Print it out: color best. Pass it on.GI Special: thomasfbarton@earthlink.net 9.13.07

GI SPECIAL 5I13:

“Some Soldiers Began Questioning The War”

“The Toothpaste Is Out Of The Tube”

“The Military’s Information Nannies Are Not Going To Be Able To Stuff It

Back In”

Sep 9, 2007 By Robert Weller, The Associated Press [Excerpts] DENVER — With the world being bombarded by all factions on their side on the war in Iraq, U.S. soldiers Internet blogs provided the kind of public relations Madison Avenue would drool over. Soldiers told of helping Iraqi families, the loss of friends and their dangerous daily missions. In the past year, as soldiers and Marines return for the second, third or even fourth deployments, and the death toll approaches 4,000, some soldiers began questioning the war. “The toothpaste is out of the tube. And, try as they might, the military’s information nannies are not going to be able to stuff it back in,” said Noah Schatman of Wired Magazine in an e-mail from Taji, Iraq. He said soldiers will pay $55 a month for a private connection. The military is so petrified it will lose information control screensavers were installed on military computers warning blogs could jeopardize security, said Schatman, who runs Wired’s Danger Room blog and has tracked the unofficial use of the Internet by soldiers. The campaign has led some soldiers to steer clear of the Internet. Others do it anyway as confusion reigns because of conflicting signals sent from Washington, he said. “President Eisenhower warned of the growing military industrial complex in his farewell address. Since Dick Cheney can now afford solid gold oil derricks, it’s safe to say we failed Ike miserably. After losing two friends and over a dozen comrades, I have this to say: Do not wage war unless it is absolutely, positively the last ditch effort for survival,” wrote Spc. Alex Horton, 22, of the 3rd Stryker Brigade in Army of Dude. “In the future, I want my children to grow up with the belief that what I did here was wrong, in a society that doesn’t deem that idea unpatriotic,” he blogged. Sgt. Thomas Strickland, 27, of Douglasville, Ga., calling himself the Rev Wayfarer, was one of the earliest to speak out publicly. Two days before he drowned in a vehicle accident at Mahmudijah on his second tour he condemned the leadership in “One Foot in the Grave.” He asked what the chain of command had been doing since his first tour. “We were winning somewhat when I left. And now we are being pinned down in our own fucking homes.” Eugene Fidell, president of the National Institute of Military Justice, said a soldier would have to go pretty far before facing any retribution, and officers would be more vulnerable. “The government never wants to make someone a martyr,” he said.

“It’s the first digital war. It’s exciting to watch this because it is going to raise rich issues,” said Fidell, who also teaches at Yale, American University and practices law. Loren Thompson, CEO of the Lexington Insatiate, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, agreed. “It’s the subversive nature of the Internet. Technology has caught up with the soldiers, who have always known what was really going on but didn’t have the tools to tell their story,” said Thompson. In April, the Army announced new rules on blogging that required soldiers to clear them with a superior. Access to MySpace and some other popular Web sites was blocked. The Army said it was not trying to stop soldiers from speaking their mind, however. And so far, some of them have been. Do you have a friend or relative in the service? Forward GI Special along, or send us the address if you wish and we’ll send it regularly. Whether in Iraq or stuck on a base in the USA, this is extra important for your service friend, too often cut off from access to encouraging news of growing resistance to the war, inside the armed services and at home. Send email requests to address up top or write to: The Military Project, Box 126, 2576 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10025-5657

IRAQ WAR REPORTS

Texas Marine Killed In Anbar

U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. John C. Stock, 26, of Longview, Texas, died Sept. 6, 2007, in Al Anbar province, Iraq, during combat operations. (AP Photo/Stock family)

Texas Soldier Killed In Balad

Cpl. William T. Warford III, 24, of Temple, Texas, died Sept. 5, 2007 in Balad, Iraq, of wounds suffered from an improvised explosive device. (AP Photo/U.S. Army at Fort Hood, Texas)

Texas Soldier Killed In Baghdad

Cpl. Javier G. Paredes, 24, of San Antonio died Sept. 5, 2007 in Baghdad of wounds suffered from a rocket propelled grenade. (AP Photo/San Antonio Express-News/family)

Two Of Soldiers Who Wrote Op-Ed Criticism Of War Killed In Iraq

Olga Capetillo holds her favorite family snapshot of her son Sgt. Omar Mora with his daughter Jordan at her home Sept. 12, 2007 in Texas City, Texas. Mora, a co-author of an Aug. 19, 2007 New York Times op-ed critical of the Pentagon’s positive assessment of the Iraq war, was killed Monday. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan) [Thanks to J.D. Englehart, IVAW & The Military Project & Felicity Arbuthnot & Phil G, who sent this in.] September 12, 2007 By Greg Mitchell, Editor And Publisher [Excerpts] NEW YORK: The Op-Ed by seven active duty U.S. soldiers in Iraq questioning the war drew international attention just three weeks ago. Now two of the seven are dead. Sgt. Omar Mora and Sgt. Yance T. Gray died Monday in a vehicle accident in western Baghdad, two of seven U.S. troops killed in the incident which was reported just as Gen. David Petraeus was about to report to Congress on progress in the “surge.” The names have just been released. Gen. Petraeus was questioned about the message of the op-ed in testimony before a Senate committee yesterday.

