghdad earlier this week, including one against U.S. outposts in Baghdad that wounded three American soldiers.

Gee, Iran and Shiite militias, seems they can't claim al-Qaeda, wonder why that universal label wasn't used, must be the big bad Iranian involvement?, you think!

The military said the extremists were among factions that have broken with al-Sadr and refused to follow his cease-fire order.

al-Sadr is a Nationalist and wants the U.S. occupation to end and the troops out of his country as do most of the Iraqi's, especially those in these varied militias.

The U.S. Troops, and any Iraqi's working with them are considered their enemies, than we have those religious extremists wanting to push their ideological religious beliefs on others, which wasn't happening untill We Invaded! Also, as in any society, you have a criminal element that attempts to take advantage of the situation, a situation We Created! There are many twists and turns in a War Theater, especially one that has created the problems of Ethnically Cleansed Area's, Refugee's by the Millions, within and outside of Their Country, which once again is the situations We Created!

Is this a picture of what Iraq will face, as we Occupy, or if we leave, which We Created, it already is and not only in Basra.

Ominous Signs Remain in City Run by Iraqis

BASRA, Iraq — This southern port city has been, in effect, on its own since September, when British forces here moved to the outskirts, yielding authority to local leaders. British and American officials say Basra’s experiment in self-rule could serve as a model for Iraq’s future, but if so — many locals and outside advisers say — that future remains dark.

Basra has the nation’s best economic base, little ethnic tension within a homogeneous Shiite population and no Western occupation force to inflame nationalist tensions.

Lets see, Shiite's, followers of al-Sadr.

Disappearances of doctors, teachers and other professionals are common, as are some clashes among competing militias, most of which are linked to political parties. Murder victims include judicial investigators, politicians and tribal sheiks. One especially disturbing trend is the slaying of at least 100 women in the last year, according to the police. The Iraqi authorities have blamed Shiite militiamen for many of those killing, saying the militants had probably deemed the women to be impious.

How many of the Shiite followers will heed al-Sadrs decree for another six month ceasefire?

As the first link might show the answer came rather quickly, as it was meant to, by Iraqi Nationalists!

How many of the Nationalist will look at the Turkish Invasion, of the North, as another Invasion of their country by an outside foreign force. Wether Kurd or not, they all lived within the borders established as Their Country. And with the seemingly Green Light by the U.S. what will be the 'Blowback' to Occupation Forces by the Turkish Invasion, big extremely dangerous question that only time will show, but it seems that question might have been answered as well with the attack on the Green Zone.

We've made Sadr the present poster boy in a F**KED UP situation We Created, who will be the next poster boy next week or the following weeks, now that Sadr has spoken!

How many of those, we now are paying, eventually turn back on our troops?

You might want to listen to this NPR Freshair interview, aired on thursday the 21st, before Sadrs decree was made public, Journalist Patrick Cockburn on Iraq's Tenuous Calm

The cease-fire that's kept Iraq's Shiite militias in check for months is in danger of unraveling. At the same time, there's a growing restlessness among some of the Sunni militias backed by the United States in the fight against al-Qaida in Iraq. Patrick Cockburn, author and Iraq correspondent for The Independent in London, joins Fresh Air to discuss what he sees as a tenuous calm in Iraq.
You can listen to the interview with this link, and there's an excerpt from his book at the site link.

It's way past 5yrs. overdue to try and correct what happened in the past and now this present Huge Historic, of the U.S., Foreign Policy Debacle, that will shape, and already has, the future this World now faces, especially this country!

Get all of Iraqs neighbors together and Seek their Help, religious and ethnic, in the attempt to bring Stability to this country We Destroyed. Stop condemning the Governments and those leaders, thus Condemning the people of, those at the receiving end will, and are, taking the steps of escalation needed, as they see the policies unfolding, to protect their countries and people, some of those people fully back the escalations of weapontry and forces!

The failed foreign policies of the past brought about the hatreds of the present, and the present failed policies bring on more and more hatreds!

No Blame should be placed on our Military Troops, for they are Us, and anything that Happens, especially the Atrosities Of War, in Our Created War Theater, is Done In Our Names!

