"The Old Man and the Storm"

Last night, 1-02-009, on the PBS News Hour they held a discussion with "Frontline" correspondent and filmmaker June Cross who describes her documentary "The Old Man and the Storm" which will air on PBS's "Frontline" on Jan. 6th, New Orleans: Three Years After Katrina.

This is a timely documentary more than three years after Katrina and especially as to the way the Government has been handling that compared to the extremely quick bailouts of the financial institutions in the present economic collapse and at other times when the corporate elite demanded their political friends come to their aid. There are three short video's at the 'Frontline' site that I'm embedding below, the third one touches on just that, especially as to the promises made by the President bush and other Government Officials and to the rapidly failing 'free market' 'trickle down' economic policy of the GOP.

It is also timely in these times that are rapidly coming down to hopefully not total destruction. The subject of the documentary, 82 year old Mr Herbert Gettridge, belongs to the generation of skilled tradespeople, extremely skilled, that built the economy we once had, where through hard work, knowledge, skills, an always thirst to improve, pride and much more, not only the businessmen benefited but so did the worker and their families. He's of a skilled trade, an artist, of many trades that are now dead or dying because few are left who used to work in them and the young haven't developed the knowledge to even attempt them. Trades in the construction of the country, trades in the manufacturing of our own needs especially with being able to quickly transform those skills if needed for our National Security, not having others build what we need. A whole host of trades or other descriptive jobs that no longer exist or only exist in small pockets sans the numbers if needed quickly.

You can listen to the discussion in mp3 with this link, the transcript hasn't been posted as yet at the News Hour site.

This is a cut of her documentary that they showed on the PBS News Hour show last night:



Slide Show: View images of New Orleans three years after Hurricane Katrina.

Six months after Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans, producer June Cross came across 82-year-old Herbert Gettridge working alone on his home in the lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood devastated when the levees broke in August 2005. Over the next two years, Cross would document the story of the extended Gettridge clan--an African-American family with deep roots in New Orleans--as they struggled to rebuild their homes and their lives. Their efforts would be deeply impacted by larger decisions about urban planning, public health, and the insurance industry, by the decisions of policymakers about federal funding for rebuilding the Gulf, and state and city plans for dispersing those monies. The moving personal story of Mr. Gettridge and his family reveals the human cost of this tragedy, the continued inadequacies of government’s response in the aftermath of Katrina, and how race, class, and politics have affected the attempts to rebuild this American city.

Below is the opening video at the Frontline site



The third video, at the PBS Frontline site, is the one I mentioned above that touches on the who gets what, rapidly or even at all, and the failure of the bush administration to not only keep the promises made, in front of the camera's, in photo ops and when needed to propagandize politically, but the total lack of feeling any need to come to the aid of the citizen of the country but quickly aid the corporate elite, the politically elite's base as bush called them.



You can find some Related Features at this News Hour link about Katrina and the rebuilding.

Tune into PBS Frontline, or watch it online after, for "The Old Man and the Storm" on Tuesday, January 6th '09 at 9PM ET to watch this documentary.

The book Breach of Faith: Hurricane Katrina and the Near Death of a Great American City, shown when the author talks about Katrina in the Documentary

War: Creating More not Fewer Enemies, Within!!

Failed Policies=Death!!

A My Lai a Month
By Nick Turse

I uncovered that letter and two others, each unsigned or signed only "Concerned Sergeant," in the National Archives in 2002, in a collection of files about the sergeant's case that had been declassified but forgotten, launching what became a years-long investigation. Records show that his allegations--of helicopter gunships mowing down noncombatants, of airstrikes on villages, of farmers gunned down in their fields while commanders pressed relentlessly for high body counts--were a source of high-level concern. A review of the letter by a Pentagon expert found his claims to be extremely plausible, and military officials tentatively identified the letter writer as George Lewis, a Purple Heart recipient who served with the Ninth Division in the Delta from June 1968 through May 1969. Yet there is no record that investigators ever contacted him. Now, through my own investigation--using material from four major collections of archival and personal papers, including confidential letters, accounts of secret Pentagon briefings, unpublished interviews with Vietnamese survivors and military officials conducted in the 1970s by Newsweek reporters, as well as fresh interviews with Ninth Division officers and enlisted personnel--I have been able to corroborate the sergeant's horrific claims. The investigation paints a disturbing picture of civilian slaughter on a scale that indeed dwarfs My Lai, and of a cover-up at the Army's highest levels. The killings were no accident or aberration. They were instead the result of command policies that turned wide swaths of the Mekong Delta into "free-fire zones" in a relentless effort to achieve a high body count. While the carnage in the Delta did not begin or end with Speedy Express, the operation provides a harsh new snapshot of the abject slaughter that typified US actions during the Vietnam War.

SNIP Read Rest Here

1969 Senior Officer Debriefing Report PDF

Concerned Sergeant's { George Lewis, a Purple Heart recipient }letter PDF

Veterans Day - Tuesday 11-11-08

We all know we have a change coming, and it would be great if it happened yesterday, but it will be happening soon enough. That change is in a New President and His Administration who ran on "Change" and bringing along with him a change in the Peoples Representation in both houses of Congress.


