"Capture the Flag"

‘Capture the Flag: A Political History of American Patriotism’

The flag is not powerful in spite of its ambiguity; it is powerful because of its ambiguity. It has stood, at different times, for radical democracy, opposition to immigration, the abolition of slavery, unregulated capitalism, segregation, integration, and a hawkish war policy, among many other things.

Read a selection from the introduction of "Capture the Flag: A Political History of American Patriotism" by Woden Teachout

A winter wind swept across New York Harbor on a late after noon the day after Christmas in 1971. Tourists riding the last two ferries from Manhattan to the Statue of Liberty huddled against the bulkheads, sheltering themselves from the gusts. Among the passengers were clusters of long-haired adults in well used army-surplus clothing, looking for all the world like hippies taking in the world-famous landmark. The mission of these fifteen men, however, went far beyond tourism.

Immediately upon docking at the island, the men performed a quick reconnaissance. They wedged open a few doors and then took refuge from sight; some crouched behind the massive supporting columns in the base of the statue. Some found storage closets and tucked themselves away......................Read Rest Here

Description

Americans honor the flag with a fervor seen in few other countries: The Stars and Stripes decorate American homes and businesses; wave over sports events and funerals; and embellish everything from politicians’ lapels to the surface of the moon.

But what does the flag mean? In Capture the Flag, historian Woden Teachout reveals that it has held vastly different meanings over time. It has been claimed by both the right and left; by racists and revolutionaries; by immigrants and nativists. In tracing the political history of the flag from its origins in the American Revolution through the present day, Teachout demonstrates that the shifting symbolism of the flag reveals a broader shift in the definition of American patriotism.

A story of a nation in search of itself, Capture the Flag offers a probing account of the flag that has become America’s icon.

James Patterson, author of "Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its Troubled Legacy"
“Displaying a fine eye and narrative skill in recounting key episodes—among them the Revolution, nativist riots, the bombardment of Fort Sumter, civil rights activism, and the New York City hard hat riot of 1970—Woden Teachout reminds us of how important the American flag has been as a symbol for a wide variety of patriotic causes.”

Back in December 2006 I posted about this and than again in December 2008 a repost with some added material Distress: December 26th 1971 and December 26th 2008

In that one I started it out with some words and this repost part:

December 26, 1971
Two dozen members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War "liberated" the Statue of Liberty with a sit-in to protest resumed U.S. aerial bombings in Vietnam. They flew an inverted U.S. flag from the crown as a signal of distress.


We've now had many years of not one but two Invasions and Occupations better known as Wars of Choice, though soldiers and those occupied are still dying in one it has become a stagnant theater on a hair trigger, the other rapidly ramping up in deaths and destruction, both are and have been recruiting actions for what we now call 'International Terrorism', Criminal Terrorism that will rear it's head, with no boundries, over and over for decades, as the number of those who will carry out these acts have greatly increased due to own terror forced on others!


Below is the '06 post with little change, to remember that shoutout of Distress on it's Anniversary, and as a call for Thought of what we now are facing. Still two occupations of others, this time those serving are doing so over and over and over.............., and to eight years of extremely failed policies and total incompetence as well as multiple corruptions and crimes, in and out of government, but also to the crimes against humanity this country has allowed and seems unwilling to face nor call accountability for!

If you visit this you will find the rest of the 2006 post as well as a few more clips with links and a bigger photo, of the one directly above, of the Distress Flag flying from the crown of the Statue.

While wrapping ourselves in 'Old Glory' we as a Nation are moving further apart under the manipulation of changing political ideologies or the twisting of their meanings, in fear by the voices of the few.

National Inauguration Ad

Iraq Veterans Against the War

Iraq Veterans Against the War's "End the War Now" ad, will air once coast to coast on NBC during the inauguration of President Barack Obama on January 20, 2009

Distress: December 26th 1971 and December 26th 2008

Back on December 26th 2006 I put together a post, for my site and a few others, in remembrance of an anniversary of a day my fellow Vietnam Veterans made a statement to our country, a statement of a Country in Distress, Our Country!


A shoutout about not only our War of Choice but what our society was going through, Civil Rights Movement, care of the returning Vets, civil disobedience for the many failed policies, and more, the statement wasn't really taken seriously except by the minority, as is usually the case, the country itself just dug deeper into it's apathy and never came to terms with our War and Occupation and still hasn't!


