Obama: War President?!

Last night after the Presidents speech at West Point, and since, everyone is attempting to break it down, praise it, or totally attack the policy of another escalation of troops into an already long running occupation of the country of Afghanistan. This occupation stopped being anything about the attacks on this country on Sept 11, 2001 as soon as the first drumbeat towards invasion and then long occupation of an innocent country and people Iraq. Afghanistan stagnated into an occupation and insurgent war of continuing death and destruction to all involved but especially to the greater innocent population of Afghanistan now into it's ninth year!

I watched two reports, this morning on the Rachel Maddow show, which touch well on what I'd like to say, that gives us cuts of speeches made by then President bush about Afghanistan, in comparing what President Obama laid out last night on the current Escalation {Not surge} of military personnel into the long occupation of Afghanistan, and his vision called "The Bush Doctrine" and what was left to this Present Administration and Country by Them. And this is just about the two present occupations, not the economy, the deficit which is tied in by the costs of both occupations off the books plus, the possible rampant corruption from the incompetent policies and the no bid contracts to War profiteers, and much more!

We now know, coming out daily, that the bush admin, prior to 9/11 and then within hours of the destruction and deaths of 9/11 and going forward, they were starting to focus more on Iraq and Regime Change there than on Afghanistan, al Qaeda and bin Laden. How do we know that, besides what had already surfaced these years, through the British Iraq War Inquiry with pieces of information coming daily since last week. There's a day off from testimony today but more coming from the Inquiry again tomorrow when British Military and MoD personal testify! What I hope is that there are some questions as to what these military and MoD personal might have also been discussing with their American military and DoD counterparts as to what was already going on the Afghanistan invasion and beginning occupation by U.S. forces, British forces joined with others through the United Nations.

The Bush Doctrine


Rachel next discusses the concept of "Counter Insurgency" with Lt Col. John Nagl an architect of the current counter Insurgency concept, supposedly updating what was left from our Vietnam occupation debacle.

I would hope that in McCrystal's wants, and now President Obama's CiC policy, they understand that the Taliban, probably al Qaeda {the ghost enemy meme which is anyone we label as a member of or supporter that we can't pigeon hole anywhere else in our Fear/War Speak just as we use Terrorists while waging Terror}, and the others of another Mujahadeen are also going to be building up forces from around the regions, especially Afghanistan and Pakistan but possibly the destroyed Iraq, just as they built up against the Soviets, only now they're really pissed off as to the damage and deaths caused in the region, not just Afghanistan, these past years! The Insurgent forces, people of the country and region already did so after the previous buildup of troops only months ago. We've seen the results in the rising number of military personal killed and maimed these last couple of months and the brazen attacks on coalition forces outposts around Afghanistan.

CounterInsurgency in Afghanistan


Lets look at "Counter Insurgency" which covers many aspects after an invasion and starting occupation of a Country invaded:

Counter-insurgency is common during occupation and armed rebellion.

One extremely important aspect of any try at success in an Insurgent War, the fighting back by the invaded and occupied as to the occupying forces, is the winning of the Hearts and Minds of the population by the occupying forces. You already go in at an extreme negative as soon as the bombs start dropping, the artillery and missiles start flying and destroying and the bullets start flying and killing. They are killing and maiming more of the innocent population then any insurgent push back causing many of the survivors of to join or support the insurgency, for many obvious reasons.

Saying the above there was a point of a very possible chance of success in our invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11, and the "Counter Insurgency" ideals. The World watched what happened that day, they joined in our sorrow and rage and the evidence seemingly showed who was responsible. We and they knew where those who planned and came out of to implement these attacks came from, Afghanistan militant camps, allowed to function in a country ruled by a rogue government few in the world recognized and many within wanted gone.

That chance quickly dissolved as the drums of another invasion, war and then occupation started beating towards the innocent people of Iraq and we're still there as well.

Once the Taliban regime was toppled and they and the ghost enemy al Qaeda were put on the run, instead of boxing them in, as they ran across the border into Pakistan, and with the help of the then Pakistan regime and the regions other countries possible help, and bringing in what had been promised the rebuilding monies and the NGO's needed to help the Afghans rebuild after years of destructive war with the Soviets and then the rule under the Taliban, we allowed the occupation to basically stagnate into ongoing killing, maiming and destruction in many area's of the country for the next eight years and still ongoing, now ramping up with more occupation forces! The line was crossed way back and any chance has been lost as to "Hearts and Minds" of those who call Afghanistan home. Too many deaths, too many maimed, too much destruction, too many refugee's in country and outside of it's borders now after this almost decade of War!