The controversial Times column on Aug. 19 was called “The War As We Saw It,” and expressed skepticism about American gains in Iraq. “To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched,” the group wrote. Mora, 28, hailed from Texas City, Texas, and was a native of Ecuador, who had just become a U.S. citizen. He was due to leave Iraq in November and leaves behind a wife and daughter. Gray, 26, had lived in Ismay, Montana, and is also survived by a wife and infant daughter. The accident in Iraq occurred when a cargo truck the men were riding in overturned. The Daily News in Galveston interviewed Mora’s mother, who confirmed his death and that he was one of the co-authors of the Times piece. The article today relates: “Olga Capetillo said that by the time Mora submitted the editorial, he had grown increasingly depressed. ‘I told him God is going to take care of him and take him home,’ she said. ‘But yesterday is the darkest day for me.’” MORE: 9.12.07 CNN Staff Sgt. Yance Gray and Sgt. Omar Mora were members of the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Gray, 26, joined the Army out of high school in Ismay, Montana, in 2000, said his father, Richard Gray. In their article, Mora, Gray and their comrades wrote that American troops in Iraq are operating “in a bewildering context of determined enemies and questionable allies, one where the balance of forces on the ground remains entirely unclear,” and said the progress being reported was being “offset by failures elsewhere.” “When the primary preoccupation of average Iraqis is when and how they are likely to be killed, we can hardly feel smug as we hand out care packages.”

MORE:

Soldier, Ismay Native, Dies In Vehicle Crash In Iraq

September 11, 2007

MILES CITY, Mont. (AP) - Staff Sergeant Yance Gray of Ismay was killed when the cargo truck he was riding in overturned in Baghdad. It happened yesterday. The 26-year-old Gray joined the Army in 2000. Public information officer Major Garth Scott of the Montana National Guard says Gray was a member of the 1st Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 82nd Airborne Division, attached to the 1st Infantry Division at the time of his death. Sergeant 1st Class Steven Klang of Baker is serving as the casualty assistance officer. He says Gray was a passenger in an M-915 five-ton cargo truck when it rolled over. Klang says he has not been told what caused the rollover. A funeral with military honors is planned at Arlington National Cemetery. And a public memorial service is planned later in Ismay. Gray was a graduate of Plevna High School, and the son of Richard and Karen Gray of Ismay. He is also survived by his wife and infant daughter, who live in North Carolina.

WELCOME TO IRAQNAM: HAVE A NICE DAY

U.S. soldiers of Bravo company, 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery Regiment during a night operation at Zafraniya neighborhood in Baghdad September 8, 2007. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

IED Gets Mercenary Convoy; Vehicle Destroyed

September 12, 2007 Xinhua A roadside bomb struck a convoy of sport utility vehicles (SUVs), used by foreign security contractors, in eastern Baghdad on Wednesday, burning a vehicle and killing a civilian, a well-informed police source said. “A roadside bomb went off near a convoy of SUVs carrying foreign security contractors near the Beirut Square in eastern Baghdad, leaving one of the convoy’s vehicle ablaze,” the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. A civilian was killed and five others wounded by the blast, the source said without revealing the casualties and nationality of the foreigners. U.S. troops immediately sealed off the area preventing the Iraqi police and civilians from approaching the scene, the source added.

AFGHANISTAN WAR REPORTS

[Thanks to Mark Shapiro, who sent this in.]

TROOP NEWS

THIS IS HOW BUSH BRINGS THE TROOPS HOME: BRING THEM ALL HOME NOW, ALIVE

U.S. surgeons operate on a wounded U.S. soldier in the operating room of 28th Combat Support hospital in Baghdad August 21, 2007. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj

“Heroes Need Not Apply” Texas Scum Deny Educational

Benefits To Immigrants Who Serve In The Armed Forces

[Thanks to Mark Shapiro, who sent this in.] 12.SEP.07 By Jerry Patterson, Wilson County News. Jerry Patterson is a former Marine and Vietnam veteran. He was elected land commissioner in 2002 and again in 2006.

******************************************** Texas has a proud military heritage. From the Alamo to Baghdad, Texas veterans have served our country in every major conflict, in every corner of the globe.