December 26, 1971
Two dozen members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War "liberated" the Statue of Liberty with a sit-in to protest resumed U.S. aerial bombings in Vietnam. They flew an inverted U.S. flag from the crown as a signal of distress.


We've now had many years of not one but two Invasions and Occupations better known as Wars of Choice, though soldiers and those occupied are still dying in one it has become a stagnant theater on a hair trigger, the other rapidly ramping up in deaths and destruction, both are and have been recruiting actions for what we now call 'International Terrorism', Criminal Terrorism that will rear it's head, with no boundries, over and over for decades, as the number of those who will carry out these acts have greatly increased due to own terror forced on others!


Below is the '06 post with little change, to remember that shoutout of Distress on it's Anniversary, and as a call for Thought of what we now are facing. Still two occupations of others, this time those serving are doing so over and over and over.............., and to eight years of extremely failed policies and total incompetence as well as multiple corruptions and crimes, in and out of government, but also to the crimes against humanity this country has allowed and seems unwilling to face nor call accountability for!


We have the ability to change some of what is happening, even as the economy is collapsing and bringing down other economies, but we can't take back nor be forgivin for bthe deaths and destruction we've wrought on others, we can minimize the blowback, but blowback there will be, destructive and economic, for years to come!


VVAW Anniversary-Dec 26th 1971-Statue of Liberty, Liberation


Six Vietnam veterans founded the VVAW in New York City in 1967 when they marched in a peace demonstration. Organized for returning troops to voice their opposition to the war that was still taking place in Indochina, the VVAW continues to grow, with over 30,000 members, according to the VVAW web Site.


The VVAW {Vietnam Veterans Against the War} focuses mainly on achieving better benefits for all veterans.



Vietnam Veterans take the Statue of Liberty, December 26th 1971. Two dozen members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War "liberated" the Statue of Liberty with a sit-in to protest resumed U.S. aerial bombings in Vietnam.They flew an inverted U.S. flag from the crown as a signal of distress.
Peace History December 25-31 by Carl Bunin


THE STATUE OF LIBERTY: MONUMENT TO AN EXPANDING SET OF IDEALS

Tim MacCormick of New Jersey and fourteen other members of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War, on the afternoon of December 26, 1971, arrived on Liberty Island by the Circle Line boat along with other tourists. But, when the last return ship to Manhattan sailed that evening, the veterans were not aboard. Instead, just before closing time, they hid among the exhibit partitions, building materials, and storage closets which were lying about the monument's base while work was being finished on the American Museum of Immigration. When NPS personnel made their 7:30 evening check-up of the statue, they found that the veterans had seized control of the landmark and barricaded the three ground floor entrances. The men inside refused to speak to or admit any Park Service people, but on the door they posted a typewritten statement addressed to President Richard M. Nixon:

Each Vietnam veteran who has barricaded himself within this international symbol of liberty has for many years rationalized his attitude to war. . . .We can no longer tolerate the war in Southeast Asia. . . .Mr. Nixon, you set the date [for leaving Vietnam], we'll evacuate. {13}

On December 27, twenty-one National Park police flew to Liberty Island from Washington where they were joined by New York City police and Coast Guardsmen. These security forces stood by while the government attempted to reach a peaceful compromise with the occupiers. They were told that they would be permitted to picket and protest on the island if they would simply vacate the statue, allowing it to reopen to visitors. The veterans rejected the offer, flew the United States flag upside down from the statue's crown, and waited. Law enforcement officers also waited. During that day thousands of disappointed tourists were told at the Battery that they could not go out to the statue. Congresswoman Bella Abzug (Democrat-New York) sent a telephone message of support to the demonstrators.