The new President, Barack Obama, was not brought into this job of the Countries President by a political parties leaders but by The People who rallied behind him, from the primaries to the Nov 8th National Election Day, and those people, Us, have to continue in what happens, for just one person and the administration nor the peoples representatives can bring about the "Change" that is so desperately needed now after these detructive years on so many fronts by themselves, we must stay engaged!


The focus, as it should be right now, will be first on the collapsing economy, collapsing because of a failed economic ideology and allowing some to do as they pleased in the economic circles of Wall Street, the Banks, and the Investment Firms etc..


But we also still have Tens Of Thousands of Military Troops engaged in War and Occupation in two Countries and their Tens Of Thousands of Family Members here at home, the Only Ones Sacrificing for this Country, Serving and those Waiting for their return!


I will add more on this at the bottom, with this lead in:


Nov 6 2008; WASHINGTON (American Forces Press Service) – Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has issued a Veterans Day message to those who now serve or have served in the armed forces.


Here is the text of the chairman’s message:

“When Armistice was declared on November 11, 1918, effectively ending World War I, over sixty-five million individuals had been mobilized for the “Great War” that resulted in almost nine million deaths and over twenty-one million wounded. In just a year and a half of operations, 126,000 Americans lost their lives on the muddy landscapes of Europe and in the icy depths of the North Atlantic. Such loss of life and limb is hard to fathom today.

“History has debunked the notion of a ‘War to End All Wars.’ And history has also proven that peace does not preserve itself. It requires millions of dedicated men and women – like you and your families – all working in unison toward what one memorial hails as ‘high idealism, courageous sacrifice, and gallant achievement.’

“Today, a new generation of veterans carries this torch. Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom have forged the most combat-hardened force in our nation’s history. Yet, no war is without its casualties. Whether seen – or unseen – the wounds of war last a lifetime, and so should our care.

“Our wounded veterans and their families deserve only the best medical care our nation can provide – care on par with the service and sacrifice these patriots have rendered. From the battlefield to regional hospitals, and rehabilitation centers to reintegration programs, our wounded, ill, and injured Service members and their families merit a continuum of care that lasts a lifetime.

“To all our veterans – past and present – and your families, the Joint Chiefs and I salute you and thank you for your service and your sacrifice. As we remember those who have gone before us, may we honor their service through ours.


M.G. MULLEN
Admiral, U.S. Navy

There will be Veterans Day activities all over the country, from the small towns to the large cities, below are just some of the activities In Honor that Veterans For Peace along with Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans and of course Military Families will be a part of, many sponsored activities of Veterans For Peace and Vietnam Veterans Against the War.


VETERANS FOR PEACE SPONSORED EVENTS:


The following cities have Veterans Day events:


~~~~~~~~~~

Boston, MA

NAME OF EVENT: March to hear messages of peace and against suppression of our speech

LOCATION OF EVENT: Boston Common Beacon and Charles St. Boston

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: We are excluded from marching with signs and cadences and will march behind the street sweepers with supporters behind us. At City Hall Plaza we will have a large presence and protest the City and American Legion suppressing messages of peace from veterans.

TIME: 12 PM

DATE: 11/11/08

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 9 Smedley Butler Brigade

WEBSITE: Smedley Butler Brigade


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Chicago, IL

NAME OF EVENT: VFP/VVAW Combined Chicago Veterans' Day Ceremony

LOCATION OF EVENT: Chicago Vietnam Veterans' Memorial, North-West corner of Wacker & Wabash, Lower Level alongside Chicago River

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Ceremony begins with Folk Songs by Anna Stange, followed by speakers from IVAW, VFP and VVAW. At the end of the Ceremony, participants drop flowers into the Chicago River to remember the casualties of America's past wars. There may be a party/fundraiser for IVAW following the Ceremony, pending the availability of the National Vietnam Veterans' Art Museum, 1801 S. Indiana, Chicago, IL.

TIME: 11:00 A.M. Sharp tp 12:00 Noon

DATE: Tuesday, November 11, 2008

CONTACT INFORMATION: Ken Neilsen, info@chicagovfp.org; Mike Woloshin, mike71atkron86vfp26@hotmail.com, Bob Gronko, bobgronko@yahoo.com

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Cpl. Joseph E. Powers-Chicago Area Chapter 26

WEBSITE: Chicago VFP


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Albany, NY

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Central Ave. & Ontario St., Albany, NY

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Annual City of Albany Veterans Day Parade sponsored by the Tri-County Council of Viet Nam Era Veterans. Our Chapter has been an official contingent in the parade for about 10 years.

TIME: 11:00 AM

DATE: November 11, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Tom Paine Chapter, #10


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Lebanon, TN

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Lebanon TN

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Parade in Lebanon TN 25 miles east of Nashville

TIME: 11:00

DATE: 11/11

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 89 Middle TN


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Milwaukee, WI

NAME OF EVENT: Armistice Day Remembrance

LOCATION OF EVENT: Milwaukee City Hall

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Our event will take place on the Veterans Day Parade route for more visibility. Speakers and a ceremonial bell ringing and then we'll hand out informational packets to parade spectators. We will be joined by members of Peace Action Wisconsin and IVAW

TIME: 10AM-11AM

DATE: November 8, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 102

WEBSITE: Milwaukee VFP


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Portland, ME

NAME OF EVENT: Portland Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Portland, Maine

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Standard parade - We have been the only "voice" for peace in the Portland parade for several years and have petitioned for a voice on the dais. No deal, so far.

DATE: November 11

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 001


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Albany, OR

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans' Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Albany, Oregon

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Veterans for Peace, Chapter 132 will march in the annual Veterans' Day Parade in Albany, Oregon. We will be joined by supporters of VFP, and plan to distribute the VFP "Cost of War" cards along the route.

TIME: Parade starts at 11:00, form up by 10:00 am.

DATE: Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 132

WEBSITE: VFP Corvallis


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Manchester, NH

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Manchester, NH

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: NH VFP will march in the annual Veterans Day Parade where we will carry two banners - our plain black & white VFP logo and a larger black & white banner that states: "NH Veterans for Peace" and below that "Peace Is the Way."

The parade organizing group led by several American Legion posts has finally allowed us to have a speaker at the post-parade ceremonies in Veterans Park. His name is Will Hopkins, a NH Guardsman who served in Iraq for a year. He is a member of both VFP and IVAW.

TIME: Nov. 11/08 - Parade begins at 10:30 am.

DATE: November 11, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: AJ Muste Chapter - #062