Yet, Texas heroes like William B. Travis, John Bell Hood, Earl Rudder, and Audie Murphy, would shudder to think Texas is denying educational benefits to her veterans. Even combat veterans in harms way are barred from receiving certain Texas educational benefits under state law. The law is called the Hazlewood Act and it exists in section 54.203 of the Education Code. It exempts eligible military veterans from paying tuition and most fees at state colleges and universities. This educational assistance is extremely helpful to returning veterans anxious to enter or finish college to begin a career. Yet, in the fine print, the Hazlewood Act only provides this benefit to veterans who are U.S. citizens residing in Texas at the time they joined the armed forces. The problem is, there are more than 35,000 men and women in our armed forces - thousands of them from Texas - who are not U.S. citizens. They are called legal permanent residents, or “green card” holders. And they serve and fight and die - just like a U.S. citizen. Even if they become citizens after they join the military, they will still be denied because of their status upon joining the service. This is not right and it is most likely unconstitutional. Texas needs to amend the Hazlewood Act to ensure that any Texan who wears the uniform of the U.S. armed forces is entitled to the benefits reserved for them by the people of Texas. Right now a lawsuit is working its way through the courts that may settle this question. The case involves two Gulf War veterans - both legal permanent residents - who were denied Hazlewood benefits because they had not yet become U.S. citizens when they joined the Army. They are both now citizens, but have been rejected for the benefits afforded to their Gulf War buddies. Do Texans really believe these veterans are somehow less worthy, or less deserving, of these benefits? Do we support the idea of a second-class veteran? Here at the Texas Veterans Land Board, we provide the best veterans benefits of any state. All of our benefits, from low-interest loans to veterans’ homes and veterans’ cemeteries, are available to every legal resident Texas veteran regardless of their citizen status. When I authored the Texas Concealed Handgun Law, I ensured that the law allowed permits to be granted to legal permanent residents as well as citizens. I did so because I believe the right to bear arms is a constitutional right that applies to every legal resident, whether or not they have achieved citizen status. After all, they are in America by choice, rather than by accident of birth.

By the same token, I believe the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment also applies in this case. Every honorably discharged veteran should be treated equally under law, regardless of whether or not he or she is a citizen. If a Texan is willing to pick up a rifle in defense of our country, then they deserve the financial, educational, and social benefits their sacrifice demands. After all, there is no higher qualification for citizenship than one’s willingness to lay down their life in defense of their country. When it comes to veterans’ benefits, a Texas veteran should never be told, “heroes need not apply.”

IRAQ VETERAN ARRESTED FOR ANTI-WAR POSTERS

[Thanks For Your Service] [Welcome Home To Occupied America]

A Park Police officer, right, grabs a glue bucket from Adam Kokesh of Iraq Veterans Against the War, left, in Lafayette Park across from the White House in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 6, 2007, as he tried to put up anti-war posters in the park in Washington. Kokesh was later arrested by the officer.(AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)

“I’ve Got To Stop This War And Save My Guys Here. And The Best

Way I Can Do That Is To Do It Up In Heaven ‘Cause I Can’t Do

Anything While I’m Down Here” Iraq Veteran Takes His Own Life:

“Instead Of Giving Him The Help He Needed, The Army Deployed Him To Iraq

A Second Time” [Thanks to Alberto Jaccoma, The Military Project & Mark Shapiro, who sent this in.] Sep 10 By Aaron Glantz, (IPS) [Excerpts] Dane and April Somdahl own the Alien Art tattoo parlor on Camp Lejeune Boulevard -- just outside the sprawling Marine Corps base of the same name in Jacksonville, North Carolina. In an interview from the back of her shop, April talked about how her customers’ tastes have changed since George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq in March 2003. “Now we are seeing a lot of memorial tattoos. Even the wives are getting memorial tattoos -- moms and dads in their fifties too. And in a lot of cases they’re getting their first tattoos. And they’re saying ‘We didn’t think we would ever get a tattoo, but this one is to remember my son.’” Because of the changing needs of their clientele, the Somdahls no longer blast rock and roll music inside the shop. Instead, the artists work in silence. “The mood has died,” April told IPS. The mood is particularly heavy because the Somdahls have had a death in their own family. On Feb. 20, April’s younger brother, Sergeant Brian Jason Rand, shot himself under the Cumberland River Centre Pavilion in Clarksville outside Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Brian Jason Rand was born Dec. 9, 1980 into a military family on base at Camp Lejeune. Throughout his life, he had always been in and around the military. He had deployed twice to Iraq, returning for the final time on Jan. 2, 2007. It was during his first tour that April noticed a change. She chatted with him every evening over the internet. In the afternoon, while it was nighttime in Baghdad, she would sit in front of her computer in North Carolina, hook up a microphone and talk with her brother, trying to keep his spirits up.