Members of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War leaving the Statue of Liberty, which they had occupied for two days. The demonstrators emerged in response to a court order, December 28, 1971.
(Source: Photograph Collection of the American Museum of Immigration, Liberty Island, U.S. Department of the Interior, NPS)


Meanwhile, United States Attorney Whitney North Seymour, Jr., went before District Court Judge Lawrence Pierce to request an injunction directing the veterans to open the doors, leave the statue except during regular visiting hours, and permit Park Service personnel and tourists to enter. On the morning of December 28 Judge Pierce issued a temporary restraining order, instructing the protestors to leave the statue "forthwith." Two hours later, after conferring with their lawyers, the veterans removed the barricades from the entrances and emerged with "clenched fists raised." They had cleaned up their debris and caused no significant damage to the property. The monument was reopened to the public, with the first ferry-load of visitors arriving at 2:15 that afternoon.
Tim MacCormick issued a statement to the press explaining why they had picked this particular target:

The reason we chose the Statue of Liberty is that since we were children, the statue has been analogous in our minds with freedom and an America we love.
Then we went to fight a war in the name of freedom. We saw that freedom is a selective expression allowed only to those who are white and maintain the status quo.
Until this symbol again takes on the meaning it was intended to have, we must continue our demonstrations. . . . {14}

The Story of a Vietnam Vet

In the 1970s, when the Department of Veterans’ Affairs cut off about 7.9 million troops’ benefits, the VVAW took over the Statue of Liberty, covering her eyes with protest banners.


“This was the second time that the VVAW had taken over the Statue of Liberty. This would be an 18-hour takeover before the park police finally came and removed us,” Davis recalls. “I was one of those people inside that statue. I was the national coordinator for the (VVAW) at the time.”


There’s a glimmer in Davis’ gray-blue eyes as he tells this story.


“The New York Post carrying a front-page story about how we ruined these poor tourists’ opportunities to see the Statue of Liberty, and we weren’t very sympathetic,” he says.


Davis says that one of the things he hears the most about the VVAW is that it is simply a negative, anti-war organization, but he says that its main goals have been to provide benefits and counseling in order to help veterans.


As Davis trudges through his memories, he recalls that upon coming back, what was harder than seeing his society altered was dealing with how much he had changed.


It’s impossible for anyone who has never been in combat to understand the emotional baggage that soldiers come back with. For those who remain at home, it seems that soldiers are simply away for a while; meanwhile, the soldiers themselves are going through some of the most horrifying and gruesome experiences of their lives, and they are never the same, even when they do come back.


But men like Davis and organizations like the VVAW continue to try making life more livable for returning soldiers.


“We’ve had to do it for ourselves, and once you learn to do it for yourself, you learn to do it for other people,” Davis says. “Modern war brings a lot of horrific images. You don’t ever get over that, you just learn to deal with it.”

Stop Crying: We won our War


Disillusioned with war and plagued by nightmares back in the U.S., Romo and Davis looked to the government for psychological counseling and found nothing.


Next, they turned to the only people they knew they could trust: other war veterans.


“One of the first things we discovered pretty quickly,” said Davis,“was that if we were going to survive, we needed each other to do it.”


But interactions between the Vietnam veterans and veterans’ groups such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion were strained, if not belligerent, Davis and Romo recalled.


“There was tremendous hostility from older veterans,” Davis said. “Many of those American Legion types and VFWs said that we were just a bunch of crybabies.”


The VVAW is Formed


But while Davis and Romo were in basic training, six Vietnam vets marched together in a 1967 New York City peace demonstration and founded Vietnam Veterans Against War (VVAW). The VVAW stood in stark contrast to the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.


According to Davis, the America Legion represented only a small, selective group of veterans.


Davis describes the Veterans of Foreign Wars as a more egalitarian veterans’ group with the same patriotic function as the American Legion; however, neither focused on benefits. When soldiers from Vietnam began arriving home physically and psychologically damaged, Davis and Romo felt that both groups looked the other way.


From Malaise to Action


On December 26, 1971, sixteen VVAW demonstrators seized the Statue of Liberty in New York City to call attention to what Vietnam vets termed “post-Vietnam stress disorder” as well as the lack of promised programs and benefits.


“In the 1970s, because we were getting nowhere on the issue of stress disorders associated with Vietnam, we declared war on the Veterans Affairs Administration,” Davis said. “Some of us adopted the slogan that we were like ‘no deposit, no return’ bottles … Once the government had emptied us out, they chucked us.”


To assist veterans with post-Vietnam stress, the VVAW gained national recognition in the 1970s for setting up public “rap” therapy groups to help vets deal with painful memories.


We Will not be Ignored


The VVAW took over the Statue of Liberty a second time in 1976, raising even more awareness of veterans’ issues. Since that time, post-Vietnam stress disorder has been formally diagnosed and renamed by the medical community as post-traumatic stress disorder.


