IVAW at DNC & RNC

IVAW with Operation First Casualty at DNC in Denver
As they say, the first casualty of war is always the truth.



IVAW marching at RNC protest in Minneapolis.

Winter Soldier 2008

Some things you will not see on corporate news; soldiers' flag covered coffins, reporters embedded with Iraqis and Winter Soldier. There is terrific coverage from independent media like Free Speech TV, though. I spoke briefly with Asheville's IVAW chapter president, Jason Hurd, Friday night. He could not speak long, they were about to have a debriefing about the days events. We will air some of the testimony on WPVM's Veterans' Voices in the coming weeks.


In the meantime, here are a few of the independent media's coverage of Winter Soldier in no particular order:

Veterans groups offer different views of conflict
Winter Soldier: Military Command Failures at War, Deserting Vets at Home
Winter Soldier: Bitter truths from those who know

Excellent blogger coverage at Third Estate Sunday Review

Video:
Winter Soldier Testimonials

Audio:
Winter Soldier Testimonial from WarComesHome.org


A CNN search does not find one thing about Winter Soldier. There was more important news, I guess. After all, there was a crane collapse in NY, they are attacking Obama's church, tornado in Atlanta, abandoned puppies found a home and Paris Hilton is looking for a new BFF.
How can we get these people out of their comas?

The BBC is actually reporting about the Bleak picture of Iraq conditions.

Philly IVAW march to Valley Forge before Winter Soldier



Is this the beginning of something bigger? Some greater movement towards national consensus? Will it get uglier before we see the olive branch of peace extended? There are simply too many questions in this world gone mad.

The chickenhawks certainly have their feather's ruffled about this:

Michelle Malkin just squawkin'
This ain't hell make snide remarks



Highlights of Testimony



For the best, honest coverage, visit IVAW.org.

Local IVAW President Arrested in Alabama

Local IVAW president, Jason Hurd, was arrested during a Mock Raid at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa last week. Jason said that they were detained and questioned by campus police for over five hours followed by an evening in the county jail. They were eventually released on a $2500 bond. The ACLU, the NAACP and the National Lawyers Guild are all interested in this free speech case. Jason and hundreds of thousands of IVAW members and supporters will descend on DC next week for Winter Soldier, where many men and women will testify about their experiences during their tour(s) in Iraq.

IVAW Winter Soldier PSA

Students, Iraq Vet Arrested During Mock Raid

By Chapin Gray

Tuscaloosa, AL - Four protesters from Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) were arrested here, Feb. 29, at the University of Alabama for performing a mock raid meant to demonstrate the effects of the U.S. occupation on Iraqi civilians.

No one was harmed during the protest that lasted only a couple minutes, and employees were notified of the performance 30 minutes beforehand. After protesters dressed as Iraqi civilians were 'arrested' by protesters in military costume and hauled away, Jason Hurd, president of the Asheville, North Carolina chapter of IVAW - who was invited by the Tuscaloosa SDS chapter to speak on his experiences in Iraq, gave an impromptu speech, explaining that the purpose of the action was to demonstrate what life in Iraq is like under the occupation. Hurd also invited stunned and curious onlookers to his talk scheduled for that evening.

However, the talk had to be cancelled, because as four of the protesters - Hurd, Alyse Deller and Christine Jackson from Tuscaloosa SDS, and Jeremy Miller of UNC-Asheville SDS - were approached by campus police, then taken into a building on campus, where they were detained for over four hours before finally being charged with disorderly conduct. The were then hauled away in handcuffs to the Tuscaloosa City Jail. Bail was set for a total of $2,500. Hurd and Miller were also charged with trespassing and banned from campus property.

During the four-hour interrogation, police insinuated that the protesters were terrorists, and threatened to hand over their case to the F.B.I. The University had said that it plans to investigate SDS-Tuscaloosa, which was hosting the Iraq Veteran. The Dean of Students sent out a campus-wide e-mail statement following the incident, saying the University "cannot condone and will not tolerate behavior that mimics a true emergency on our campus."