But she could tell her brother was having an emotional meltdown. “He would say ‘April, I’m having terrible nightmares’,” she said. “He told me about nightmares about dead Iraqis, their souls and spirits haunting him, following him, telling him to do stuff, and it got scarier and scarier.” April said she talked Brian to sleep nearly every night during his deployment -- trying to keep him alive by giving him something to live for. “I would talk to him in a very quiet voice and make sure not to make any sudden noises,” she said. “I would tell him the grass is still green over here. The sky is still blue. Just close your eyes and picture the lawn that we laid on staring up at that sky. And it’s still there. When you get back, when your job is done, when you do everything that they ask you to do, come back to me and we’ll lay on the grass and we’ll stare at the sky and we don’t have to talk about anything.” But when Brian returned home from Iraq it wasn’t the end of the story. He was emotionally unstable. His family said he knew he had problems and sought help from the military. After he retuned from Iraq, for example, he filled out a post-deployment health assessment form, admitting to combat-related nightmares, depression and mood swings. “When someone checks ‘yes’ to these types of things, clearly they should be evaluated for mental help,” his widow, Dena Rand, told Clarksville’s Leaf Chronicle newspaper, “but according to them, he never requested help.” Brian Rand never had a chance to see a psychiatrist. Instead of giving him the help he needed, the Army deployed him to Iraq a second time. “We didn’t have very many phone conversations at all during his last deployment,” his sister April said. “The phone calls only came when he was spiraling out of control so it was very difficult to figure out what he was trying to communicate.” When he returned Fort Campbell for the final time in January 2007, his family said he had completely changed. “He’d flip on a dime,” Dena Rand recalled, describing scenarios, in public and private, which made him paranoid and agitated. The Leaf Chronicle reported Dena Rand said her husband “was either intensely happy or desperately sad; there was no middle ground, which was nothing like the man she married, whom she described as a gentle person who would ‘drop anything he was doing to help anyone.’” On Feb. 8, Dena called the police when Jason started screaming at his stepdaughter, Cheyanne.

“Mrs. Rand stated that her husband was yelling at her daughter,” Officer Mathew Campbell wrote in his report for the Clarksville police department. “Mrs. Rand went upstairs to make him stop and she stated that he turned and smacked her in the face. Mr. Rand was gone upon arrival.” About the same time, Jason called his sister, April. “He said, ‘Oh, I can see everything April. It all makes perfect sense now. I know what I have to do and it makes so much sense. “I have to die. I have to leave the physical realm and leave earth and go up in heaven and be part of the Army of God and I’ve got to stop this war and save my guys here. And the best way I can do that is to do it up in heaven ‘cause I can’t do anything while I’m down here.’” April told me she tried to talk her brother out of suicide. She mentioned that Dena was pregnant with their first child together. That child is going to need a father, she argued. But Brian wouldn’t listen. “He said the baby will be fine,” April said. “The baby will be taken care of...and then he started talking about his favorite music and then from his favorite music he goes to saying ‘You’re going to have to know this. You’re going to have to know my favorite movie. When I am gone you’re going to want to watch my favorite movie, April. My favorite movie is Mousetrap.’” Less than two weeks later, on Feb. 20, the Clarksville police department received a call about a body lying facedown under an entertainment pavilion on the banks of the Cumberland River, with a shotgun beside it.

Demobilized Chinese Soldiers Launch Coordinated Actions Against

Government [Thanks to Pham Binh, Traveling Soldier & Military Project, who sent this in. He writes: IVAW needs to learn to speak Chinese...] Sep 11 By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN, Associated Press Writer BEIJING - Thousands of demobilized Chinese soldiers rioted last week at training centers in at least three cities in an extremely rare series of coordinated demonstrations, a human rights group said Tuesday.

Former troops smashed classrooms, overturned cars and set fires to protest their poor living conditions, the Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy reported. At least 20 people were injured and five arrested when riot police moved in to quell the disturbances, which started on the afternoon of Sept. 3, it said. The center said about 2,000 ex-soldiers took part in the riots in the cities of Baotou, Wuhan, and Baoji, spread over a 775-mile stretch of eastern China. Reports posted on the Internet along with video clips appearing to show some of the violence said the disturbances were even more widespread, but gave few details. The reported protests, which authorities refused to confirm, were notable for their level of coordination, something not seen on a nationwide scale since the 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing and several other cities. They also follow a string of recent campus unrest by students angered by poor living conditions or administrative changes that reduced the value of their diplomas. However, they were the first incidents reported involving former soldiers, who are usually deferential and loyal to the regime. Demobilized soldiers are frequently rewarded for their service with government jobs, and 6,000 of them were sent to 12 different railway schools in July for two years of training, the reports said. However, they were angered by run-down dormitories, bad but expensive food and a lack of study materials, according to the center and Internet reports. Dorm rooms did not have electrical outlets and students were charged 75 cents each time they charged their mobile phones, the reports said. The reports said classes have been suspended and police moved in to patrol.