What we, the arrogant, apathetic, military and once economic power United States, as well as other so called developed nations, are asking the Afghan people as well as the Iraqi people and many in Pakistan is to forget the terror and destruction wrought on them over many years of invading and then occupying their countries, just forget and accept what we are now trying to do, whatever that may be, and become our friends!

Would You!

No You Wouldn't, as we've watched this Country, since 9/11, deteriorate into one of hate speak towards each, acts of violence on each other with twisted political and religious ideologies at the base of, and extreme racism coming out once again! As well as being witness to these long occupations, the numbers rising of the soldiers we've sent being killed and maimed, the civilians of these occupied countries fleeing into refugee status as well as killed and maimed in ever growing numbers, we've been witness to the rising hatreds, fear and want for total destruction of those 'over there so we don't have them here' and the hatreds towards each other fed on by the few who manage to jump on those fears with a mike in their hands or ability to use extremism on our airways, in public gatherings as well as the halls of our government!

We, as Americans, can get extremely Mad and keep that feeling growing into Hatreds of others, not just those who are guilty but any who come from the same area's of the planet or believe in ideologies or religions many don't accept and even live amoug us.

But let those we've sent our military forces in to occupy get Mad and start Hating us and that's Unacceptable!

The following is used as a signature by a brother veteran:
Blood cannot wash away blood. Hate cannot wash away hate. War cannot wash away war. ( an Afghan Proverb )

Sundance Channel on Iraq: 6th Anniversary

The Sundance Channel just launched a website in observance of the sixth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

From a post by Anna Brew, found at After Downing Street hattip for the lead:

The highlight of the site is a large collection of webisodes and clips from two documentaries that will premiere on television on March 19th (the date of the 2003 invasion): Hometown Baghdad and Heavy Metal in Baghdad. Both films capture the day-to-day realities confronted by Iraqi citizens.

Hometown Baghdad


HOMETOWN BAGHDAD

Hometown Baghdad follows three Iraqi college students based in Baghdad as they try to maintain a semblance of normal existence amidst the escalating violence and chaos around them. Expanding the acclaimed 2007 online series of the same name, directors Hawes, Hillis and Turkey deliver a visceral portrait of the war's toll, interweaving their chronicle with footage from their subjects' frank video diaries.

The online version of Hometown Baghdad was created and produced by the New York-based Chat the Planet and drew hundreds of thousands of viewers worldwide when it launched in March 2007. The series won
three 2008 Webby Awards, in the categories News and Politics Series, Public Service and Activism, and Reality. In an article about the online series for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, pop culture critic
Cary Darling wrote that the series' scenes of ordinary lives "offer a glimpse into a society few knew existed: young Iraqis who are clinging to a global, middle-class identity while the world around them crumbles into chaos."

Heavy Metal in Baghdad


HEAVY METAL IN BAGHDAD

Eddy Moretti and Suroosh Alvi's Heavy Metal in Baghdad follows the heavy metal band Acrassicauda from the fall of Saddam in 2003 through the nightmare of the 2006 insurgency and into their new lives as
"heavy metal refugees." Moretti and Alvi, who are the chiefs of VICE Films and VICE Records, established a relationship with Acrassicauda when it was profiled in VICE magazine in 2003; they began their
efforts to film the band in 2005, when their company sponsored an Acrassicauda concert at a Baghdad hotel. Heavy Metal in Baghdad is their feature directorial debut. In a review of the New York Times,
Nathan Lee called the film "an intrepid, unlikely and altogether splendid feat of D.I.Y. reportage. ... this rock-doc like no other electrifies its genre and redefines headbanging as an act of hard-core courage."

Acrassicauda has been featured in the NYTimes and Fox News ... and they've seen some attention from Metallica

IRAQ ON SUNDANCE

Films & Stories About the Conflict

For the last six years, Sundance Channel has been following the happenings of the Iraq War through riveting documentaries and features. Each story is presented though a unique perspective, from political analysts giving their two cents to 20-something Iraqis trapped in a war zone. Each story gives a unique, human perspective on this thoroughly complicated conflict.

Here are some other perspectives on the Iraq War that have appeared on sundancechannel.com:

Read about TAKING CHANCE, a feature that premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival starring Kevin Bacon. Based on a true story, it tells of a Marine who volunteers to escort the remains of a 19-year-old killed in Iraq to his family in a small Wyoming town.

Learn more about Iraq's national water and land planning efforts in order to secure long-term stability and security of their country. Particularly in the Middle East, there is a great need for the availability of fresh water.

