Tag: Winter Soldier

Cheney Five Years Ago: ‘We Will, In Fact, Be Greeted As Liberators’

And so from the spectre of the summer soldier who shrinks from the hard truths and his country’s crises, comes the Winter Soldier who will not look away.

Visit War Comes Home to Replay previous testimony, opening statements, transcripts and much more.

Visit IVAW – Iraq Veterans Against The War to Watch, online, and get further information.

Broadcast of todays testimonies, 3-16-08, begin at 10am ET

And so from the spectre of the summer soldier who shrinks from the hard truths and his country’s crises, comes the Winter Soldier who will not look away.  

Thomas Paine

These are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.

-Published on 23 December 1776

Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) will have hearings, reports and testimonials from the women and men who have fought in this war.  All three days of hearings will be broadcast on several outlets including, Pacifica FM Radio, warcomeshome.org, and speak peace tv.

Pacifica’s schedule is:

  Friday, 3/14 ….. 9AM to 7PM EDT.    Saturday, 3/15 ….. 9AM to 7PM EDT

                           Sunday, 3/16 …… 10AM to 4PM EDT  

More information and on-line streaming at kpfa or on war comes home, linked at kpfa.

The first Winter Soldier hearings were in early 1971 during the Vietnam war.  It was a forum where combat troops could voice their disillusionment at having found themselves in a crazy and illegal war.  Like today, Winter Soldier gave troops a safe environment to express their guilts, fears and anguish at participating in a war where atrocities were committed, where it felt like some wrongs had to be committed just to survive.

The name “Winter Soldier” comes from Thomas Paine in 1776:

These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.

When I first listened to the Vietnam Winter Soldiers, years ago, it felt as if my soul was ripped apart, but ripped apart in a necessary, righteous, imperative way.  I knew I must understand what these wars do to our soldiers, to the “enemy” and to all of us.  The hearings were a step toward healing.  They were also a major factor in raising awareness about the conflict.  Two other actions flowed from the Winter Soldier hearings: Dewey Canyon III, A Brief Incursion into the Country of Congress, and troops tesitfying at congressional hearings.  

Dewey Canyon III was named after an illegal invasion into Laos called Operation Dewey Canyon (I & II) where American troops met the NVA (North Vietnam Army regulars) and suffered heavy casualties.  Dewey Canyon III was a very powerful and effective action where troops camped for days on the capitol mall, and threw their medals back on the capitol steps.  As one vet said, while throwing his medals back —

I’m not proud of these medals.  I’m not proud of what I did to receive them.  A whole year, we never took one prisoner alive.  Just wasted them.

As for Winter Soldier I:

It is impossible to describe to you exactly what did happen in Detroit – the emotions in the room, and the feelings of the men who were reliving their experiences in Vietnam. They relived the absolute horror of what this country, in a sense, made them do.”

In one of the most famous antiwar speeches of the era, Kerry concluded: “Someone has to die so that President Nixon won’t be – and these are his words – ‘the first president to lose a war’. We are asking Americans to think about that, because how do you ask a man to be the last man to die in Vietnam? How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?

Since it is imperative that we:

         End the madness of War     and     Create the Sanity of Peace

It is also imperative to have as much information as possible and to do everything we can to reverse this course.  Bush has called for a war without end.  We must counter with a peace movement without end.  In a preview of this Winter Soldier II, one vet expressed this perfectly, saying that when a war ends, the peace movement just picks up and goes home; we must not do that again.  The peace movement must remain, ever vigilant, saying “No” again and again to any and every threat of permanent war.

Winter Soldier Begins Today, Live Coverage Begins Tommorrow

Posted on: March 13, 2008 – 5:27am by Aaron Glantz

Winter Soldier Iraq and Afghanistan kicks off in Washington, DC today, with hundreds of veterans of the two wars descending on the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Maryland to talk about what they saw, and did, in the name of America. Pacifica radio will be carrying the proceedings live beginning at 9am Eastern tomorrow morning. Audio will be streamed live from Warcomeshome.org and kpfa.org until 4pm EST on Sunday.

"I joined the National Guard.. didn't know it was going to be the International Guard."

Next week, veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and occupations will come together in Washington, D.C. to tell the world about their experiences.

Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan will feature testimony March 13-16 from U.S. veterans who served in those occupations, giving an accurate account of what is really happening day in and day out, on the ground.

It is not an official, government-sponsored hearing. Rather, like the 1971 hearings sponsored by Vietnam Veterans Against the War, these hearings are being organized by Iraq Veterans Against the War.

IVAW held a fundraiser in Milwaukee recently to help cover expenses of vets making the trip to DC, and this 10-minute video resulted. It's a good preview of Winter Soldier, featuring local vets,the Chicago veteran who thought of holding next week's hearings, and some footage from Iraq.