Now a group of over 30,000 members, the VVAW works to expose poor and under-funded care in VA hospitals, draft legislation to improve educational job programs and argue for the amnesty of war resisters and vets with questionable dishonorable discharges. During the 1980s, the VVAW publicized the Veterans’ Administration’s attempt to conceal the harmful effects of chemical defoliants like Agent Orange used during Vietnam and the Gulf War.


Passing the Torch


Davis and Romo consider themselves very lucky compared with many of their fellow veterans. Both have held steady jobs for the last 20 years and lead what they describe as normal lives with loving families.
As national coordinators for the VVAW, Davis and Romo both speak regularly at veterans’ events and meeting as well as high schools to instill the wisdom they once so desperately lacked to veterans returning today from Iraq and Afghanistan.


“We’re trying to be like mentors to the new vets,” Romo said. “Basically, we’re doing what other vets didn’t do for us.”

One Vet's Vigil


Christmas reminds Paul Fichter of Miss Liberty takeover 35 years ago

By Tim Blangger Of The Morning Call
December 24, 2006

Referance: Vietnam Veterans Against the War

The Statue of Liberty is among the best known monuments in the world. ... to take-overs by Vietnam veterans and other activists in the 1970s and 1980s. ...PDF


Vietnam Veterans Against the War

Veterans For Peace

Iraq Veterans Against the War

Iraq and Afganistan Veterans of America

Veterans for America



Military Families Speak Out

Veterans For Peace

Bring Them Home NOW


Once a soldier takes the Oath that Oath stays with him or her for life, it's engrained as are the experiances

Oath of Enlistment
I, (name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. (So help me God.)

Oath of Office is a solemn oath taken by officers of the United States Uniformed Services on commissioning
I, [name], do solemnly swear, (or affirm,) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. (So help me God.)

Jocelyn's House Saved From Mortgage Auction

Now she has the time to Grieve for her Son, Killed in Iraq only a short time ago, Her Reality!!

I was just sent the following:

Friday was an historic day. At 11am, Jocelyne Voltaire was scheduled to lose her home in Queens Village, the home she had lived in for the past 20 years, the home where she raised her four children. Unable to keep up her skyrocketing mortgage payments, Jocelyne watched in horror as her home was put on the auction block. This amazing video clip by American News Project brought Jocelyn's plight to our attention.

At 9:05 am EST, we sent out an urgent call to our CODEPINK list. Our jaws dropped when we saw the response. Donations of $5, $25, $500, even $1,000! Within an hour, we had raised over $10,000. And the money kept pouring in, along with beautiful messages of support.

Jocelyne was moved to tears. And the mortgage bankers, with our immediate promise of $15,000 at 11am, were "moved" to stop the auction.

We did it!!! While our government has taken billions of our tax dollars to bail out the wealthy, we came together to bail out a desperate mother. Thanks to you, in one day we raised over $30,000 from 650 donors and showered Jocelyne with love and compassion. We modeled exactly what we want our government to do-bail out families facing personal disaster, not financiers.

Jocelyne still faces enormous hurdles, both financial and emotional. She has to pull herself out of a deep depression from the loss of her eldest son, a Marine who had served in the Gulf. She has to recover her health so she can start working again. She has to fix up her home so she can get renters to augment her income. And she still has to renegotiate her loan and make monthly mortgage payments.

But thanks to you, Jocelyne now has another chance. We found a wonderful pro-bono lawyer to help her battle the predatory lenders and restructure her loan. And after wiring the mortgage company $15,000, we will use the funds that keep coming in to help Jocelyne make her monthly payments and get back on her feet.

As we write, Jocelyne is feeling exhausted but renewed. She is ready to unpack the boxes she has been living out of for the past year. She now feels surrounded by people who want to lift her up, not toss her out. And she wants to use her experience to help others. At the press conference we held at the courthouse steps, surrounded by dozens of cameras, Jocelyne said: "To all of you facing similar disasters, don't be silent, don't be ashamed. Step forward and call out for help. That's what I did, and a miracle happened. These angels came to help me. We all have to pull together and help each other."

You are those angels and we at CODEPINK are in awe of you-your generosity, your compassion, your willingness to stand up for Main Street Americans. Now let's pull together in the coming months, as Jocelyne asked us to do, and move our government to do the same-bail out Main Street, not Wall Street.