View festival coverage on IN THE LOOP, a satire on the inner workings of the US and British government prior to a major invasion. It features a stellar ensemble cast that includes James Gandolfini, Tom Hollander, and Anna Chlumsky.

Check out BODY OF WAR, another standout documentary as told through the eyes of a young soldier who was paralyzed from the chest down after being shot in Sadr City, Iraq. It airs on March 16th at 7:30pm.

IN THE LOOP

Writer/director Armando Iannucci’s IN THE LOOP, a film participating in the 2009 Sundance FIlm Festival. It is a comedic satire about American and British relations prior to a major invasion.
......................

If Armando Iannucci’s political farce about the road to war through the corridors of power weren’t so funny, it would be utterly terrifying. When a British cabinet minister, Simon Foster, comments publicly that he thinks war is “unforeseeable,” the result is an immediate bollocking from Malcolm Tucker, the prime minister’s testy bulldog pushing for war. Unable to clarify his position, Simon is sent to Washington, where, trying desperately to be important, he meets Karen Clark, a U.S. State.>>>>>>>>>>

"Peoples' Peace Treaty" - On This Day

November 24, 1970
14 American students met with Vietnamese in Hanoi to plan the "Peoples' Peace Treaty" between the peoples of the United States, South Vietnam and North Vietnam.
It begins, "Be it known that the American people and the Vietnamese people are not enemies. The war is carried out in the names of the people of the United States and South Vietnam, but without our consent. It destroys the land and people of Vietnam. It drains America of its resources, its youth, and its honor."
The treaty was ultimately endorsed by millions.

Joint Treaty of Peace

Between the People of The United States of America, South Vietnam and North Vietnam

Preamble

Be it known that the American people and the Vietnamese people are not enemies. The war is carried out in the names of the people of the United States and South Vietnam, but without our consent. It destroys the land and people of Vietnam. It drains America of its resources, its youth, and its honor.

We hereby agree to end the war on the following terms, so that both peoples can live under the joy of independence and can devote themselves to building a society based on human equality and respect for the earth. In rejecting the war we also reject all forms of racism and discrimination against people based on color, class, sex, national origin, and ethnic grouping which form the basis of the war policies, past and present, of the United States government.
Terms of Peace Treaty

1. The Americans agree to immediate and total withdrawal from Vietnam, and publicly to set the date by which all U.S. military forces will be removed.
2. The Vietnamese pledge that as soon as the U. S. government publicly sets a date for total withdrawal: they will enter discussions to secure the release of all American prisoners, including pilots captured while bombing North Vietnam.
3. There will be an immediate cease-fire between U. S. forces and those led by the Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam.
4. They will enter discussions on the procedures to guarantee the safety of all withdrawing troops.
5. The Americans pledge to end the imposition of Thieu-Ky-Khiem on the people of South Vietnam in order to insure their right to self-determination and so that all political prisoners can be released.
6. The Vietnamese pledge to form a provisional coalition government to organize democratic elections. All parties agree to respect the results of elections in which all South Vietnamese can participate freely without the presence of any foreign troops.
7. The South Vietnamese pledge to enter discussion of procedures to guarantee the safety and political freedom of those South Vietnamese who have collaborated with the U. S. or with U. S. -supported regimes.
8. The Americans and Vietnamese agree to respect the independence, peace and neutrality of Laos and Cambodia in accord with the 1954 and 1962 Geneva Conventions and not to interfere in the internal affairs
9. Upon these points of agreement, we pledge to end the war and resolve all other questions in the spirit of self-determination and mutual respect for the independence and political freedom of the people of Vietnam and the United States.
of these two countries.

Pledge

By ratifying this agreement, we pledge to take whatever actions are appropriate to implement the terms of the People to People Treaty and to insure its acceptance by the government of the United States.

People's Peace Treaty

Volume 16, Number 5 · March 25, 1971

By National Student Association

To The Editor:

Following are a preamble to and text of the People's Peace Treaty. We think they will be of interest to your readers:

"I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of their way and let them have it."

—Dwight D. Eisenhower

"73% of the American people want the United States out of Vietnam by the end of 1971."

—Gallup Poll, Jan. 31, 1971

President Nixon, like his predecessors, speaks the words of peace, but pursues the politics of war. The invasion of Cambodia has now been followed by the invasion of Laos, and there are threats of an invasion of North Vietnam and confrontation with China.

Peace is possible in 1971. But the people will have to make the peace. And that is what we are beginning to do.