A Nation cannot give Cheer to perceived Victory's, in Wars of Choice, and be in Denial of All that Happens to those we've Destroyed, personally and as a country!

Start finally being what We As A Nation say we are, and Condemn what we've done in the past, Especially the Recent Past!!

“ Every war, when viewed from the undistorted perspective of life's sanctity, is a "civil war" waged by humanity against itself."
- Daisaku Ikeda

ALERT: Missing Marine!!

Missing Marine makes phone call

'CHARLOTTE COUNTY: The family of missing Marine Eric Hall says the young man made a phone call to a friend in Jeffersonville, Indiana early Wednesday morning.'
Snip

'Hall has been missing for nearly three weeks. His family says he was wounded in Iraq and is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.'
Snip

There is a video report at the News Channel 2 site as well

Another report about Eric explains more of possibly why he disappeared.

'Eric Hall, 24, left his aunt's house in Deep Creek on Feb. 3 during a flashback to his service in Iraq. He was injured while on foot patrol in Fallujah in June 2005; an improvised explosive device killed a man he was with and mangled his thigh. Eric was medically retired from the Marine Corps, where his mother, Becky Hall, said he had planned to make his career. A few weeks before his disappearance, he moved from Indiana to Florida for a fresh start.'
Snip

'Eric seemed to believe enemies were out to get him the day he disappeared, relatives said. He had previously been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and received some treatment from the Veteran's Administration.'
Snip

Updated report, today, with the following:

Eric Hall

Age: 24

Hair: brownish-blond

Eyes: brown

Height: 5 feet, 9 inches; walks with a limp

Weight: 140 pounds

Clothing: black leather jacket with patch that says "In Memory of Pops" (a memorial to a friend's deceased father), plaid long-sleeved shirt, white T-shirt, blue jeans, possibly a motorcycle helmet

Tattoos: "sinner" written on inside of right bicep, "saint" on inside of left bicep, Chinese characters on stomach, dog tags on left side of ribcage, praying hands on left side of chest, and "established in 1983" written on lower back

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office at 941-639-0013 or Becky Hall at 502-500-7732.

There is also a message from his mother at above report!

While GI's Die, Major Fakes Awards

War brings faster promotions to class that give the orders, but you always find the Scum that'll do any damn thing to get ahead!

The very last place you want to see it is in the Military and when that Military is sent into Wars Of Choice!

But it happened than, all the past than's, and the present is no differant!

Major gets 5 months for faking awards

And all this scumbag gets is 5 months and a $9,300 restitution payback because of his promotion on the false claims!

lying about his Army achievements and awards — including his bogus claim a Silver Star for heroism in battle — so he could get promoted faster.

Not the sentence he should have gotten.

The felony charge of knowingly making false statements carried up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Calderone was also accused of wearing false decorations between Nov. 22, 2003, and Dec. 3, 2006. That charge, a misdemeanor, carried a maximum sentence of six months in prison and a $5,000 fine.

One wonders the why he was let off so easy!

Spent 2005 in Iraq, apparently lied about further tours In-Country, his qualifications, and other awards!

Falsified his DA Form 2-1 with the Silver Star, Special Forces and Ranger tabs, and Combat Infantry badge!

Than submitted a falsified DD 214, all of which led to the promotion to Major!

This clown could get himself Elected pResident in this Country, now that we've already lowered the bar, Way Low!!

Speaking about Lobbyists,

And Immigration.

Think they don't mix?

Well, GOP lobbyist had no work permit

And guess who he worked for:

A former California Republican Party official who resigned last year in a controversy over his immigration status had no valid visa or work permit during his high-profile career as a Washington lobbyist for conservative icon Grover Norquist, newly filed court records show.

Grover, grover, grover, thought you were a wizard on the political smear front, didn't enter your mind that reality bites back!

For Norquist, Kamburowski lobbied Congress on dozens of issues, including immigration reform, according to his resume. He also directed the Norquist organization's Ronald Reagan Legacy Project, an effort to rename public buildings to honor the former president.