Thanks for making miracles happen. Here's to Jocelyne, to you and to solidarity.

Dana, Deidra, Desiree, Farida, Gael, Gayle, Jean, Jodie, Liz, Lori, Medea, Nancy, and Rae

I had just woken from a nap, and was just going to post something, after doing abit of searching, about this. But I'll use the E announcement and see what else I can find.

This is the Video about what was happening:
Foreclosed Home Front: One Mother's Struggle

I had it in another post I've been trying to get up at my site, but the code change that the American News Project gives you to stop the video's from automatically starting doesn't work, so waiting to hear from them.

But I also had this in that post:

How Wall Street's Scam Artists......

The subject title is the first part of an Alternet post that finishes with Turned Home Mortgages Into Economic WMDs which is but a part of what brought about not only the collapsing economy here but in the money markets around the world, and in peoples lives.

The titans of high finance are trying desperately to shift blame for the crisis onto others, but this dead cat lies squarely on their doorstep.

And as we know more is coming out but still leaving most in a fog of what's coming, even the so called experts, most who put us here.

McClatchy and the American News Projecthave a series of video reports called Fallout on Main Street:

You can visit the McClatchy link to view a number of the Video reports.

And tonight, 10-18-08, as well as tomorrow, CNN introduces us to some of those who are playing the money game of the new capitalism that was created, top down, trickle down economy, on Wall Street.


CNN SIU: Fall of the Fat Cats

As the market tanked, the champagne flowed. CNN takes you inside the lives of Wall Street's rich and shameless. Watch an all new CNN SIU, Sat & Sun, 8 p.m. ET.

From the few cuts I've seen on this it looks to be interesting and rage invoking, lets hope those reporting aren't also caught up in the glitter of the false reality and give the straight facts about these folks, most knowing what they were doing but not caring as long as they came out with great wealth and lifestyles, burning that wealth, which when burnt doesn't trickle down, it just disappears.

"On The Line"

What happens when a group of activists, priests, celebrities, and students risk arrest to protest U.S. foreign policy in Latin America?




The Trailor



ON THE LINE is an inside look at the people behind one of the largest nonviolent movements in America today: the movement to close the School of the Americas/WHINSEC, a U.S. Army school that trains Latin American soldiers. In a world where politics, passion, and Constitutional rights collide, protesters discuss their activism, the dark side of U.S. foreign policy, and the challenges of protesting since 9/11.

The principal cast includes:

* Martin Sheen, actor

* Susan Sarandon, actor

* Fr. Roy Bourgeois, Founder of School of the Americas Watch

* John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hitman

* Bob Barr, political analyst and former US Congressman

* Gerry Weber, ACLU-Georgia


The film is 55 minutes long.

Radio Listening for Active Duty and Vets

On Saturdays, I'm listening now and have listened in for awhile.

The show runs for an hour and is hosted by three of members of the VFP Chapter out of Phoenix AZ on 1480 KPHX, the Phoenix Progressive radio station, that can be streamed via the net, if not near the Phoenix area.

They have been running this program for awhile and carry some Great Interesting Topics with some Great Special Guests and Call-In's.

One thing you have to keep in mind is that the Phoenix area doesn't do day light savings, so when the clock changes the times for the show switch, like from 5pm to now 6pm.

The show starts at 3pm, on Saturdays, Phoenix time, right now is 6pm ET, before the 'spring ahead' the show was on at 5pm ET.

It's called About Face and the hosts are Vietnam Vets. They'll referance Vietnam but the show discusses the more recent history of this Country and it's Military.

Here's the information from the 1480 KPHX 'About Face' page

Host : Dennis Stout, Mark Fleming and John Henry
Call In : 602-258-8800 or 800-989-1480
Web Site : Veterans For Peace Phoenix Chapter 75, 15825 S 28th Place, Phoenix
E-Mail : ekjh7470@cox.net

“About Face” is a program brought to you by the Phoenix Chapter of Veterans For Peace. Veterans For Peace is a national organization that draws on the personal experiences of veterans to raise awareness of the true costs and consequences of militarism and war and to seek peaceful, effective alternatives. There are over 135 {Now well over 150} active chapters across this country and is spreading. They have helped Cindy Sheehan in her work to bring awareness of the human cost of war. They were one of the first groups to arrive in New Orleans and begin working to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina and they established and set up “Arlington West” sites in beach areas across California and other locations in the United States to bring awareness of the cost of war.