The People's Peace Treaty promised that "The Vietnamese pledge to form a provisional coalition government to organize democratic elections" in return for a complete American withdrawal from Vietnam.

Journal Article Excerpt

Journal article by Ccas National Coordinators; Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars, Vol. 3, 1971

CCAS National Coordinators

The beginning stages of the People's
Peace Treaty Campaign hopefully indicate
a renewal of mass activity in the Amer­
ican anti-war movement. Many in the move­
ment have long been aware that anti-war
activities were too crisis-oriented.
They acted; we responded and created a
big fuss. This has put the movement in
the position of always asking that
something worse not be done, since we
lacked the power to force the govern­
ment to step backwards. The aim of the
People's Peace Treaty Campaign is to
build before the next escalation, to
take the initiative in demanding a
complete end to the-war, to make the
American people realize that we can't
wait to respond to the next crisis,
for the crisis is now. The peace treaty
evolved from the anti-war movement's
understanding of two events: first, the
shift in American policy to Vietnam­
ization; and second, the growing anti­
war movement in South Vietnam. SNIP

VVAW - The Veteran

October 1971 {Volume 1, Number 2} page 6

Boycott the Bird

We veterans and our supporters, endorse and will actively support the announcd support the announced fall action offensive of the National Peace Action Coalition, and the Peoples Coalition for Peace and Justice, but we must do more.

First hand, we experienced the Nam, this administration still has in excess of 220,000 troops plus the thousands of its allies there,. We feel an urgent need to end the genocide of American youth and the Peoples of Indochina as soon as possible To further our goals of peace, we will complement the announced fall offensive with other actions, two of which are listed here, and the others to be announced at a later date.


OCTOBER 25 - VETERANS DAY
Veterans Day is a national holiday, a day when Americans stop working to celebrate war, to glorify militarism, and tell the rest of the world, that America is, and has always been, the "greatest military power the world has ever known". It is 1971 and this government is still embroiled in the longest war in its history, a war against a "backward, ignorant, and barbaric people".

WE ARE VETERANS, and as such we have the right to march in every parade on Veterans Day. There will be hundreds of parade There will be hundreds of parades acroo ades across the country on Oct. 25th. Because of the change in dates, (nov.11 used to be V.D., but now all national holidays are in conjunction with a weekend) and the recent, but much too late, concern by politicians and the press, over the plight of the veteran, this should prove to be the biggest, most publicized Veterans Day to date. We veterans must put this annual display off militarism in the proper context.

For too long, the military powers of the world have glorified war as the "manly thing to do", but as Earnest Hemingway said, "Never think that war, no matter how justified, is not a crime, just ask the infantry and ask the dead."

Cancelling the Veterans Day in 1972 must be a priority for all its members veterans. Therefore VVAW members across the country should organize and join these parades. By distributing leaflets, literature, getting our pwn speakers on the bandstand, and having Winter Soldier Investigations, we can show the militarists in this society, that there is now a new soldier, the Vietnam era veteran. As a final act on this day, we can show our determination and humanism by donating blood at the end of all the parades. Arrangements should be made with the Red Cross to have a bloodmobile somewhere close by, at the end of the march. Further, all blood should be donated to Military or V.A. Hospitals.

THANKSGIVING DAY
VVAW is sponsoring an activity that everyone (not just VVAW members) can participate in. We are calling for a Thanksgiving boycott of the traditional meal. Veterans and their supporters across the country should participate in a dawn to dusk fast at their respective state capitals.

VVAW - The Veteran

October 1971 {Volume 1, Number 2} page 10

7 POINT STATEMENT

By The Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Viet Nam made public by Minister Madame NGUYEN THI BIHN at the 119th session of the Paris Conference on Viet Nam (July 1st, 1971)

Responding to the Vietnamese people's aspirations for peace and national independence, considering the American and the world peoples' desire for peace, showing its goodwill to make the Paris Conference on Viet Nam progress, basing itself on the 10-point over-all solution, and following up the September 17, 1970 eight-point and the December 10, 1970 three-point statement, the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Viet Nam declares the following:

1- REGARDING THE TERMINAL DATE FOR THE TOTAL WITHDRAWL OF U.S. FORCES.
The U.S. Government must end its war of aggression in Viet Nam, stop the policy of a Vietnamization of the war, withdraw from South Viet Nam all troops, military personnel, weapons, and war materials of the United States and of foreign countries in the U.S. camp, and dismantle all U.S. bases in South Viet Nam, without posing any conditions whatsoever.

The U.S. Government must set a terminal date for the withdrawal from South Viet Nam of the totality of U.S. forces and those of the other foreign countries in the U.S. camp.