Wonder if Ronald knew or cared, and did he come cheaper than a legal?

It's abit juicier, the 'Gate' gives the layout.

Hmmmm, wonder if he was buds with the 'Brain'?

Off to work, but a thought on Castro as well:

The Other Shoe Dropping in Iraq?

As bad as Iraq was and is, it soon could become worse than the very recent past nfew months and they haven't been a sunday afternoon picnic!

markthshark posted this Diary last night: Moqtada al-Sadr Ends Four Month Pact with Rival Shi'ite Council.

Amazingly this Extremely Important bit of Reality made it up to the recommend list disappointing, I'll bet, at least one diarist posting either a slam post against or a love thy one for the favorite candidate 'Who's Gonna Save The World'. Folks, just abit of another reality. Only You, together with many many many others can right the course of this Ship of State, but I degress.

Could the other shoe hit the floor in Iraq?

The purpose of 'The Surge' has not come to the reality wanted, a functioning Iraqi Government { and it won't as long as control is coming from Washington}. But with the Blastwalls in Baghdad, alliances and paying those who were formally fighting us, and Most Important, Ceasefire agreements with the main Insurgent Iraqi Groups has quieted, at least abit, the Violence, but still Innocent Iraqi's and Occupation Forces have been Killed and Maimed, and this month already seems to be heading back towards Escalation.

Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army is among the most powerful militias in Iraq. The crux of the message being sent by the organization was that al-Sadr followers would be free to resume their activities if no message was sent by the cleric on Feb. 23.

And so add to the diary link subject above, which is bad enough, and watch for any news on the date directly above for Al-Sadr threatens to lift cease-fire, and the robins may be starting to show up in the north, for spring time here, but the Violence in Iraq could be heading, once again, into the Abis of the Extreme for Our Troops and the Iraqi People, who's Lives and Country have already been Destroyed by Us!

According to al-Obeidi, this "has been conveyed to all Mahdi Army members nationwide."

Got that, all Mahdi Army members Nationwide.

The U.S. military has welcomed the cease-fire, saying it is a major factor in the estimated 60 percent decline in violence in the country in the second half of 2007.

What will the War Profitteers and War Mongers, in Washington, do. Offer Al-Sadr Billions to hold his supporters back, and what will they do, even small factions of?

As this Debacle continues!!

“ Every war, when viewed from the undistorted perspective of life's sanctity, is a "civil war" waged by humanity against itself."
- Daisaku Ikeda

Not Good News: Iraq! and 6 Month Ceasefire Slated to End This Month!

Deal between key Iraq Shiite figures collapses


NAJAF, Iraq, Feb 17, 2008 (AFP) - Radical Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's movement Sunday announced it was cancelling a pact it signed four months ago with its main Shiite rival aimed at reducing tension between the two groups.



The agreement between the Sadrists and the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (SIIC) of Abdel Aziz al-Hakim "has failed and is cancelled," Nassar al-Rubaie, spokesman for the Sadr bloc in parliament, told AFP.

The two groups, which have clashed repeatedly in the past as each sought control of Iraq's majority Shiite community, signed a pact last October 6 aimed at ending the violence between their two militias.

Their attempt at reconciliation was prompted by tensions in the town of Diwaniyah, 180 kilometres (110 miles) south of Baghdad, between the local authorities controlled by the SIIC and Sadr's Mahdi Army militia.

Dozens of Sadrists had been rounded up in operations led by the Iraqi security forces supported by US troops following confrontations between the rival militiamen during the second half of 2007.

Part of the deal was that joint committees be set up with provincial branches to keep order between rival supporters, but according to Rubaie this has not been done.

"Committees should have been created to resolve security problems in all the provinces," he said. "But they have not been implemented and this agreement is just a facade. It has not been activated."

Competition between the two Shiite factions has often been violent, with a number of officials on either side assassinated.

At stake is control of local government in Iraq's mainly Shiite southern provinces which are rich in oil, and in particular in the large town of Basra, the main port for exporting hydrocarbons.

Rivalry between the two movements is likely to increase ahead of provincial elections scheduled for October 1.