NEED SOME TRUTH? CHECK OUT TRAVELING SOLDIER

Telling the truth - about the occupation or the criminals running the government in Washington - is the first reason for Traveling Soldier. But we want to do more than tell the truth; we want to report on the resistance - whether it’s in the streets of Baghdad, New York, or inside the armed forces. Our goal is for Traveling Soldier to become the thread that ties working-class people inside the armed services together. We want this newsletter to be a weapon to help you organize resistance within the armed forces. If you like what you’ve read, we hope that you’ll join with us in building a network of active duty organizers. http://www.traveling-soldier.org/ And join with Iraq War vets in the call to end the occupation and bring our troops home now! (www.ivaw.org/)

OBITUARY: Bill Davis (1948-2007)

vvaw.org/gallery/Bill_Davis

[Thanks to Mark Shapiro] September 06, 2007 By Carl Nyberg, Provisoprobe.blogspot.com Bill Davis has died. Bill Davis of Oak Park was a union leader and a lifetime member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. See VVAW’s website for pictures of Bill. Last night I received an email stating that he had died. Bill was an all-around good guy. He was a practical organizer. Since the invasion of Iraq he put much of his activist energy into U.S. Labor Against the War. Thinking back, Bill didn’t talk much about himself or his accomplishments. His union represented Village of Oak Park employees. And Bill had some leadership role, but I’m not sure of his title. I think he was involved in Oak Park Little League. Bill could be counted on to give a solid speech for Memorial Day or Veterans Day.

But I was always glad to see Bill or his wife Joan, a York high school history teacher, at events. If Bill and Joan were involved I knew that it would be competently organized and they always made me feel good to see them and talk to them. Their son Josh died in his first weeks of college. This loss hit both Bill and Joan hard. Part of the shock of Bill’s death is that I saw him about a month ago at the VVAW 40th anniversary celebration at Roosevelt University.

vvaw.org/gallery/Bill_Davis

IRAQ RESISTANCE ROUNDUP

Resistance Action; “A Sophisticated Attack”

9.11.07 Reuters & 12 Sep 2007 Reuters & (AP) & By Jenan Hussein, McClatchy Newspapers Guerrillas ambushed an Iraqi police checkpoint in northern Iraq before dawn Wednesday, killing six officers in a sophisticated attack on fledgling Iraqi security installations, police said. Militants packed into four cars screeched up to the checkpoint south of Mosul at around 1:30 a.m., attacking it from both sides, said police Brig. Abdel-Karim al-Jubouri. Clashes lasted about 15 minutes, after which all the nationalist fighters escaped.

Six policemen were killed and the other four at the checkpoint were wounded, all men from the area, he said. The attack occurred in the Gayara area south of Mosul. Yesterday evening, guerrilla fighters riding a pick up vehicle shot an officer from the Third Battalion-Fifth brigade near by Al Safra village in Al Riyadh province west Kirkuk. Kirkuk policemen declared that the incident claimed the life of the officer immediately. Around 9:30am, An IED targeted the head’s of the local council convoy of Al Haweeja province injured three of his bodyguards. Around 09:30am, insurgents assassinated Major Khalid Jabur from Iraqi police in front of his house in Al Taameem neighborhood in Tikrit.

IF YOU DON’T LIKE THE RESISTANCE END THE OCCUPATION

Shiites And Sunnis March Together Against The Occupation:

“Barrier Wall Is A U.S. Terror”

September 12, 2007: Shiites and Sunnis march together in an anti-Occupation protest at the building by US troops of a tall concrete wall separating Ghazaliya and Shula districts. The banner reads “barrier wall is a U.S. Terror”. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen Sep 12 (AFP) Shiites and Sunnis marched on Wednesday in protest at the building by US troops of a tall concrete wall separating their northwest Baghdad neighbourhoods, an AFP photographer said. The protesters complained that the wall would promote sectarianism and demanded its removal. Residents said that US forces last week began building the two-kilometre (1.25 mile) wall along the border of the mainly Shiite al-Shuala and adjoining Sunni-majority al-Ghazaliyah neighbourhoods without consulting them. The demonstrators -- tribal leaders, clerics and local residents -- marched from one neighbourhood to the other carrying banners reading “No to the dividing wall” and “The wall is US terrorism.” The protesters demanded in a statement that the government intervene to halt the wall and ensure that the section already completed is demolished. “The wall is dividing small neighbourhoods and will lead to the partitioning of Iraq,” said Hassan al-Taii, a leader of the large Taii Sunni tribe. He demanded that the Baghdad government destroy the wall and act against those “planting division and sectarianism among Iraqis.” Many Iraqis argue that the barricades will only heighten tensions between Sunnis and Shiites by segregating the once mixed city. During Wednesday’s protest, demonstrators carried Iraqi flags and chanted, “No, no to terrorism”, and “Yes, yes to unity.” “This wall does not provide security and stability,” said Shiite cleric Abdul Baqir al-Subaihawi. “The government must maintain security in Baghdad rather than separate its neighbourhoods,” he added. Nationalist leader Moqtada al-Sadr has urged artists to paint the concrete barriers springing up around Baghdad with murals showing what he dubbed the “ugly face” of the US military in Iraq. The Baghdad council has employed professional artists to paint the walls with calming landscapes and scenes depicting Iraq’s natural beauty, but Sadr -- a firebrand preacher and militia leader -- had something more dramatic in mind.