If the U.S. Government sets a terminal date for the withdrawal from South Viet Nam in 1971 of the totality of U.S. forces and those of the other foreign countries in the U.S. camp, the parties will at the same time agree on the modalities of a) the withdrawal in safety from South Viet Nam of the totality of U.S. forces and those of the other foreign countries in the U.S. camp; b) the release of the totality of militarymen of all parties and of the civilians captured during the war (including American pilots captured in North Viet Nam), so that they may all rapidly return to their homes. These two operations will begin on the same date and will end on the same date.

A cease-fire will be observed between the South Viet Nam People's Liberation Armed Forces and the armed forces of the United States and of the other foreign countries in the U.S. camp as soon as the parties reach agreement on the withdrawal from South Viet Nam of the totality of U.S. forces and those of other foreign countries in the U.S. camp.

2 - REGARDING THE QUESTION OF POWER IN SOUTH VIET NAM.
The U.S. Government must really respect the South Viet Nam people's right to self-determination, put an end to its interference in the internal affairs of South Viet Nam, cease to support the bellicose group headed by Nguyen Van Thieu now in office in Saigon, and stop all maneuvers, including tricks on elections, aimed at maintaining the puppet Nguyen Van Thieu.

By various means, the political, social, and religious forces in South Viet Nam aspiring to peace and national concord will form in Saigon a new administration favoring peace, independence, neutrality and democracy. The Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Viet Nam will immediately enter into talks with that administration in order to settle the following questions: a) to form a broad three-segment government of national concord that will assume its functions during the period between the restoration of peace and the holding of general elections and that will organize general elections in South Viet Nam.
b) to take concrete measures with the necessary guarantees to prohibit all acts of terror, reprisal and discrimination against persons having collaborated with one or the other party; to ensure every democratic liberty to the South Viet Nam people; to release all persons jailed for political reasons; to dissolve all concentration camps and to liquidate all forms of constraint and coercion so as to permit the people to return to their native places in complete freedom and to freely engage in their occupations.
c) To see that the people's conditions of living are stabilized and gradually improved, to create conditions allowing everyone to contribute his talents and efforts to heal the war wound and rebuild the country.
d) to agree on measures to be taken to ensure the holding of genuinely free, democratic, and fair elections in South Vietnam.

3- REGARDING THE QUESTION OF VIETNAMESE ARMED FORCES IN SOUTH VIET NAM.
The Vietnamese parties will together settle the question of Vietnamese armed forces in South Viet Nam in a spirit of national concord, equality, and mutual respect, without foreign interference, in accordance with the post-war situation and with a view to lightening the people's contributions

4- REGARDING THE PEACEFUL RE-UNIFICATION OF VIET NAM AND THE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH ZONES.
a) The re-unification of Viet Nam will be achieved step by step, by peaceful means, on the basis of discussions and agreements between the two zones, without constraint and annexation from either party, and without foreign interference.

Pending the re-unification of the country, the North and the South zones with re-establish normal relations, guarantee free movement, free correspondence, free choice of residence, and establish economic and cultural relations on the principle of mutual interests and mutual assistance.

All questions concerning the two zones will be settled by qualified representatives of the Vietnamese people in the two zones on the basis of negotiations, without foreign interference.

b) In keeping with the provisions of the 1954 Geneva Agreements on Viet Nam, during the present temporary partition of the country into two zones the North and the South zones of Viet Nam will refrain from joining any military alliance with any foreign countries, from allowing any foreign country to maintain military bases, troops, and military personnel on their soil, and from recognizing the protection of any country or of any military alliance or bloc.

5 - REGARDING THE FOREIGN POLICY OF PEACE AND NEUTRALITY OF SOUTH VIET NAM
South Viet Nam will pursue a foreign policy of peace and neutrality, establish relations with all countries regardless of their political and social system, in accordance with the five principles of peaceful coexistence, maintain economic and cultural relations with all countries, accept the cooperation of foreign countries in the development of the resources of South Viet Nam, accept the economic and technical aid of any country without any political conditions attached, and participate in regional plans for economic cooperation. On the basis of these principles, after the end of the war South Viet Nam and the United States will establish relations in the political, economic, and cultural fields.

6 - REGARDING THE DAMAGES CAUSED BY THE UNITED STATES TO THE VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN THE TWO ZONES.
The U.S. Government must bear full responsibility for the losses and the destruction it has caused to the Vietnamese people in the two zones.