Here are some of the subjects of past shows:

*HOMELESS VETERANS
*PUNISHING DISABLED VETERANS
*PTSD: THE REALITY VS THE RHETORIC
*DEPLETED URANIUM: DIRTY BOMBS, DIRTY MISSILES, DIRTY BULLETS
*COUNTER RECRUITING BASICS
*WOMEN IN THE MILITARY
*MILITARY FAMILIES
*ETHICS OF WAR
*MILITARY WAR CRIMES

For those not familiar with Veterans For Peace, the Statement Of Purpose

Veterans For Peace, Inc. (VFP) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational and humanitarian organization dedicated to the abolishment of war.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

We, having dutifully served our nation, do hereby affirm our greater responsibility to serve the cause of world peace. To this end we will work, with others
(a) Toward increasing public awareness of the costs of war.
(b) To restrain our government from intervening, overtly and covertly, in the internal affairs of other nations
(c) To end the arms race and to reduce and eventually eliminate nuclear weapons
(d) To seek justice for veterans and victims of war
(e) To abolish war as an instrument of national policy.
To achieve these goals, members of Veterans For Peace pledge to use non-violent means and to maintain an organization that is both democratic and open with the understanding that all members are trusted to act in the best interests of the group for the larger purpose of world peace.
We urge all people who share this vision to join us.
Our membership is comprised of veterans from all wars spanning from The Spanish Civil War to the Gulf War, and the Iraq War. These members are distributed amongst 135 nationwide chapters, and dozens of international affiliations.
Our international activities include working with our affiliations in El Salvador, Russia, Canada, Japan, Guatemala, Viet Nam, the Netherlands, Chiapas (Mexico), France, England, Cuba, Nicaragua, Vieques (Puerto Rico), and numerous others. A member of the Nobel-Peace Prize winning Coalition to Ban the Sale and Use of Landmines, VFP has been undertaking arduous tasks since its inception. From bringing medical aid to Central American nations, to evacuating wounded children from war-torn Bosnian hospitals and securing medical treatment elsewhere around the globe, or just sitting down with American high school kids so that they may make choices for themselves based on reality, and not myth. We remain firmly committed to the abolition of war.
We know the consequences of American foreign policy because once, at a time in our lives, so many of us carried it out. We find it sad that war seems so delightful, so often, to those that have no knowledge of it. We will proudly, and patriotically, continue to denounce war despite whatever misguided sense of euphoria supports it 1985 - 2005 Twenty Years of Waging Peace.

Two weeks ago and last weeks show on 'About Face':

Last week we had a surprise visit by Ray McGovern on the show. He made a case for impeachment of Bush and Cheney. I think that horse has left the gate and we should be pressing for an investigation for War Crimes and pushing for a trial. We discussed the paper, “Why I don’t Support the Troops” and how that may be the thought of the mainstream young guy of today because of the volunteer military. We discussed with Doug Zackary about the Veterans For Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War efforts to get the active military to rebel. Project Engagement is a very great effort and needs to get everyone involved. We need to get involved in any effort to stop this occupation.
This week we will be talking with Dr. Dahlia Wasfi about “How do we get out of Iraq?” and is it on the horizon. I feel that I will be sitting at this station in March 2009 talking about the sixth anniversary of the Iraq war (If we have not been cancelled). How many more we have killed, murdered, maimed, raped, and how much more we have destroyed in that country. Will the people ever forgive and forget what we have done? Do we really want to get out of Iraq? After all, we are building the largest and most expensive embassy in the world in Iraq. We are building permanent military bases in Iraq. I think the people of the United States are afraid of leaving Iraq! I think in the sub-conscious of the people of the U.S., they want us to stay because they want a war to support their way of life. I think the people of the United States are a very selfish lot and do not really care about the people of Iraq. Why should we care as long as we can go to our plays, restaurants, schools, sports events and churches. We worry more about our failing health care than we do about the health care system we destroyed in Iraq. We care more about an over paid idiot catching a ball than we do about the suffering of the children in Iraq because of our bombs and jack booted volunteer troops. The same people, our congressmen and women, the presidential candidates, all of them know what is happening in Iraq but do not have the balls to hold those responsible accountable for their actions. They want a meaningless impeachment. I want an investigation and a trial with conviction!!! If you say you care then get involved! Write letters, make phone calls, write letters to editors, get out on the streets. Get Involved!!!! Less than 10 percent of those who say they want the war to end take any action! So, do you really care???
Listen to “About Face” with your host, Dennis Stout, Mark Fleming and John Henry at 1480AM KPHX or on the Internet at 1480 KPHX at 3PM Phoenix time (same as Pacific Time) this Saturday.