The incident has sparked intense debate at the University of Alabama and in the Tuscaloosa community. Local activists from the Tuscaloosa Peace Project were outraged upon hearing of the arrests and immediately lent their support by offering bail money and facilitating contact with the Alabama chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which is interested in the case and showing support for the protesters. The organization also criticized the university's actions as not only unwarranted, but also as repressive and in violation of students' rights. In addition, IVAW is considering publicly condemning the university's actions.

"The circumstances surrounding the protest made it evident that this was street theater, but with our society having been carefully crafted into a people on edge, individuals have become rife with hair trigger fear of 'the other,' especially upon seeing actors in Islamic-style clothing," said Diane MacAteer of the Tuscaloosa Islamic Society. "We believe that more than anything else, this was an ill-intentioned use of the recent campus violence in other states as an excuse to quash anti-war protests, especially those that depict the victimization of Muslim families in war zones and allow students to identify with the Iraqi people and reduce support for the war."

While many have criticized the protest, claiming it was 'too alarming,' others are appalled that students can be arrested for expressing their opposition to an unjust and illegal war, and feel as though the students' rights have been violated.

"If you are one of those people who was frightened, you had a glimpse of what it feels like to be an Iraqi man, woman or child who experience things like this and worse everyday," said J VanBolt, a University of Alabama student who witnessed the mock raid. "I think the one thing everyone - whether you agree with what SDS did or not - can take from this is that people don't like to be scared and have their lives interrupted! Try and imagine what it would be like if things like this happened to you everyday, and instead of just watching you were actually involved. That is life for people in Iraq."

To show support with the SDS-Tuscaloosa and the four arrested, you can call the University President, Dr. Robert Witt, at (205) 348-5320 and ask that all charges be dropped. You can also contact Tim Hebson, Dean of Students and Director of Judicial Affairs thebson@sa.ua.edu or Todd Borst, Assistant Director of Judicial Affairs tborst@sa.ua.edu.

"The outpouring of support that we have received has been so amazing and empowering," said Jenae Stainer, a member of SDS-Tuscaloosa. "We appreciate it all, and hope that people will continue to stand with us as we fight to protect our freedom of speech."

Poetic Torch Scorches Neocon Agenda

I received this slam poem as a comment to IVAW Storms UNCA



2008 Middle East Spelling Bee Final Words: QUAGMIRE & IMPEACHMENT
Poetic Torch Scorches NeoCon Agenda
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What Americans think, feel, vote, and say has zero bite.
With millions of votes Diebolt stolen, accountability - so slight.
NeoRadical RepubliCons chose how to so waste our might ---
Just where, when, and why we had to go START a fight.
They'd planned for Iraq, with 30 years more oil still in sight.
Must control the price and flow into OUR gas tanks, right?
Exxon-Mobil, BP, Shell - profits future sure looks bright!
Hyped bogus threats, then fanned the flames to such great height.
9/11, Anthrax, then the mushroom cloud type of fright.

Pulled the Towers, and with balled-up flags to plug their ears:
A Patriot Act panic attack => waived our rights to calm the fears.
How well a shredded Constitution wiped away our wasted tears.
Slick magic trick: lasted 800 years - now Habeas Corpus disappears.
Load the planes with C-notes, no bids please, as toxic dust clears;
Corporate warriors - No Draft! It's a private war - Three Cheers!
Fat cats, still fed by exce$$ greed, now six straight years.
Ten billion fraud, whistleblowers stalled in Justice: no one hears.
Say what, a change of plan to end war profits? Sharpen up the spears!
Another traitor to be skewered, trot out the NeoCon-tradicting seers.
From Limpbowel, O’Rlie-to-me, and their ilk, we start to hear the jeers.
Interrupting homophobic rants on "No Marriages for queers",
To deliver freshly think-tank-framed simplistic scripted smears.