7 - REGARDING THE RESPECT AND THE INTERNATIONAL GUARANTEE OF THE ACCORDS TO BE CONCLUDED.
The parties will reach agreement on the forms of respect and international guarantee of the accords that will be concluded.

On Wednesday, November 26th, the Iraqi Parliment is set to vote on the already long delayed security agreement with the United States that will keep U.S. occupation forces in country till 2011 at least, Unofficial Translation of U.S.-Iraq Troop Agreement.

Will it pass with no problems and with the Iraqi peoples voices being heard, most want the occupiers out yesterday, as well as the people of america's voices, or will it fail once again, deadline for UN agreement is Decenber 31, and if it fails will Maliki hold to the statement made on Sunday, November 23, in Iraq: Iraq PM says U.S. troops will leave if no pact

Iraq will not seek to extend the U.N. mandate of U.S. troops and they will pull out immediately if Iraqi parliament fails to approve a pact allowing them to stay until 2011, Iraq's prime minister said on Sunday.

The World Awaits! We all know what happened back than!!

Catholics and Muslims....

to fight terror and defend faith

Catholic and Muslim leaders at unprecedented Vatican meetings vowed on Thursday to jointly combat violence committed in God's name, to defend religious freedom and to foster equal rights for minority faith groups.

FINAL DECLARATION
FIRST SEMINAR OF THE CATHOLIC-MUSLIM FORUM (ROME, 4-6 NOVEMBER 2008)

“Changing Us”

Counseling and medication weren’t enough to help Laef Fox recover from his grim war experience in Iraq, and drugs and alcohol didn’t work either, so he tried making a movie instead.

There's a new Documentary out, that was shown in a premeir private showing on July 4th in Denver.

As the quote above states it was made, with help, by Laef Fox an Iraq Conflict Veteran, with footage Fox shot while in Iraq.

Fox was in Iraq for six months starting in April 2003, just after the invasion began.

“I had a lot of unexpected explosions go off near me and random gunshots,” he said. When he came home the Veterans Administration diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder and he was given a partial disability.

Like many who return from our invasions and occupations Fox was haunted by his experiances and tried to rid his mind of the recurring thoughts in the wrong way.

“Alcoholism and anger almost overcame me completely,” he said, but a supportive family and girlfriend pushed him to get treatment.

“The treatment helped me climb from the hole I was in,” he said.

For some that's a deep dark hole that few understand and it can't be explained to others, except those who have experianced the real reality of War themselves, the soldiers who fight it, and the civilians in the countries invaded and occupied, and not only those we are a part of but all.

The name of this documentary is the subject title “Changing Us”, where if you use the link you can view the trailer of as well as more information.

The Trailor

The quotes I've taken above come from an Army Times article about Laef and this documentary, Iraq vet’s movie helps him cope.

His movie isn’t sensational, although it includes some nighttime scenes of his convoy being attacked. It is mainly vignettes of what life was like for one group of soldiers.

In one scene, when his Humvee comes under fire by rocket-propelled grenades, Fox is heard saying, “Well, we took fire, we got to find and kill these (expletive deleted). Let’s go roll the (expletive) out.”

It is part tribute to the soldiers he served with. Time after time he describes them as among the finest soldiers in the world.

In the final analysis of the Military, and especially in War, you serve with and for those around you, right or wrong the conflict may be nor your personal thoughts of.

Fox doesn’t blame the Iraqis for his experience.

“I don’t blame anyone who tried to kill me when I was there. That’s the way I would feel if America was attacked,” he said.

The Synopsis of the movie from Drifter Entertainment

"Changing Us" is a compelling and intimate window into war.

"Changing Us" is a documentary comprised of never before seen video footage shot by a young soldier on the front lines during the Iraq invasion. Its raw and riveting voice resounds the events through the eyes of those who were changed by enduring the intensity of the war.

"Changing Us" is a dramatic journey, a mosaic of stories without political agenda or pretense, that grips the audience and offers a sobering look at what truly transpired for an Army unit assisting with the Iraq invasion. Unlike the nightly news, this real life drama is a first-hand taste of front-line combat mixed together with young innocence, as shown through faces who have finally been given a voice that resonates the devastation of war. This documentary is a powerful film that individually, “changes us”.

And from the Lancaster Eagle Gazette Lancaster native's documentary shows 2003 Iraq takeover

A personal look at the Iraq war through the eyes of a Lancaster native hit big screen in Denver this past week.

Sgt. Laef Fox, a 1997 William V. Fisher Catholic High School graduate, crafted the documentary film "Changing Us" from footage he gathered while fighting in Iraq.