The SIIC has close links with Iran, and its chief Abdel Aziz al-Hakim often visits Tehran.

He is also welcomed in Washington, where he is regarded as a key player on the Iraqi political scene.

The Sadrist movement touts itself as a defender of the Arab identity of Iraq's Shiite community, and its young chief was long regarded as a bete noir of US troops in Iraq.

However, he declared a six-month ceasefire last August and has since been frequently praised by US commanders for having helped to reduce the levels of violence across Iraq.



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“ Every war, when viewed from the undistorted perspective of life's sanctity, is a "civil war" waged by humanity against itself."

- Daisaku Ikeda

VETERANS DIAGNOSED WITH PTSD ON ACTIVE DUTY,

NO LONGER REQUIRED TO PROVIDE FURTHER EVIDENCE OF PTSD
Responding to Akaka’s inquiry, new VA Secretary takes quick action

read more | digg story

The revisionist approach to Vietnam

When Iraq became the quagmire it is, I used to wonder how we could make the same mistake again so soon. But then I realized that Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld were in the Oval office with President Ford when Saigon fell. Perhaps they, and the worshipers of American power, felt that, this time, we would get it right.

read more | digg story

"Rules of Engagement"

Documentary Examines 'Rules of Engagement'

Talk of the Nation, February 18, 2008 · Filmmaker Arun Rath talks about his new documentary Rules of Engagement that examines the death of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha.
Listen on NPR Player

FrontLine-PBS
February 19, 2008

Rules of Engagement

The inside story of what happened in Haditha, Iraq, where 24 Iraqis were killed by U.S. forces. Many in the media branded it "Iraq's My Lai."

Those Fighting Can Do It, CAN YOU!

Fort Hood soliders breaking the silence in war in Iraq

A growing number of active duty soldiers or recent Iraq war veterans are speaking up about the war in Iraq.
And with the number of soldiers speaking up about their experiences in Iraq via online forums, blogs and pamphlets,
some vets feel it's their duty to let the American public know the truth.

This occurred on the 17th, yesterday, outside of Ft Hood Texas, which has a rich history of action by Active Duty and
recent Veterans of the Vietnam Conflict, back than one of many bases, around the country, as well as the world, and In-Country
Vietnam!

This Austin Texas News Channel seems to have fallen in behind these Soldiers, embedded links and all, with no negative reporting!

'There is a cost to this war. This war is being paid in American blood, in my soldier's blood. And that is not okay,' Coppa said.

'We lost really good friends, really good leaders who died in Iraq. From my perspective, it didn't make any sense, we didn't
accomplish anything, and I talked to a lot of other soldiers who feel the same way,' Fort Hood soldier Casey Porter said.

Visit above link to read and Watch the Video Report

This morning Army Sargent had this posted up at Vet Voice:

Winter Soldier: What We Believe‏

Many of you don't understand why I believe in Winter Soldier, or what I think Winter Soldier is going to be about. It's hard to explain, especially when you find yourself coming up against gaps. You can read my piece in the SIT-REP, if you're lucky enough to be by a base where that hot little newspaper is going around.

There's abit more, it was leading up to this Moving Video of what is to come next month in the Nations Capitol, Winter Soldier, March 13-16 2008

WARNING: A few very graphic photos and descriptions
Winter Soldier Iraq and Afganistan

When I returned home Thomas, brother Vietnam Vet, of Military Project-G.I.Special
had sent out the following in the News Letter, it's from an issue on 11-14-07, from an Active Duty Soldier, who might recognize it:

Army Values

“I Am Loyal To My Fellow Soldiers; I Do Not Want Them To Die In A Purposeless War”

“I Am Loyal To The Constitution; A Constitution Which Is Under Attack By Men Who Have Not Sacrificed To Protect It”

“Our Leadership Is Currently Dishonorable”

A lot of people question how I can be a sergeant in the Army, giving my oath true weight, and believing in its values, and still be a member of IVAW.

It’s easy.

I believe in the Army’s purpose-it is to defend our country and protect the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

I don’t think its purpose is foreign wars we can’t win.