“I call on you to draw magnificent tableaux that depict the ugliness and terrorist nature of the occupier, and the sedition, car bombings, blood and the like he has brought upon Iraqis,” he said.

Demonstrators protest in Baghdad September 12, 2007 against the concrete wall which was installed by the U.S. forces, separating Ghazaliya and Shula districts. REUTERS/Mohammed Ameen

FORWARD OBSERVATIONS

When Soldiers Mutiny: Only Those Fighting The War Can

End It [Thanks to Pham Binh, Traveling Soldier & Military Project and Linda Olson, who sent this in. Linda Olson writes: Thought you might like this one. Shows my support of IVAW won’t be in vain.] September 12, 2007 By WILLIAM BLUM, CounterPunch [Excerpts] Okay, Bush ain’t gonna get out of Iraq no matter what anyone says or does short of a)impeachment, b)a lobotomy, or c)one of his daughters setting herself afire in the Oval Office as a war protest.

A few days ago, upon arriving in Australia, “in a chipper mood”, he was asked by the Deputy Prime Minister about his stopover in Iraq. “We’re kicking ass,” replied the idiot king, as reported in the Sydney Morning Herald. Another epigram for his tombstone. And the Democrats ain’t gonna end the war. Ninety-nine percent of the American people protesting on the same day ain’t gonna do it either, in this democracy. Only those fighting the war can end it. By laying down their arms and refusing to kill anymore, including themselves. Some American soldiers in Iraq have already refused to go on very dangerous combat missions. Iraq Veterans Against the War, last month at their annual meeting, in St. Louis, voted to launch a campaign encouraging American troops to refuse to fight. “Iraq Veterans Against the War decided to make support of war resisters a major part of what we do,” said Garett Reppenhagen, a former U.S. Army sniper who served in Iraq from February 2004 to February 2005. The veterans’ group has begun organizing among active duty soldiers on military bases. Veterans have toured the country in busses holding barbeques outside the base gates. They also plan to step up efforts to undermine military recruiting efforts. Of course it’s a very long shot to get large numbers of soldiers into an angry, protesting frame of mind. But consider the period following the end of World War Two. Late 1945 and early 1946 saw what is likely the greatest troop revolt that has ever occurred in a victorious army. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of American soldiers protested all over the world because they were not being sent home even though the war was over. The GIs didn’t realize it at first, but many soon came to understand that the reason they were being transferred from Europe and elsewhere to various places in the Pacific area, instead of being sent back home, was that the United States was concerned about uprisings against colonialism, which, in the minds of Washington foreign-policy officials, was equated with communism and other nasty un-American things. The uprisings were occurring in British colonies, in Dutch colonies, in French colonies, as well as in the American colony of the Philippines. Yes, hard to believe, but the United States was acting like an imperialist power. In the Philippines there were repeated mass demonstrations by GIs who were not eager to be used against the left-wing Huk guerrillas.

The New York Times reported in January 1946 about one of these demonstrations: “‘The Philippines are capable of handling their own internal problems,’ was the slogan voiced by several speakers. Many extended the same point of view to China.” American marines were sent to China to support the Nationalist government of Chang Kai-shek against the Communists of Mao Tse-tung and Chou En-lai. They were sent to the Netherlands Indies (Indonesia) to be of service to the Dutch in their suppression of native nationalists. And American troop ships were used to transport the French military to France’s former colony in Vietnam. These and other actions of Washington led to numerous large GI protests in Japan, Guam, Saipan, Korea, India, Germany, England, France, and Andrews Field, Maryland, all concerned with the major slowdown in demobilization and the uses for which the soldiers were being employed. There were hunger strikes and mass mailings to Congress from the soldiers and their huge body of support in the States. In January 1946, Senator Edwin Johnson of Colorado declared “It is distressing and humiliating to all Americans to read in every newspaper in the land accounts of near mutiny in the Army.” On January 13, 1946, 500 GIs in Paris adopted a set of demands called “The Enlisted Man’s Magna Charta”, calling for radical reforms of the master-slave relationship between officers and enlisted men; also demanding the removal of Secretary of War Robert Patterson. In the Philippines, soldier sentiment against the reduced demobilization crystallized in a meeting of GIs that voted unanimously to ask Secretary Patterson and certain Senators: “What is the Army’s position in the Philippines, especially in relation to the reestablishment of the Eighty-sixth Infantry Division on a combat basis?” By the summer of 1946 there had been a huge demobilization of the armed forces, although there’s no way of knowing with any exactness how much of that was due to the GIs’ protests. (For more information about the soldiers’ protests, see: Mary-Alice Waters, “G.I.’s and the Fight Against War” (New York, 1967), a pamphlet published by “Young Socialist” magazine.) If this is how American soldiers could be inspired and organized in the wake of “The Good War”, imagine what can be done today in the midst of “The God-awful War”. Iraq Veterans Against the War could use your help. Go to: www.ivaw.org/

Troops Invited: What do you think? Comments from service men and women, and veterans, are especially welcome. Write to Box 126, 2576 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10025-5657 or send email

contact@militaryproject.org:. Name, I.D., withheld unless you request publication. Replies confidential. Same address to unsubscribe.