"The viewers will see a documentary about the Iraq war, though it concentrates mainly ... on Iraqis and civilians that were there," Fox said. "It's (77 minutes) of one unit's journey during the takeover of Iraq."

The private showing premeir, mentioned above.

"This is a private showing for friends, family and press," Fox said. "All veterans that were in the film are flying in. It's going to be a pretty big event."

The bio's of Laef and the Soldiers with him in Iraq and the Documentary

He has another film in the works!

One Thing About the Present

We didn't have the number of Documentaries about War and the Experiance as well as how we got here back in our day. To archive the lessons the Country said it would never Forget!

'Winter Soldier', 'Sir! No Sir!' were kept out of the Countries Concious on Purpose!

Hollywood, except for a few like 'Coming Home', painted a Much Differant Picture of War, as the Movies that preceded.

The Record Is Made, with more to come I'm sure, Learn The Lessons, The Real Lessons!!

Iraq Getting Lonelier For U.S.

There's someone who gets it:

Rudd has said the Iraq deployment has made Australia more of a target for terrorism.

Though the damage is already done, from the invasion and occupation, the hatreds intensified, new enemies established, Australia ends Iraq combat operations, after their five years of wrongly following the failed policies of the U.S. and joining the small contingent of the coalition of the willing.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was swept into office in November largely on the promise that he would bring home the country's 550 combat troops by the middle of 2008.

And from around Australia:

Troops heading home

About 500 Australian combat troops today have begun pulling out of their base in southern Iraq.
A British military spokesman in the southern city of Basra said the pullout from Talil base in Nassiriya was underway.
But a spokesman for the governor of Dhi Qar province said it had been completed, with US forces replacing the Australians.

Troops begin arriving home from Iraq

AUSTRALIAN troops have begun arriving home from Iraq, signalling an end to the nation's combat mission in the war-torn country and fulfilling an election promise made by Kevin Rudd.

Iraq Diggers back in Brisbane

The first of about 500 soldiers from the Overwatch Battle Group (West) 4 and Australia's Army Training Team reportedly touched down in Brisbane late this afternoon.

Troops begin arriving home from Iraq

Mr Rudd, who ousted John Howard's coalition government after 12 years at last November's election, promised to bring home frontline troops this year.
During his prime ministership, Mr Howard repeatedly said the troops should stay until the job was done, arguing Labor's plan to "cut and run'' from Iraq would galvanise terrorists.
Polls show 80 per cent of Australians oppose the war.

There's that mind control phrase 'cut and run'.

One doesn't cut and run from an extremely failed policy that 'galvanises' hatred in others, from the killing of their own and destruction of their country, especially when they have done Nothing to deserve that Devastating Carnage, based on lie after lie after lie............................, of those who sent their own to invade and occupy, Controll, and reigning Terror on them while calling them Terrorists!

When will this Nation start the Drawdown, and our Newspapers have 'Breaking News' headlines in Huge Print declaring the return of our troops from a conflict that should never have occurred and has placed this country and it's citizens in greater danger, that danger will exist, to many now truely despise our countries leaders and us the people of, but it will start the extremely long process of righting the dangerous direction set forth by the Power Hungry and War Profitteers!

Segregated Communities in Iraq

May Spell Trouble

As Iraqis who fled their homes during the war begin to return, some are finding it safer to move into areas inhabited by other members of their sect, creating segregated communities of Shia and Sunni Muslims at ever-increasing rates.
The country has seen a drop in sectarian violence as a result, but some observers are concerned by the trend's other possible consequences.

This does not bode well for a countries citizens, that once lived in relative comfort in a mixed religious/tribal sectarian society, under the rule of a dictatorship once propped up by the west.

Now, as Iraqis return -- due to the decline in violence or because they ran out of money or face new visa restrictions in other countries -- many cannot move back to their homes because they are destroyed or occupied by other families, or they are choosing to live elsewhere.

Ethnic cleansing of neighborhoods and sections of the country, taking place under the control of an occupying military, may be bringing a calm to the destructive violence, but it leaves these area's wide open to control of sectarian groups and not a weak central government.

International Organization for Migration - Report {PDF}

And since about one-third of Iraqis are in mixed marriages, "we're getting reports of families who are being split up," Ferris noted.

We have already seen the reports of how our occupation is contributing by walling off neighborhoods of Baghdad, in that report as well as this and this one which also has this video slide show, Fortress Baghdad.