Its true purpose is noble, and has been subverted by armchair soldiers, politicians who have never had to serve.

They don’t know these values, and they don’t live them -- but I do.
And here’s why they support, rather than contradict, what I’m doing now as a member of IVAW.

Loyalty: Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit, and fellow soldiers.

Nowhere in this list does it say “the current leadership of your country, and their political decisions”.

I am loyal to my fellow soldiers; I do not want them to die in a purposeless war.

I am loyal to the Army; I do not want it to be weakened on multiple fronts and taken away from its true purpose, defense of the nation.

I am loyal to the Constitution; a Constitution which is under attack by men who have not sacrificed to protect it.

I bear true faith and allegiance to these, most particularly the Constitution which founded our nation.

Duty: Fulfill your obligations

Our highest obligations as soldiers is our obligation to our country and the flag we salute. Our obligation as citizens and patriots compels us to defend our country in any way we can -- against its destruction as well as its dishonor.

The Iraq War, and the way it is being prosecuted, dishonors us in the eyes of the world, and even worse, dishonors us to ourselves.

Respect: Treat people as they should be treated.

Treat the people of the United States as well as the people of Iraq with respect.

They deserve to be treated according to their status: if they are prisoners of war, then treat them with the full dignity accorded POWs. If they are criminals, then give them trials.

Innocent until proven guilty: we do not lose our values when we step away from our shores.

Selfless Service: Put the welfare of the Nation, the Army, and your subordinates before your own.

Being a member of IVAW is hard.

It is hard to stand up, to devote effort and time to an organization committed to what is right, when your leadership so firmly believes that it is wrong.

It’s hard to face the intimidation and harassment that many members of the active duty military face when they begin to speak out on what they feel. It’s hard to stand up and tell your higher ups that they are committing crimes.

But the welfare of the Nation, our continued survival as an honorable country, and the continued survival of the Army depends on some of us standing up, and saying, “Sir, no Sir!”

That we will not participate in illegal acts, and we will report them when and where we see them.

We will not train our soldiers to commit them, and will train our soldiers to follow the honorable path.

And the honorable path now, the hard service, means standing up and speaking the truth, so that legislators can begin to realize it, and bring us home.

Honor: Live up to Army Values

Honor is living up to all the Army Values, but it is even older than that. It is the thing you have when you have nothing else left. It is all you need: it should be the cornerstone of a soldier.

It is phrased as living up to all the Army Values, because if you lack even one, you cannot be an honorable soldier.

It is the ability to look yourself in the mirror at the end of the day and know you have done all that you can, and that you have not had to reproach yourself for anything.

Our leadership is currently dishonorable.

By their bending of the torture legislation to allow what they want to take place, they are attempting to put a stain upon our honor that will take at least a generation to erase.

As soon as our soldiers have fulfilled their usefulness to them, leadership shuffles them away, with “personality disorders” instead of PTSD treatment.

Benefits are cut, while contractors reach huge rewards.

This is not taking care of the people who have given their all to the country.

It is dishonorable, and the only way to restore that honor is to stand up against the people who are doing so and will do so again.

Integrity: Do what is right, legally and morally.

The things that the political leadership of this country are trying to do right now are neither legal nor moral.

The acceptance of torture, the belief that once Americans go beyond their borders, they no longer have to hold to the beliefs that shaped our nation, ‘baiting’ with weapons caches, and other such tactics at the very least skirt the fine line of legality: they are definitely not moral.

Claiming that it is okay to treat people dishonorably because they are not an organized force fighting against us is simply wrong, as is the argument that they are not citizens and therefore do not deserve the protections of the Constitution.
We are the good guys!

We do the right thing, even if others don’t, and if our leadership does not understand that, it needs to.

It needs to pull out of this war, and cease its immoral actions, to bring itself in line with the country’s beliefs and principles.

Personal Courage: Face fear, danger, or adversity (physical or moral)

It does not take physical courage to stand up and fight against injustice in this fashion.

Most members have not been physically attacked -- the cowards who attack people for their beliefs have gone after a father of a dead servicemember instead (Carlos Arredondo).