~~~~~~~~~~

New York City, NY

NAME OF EVENT: New York City Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: New York City

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: We will be marching again in the anual Veterans Day Parade in New York City along with our friends from VFP Chapters 34 & 60, along with members from VVAW, MFSO and IVAW.

DATE: 11-11-08

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: VFP Chapter 24


~~~~~~~~~~

Long Island, NY

NAME OF EVENT: Healing Service for Returning Veterans

LOCATION OF EVENT: Old South Haven Presbyterian Church, Long Island, NY

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: A non-sectarian healing service for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans in anticipation of Chapter 138's Peer Support Program.

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter 138


~~~~~~~~~~

Los Angeles, CA

NAME OF EVENT: Ron Kovic Speaks at Arlington West Santa Monica

LOCATION OF EVENT: North side of Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica CA

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Starting at AW SM there will be a procession of coffins up to the Santa Monica Veteran's Memorial at the Palisades Park where Ron Kovic and others will speak. Procession will then return to AW SM.

TIME: 10:00 AM

DATE: 11-11-08

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 007 Los Angeles

WEBSITE: Arlington West Santa Monica CA


~~~~~~~~~~

Port Angeles, WA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Celebration

LOCATION OF EVENT: U.S. Coastguard Station, Ediz Hook, Port Angeles Washington

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: VFP 139 will join with other veterans organizations and active Coast Guard to celebrate Veterans Day with music speeches and, in our case, antiwar statements.

TIME: 11:00 am

DATE: 11-11-08 Veterans Day

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: North Olympic Peninsula, Chapter 139

WEBSITE: NOP VFP

* There will also be showing on Public TV, Four veteran members will discuss their military experience and their evolution from soldiers to peace activists in VFP. Two female vets from the Iraq War and two Viet Nam War male vets will relate their activities to their collection of photos that will be shown as they talk.


~~~~~~~~~~

Hyannis, MA

NAME OF EVENT: Barnstable Soldiers Memorial Association - Veterans Day Parade and Program

LOCATION OF EVENT: Town Hall Parking Lot and Town Green, Hyannis, MA

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Community Parade, Speeches and Wreath-Laying at
several memorials locationed in Hyannis

TIME: 9:30AM Form-Up, 10:00AM Start

DATE: Tuesday, November 11, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Cosponsored by VFP Cape Cod Chapter 041and other veterans groups


~~~~~~~~~~

San Francisco, CA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: The parade starts at 2nd & Market Streets at 11:00am Sunday, Nov 9, marches past civic center and the War Memorial Building where the Review Stand is located.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Veterans For Peace will once again participate in the Veterans Day Parade. We will march with our Agent Orange Banner: "Vietnam Veterans and Vietnamese People are Still Dying from Agent Orange. We will wear our AO colors, a VFP t-shirt that is orange with the same message on the back. We will also carry photo boards of Vietnamese people suffering from effetts of Agent Orange. We will be joined by many of the Vietnamese community here. This comes after our support of the Agent Orange Tour that is happening this week all over the SF Bay Area. We usually win a first or second place award in the San Francisco Parades.

TIME: 11am

DATE: November 9, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: San Francisco, Chapter 69


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Phoenix, AZ

NAME OF EVENT: VA Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Phoenix, AZ

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Parade has many entrants but only one peace organization. This is the Phoenix Chapter of VFP. We will march behind a flag draped coffin surrounded by boots representing the service people who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan.
We are on probation this year. They are trying to find ways to get us out of the parade.

TIME: 11 AM

DATE: October 11

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: VFP Chapter 75

WEBSITE: Veterans For Peace Phoenix


~~~~~~~~~~

San Diego, CA

NAME OF EVENT: San Diego Veterans Day events

LOCATION OF EVENT: Various, see details below.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: At 8 AM, the chapter will be setting up our now portable Arlington West Memorial (500 crosses and other religious symbols) at the grassy area in front of the USS Midway, now docked in downtown San Diego as a military museum. We will there all day and into the night reading the names of the fallen, with VFP, IVAW, VVAW, and MFSO banners, US and service flags, a tent, tabling and educational exhibits, and some small items for sale.