Nodding Off With History

From: Mike Hastie To: GI Special Sent: September 12, 2007 Subject: Nodding Off With History Nodding Off With History When I was in Southeast Asia, George Bush had cocaine up his nose. This is the legacy of these kinds of murderers. They nod off, and tens of thousands of people die. While the so-called “ Hippies “ were dropping drugs in the Sixties, the U.S. government was dropping Napalm on countless innocent Vietnamese civilians.

The U.S. government reminds me of a bulldozer covering up bodies so the American people won’t see the evidence. The Pentagon is a non-stop killing machine. I live with that reality everyday. I take one pill twice a day, to keep my mind off of the bulldozer. Mike Hastie U.S. Army Medic Vietnam 1970-71 September 9, 2007

Photo and caption from the I-R-A-Q (I Remember Another Quagmire) portfolio of Mike Hastie, US Army Medic, Vietnam 1970-71. (For more of his outstanding work, contact at: (hastiemike@earthlink.net) T)

“Many Officers Regard Gen. Petraeus As A Political Opportunist Who

Ultimately Will Do As Bush Commands”

“The U.S. Will Lose War Regardless What it Does”

[Thanks to Phil G, who sent this in.] September 10, 2007 Interview conducted by John Goetz [Excerpts] In an interview with SPIEGEL ONLINE, American military historian Gabriel Kolko argues that the situation in Iraq is worse than ever and that the artificial nation, created after World War I, is breaking up. The “surge,” he says, is also failing.

******************************************** SPIEGEL: The long awaited results of the “surge” are now in. Has the surge succeeded? Is there reason for optimism in Iraq? KOLKO: The Iraq military but especially the political ‘benchmarks’ that this administration thought so crucial -- and used to justify its ‘surge’ of 28,500 additional troops -- have, in the opinion of Congress’ Government Accountability Office (GAO)

report issued at the end of August, not been attained (there are now 168,000 American troops in Iraq, plus roughly half as many civilians). In its unexpurgated, original form, the GAO claimed that only three of the 18 Congressionally mandated “benchmarks” had been reached: violence was as high as ever; reconstruction was plagued by corruption on both the Iraqi and American sides; the Shiites and Sunnis were as disunited as ever, murdering each other; crucial laws, especially on oil, have not been enacted yet; and probably many political changes will never occur, and the like. Of its nine security goals, only two had been met. White House and Pentagon efforts to soften GAO criticisms failed. The civilian death toll last August was higher than in February. SPIEGEL: How would you describe the situation of the Bush White House today? What options does it have? KOLKO: The Bush Administration suffers from a fatal dilemma. Its Iraq adventure is getting steadily worse, the American people very likely will vote the Republicans out of office because of it, and the war is extremely expensive at a time that the economy is beginning to present it with a major problem. The president’s poll ratings are now the worst since 2001. Only 33 percent of the American public approve of his leadership and 58 percent want to decrease the number of American troops immediately or quickly. Fifty-five percent want legislation to set a withdrawal deadline. In Afghanistan, as well, the war against the Taliban is going badly, and the Bush Administration’s dismal effort to use massive American military power to remake the world in a vague, inconsistent way is failing. The US has managed to increasingly alienate its former friends, who now fear its confusion and unpredictability. Above all, the American public is less ready than ever to tolerate Bush’s idiosyncrasies. SPIEGEL: What went wrong? Was the war doomed from the very beginning? How can the US military and the US government which is spending $3 billion per week in Iraq be losing the war? KOLKO: It has the manpower and firepower advantage, as always, but these are ultimately irrelevant in the medium- and long-run. They were irrelevant in many contexts in which the US was not involved, and they explain the outcome of many armed struggles over the past century regardless of who was in them, for they are usually decided by the socio-economic and political strength of the various sides -- China after 1947 and Vietnam after 1972 are two examples but scarcely the only ones.