Sad sight, so many flags draped over coffins never seen.
The sinister lies that filled them burried deep beneath such patriotic sheen.
Human losses well disguised, and media filtered from our collective eyes,
By corporate puppet leaders, whose agendas we must now despise.

Pity the Iraqi families, alone with blood, pain, death, despair,
Depleted uranium shells exploding - poison dust spreads everywhere,
While pompous jingo windbags fill the U.S. propaganda-polluted air,
Can spews of false praise glory, hide true neglect in veterans' care?
Fox Snooze hype NOT, as your heroes, our loved ones lost;
Their blood for oil - spent badly – much too high this cost.
Keith Rupert Murderdoch, the boss who must be tossed!

Long past his “Mission Accomplished” day in years now more than four,
One so delusional Decider is still not looking for an exit door.
An occupation, one aggressor means it never was a war!
The stench, the smell - corruption, failures everywhere,
Yet all we hear is that which plays upon our deepest fear.
A drone of platitudes preached to stretch our stay another year.

“The job is almost done! “
“Must keep them Terrorists on the run!”
“We can't abandon Iraq until we've won.”
“Another 30,000 surge, send us your brave sons.”
“ Trillion dollar debts, their kids can pay these no small sums!”
"Waterboarding works. Don't call it torture. You're just chums!"
NO NO NO! Time true Patriots stand and shout “Impeach these Bums!”

Lean hard on traitors, like Lieberman, to not just lose their parties,
But to find our Republic again, while we still have one!
Target the REAL Axis of Evil => IMPEACH Cheney-Bush!
Perhaps small justice, but at least some!

by RRLedford



Thank you, RRLedford. That was very inspiring.

Video of SDS/IVAW Action at UNCA

This pretty well captures the drama of the day's event. The kid who yelled out "Bullshit!" was either already signed up with the Marines (he has his high and tight cut) or his big brother was over in Iraq. He was the only opposition voice. You can see him standing near Jason near the end of the video.

IVAW Storms UNCA

I have finally calmed down. There was an action in the Highsmith building of UNCA today. I arrived to be a quiet observer and film the action. It happened a little after noon today and now, at a bit after 2pm, I have finally calmed down.
Soldiers in camo and full gear stormed the student building across from the downstairs cafe. A handful of SDS students posed as Iraqis sitting in their home. As the soldiers swept the room, they screamed, "GET THE FUCK DOWN, DOWN ON THE GROUND NOW! MOVE! NOW! MOVE IT YOU STUPID BITCH!". A crowd started to gather, as it was lunchtime anyway. The Marine recruiters who had a table set up near by, acted like nothing was happening.









Sorry the pictures are kind of blurry. My hands were shaking pretty bad.

It should be in the Asheville Citizen-Times tomorrow and I will try to post the video when I get a copy.

Yellow Rose Aflame

I found video of the bus fire. The bus was called 'The Yellow Rose of Texas' and belonged to Veterans for Peace member, Jim Goodnow. He used it to transport many Iraq Veterans Against the War members to various events. You can keep up to date on their situation and make a donation at the link above.

Jim saw, in retrospect, some suspicious activity outside the bus, and about 20 minutes later, the entire engine compartment, and back of the bus was engulfed in flames.

IVAW Bus Torched

I just received this email:

The bus in this photo, was totaled by fire, around 9:30 pm, Friday
night, 1/11/08

This bus, often mired in controversy since the IVAW 'Dirty South' tour that left Philly in June, and had Active Duty BBQ's @ Ft Meade, Ft Jackson, Camp Lejeune, Ft Benning, and other Southern Military Posts

(Including an IVAW benefit by Tom Morello, of Rage Against the Machine, and AudioSlave, in Virginia) as well as backdrop for many a Demonstration, and Ft Drum, NY, organizing parties, has finally died.

This photo shows the huge 'Don't Attack Iran' and 'Impeach Bush'
logos, that let everybody on the highway know just how the occupants
felt about the state of the state.