At 11 AM, the majority of SDVFP members will march in the annual San Diego Veterans Day parade along Pacific Highway. The theme this year is "Honor Korean War Veterans" and we will have a convertible with SDVFP banners for our honored Korean War veteran members (4-5) to ride in. We have been embraced and cheered by the parade spectators in previous parades, and we expect this year to be no different.

After the parade, at about 2 PM, we will proceed back to our Arlington West Memorial at the USS Midway for our monthly business meeting, which would have normally been on election day. We plan on conducting an outdoor business meeting surrounded by the crosses, banners and flags. At dark, there will be a candlelight vigil, and the Arlington West Memorial will be packed up for its next venue.

TIME: 8 AM, the chapter will be setting up our now portable Arlington West Memorial, 11 AM, the majority of SDVFP members will march in the annual San Diego Veterans Day parade along Pacific Highway, 2 PM, we will proceed back to our Arlington West Memorial at the USS Midway for our monthly business meeting

DATE: 11/11/08

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter #91 - Hugh Thompson Memorial

WEBSITE: San Diego VFP


~~~~~~~~~~

Minneapolis, MN

NAME OF EVENT: Armistice Day Bell Ringing

LOCATION OF EVENT: First Shot Cannon Memorial on State Capital Grounds St. Paul, Mn

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: We will ring bells eleven times and read the names of Minnesota combat dead in Iraq and Afganistan commemorating Armistice Day.

TIME: 11:00 a.m.

DATE: 11/11/2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: chapter 27


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Greenfield, MA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Greenfield, MA

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Along with IVAW we will start at Greenfield Middle School (195 Federal St. We call on all who can march with us. This may be the towns last parade.

TIME: 9:30am

DATE: 11/11/2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter 95


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Long Beach, CA

NAME OF EVENT: Long Beach Ca. Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Long Beach, Ca.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: VFP Members will be marching with IVAW, MFSO and other local Peace groups. Last year our groups were denied entrance and the incident got national adverse publicity and as a result this year we are in and invite family and friends to join us. Call or email for details.

TIME: 10:00AM

DATE: Sat. November 8 - 11/08/08

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: LA-Long Beach Harbor Area Chapter # 067


~~~~~~~~~~

Juneau, AK

NAME OF EVENT: Special Film Presentation

LOCATION OF EVENT: Silverbow Inn - Juneau, AK

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: The Juneau, Alaska VFP Chapter is sponsoring a special public showing of the recent film "Soldiers of Conscience." The film will be preceded by a short message from Chapter President Phil Smith. In a related activity, on the evening before Veterans Day, Phil will host the film's co-producer on the Chapter's monthly radio show ("PeaceTalk") produced on KTOO-FM, the local public radio station (104.3 FM). The program is web-cast ( KTOO-FM ) for those interested.

TIME: 7:30:00 PM

DATE: 11/11/2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter 100

WEBSITE: VFP Juneau


~~~~~~~~~~

Madison, WI

NAME OF EVENT: 3rd Memorial Mile - Chapter 25

LOCATION OF EVENT: Madison, WI.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Chapter 25 will install its 3rd Memorial Mile in Madison on November 8, running to November 15th. Location: Forest Hill Cemetery, Speedway Road, Madison. Installation starts at 9am on Nov. 8th. 4,800 tombstones. Special one-hour memorial program on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 2pm.

TIME: 24 hours a day

DATE: Nov 8-15

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter 25 (Clarence Kailin Chapter)

WEBSITE: Madison VFP


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Palm Springs, CA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Palm Springs CA

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: VFP marches with a banner tha says: "Support the Troops. Bring Them Home"

TIME: 2:30 PM start up

DATE: Tuesday November 11

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Jon Castro Chapter 19

WEBSITE: VFP Chapter 19


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Auburn, WA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Auburn, Wa.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Parade w/ chapter 92 and other Western WA chapters

TIME: 11AM

DATE: Nov. 8, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: City of Auburn, WA. / contingent of Greater Seattle, Chapter 92

WEBSITE: VFP Chapter 92


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Pittsburgh, PA

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans Day Parade

LOCATION OF EVENT: Allegheny County/Pittsburgh Pa.

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: The ususal shassay done main street featuring Veterans organizations from throughout Western Pa. Bands, Banners, etc.

TIME: nine until post parade festivites are done.

DATE: Nov. 11th 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 047 Southwestern Pa.


~~~~~~~~~~

Miami, FL

NAME OF EVENT: Miami Beach Veterans Day Parade

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: For the fourth consecutive year, the South Florida Veterans For Peace Chapter will march in the Miami Beach Veterans Day Parade alongside the American Legion Post 85, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3559 and the Miami Special Forces Veterans Group.

The parade kickoff is from 17th Street and Washington Avenue. We will march to the cenopath at the old City Hall on 11th and Washington.

TIME: 9:00am

DATE: Tuesday 11 November 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Alexander S. Arredondo Chapter, South Florida


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Evansville, IN

NAME OF EVENT: Remembering Iraq War Dead

LOCATION OF EVENT: Four Freedoms Monument

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: The VFP Chapter 104, Evansville, IN will assemble at the Four Freedoms Monument to read the names of Service Men and Women killed in Iraq.