But it does take moral courage.

It takes moral courage to stand up for what you know to be true and right, moral courage to say that the country is steering in the wrong direction, and you are committed by your oath to turn it around.

It takes moral courage to resist a war that your leadership believes in, or to stand against your entire platoon and state that you will not treat a prisoner with anything less than full dignity.

And it takes moral courage to be counted, here, to let people insult you for perceived cowardice, when the truth is that you, like I, may not be against all wars, all places, all times.

But hopefully you, like I, like many committed and dedicated members of the military community, are against this one.

In the leadup to the present Winter Soldier we get words from one who participated in the one of the past.

Joe Bangert, Smedley Butler VFP, Star of "Winter Soldier" and "Sir! No Sir!" speaks at the Moonakis Cafe, Falmouth, Mass- 2/9/08- film by Paul Rifkin and David Souza:

Joe Bangert, a Vietnam Vet, of Vietnam Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace, who gave testimony at the 1971 Winter Soldier Hearings, lays the groundwork for Winter Soldier 2.

JOE BANGERT, WINTER SOLDIER


Visit IVAW-Iraq Veterans Against The War

Winter Soldier: What We Believe

The following was posted at Vet Voice: 'Army Sergeant' is helping set up the 'Winter Soldier' for March 2008 in DC.

by: ArmySergeant
Mon Feb 18, 2008 at 02:19:17 AM EST

Originally posted at Active Duty Patriot
Many of you don't understand why I believe in Winter Soldier, or what I think Winter Soldier is going to be about. It's hard to explain, especially when you find yourself coming up against gaps. You can read my piece in the SIT-REP, if you're lucky enough to be by a base where that hot little newspaper is going around.



But pictures and video are worth far more than a thousand words. Don't let me tell you-let the close friends of mine who made this video, Steve Mortillo and Jason Washburn, tell you, in their own words.



These guys are among those types of voices I've been talking about: young, strong veterans, proud of their military service, proud of the services they love (Trust me-you should be there when we all get going about which is better, Army or Marines), and with a strong love of their country. And like myself, they are proud members of Iraq Veterans Against the War. You probably haven't heard of them much-but hopefully you will. These guys are tough-they're doing a 25 mile ruck march next weekend to Valley Forge that I wish I could join them for.

And this video is nothing short of amazing. The footage is all soldier (yes, Jason, and Marine) shot.



If you've ever wanted to get inside my head, or those of the IVAW members like me. If you've ever wondered just what drives some people to speak out. If you are curious about just what this Winter Soldier means. If you are a friend, a frenemy, or even the gentleman-opposition peeking in.



Watch it. You won't regret you did.
WARNING: A few very graphic photos and descriptions

Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan

Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan

This Video, isn't as graphic:

The Iraq War Comes Home...

The Iraq War Comes Home... Iraq Veterans Against the War(IVAW)

IVAW - Iraq Veterans Against the War

Sparking Real Religious Dialog?

This ought to really raise the ire of condemnation within the Fundamentalist Christian Community,
especially as practiced in the U.S..

Dialog already started

at site of this report, Story of Jesus Through Iranian Eyes

New Movie By Iranian Filmmaker Tells Story of Christianity From Muslim Perspective

You can also view their video report here.

A new movie in Iran depicts the life of Jesus from an Islamic perspective. "The Messiah," which some consider as Iran's answer to Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ," won an award at Rome's Religion Today Film Festival, for generating interfaith dialogue. The movie will be adapted into a television series, shown on Iranian TV later this year. Filmmaker Nader Talebzadeh spoke to ABC's Lara Setrakian in Tehran.

The fundamentalist christians I'm speaking of are the ones who have all the answers about what others practice
but don't bother reading about, and especially studying, other religious ideologies.

They'll pick and choose little
snippets, of those ideologies, to fit their desired rethoric.

They do the same within their own personal religious
rethoric, picking the teachings and sins they want to follow in their self constructed lifestyles, throwing out those that clash
with their personal wants and desires, than when guilt finally hits, much more often caught in their own hypocrisy,
they say they are "Born Again, Thus Saved!", simple as that.