And as I was writing this {home with a flu bug} NPR aired this report:
Baghdad Neighborhoods' Future Security Uncertain

Morning Edition, February 14, 2008 · With the downturn in violence, some Baghdad neighborhoods have begun to spring back to life. Iraqi forces have been taking more responsibility for security. But with U.S. military officials committed to bringing some troops home by mid-summer, some Iraqis are beginning to ask what the city will look like a few months from now. Peter Kenyon
You can listen here

We created the extremely dangerous unstability by our invasion, in this War of Choice, and we have perpetuated that unstability by our longterm occupation and support of the puppet government!

Will what is taking place in Iraq, under the U.S. occupation, create an even more unstable country and regional problems leading to even more danger to the National Security of this country, and citizens of, and others than already may exist?

Time will tell, but I believe it will, for it was the failed foreign policies of the past and recent present that brought us to this evolving destructive point in todays World!

We aren't "Fighting them over there so as to not fight them here.", we are creating even more hatreds, in once innocent people in that country and enhancing the hatreds within the region, and for some they will lash out in the blowback of 'Criminal Terrorism', and already have!

Under the Ideologies of Conservative Republicanism and National Security this is the direction of this Countries Policies:

Enhance more Hatreds anywhere possible, through propaganda, destruction, mass death, under the terms 'Freedom' and 'Democracy' in order to Continue threats against from similar Failed Policies of Past!

Those Hatreds lead to 'Blowback' by recipients of the many Failed Policies called 'Criminal Terrorism'!

Take the word 'Terrorism', while practicing same, and paste it on any group needed to Enhance the Fear in Populations causing Perpetual Conflicts and Huge Profits for any Military Industrial Complex and Control by same for Further Policies set up to Fail!

And when 'Johnny and Jane' come Marching Home, Dump Them {that one cuts across all Political Ideology and This Society }

It's Not 'Strong on National Defense', it Destroys 'National Defense' and brings about more and more 'Conflicts of Choice' for Greed and Power!

If we don't hold those Responsible for the Wrath of Failed Policies Instituted than in the eyes of the World 'We Have Excepted All That Has Been Done In Our Names' and are thus Just As Guilty!

Talk To The Pols about The 'Children'...

They won't care, as they've shown already!

Orphans of Iraq


As you watch let your mind, if you have one, wonder to thoughts of what we have given to the children, those that survive, of a small country that did Nothing to us!
And don't give the 'Saddam was a Tyrant' crap, he was, but He Was All Ours, from before we helped place him in Power to his Hanging, if that even was him, remember all the reports of look alikes for his security!
We Have Totally Destroyed The Lives Of The Iraqi's, ESPECIALLY The Children!!

Hope can only come from the People of this planet, certainly not any so called Leaders!!

And we certainly don't need to do the same for another group of people and Children, those of Iran, once again, having done Nothing to Us!!

Alive in Baghdad - Christmas Special

Alive In Baghdad

Alive in Baghdad - Christmas Special - 12.25.2006

{There's a Flash Video at site with a few snippets of the past years Reports}

Happy holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Eid Sa’eed, and whatever else you may celebrate. This week we’re taking a look back at 2006, and a year of video about Iraq, by Iraqis.

First we’d like to thank our tireless correspondents in Baghdad, Omar Abdullah, Isam Rasheed, Marwan Ghassan, Basheer Rasheed. We would also like to thank Rafat Jaiosy and Shadi Al-Kasim, who were there from the beginning in Jordan. Of course we must thank our translators Wisam and Neghem, as well as Qasem, Sami, Linda, Mhyar, Ahmed, Bassem, and many others who have supported our work.

We’d also like to thank supporters from outside of the Middle East, Justin Alexander, Robert Baker, Joe Carr, The CPT, Jay Dedman, Dave Enders, JD, Justin Kownacki, Robert Millis, Freeman Murray, Jeff Rae, Eowyn Rieke, Paul F. Roberts, Ben Varadi, Michael Verdi, the staff of blip.tv, and our moms.

Since we began Alive in Baghdad in 2005, it has been a wild ride. Finally in late 2006 real recognition has started to come our way. We’ve seen that independent media producers utilizing the internet and harnessing the power of RSS distribution can produce stories CNN and big media companies only dream of.

As 2007 approaches, we plan on expanding and continuing our work in Iraq, as well as expanding to Mexico, and perhaps other countries and regions in the year to come.

However, we still depend entirely on the support of our viewership and are again urging you to make a tax deductible donation of money or equipment to help continue the Alive in projects. If you received a new still or video camera this christmas, or a laptop, or other media equipment, consider donating your old equipment to help make media in other parts of the world.

To learn more about how you can help, email us at Alive in Baghdad or make a donation.