TIME: 11:00 AM Central Standard Time

DATE: November 11, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: Chapter 104, Evansville, IN

WEBSITE: VFP Evansville


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Ann Arbor, MI

NAME OF EVENT: Arlington Michigan Display

LOCATION OF EVENT: Veterans Park, Corner of Jackson and Maple, Ann Arbor, MI

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: Display of one cross for every Michigan soldier killed in Iraq. Veterans Day peace reading at 11am.

TIME: 9am to 6pm

DATE: November 11, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: 93

WEBSITE: VFP Chapter 93


~~~~~~~~~~

Rochester, NY

NAME OF EVENT: Veterans' Day Peace Observance and Ceremony

LOCATION OF EVENT: Washington Square Park, Rochester, NY and First Universalist Church

DESCRIPTION OF EVENT: At the park, there will be a reading of names and sharing stories of war dead.
The program will then move into the church, where the ceremony will continue with reflections by local veterans. There will be tabling by VFP and IVAW and a buffet served by "Food Not Bombs."

TIME: 3:00pm

DATE: Nov. 9, 2008

SPONSORED BY VFP CHAPTER: many peace groups in Rochester, including VFP, Chapter 23


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Join in or Observe those Veterans Day Activities near you. But let it be know that these two conflicts are right along side of the economic disaster or directly below as to Importance.


Send the message, if you haven't been already, starting this coming Tuesday, Veterans Day, that these Conflicts Must End!


That we, as a Country, must once again Lead by Diplomacy, Tough but Engaged, not throwing our morality away, as we have been, destroying others!


We must Engage the Regions Leaderships and the Regions Religious Leaderships of Iraq and Afghanistan to bring an end to both occupations, especially Iraq which never should have occurred!


But also Afghanistan, we've killed and maimed to many innocent Afghans, we've destroyed and not re-built enough of their already destroyed country, we are creating hatreds not friends and now that we've allowed it to spill over into Pakistan we are continuing in failed policies that are adding even more to the hatreds and numbers of enemies of us and the west!


We must join together with the World Community and place Terrorism where it belonged all along as a Criminal Act against Innocent People all over and not against the Governments these Terrorists are targeting!


Use the forces of Intelligence of as many countries that are willing to seek out and bring the criminal terrorist element to Justice, when need be combined military forces could be used, this is what should have happened long ago but especially after 9/11 when the whole world was more than willing to help, now most have their backs turned on us as we've lost so much of what we had built as a world leader!!

War on Terror? Criminal Terrorism!! The Rand Report

On the 29th of July an extremely important think tank report, paid for by the government, came forth from the Rand Corporation, a favorite of the Pentagon on National Security matters.

I heard the report early that morning on a news blip on NPR and went over to the Rand Site and found the report. I than posted about it on a number of sites as well as sent it out, all with back links.
There was also a link for a Congressional Briefing to be held on that day on the report.

At first I was shocked that very few picked up on the importance of this report, that day and the next, as well as the hearing. Than thinking about it later maybe I shouldn't have been surprised that few political boards saw the need to report and most certainly fewer MSM outlets as well. There's an Awful Lot of sheepish guilty consciouses that supported this criminal administration, and criminal it is, in the direction it started selling this 'War on Terrorism', and the MSM, purely for commercial profit, would love to see what their advertisers were paying for ads than, happily went along, War Sells Big Time! Hell these political people, the boards, the MSM, the majority of the voters even fear bringing charges and accountability, fear of what that may mean on the political front, to hell with the Constitution the Politics are more important!

There were a few people who like me tried to rattle the cages of these boards to pay attention, sadly they to were ignored. This morning truong son traveler had another great report posted on a couple of boards, after the MSM finally started to Get It, such as Keith Olbermann, after two days:

{ had to edit the end, didn't need the two reports prior and uploading, even with those cut off his last words, so I edited and put them in as closing text plus }

War on Terror? Criminal Terrorism!! The Rand Report

Other News outlets have also started grasping the importance of the Conservative Rand Corporations report and it's real meaning and have written it up, like these:

U.S. News and World Report

Since 2001, al Qaeda has conducted a greater number of attacks across a larger geographic area than at any time in its history. "We find it hard to agree that al Qaeda has been significantly weakened since Sept. 11, 2001," says Seth Jones, coauthor with Martin Libicki of the report titled "How Terrorist Groups End: Lessons for Countering al Qaeda."

The authors evaluate al Qaeda since 2001 as being both "strong" and "competent."

What's needed, the report suggests, is a "fundamental rethinking of U.S. strategy" to focus on minimizing overt military action and increasing intelligence collection and partnerships with law enforcement agencies around the world.

The report couldn't have been clearer in its refutation of one of the central tenants of the Bush administration's strategy against al Qaeda: the characterization of the conflict as a "global war." The administration has frequently attacked critics—especially Democrats—who say that counterterrorism should be built around law enforcement strategies.

As well as this:

Countering al Qaeda, a must-read for Pakistan from Reuters.

It’s probably unusual to link to a report by the RAND Corporation and an op-ed on Foxnews.com in the same blog, but since both address the same subject – tackling al Qaeda in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region – here goes.

The first is a detailed report by RAND called “How Terrorist Groups End”.