Todays, 4-26-08, show discussed some about those who resisted serving in the occupation and counter recruiting.

Next weeks show, 5-03-08, will be a discussion on War Crimes, which should be another interesting show, listen in to see what I mean, all three are very good with discussing their topics with common sense and intelligence from their experiances.

Another radio show, by another VFP Chapter, Veterans for Peace - Chapter 099 Asheville, North Carolina just recently started up at an independant station The Progressive Voice of the Mountains WPVM out of Asheville.

It's called 'Veterans Voices' and airs for only a half hour from 5pm to 5:30pm EST on Wednesdays.

I've only been able to catch them a few times, but each had an interesting discussion with guests. Their in the startup mode and growing and can also be streamed by visiting the WPVM Website. If you're free catch their show as well.

Veterans For Peace Convention

The VFP convention, for 2007, is taking place this weekend in the hometown of the National Office, St Louis.

It's the 22nd Annual Veterans For Peace Convention comprising Veterans from WWII to the present day, and sadly growing, as our so called modern wars are frequent and are wars of choice not need.

Remember when a certain American Political party were screaming that the U.S. Military should not be the 'Police Force' of the World, well guess what, that same party, and it's leadership have turned our Military into the most destructive 'Police Force' on the face of this planet, for that's exactly what we are in Iraq and and to abit lesser degree in Afganistan!

The theme of this years convention:

VETERANS’ TRUTH - GATEWAY TO PEACE
Building Community to Achieve Justice and Abolish War

Veterans, applying their experience, strength and conviction to the abolishment of war, invest the Gateway Arch of St. Louis with new significance as a portal to peace.

And is being held at The Holiday Inn Select, 811 N. 9th Street - St. Louis, MO 63101
for anyone in St Louis who might want to drop by.

Now you might be wondering the why of posting about a convention of Peaceful Veterans, especially when it comes to how forgetful this nation is when our many conflicts have ended, especially as to Korea, still open, and Vietnam, of which I served, as to those who have served this nation, too many sacrificing their lives, limbs and minds.

Well a few years back, at the convention in Dallas History Was Made, a History that will live on, especially for the Peace Activists, always to few in numbers, but also as a part of what has occurred in the time span from 2000 to the present, and that time frame has now dictated what this country and world will be facing far into the future!

That History was started by one grieving mother, Cindy Sheehan an American Gold Star Mother, and a small group of friends and veterans, from that venue in Dallas. You can read what Cindy had to say in her speach to that convention shortly before embarking on down the road to Crawford Texas.

Cindy, by her stand and grief, managed to wake up an awful lot of people, who always stand way off to the side of their Right Of Activism seemingly not wanting to rock the boat in this country that supposedly practises Democracy, an ideology of For The People, By The People, that hire their representatives.

Will history be made at this years convention, doubt it, but hey one never knows. But wether history is made or not, this country better start listening to it's Veterans, especially those of us who really understand that Wars bring nothing but grief and more conflicts.

The Political game playing won't make a differance, the future is laid out before us, and the only way to stop what will be is by the people of this planet to come together and stop it themselves!

The United States, of which we are no longer United, must start living by what we preach it to be, and become the example we falsely think we are by our descriptions, while we allow our representatives to carry on the complete opposite. For leadership comes from living the example we set forth not by being a country of hypocrites, and now doing, in the open, what we condemn others for!