It ends with a powerful statement by Barry Romo, national director of Vietnam Veterans Against the War:

"What is great is that veterans are standing up again, and they know what's gonna happen to them … They saw what happened to [John] Kerry … There is something in terms of your souls; you are setting yourselves free from this culture of death which says you are supposed to keep your mouths shut and allow another generation to be sold down the river … You have seen what can happen from speaking truth to power and you are not afraid …

Audio and video of the hearings will be available online. Public viewing is being sponsored by veterans and peace groups in many communities.  

[AUTHOR’S NOTE:  I retitled this and edited a bit to make it sexier (or should I say more alluring?) Hope that’s kosher.]

Maybe we shouldn’t complain about the news media’s lack of coverage of the antiwar movement. They don’t even cover the issue when it’s debated for two days in the US Senate.

Senate Democrats, failing to pass anything this week, promise to try again in April, when an appropriations bill comes up.  House Democrats are in a “wait til’ next year” mode.

All the more reason to turn up the heat in March.  And there are plenty of opportunities to take action — in Washington or in your hometown — as the 5th anniversary of the invasion approaches on March 19.  

The two proposals to change course in Iraq failed, predictably, this week, perhaps providing an excuse for the media’s lack of interest. (Depending, of course, on whether the chicken or the egg came first.) But what was taking place was nothing less than a matter of life and death, for US service members and Iraqi military and civilians alike.

The number of American service members who have given their lives in Iraq is nearing 4,000. Nearly 30,000 more have been wounded, and countless others have suffered permanent physical or psychological damage that will haunt them, their loved ones, and this country for decades to come. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have died, and 4 million more have been displaced from their homes and become refugees.

Was the debate front page news? Hardly. It was hardly news at all. Here’s a brief CQ report, in case you missed the news entirely.

That’s all the more reason that the vast majority of Americans who want this senseless bloodshed to end must continue to speak out and act out, at every opportunity.

The sponsors of the two measures which were shelved again in the Senate, Sens. Russ Feingold and Harry Reid, say they will try again in April when appropriations for the war come up, even though House Democrats seem to have adopted a “wait til’ next year” strategy on Iraq.

Between now and then, let’s turn up the heat.

There are plenty of opportunities to do so in March.

Iraq Veterans Against the War will hold Winter Soldier hearings Mar. 13-16 in Washington, DC, modeled on the 1971 hearings held by Vietnam Veterans Against the War.  Here’s how IVAW describes the event:

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

You’ll be able to follow live audio and video links on the web, and some groups are now making plans to screen the hearings in public places across the country, too.

The next week, March 19, is the 5th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.  Will we ever forget the shock and awe when we learned we had been duped about the reasons to invade?   United for Peace and Justice, the nation’s largest antiwar coalition, is planning to mark the day:

March 19th will mark the beginning of the 6th year of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Enough is enough! We are organizing creative, nonviolent acts of civil disobedience in Washington DC to interrupt business as usual for those promoting and profiting from war and empire building. Focusing on the pillars of war, our actions will take place at multiple sites, demonstrating the real costs of war and offering visions for a more just and sustainable world, a world at peace.

Actions are bring planned in local communities as well to mark the anniversary.  

Friday, March 21, is Iraq Moratorium #7, a day to take individual or collective action to call for an end to the war and the occupation.  The Moratorium, a national grassroots movement, asks people to do something on the Third Friday of every month to disrupt their normal routine and call for an end to the war.

You’ll find lots of ideas for actions on the Moratorium website , along with a list of events on March 21 and reports, videos and photos of previous actions.  There have been more than 600 group actions under the Iraq Moratorium banner since September.

So, march in March.  Or do something, anything, besides waiting for the election.  Unless we keep the pressure on, a Democratic president and Congress may not make this a priority, either. If you doubt that, ask Nancy Pelosi what she’s doing to end the war.    

Fort Hood soliders breaking the silence in war in Iraq

A growing number of active duty soldiers or recent Iraq war veterans are speaking up about the war in Iraq.

And with the number of soldiers speaking up about their experiences in Iraq via online forums, blogs and pamphlets,

some vets feel it’s their duty to let the American public know the truth.

This occurred on the 17th, yesterday, outside of Ft Hood Texas, which has a rich history of action by Active Duty and

recent Veterans of the Vietnam Conflict, back than one of many bases, around the country, as well as the world, and In-Country

Vietnam!

Greyhawk had this posted at ePluribus about the Military breaking ranks with the White House on the propaganda about the Successful Surge with only this one snippet

“Don’t let the quiet fool you,” a senior defense official says. “There’s still a huge chasm between how the White House views Iraq and how we [in the Pentagon] view Iraq. The White House would like to have you believe the ‘surge’ has worked, that we somehow defeated the insurgency. That’s just ludicrous. There’s increasing quiet in Iraq, but that’s happened because of our shift in strategy – the ‘surge’ had nothing to do with it.”

And just a few sentences, so I followed the link. Here’s abit more to hopefully get you to drop over to the Asia Times online and read the rest.