Its analysis of 648 groups that existed between 1968 and 2006 concludes that ”military force has rarely been the primary reason for the end of terrorist groups, and few groups within this time frame have achieved victory.” Calling for a rethink of U.S. strategy, it argues that policing and intelligence, rather than military force, should form the backbone of U.S. efforts against al Qaeda.”

And this:

Kerry Was Right from the Atlantic

As you may recall, back during the 2004 campaign John Kerry said something about counterterrorism being primarily a question to be dealt with through law enforcement and intelligence rather than something that should be understood as primarily a kind of war. George W. Bush was eager to pounce:

Some are skeptical that the war on terror is really a war at all. My opponent said, and I quote, "The war on terror is less of a military operation, and far more of an intelligence-gathering law enforcement operation." I disagree—strongly disagree.

After 9/11 many were saying exactly what this Rand Report is now saying, seven years into this so called 'War on Terror', as well as our allies and even countries considered our foes or rather not friendly towards us, in going after al Qaeda and international criminal terrorism. We, the United States, had universal support from all corners of this planet after the devastating attacks on our country, that support would have brought the intelligence, the law enforcement agencies, and the militaries, if needed, to our aid in tracking down these criminal terrorists. This administration saw it differently and much more dangerously, wage a War on unknown factions, label them all terrorists, kill and destroy, thus creating the hatreds needed to enhance the threat leading to a replacement for the phony 'Cold War' by a 'War on Terrorism' for the wealth and power of the few and a long lasting destructive endeavor for the World to handle, and soon they will walk away with their profits and we as a Nation will hold no one Accountable!

Let me tell a little story here. After we invaded Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban, still not catching the leaders of al Qaeda, Veterans started planning an action of a Teach In to take place in Washington and called Operation Dire Distress, we saw the writing on the wall, what we 'Nam Vets especially had promised we would never allow to happen again was about to do just that. The talk changed from Afghanistan to Iraq and invading that country and toppling that leader, though the Iraqi people had nothing to do with 9/11. As the drums of war with Iraq were beating louder the planning went on. The Teach In took place, at American University in DC, on Saturday March 22nd 2003, some two days after 'Shock and Awe' started destroying the country of Iraq and it's people, there were some 300 to 400 Veterans, from World War II to the 1st Gulf War, as well as family and friends of some, from around the country.

This link is a PDF of the VFP Newsletter from that time, after that weekend Veterans For Peace Newsletter

THE TEACH-IN - Saturday, March 22
The Kay Chapel at the American University, Washington, D.C.,
teach-in was packed all afternoon as speaker after speaker, with
solid knowledge and passionate eloquence, expertly laid out the fallacies
and falsehoods driving the war in Iraq, the ways it could have
been averted, with honor, and the need to end it quickly.
I was impressed by the sanity with which people who have
earned the right to speak as soldiers and citizens and patriots of the
highest order confronted the insanity of the actions of the Bush
administration. It was a long and illustrious list of combat nurses,
intelligence experts, academics, clerics, citizens of all stripes - people
like Bobby Muller, Daniel Ellsberg, Ray McGivern, Charles
Sheehan-Miles, Jamie Vasquez, Jonathan Schell, Charley
Richardson and Nancy Lessing of Military Families Speak Out, our
president, David Cline. C-Span saw fit to broadcast it for four solid
hours.

A number of the speakers listed above, and there were more, were saying almost the exact same thing this Rand Report is now saying and much more, and we along with a growing voice of millions, in this country and around the world, have said since!

The next day a wreath laying was planned for all the monuments to those lost in our previous conflicts in Honor to their Service as our Brothers and Sisters in uniform, at the time the World War II monument had just started to be constructed

Two things happened that next day that I'll never forget, one really moved me and others, the other showed us 'Nam Vets how far this country hadn't come and hos sheepish it's citizens truly are, first a cut from the newsletter:

THE PROCESSION - Sunday,
March 23
The day of the march was brisk and
sunny. Veterans and Military Families
from all over the country collected on a
knoll near the Vietnam Memorial. We listened
to a few, short speeches. Most of us
had our messages firmly placed in our
hearts and minds. In solemn procession
we made our way from one war memorial
to another.
At each, a small delegation of veterans
walked in and placed a wreath in
memory of those we knew and didn’t
know that were lost to their families.
Peter Shaw played his bagpipes on
each occasion but one; when he joined the
delegation to the Korean War memorial.
There we laid our arms on each others’ shoulders and kept a short
silence.
We visited the Office of Veterans Affairs. The Gulf War I vets,
of a war not yet memorialized, laid their wreath at the doorstep. In a
short speech, Erik Gustafson of EPIC and a member of VFP, noted
how the Congress voted out a resolution supporting the troops, yet,
at three the next morning, voted to cut billions from the budget of
the Office of Veterans Affairs over the next ten years.
The final official delegation delivered the VAIW statement of
purpose, signed by over 3000 veterans, ranking from Admirals and
Generals to PFCs, Airmen and Seamen, to the Whitehouse.
The President’s people refused to accept it.

The first, never to be lost memory, the one that moved me.