"We are talking about the same beautiful man, the same beautiful prophet, the same divine person sent from heaven.
In the Koran, it emphasizes maybe three main points: about the birth, about the fact that he was not the son of God, and then, that he was not crucified.
The rest is [the same] Jesus ... the sermons, and the miracles, and the political situation."

The ones who don't except 'choice' as a womens right, as to what she does if confronted with making that choice and as to her own
religious beliefs, but many wanting their own right to 'choice' as to the number of weapons they might own,
and the full range of the manufactured small arms, no questions asked.
And readily except a societies right to sentence to death those covicted of major crimes.

"The virgin birth was the same. The difference in the Koran, God says Jesus was saved.
Instead of having him hung and crucified, the person who betrayed Jesus was crucified.
This is how the Koran sees it, through the Gospel of Barnabas."

The ones who readily start the drums of Wars of Choice beating, louder and louder, as they raise the rethoric level with
the religious tones of exceptance by 'God' that this is what he/she wants, the choice of! Destroying people and their countries to bring them 'Freedom',
'Democracy', and the 'Righteous View of Their Religion'!

"Yes, two endings. I thought, the Christians, when they see it, it'll be important for them.
{In the Koran} God says, emphatically, he was not crucified. Somebody was crucified in his stead.
In the Gospel of Barnabas, there are explications of this. The majority of {Muslims} say the one who betrayed Jesus {was crucified}."

Also the ones who speak 'Tolerance' but practice 'Intolerance' with a vengence!

"Well, those are not Muslims. They're murderers. First and foremost, they're murderers, and they dress as Muslims.
Today, we have that problem. There is an evil strain in those people. They're, first, evil, and then they find a religion to address that evil,
or to explain it, or as an excuse. But that's a minority that is aggrandized, and it's elaborated — it's constant.
So, when you hear the word "Islam," you get a shock. Every time you hear "Islam," you get a little shock. What we lack is communication."

We were almost finished filming when Mel Gibson started shooting.
I saw the film, and it's the first time the Gospel of John has ever been depicted. It was nice. But it was the wrong story.
In my film, I respect that common belief with all the good intentions the Christians have ... according to what Islam says.
Yet, Jesus, at the night of the last supper, ascends to heaven [without being crucified]. A beautiful man, a beautiful prophet.
Why should he be bloodied that way?

"Many thought this film is a good step for serious inter-religious dialogue.
Many of them liked it — seeing the Koran-based ending. And I was very happy that the practicing Christians were very happy with the film.
I have never found one case among practicing Christians who are offended [by the movie].
American Christians, I respect them very much. I think these Christians, the born-again Christians, especially,
are a very interesting group that Iran is not aware of, because a whole generation of Iranians haven't been able to travel to America.
And those who do move to America, stay in America. So, how to create serious communication, not at the political, but at the religious level?
I thought this would be a shortcut."

If you haven't studied others religious beliefs, especially as to Islam,
go over and read the rest, it's an interesting interview.

And who knows, maybe it might prompt many to
study more about the main religious beliefs of the people in which we waged Wars on and occupy their land,
you might also want to learn more about their, religions, history and beliefs outside of the religious window thats always open.

Remember though, the bible and koran, were written by men about the facts of the prophets, or son of god as is the new testiment, and not
by those worshipped.

You see, anyone following an Extreme Religious Fundamentalists Ideology, are no differant than those of the other Extreme Fundamentalist Religious Ideologies, be they christian, muslim, jewish, {why don't we ever hear about buddhist invading others under an umbrella of 'God' or 'Budda'?}or any other religious ideology!

Dallas Morning News breaks US MSM silence on Sibel Edmonds

Philip Giraldi: FBI whistle-blower Sibel Edmonds has spilled her secrets. Why is her story being covered up?

The Dallas Morning news published an adapted version of a longer article by former CIA officer Philip Giraldi- commenting on Sibel Edmonds' case and the failure of the US mainstream media to cover the news that FBI whistleblower Sibel Edmonds, "the most gagged person in US history" according to the ACLU, is now risking prison to share her story.

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