Wars are more determined by socio-economic and political factors than any other, and this was true long before the US attempted to regulate the world’s affairs. Political conflicts are not solved by military interventions, and that they are often incapable of being resolved by political or peaceful means does not alter the fact that force is dysfunctional. This is truer today than ever with the spread of weapons technology. Washington refuses to heed this lesson of modern history. SPIEGEL: What is the position of the US military? Are its forces united behind the war? KOLKO: Some of the most acute criticisms made of the gross simplisms which have guided interventionist policies were produced within the American military, especially after the Vietnam experience traumatized it. But the senior military remains extremely disunited on this war, and many officers regard Gen. Petraeus -- the top military commander in Iraq -- as a political opportunist who ultimately will do as Bush commands. The Army, especially, does not have the manpower for a protracted war and if the US maintains its troop levels after spring 2008, it will face a crisis. It will have to break its pledge not to leave soldiers in Iraq longer than 15 months, accelerate the use of National Guard units, and the like -- and it will lose the war regardless. SPIEGEL: But if there are critical voices in the military, why are they ignored? KOLKO: Ambitious people, who exist in ample quantity, say what their superiors wish to hear and rarely, if ever, contradict them. SPIEGEL: How does Washington plan to go about the business of ending the war? KOLKO: There is utter confusion in Washington about how to end this morass. Goals are similar but the means to attain them are increasingly changing, confused, and as victory becomes more elusive so too does this administration look pathetic. The ‘surge’ in the opinion of a majority of quite conservative Establishment foreign policy experts (80 percent of whom had once served in government) was failing; the administration’s handling of the war, in their view, was dismal. In fact, it is disastrous. MORE:

Amazing News: The General Commanding The Surge

Finds The Surge Is Good

September 11, 2007 By Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.com [Excerpt] So who, exactly, was so eagerly awaiting the jogging general’s testimony? If a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll is any indication, a majority of Americans weren’t among that crowd. They had already discounted whatever he would say -- I doubt the ambassador even registered -- as “exaggerated” and “a rosier view” than reality dictated before his face and that chest full of ribbons hit the TV screens. (“Just 23 percent of Democrats and 39 percent of independents expected an honest depiction of conditions in Iraq.”) This was simple good sense. What exactly could anyone outside of Washington have expected the general -- who had a hand in creating the President’s “surge” strategy, is now in charge of the “surge” campaign, and for months has been delegated the official administration front man for what was, from day one, labeled a “progress report” -- to say? An instant online headline caught the mood of the Petraeus moment while his first round of testimony was still underway: “Gen. Petraeus Sees Iraq Progress.” Ah, yes...

[Thanks to Sally Davidson]

OCCUPATION REPORT

War By Press Release 11 September 2007 By Andrew North, BBC News, Baghdad [Excerpt] “We only get two hours of electricity a day,” says Kulsoom. “One in the morning, one in the evening.” The Americans send out constant press releases to journalists talking of new projects to improve the power system. But the situation is as bad as ever.

60% Of Iraqis Want U.S. Troops Dead:

Big Surprise

An Iraqi family is forced to kneel down before foreign occupation soldiers from the U.S. during an armed home invasion in southern Baghdad 11 September 2007. (AFP/David Furst)

[61% of Iraqis say they approve of attacks on U.S.-led forces in their country, up from 47 percent in January. A solid majority of Shiite and Sunni Arabs approved of the attacks, according to the poll. 9/27/2006 By BARRY SCHWEID, AP & Program on International Policy Attitudes Iraqis feel about U.S. troops trampling them in the dirt the same way Americans felt about British troops trampling them in the dirt in 1776. They are right to resist by any means necessary. T]

OCCUPATION ISN’T LIBERATION BRING ALL THE TROOPS HOME NOW!

Received:

God Bless The Soldiers From: Jessica Gram To: GI Special Sent: September 10, 2007 4:27 PM Subject: God Bless The Soldiers Poem Hello, My name is Jessica Ingram. I am sixteen and live in Bossier City, Louisiana (by BAFB) Both of my parents are 20 year retired airforce. I have many friends that are soon to be shipped off. Well, i wrote a poem and i was wondering how i could get it to the soldiers or on your site or something. Here it is: God Bless The Soldiers By: Jessica Ingram We’re constantly in battle fighting for freedom Praising the soldiers for how much we need em’ Every single one of you oh so brave Look at all the lives you’ve come to save Husbands, Childrens and the mothers To the US you’re like sisters and brothers I’m sad that you’re gone and I really miss you Fight for the nation the red white and blue Get them back safely not leaving one alone Making sure that they all get home Honor the soldiers the one’s who have died

God bless the families who’ve been left behind Thank you soldiers for all that you do Thanks for your love and God bless the troops We love you soldiers and all that you’ve done Together we stand all for one GI Special distributes and posts to our website copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in an effort to advance understanding of the invasion and occupation of Iraq. We believe this constitutes a “fair use” of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law since it is being distributed without charge or profit for educational purposes to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for educational purposes, in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. GI Special has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor is GI Special endorsed or sponsored by the originators. This attributed work is provided a non-profit basis to facilitate understanding, research, education, and the advancement of human rights and social justice. Go to: www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml for more information. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. If printed out, this newsletter is your personal property and cannot legally be confiscated from you. “Possession of unauthorized material may not be prohibited.” DoD Directive 1325.6 Section 3.5.1.2.