I had gotten to the Mall early in order to take some pictures of the War Memorials before the crowds started and the rest of the Veterans and friends showed up. There was a stage setup at the Lincoln Memorial didn't go over there and didn't know what it was for but was soon to find out. While there taking a few shots and waiting for the Vets I noticed people started showing up and heading down towards the stage area, none would look at me or if they did and I caught their eyes they would quickly look away. I asked a DC cop that was near by what the stage was for, it was a planned Clear Channel 'support The Troops' rally, now I understood why the no looks, I had my Veterans For Peace T-Shirt and Ballcap on, I'll explain in a moment.

The vets started coming to the mall, as we were talking DC park personal started showing up with crowd control tube barriers, they look like bicycle racks without the center bars, They set them up in a line along the hill between us and the Vietnam Memorial, i.e. the Lincoln Memorial. While this was taking place we were joined by some other Vets, from around the area, that hadn't been at the Teach In the day before. While talking I noticed one guy running towards us from the corner of the Mall. When he got up to us, out of breath, he asked who he should talk to to join VFP. Come to find out he had watched the Saturday Teach In on C-Span, jumped on a Red Eye out of Chicago and flew down to join us for Sunday's Wreath laying, he was a 'Nam Vet who hadn't been active prior to the debacle that had started a few days before.

Now to the second occurrence, the state of this Nations Citizens, and the Treatment of Veterans, though us 'Nam Vets had already lived with it for years.

See the picture above, see the horses, well about 8to10 of DC's finest showed up riding them and took a line along the barriers. They were extremely nice to us but told us we couldn't pass over, especially in masse to lay one of the Wreath's at the Vietnam Memorial as we planned, only a small group of 3 to 4 would be allowed to do that Honor. Now as there were Veterans from WWII, through Korea, to 'Nam and up to Gulf War I the majority were Korea to 'Nam and we weren't allowed to honor our Fallen Brothers of 'Nam because the police thought there might be trouble if we Veterans got to close to the Rally 'Supporting The Troops', it was at the rally organizers request to keep us Veterans Away! No one was approached by any attending this rally, some 200 or so, so not one Vet was asked if they wanted to attend a rally in Support Of Our New Generation Of Coming Conflict Veterans! They were waving American Flags, playing Patriotic Music, singing along with the Patriotic songs and making speeches of 'Supporting The Troops' while Spitting Once Again On The Veterans Who Had Served Them In Protection Of Their Freedom, supposedly, and Democracy, supposedly!

A problem arose, if we couldn't walk near this Patriotic Rally for our Service Members how does one get from the Vietnam Memorial and the others on that side of the reflecting pool to the Korean Memorial on the otherside, there was a fence up at the opposite end from the Lincoln Memorial for the WWII Construction, why one allows the DC Police to lead, enmasse, a walk through the reflecting pool which just happened to be empty for a well needed cleaning, like a miracle only the water didn't need to part!!

Think about the above and if you've ever been to DC you can get a picture of how we were treated and the Honor Wreath laying, about 400 Veterans Shunned by the Patriotic Americans they served and our brothers and sisters died for!!

You know, those Clear Channel Rallies were never attended by huge crowds nor did they last long, they sort of went quietly away as the cheap magnetic ribbons took over, they too have pretty much disappeared.

We were saying, and have since, Exactly what this Rand Corporation report is saying now, and Think how many have died, been maimed physically and mentally, not just soldiers but civilians of another small country and how much damage has been done and the hatreds now that have been created!!


you can get the press release here, you can get the full document here or a summary of the research brief here.

"How Terrorist Groups End"

The title above comes from a new Rand Corporation Report

After 7 years of conflict and occupations, with 893 coalition deaths -- 556 Americans, in Afghanistan and increasing, and 4,438 coalition deaths -- 4,124 Americans in Iraq and increasing, with tens of thousands of injured and maimed, physically and mentally, and millions of innocents in both countries killed, maimed, living as refugee's, fighting each other in sectarian civil wars, living in ethnically cleansed neighborhoods and area's in Iraq behind huge concrete blast walls, this "Think Tank?" comes out and says:

U.S. Should Rethink "War On Terrorism" Strategy to Deal with Resurgent Al Qaida

Current U.S. strategy against terrorist organization al Qaida has not been successful at limiting the group's capabilities. Since Sept. 11, 2001, al Qaida has been involved in more terrorist attacks than ever before and over an increasingly broader range of targets.

No F'in Shit!!!!!

Millions of us, here and around the world, before the invasions and occupations, were saying exactly the same and more, and we weren't called a "Think Tank" we were labeled as "Focus Groups" not to be listened to, those here were labeled as "Unpatriotic", "Traitors", "Enemy Sympathizers", you name it "We Were In The Wrong" and the lying bastards of power Were Right, over seventy percent of this countries people Said So, and now hide from that support and tune out what the reality is!

And what does this "Think Tank" think we should do, not only this country but the world, well according to their press release:

Current U.S. strategy against the terrorist group al Qaida has not been successful in significantly undermining the group's capabilities, according to a new RAND Corporation study issued today.

Oh if you click the link directly above they'll sell you the study in paperback. But you can download the Full Document (File size 3.1 MB, 13 minutes modem, 2 minutes broadband) in PDF or download the Summary Only (File size 0.1 MB, 1 minute modem, 1 minute broadband) also in PDF.

From the site page linked above, a short description:

All terrorist groups eventually end. But how do they end? The evidence since 1968 indicates that most groups have ended because (1) they joined the political process (43 percent) or (2) local police and intelligence agencies arrested or killed key members (40 percent). Military force has rarely been the primary reason for the end of terrorist groups, and few groups within this time frame have achieved victory. This has significant implications for dealing with al Qa'ida and suggests fundamentally rethinking post-9/11 U.S. counterterrorism strategy: Policymakers need to understand where to prioritize their efforts with limited resources and attention. The authors report that religious terrorist groups take longer to eliminate than other groups and rarely achieve their objectives. The largest groups achieve their goals more often and last longer than the smallest ones do. Finally, groups from upper-income countries are more likely to be left-wing or nationalist and less likely to have religion as their motivation. The authors conclude that policing and intelligence, rather than military force, should form the backbone of U.S. efforts against al Qa'ida. And U.S. policymakers should end the use of the phrase “war on terrorism” since there is no battlefield solution to defeating al Qa'ida.

If you noticed in the above the terms "leftwing" and "nationalists" are used. While both so called ideologies, across many spectrum's not only political have their extremists I would argue that we recently became witness to a terrorists attack, on innocents, in a church, that from the reporting of it coming out hardly shows this terrorists was of a "leftwing" ideology, a "nationalists" maybe, but I doubt he even knows what that is.

And those we presently label as "Terrorist", any we wish as those naming wage terror, are hardly "leftwing", more of the extreme "rightside" of political, religious, and corporate entities.

If you also noticed, near the end of the above, it says, "U.S. policymakers should end the use of the phrase "war on terrorism" since there is no battlefield solution to defeating al Qa'ida."!

Now where have I heard that before, oh ya, from the Millions of us in the "Focus Groups" for over seven years! And what do they suggest we call it exactly, why "CounterTerrorism" instead, and why, because Terror is a Criminal Act and can only be gone after as a Crime finding and arresting, and if a fight ensues possibly killing, those carrying out these crimes, breaking up the organizations big and small, and I'll add change the policies the powerful practice to suppress any need for the disenfranchised to rebel against that power and those failed policies!

From the Press Release:

Among the other findings, the study notes:

* Religious terrorist groups take longer to eliminate than other groups. Since 1968, approximately 62 percent of all terrorist groups have ended, while only 32 percent of religious terrorist groups have done so.

* No religious terrorist group has achieved victory since 1968.

* Size is an important predictor of a groups' fate. Large groups of more than 10,000 members have been victorious more than 25 percent of the time, while victory is rare when groups are smaller than 1,000 members.

* There is no statistical correlation between the duration of a terrorist group and ideological motivation, economic conditions, regime type or the breadth of terrorist goals.

* Terrorist groups that become involved in an insurgency do not end easily. Nearly 50 percent of the time they end with a negotiated settlement with the government, 25 percent of the time they achieved victory and 19 percent of the time, military groups defeated them.

* Terrorist groups from upper-income countries are much more likely to be left-wing or nationalistic, and much less likely to be motivated by religion.

"The United States has the necessary instruments to defeat al Qaida, it just needs to shift its strategy and keep in mind that terrorist groups are not eradicated overnight," Jones said.

It took over seven years for this thinktank to come up with the obvious.

We waged War, mostly on Innocent Human Beings, using such catch phrases as "They hate our Freedom and Democracy", "They want to convert all to Islam", the so called leader? of the pack even used a term describing it was another "Religious War" and called himself a "War President" and "The Decider".

What we have done is create not only new generations of Hatred, we have made New Enemies of us and the World, tens of thousands if not millions, by the Failed Policies, the Death and Destruction, the Want To Control Them. And the generations behind us will be left dealing with the New World We Have Given Them!!

Once again, you can get the press release here, you can get the full document here or a summary of the research brief here. There is also a link for a Congressional Briefing to be held today:

Speakers: Seth Jones Date: Tuesday, July 29, 2008 Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Location: 210 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C.

If televised I'm wondering if I should watch it, I'm afraid I might either start pulling out my hair or throw something into the tv screen, as I think of All that has been Done these past seven years and none can be taken back!!!!!!!

Still working on that 'Successful Surge'!

We all know the Why for the 'Surge', we all know the spin of the Success stories of that 'Surge', which seem to always overlook the 'Why'.

Well here's another example of why the 'Why' still hasn't been achieved, even with the many Walls built around Ethnically Cleansed Neighborhoods

A suicide bomber has killed eight Iraqis, including soldiers, in an attack on Army Day celebrations.

Army Day - a public holiday in Iraq - marks the anniversary of the founding of the Iraqi Army in 1921 with its first battalion, the Musa Al-Kadhem and involves high-ranking officers and government officials as well as Iraqi soldiers.

You can watch the BBC Video of the celebrations and bombing in another one of those 'Safe Neighborhoods' of Baghdad.

When will we start being Honest with Ourselves, as the World already knows, about What We Have Done?

When will those seeking the job of President not only be Honest to the American People, who hopefully will be doing the hiring, and not the Supremes, about the Depths of Hatreds created and Destruction of our Morality as a Nation, but also be Honest with themselves about what this Nation Now Faces?

When will We, as a Nation, start holding those Responsible, Accountable??

The Key....

involves high-ranking officers and government officials as well as Iraqi soldiers.

Yep the 'Surge' is doin wonders giving the 'Government of Iraq' the Space Needed to Govern and Protect!!