Owner~Operator~Driver ( and Veteran ) Jim Goodnow pulled into a South Jersey Truck Stop, to catch a 3 or 4 hour nap. Jim saw, in retrospect, some suspicious activity outside the bus, and about 20 minutes later, the entire engine compartment, and back of the bus was engulfed in flames.

Mr Goodnow speculates that the cause could have been anything from ARSON, to ATTEMPTED MURDER. He plans to notify the ATF Arson Squad on Saturday morning.

Stay tuned....

Working To Create Change

We have been busy lately...



Nothing like being waterboarded by death on a late fall afternoon.



This picture was lifted from the Asheville Citizen-Times. Check out the article they wrote about the vigil and upcoming Veterans Voices - Veterans Speak Out on WPVM-LP 103.5 FM



Death says, "Bush's health plan keeps me as busy as his foreign policy".



Busy filling goody bags. The bags were brought to Fort Bragg by two Iraq Vets Against the War members who, after handing out about 150 bags, were detained for hours. Read Jason Hurd's, President of the Asheville chapter of IVAW, account of events.

Brownies Will Get You Five to Ten:
A Boondocks Chapter Christmas at Fort Bragg

By Jason Hurd

On the morning of December 17, 2007, Steve Casey and I awoke
bright and early at the Quaker House in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
Steve and I had driven nearly three hundred miles from our home-base
in Asheville, North Carolina to distribute holiday gift bags to the
wonderful servicewomen and men stationed at our nation's busiest
military post--Fort Bragg. Our friends and supporters in Asheville
stuffed nearly three hundred small lunch bags full of holiday cards,
chocolates, cookies and home-made brownies. The gift bags had a
humble feel to them: brown paper lunch sacks with the tops folded
down, green and red ribbons, a copy of our newsletter Sit-Rep stapled
to the outside and a small sticker that said, "To: A Warrior, From:
IVAW." Our mission was to ensure that these bags--each made with love
and kindness--got into the hands of our deserving soldiers.
With gift bags in hand, Steve and I drove to Fort Bragg's Mini
Mall and set up a small collapsible table to distribute the bags
from. We taped two large poster boards to the front of the table; one
said, "Happy Holidays From Your Fellow Veterans," and the other
proclaimed, "We Love Our Service Women and Men." Immediately, Steve
and I began handing the packages to soldiers as they exited the Mini
Mall. I greeted each soldier by saying, "Hello. My friend and I are
veterans and we are giving holiday gift bags to our soldiers to show
our appreciation for your service. Thank you and happy holidays."
Nearly every soldier I spoke with replied with a large smile, "Thank
you very much. I'm glad there are people like you doing this. Happy
holidays to you too!" Within an hour, Steve and I had given out
nearly one hundred and fifty bags. In that time, only one soldier
reacted negatively toward us; every one else seemed extremely
pleased.
Around one o'clock in the afternoon, a female manager who worked
for the Army and Air Force Exchange Services (AFFES) came out of the
Mini Mall and said, "Hey guys I'm glad your giving out packages to
soldiers, but you can't do this on Fort Bragg without a permit." I
replied, "Great! Where do we get a permit?" The manager explained
where we needed to go, and we began packing up shop to go get our
permit. That's when the Military Police showed up. Three MP's--SSG
Netwig, PFC Murray and PVT Garren--approached us and began questioning
us about our gift bags. SSG Netwig glared at a copy of Sit-Rep and
said, "I'm going to keep my personal opinion out of this, but you are
disrupting the order and discipline of my post." I explained that we
were on our way to get a permit for our bags and we had no intentions
of disrupting the order and discipline of Fort Bragg. SSG Netwig
replied that we had offended a lot of people with our bags (which was
news to Steve and I) and that he would not allow us to continue
distributing them.
At that moment, a Special Forces Captain (apparently one of the
people we had offended) approached SSG Netwig and spoke with him
privately. Immediately, SSG Netwig said that we were going to the
Provost Marshall's office to answer questions.
"Are we being arrested?" I said.
"No. But you are being detained," SSG Netwig replied.