The Speakers for this years convention will be:

Israeli – Palestinian Combatants For Peace
"Combatants For Peace"


Korea Veterans For Peace

April Fitzsimmons - "The Need To Know" A play by April Fitzsimmons

Phyllis Bennis – Institute for Policy Studies

Charlie R. and Nancy L. – MFSO

Col. Janis Karpinsky

Sara Rich - Mother of Suzanne Swift

Jonathan Hutto - Appeal for Redress

Jeff Slocum - Appeal for Redress

David Cortright - Fourth Freedom Forum

Dennis Kucinich – U.S. Representative (OH-10)

Aimee Allison – Vet/Politician

The Iraq Veterans Against the War

Elaine Johnson - Gold Star Families Speak Out

Fernando De Solar - Guerrero Azteca Project

Fatemeh Keshavarz - Professor Washington University

Saturday, August 18
9:00am - 5:00pm - VFP Business Meeting (with simultaneous IVAW Business Meeting)

12:00pm - Lunch (more details on Open Mike Speak out TBA)

6:00 - 10:00pm - Banquet
MCs: Elliott Adams & Ann Wright
Speakers: Phyllis Bennis, Jonathon Hutto, and Dr. Fatemeh Keshavarz
Performers include Pat Scanlon

10:00pm - Movie - "Meeting the Resistance"
Steve Connors & Molly Bingham—producers available for discussion

Sunday, August 19
10:00am - Farewell Ceremony, Holiday Inn Select

Actions: March to the Arch - Begins at 10:30am
Learn more HERE!

If in St Louis you might want to catch some of what's going on, and the entertainment.

Now how many, who attended Yearly KOS, knew that there were well over 200 Veterans of Vietnam Veterans Against the War in Chicago, at the same weekend holding their convention. And if so how many visited and talked to the Vets!

Anyone in Chicago, next week, can join them for the following:

Chicago Homeless Vets Standdown: Chicago, Illinois

When: August 24, 2007
Where: The Armory on SE corner of North Ave. and Kedzie
What: A day of health care, food, and shelter for homeless veterans
Details: The Chicago Homeless Vets Standdown will be held on August 24 the Armory on SE corner of North Ave. and Kedzie. August 23 is the cleanup day. Hours are: 08:00 - 14:00 on the 23nd, 06:00 - 20:00 on the 24rd. Please plan on helping out in the kitchen, as usual. Contact me at the email address below with any questons.
Bill Branson


This country, still not on terms with the Vietnam fiasco, now has to contend with the present day debacles of Iraq and yes Afganistan! Because both have now set forth, as I noted above, the future of this country, and world.

This is just some of what this Whole Country will have to come to terms with and do All It Can for those who served:

Road to Recovery:

It has been six months since we first told the story of two soldiers struggling to recover from traumatic brain injuries, caused by roadside bombs in Iraq. Tonight, Bob Woodruff checks in with those soldiers and takes a look at their long road to recovery.

Sharing A Bond - Vets with TBI



War on the Brain: Understanding TBIs

Bob Woodruff Talks to Soldiers and Families Enduring the Long Road to Recovery

{according to a footnote, in the article above, ABC's Nightline will be having an extended version of Bob Woodruffs report on Mondays show.}


Mental BattleField


Treating the Psychologically Wounded in Iraq

Jay White helps soldiers cope with what they see on the front lines.

Keith Olbermann and Brandon Friedman,


Afgan and Iraq Veteran, of Votevets.org and author of The War I Always Wanted: The Illusion of Glory and the Reality of War: A Screaming Eagle in Afghanistan and Iraq , Discuss the Report out about the Rise in the Suicide Rate in the U.S. Army and also the effects of War as to Mental Trauma, PTSD!

A world, we as Responsible Adults, should have not shaped for the children now and to come!

RIP Janet, RIP!!

Dale is a Brother Vietnam Veteran, Janet is his wife. They are both Extreme Activists for Veterans and have been for as long as Dale had joined the Brother/Sisterhood of Dedicated, Patriotic Service to Country.

She will be Missed but Not Forgotten!

The Failed Policies will Haunt Us and the World for Decades


The Last Diary

by Janet G
Wed Jan 03, 2007 at 10:36:09 PM EST
This is Dale


Janet died in my arms last night at 2400 hours. Her body and heart gave out. She loved you people and the debate. I loved her for years. She fought everyday for Veterans. At the last of her life she told me never stop the fight. This I do promise I will fight for Veterans and America. She wanted to see one thing to see Bush and company held for justice for the lifes they have taken on their lifes. She stood tall never left a veteran behind. So I say for her my love my light Goodbye Kos keep the fight up. America needs you. And to the trolls I say from my heart go away you are the Danger to our Country. God Bless America and You We The People

Visit the Diary and read the messages and thoughts, and if compelled leave your own.