At that moment, the MP's shoved Steve and I against their patrol
car, searched us, handcuffed us and placed us in the patrol car like
criminals. They drove us away leaving a box of gift bags on the trunk
of Steve's car. In the back of the patrol car, I looked at Steve and
said, "Don't worry, this is a good thing--trust me." "OK," Steve
said. SSG netwig drove us to the Provost Marshall's office where,
after being searched a second time, we spent the next four hours as
detainees. One investigator told Steve that Fort Bragg is a
conservative post and that anti-war views were in the minority. The
officers separated Steve and I and began questioning us. I asked four
times to make a phone call so that I could consult with an attorney;
the officers denied my right each time. A criminal investigator
entered my room.
"Are you affiliated with any other groups besides IVAW?" he
asked.
"No, I am not, " I replied.
"How did you and this Steve guy meet?"
"Look," I said, "I'm not going to continue answering questions
without consulting an attorney."
"But you aren't under arrest. You're merely detained and we are
trying to have a friendly conversation with you," the investigator
said.
"I feel like it is in my best interests to consult with an
attorney before continuing," I replied.
Then the investigator and officers walked out leaving me alone in the
room. Against my captor's wishes, I began text messaging the Quaker
House and IVAW members to let them know what was happening (the
officers had mistakenly left my phone). Immediately, the
investigators began receiving calls from every peace activist from
North Carolina to Philadelphia urging them to release Steve and I.
The MP's knew they had a situation on their hands.
Before we knew it, an investigator apologized to Steve and I for
the inconvenience and released us. The investigator informed us that
we just needed to get a permit for future activities of this nature.
Two young MP's escorted Steve and I back to our car and we talked
about Iraq on the way. One of the young MP's said, "Yeah, fuck Iraq.
I hate that place. I had friends die there. I don't ever want to go
back." We pulled up to Steve's car and rubbing the cuts on our wrists
from the handcuffs, we saw the perfect ending to our day. The box of
gift bags was still sitting atop Steve's trunk and some passerby had
written on it the following:
"Hi, I heard what happened. Listen up cops, politicians, and OVER
EGOTISTIC DRAMA QUEEN SENIOR NCO'S AND OFFICERS! Many friends in my
platoon DIED BRUTALLY for the First Amendment. We have the right to
peaceful protest, damn you! Why did you arrest these guys? To all
ya'll who don't believe in: freedom of speech, press, council,
religion, assembly, and petition...GO TO HELL!! Sincerely, A
concerned passerby and witness to the arrest of protesters."
So much for being the minority.

Forget About the War, Shop Till You Drop

Unable to travel to Georgia for the SOA rally and protest, we decided to make some waves of our own in Asheville. This weekend was the Asheville Holiday Parade and thousands of people were gathered downtown to see the spectacle. We couldn't pass this opportunity by. Although the police stopped us before we could get barely over a block up the street, the crowd gave us positive responses and we collected about 150 impeachment signatures. Many people received our special holiday message.




There is a tragic statistic of suicides for Iraq vets. Even the Asheville IVAW president, Jason Hurd, had suicidal thoughts upon returning to civilian life. When he visited the VA for help, they prescribed him some pills and sent him on his way.

120 US War Veteran Suicides a Week

From correspondents in New York

November 15, 2007 09:47am

THE US military is experiencing a "suicide epidemic" with veterans killing themselves at the rate of 120 a week, according to an investigation by US television network CBS.

At least 6256 US veterans committed suicide in 2005 - an average of 17 a day - the network reported, with veterans overall more than twice as likely to take their own lives as the rest of the general population.

While the suicide rate among the general population was 8.9 per 100,000, the level among veterans was between 18.7 and 20.8 per 100,000.

That figure rose to 22.9 to 31.9 suicides per 100,000 among veterans aged 20 to 24 - almost four times the non-veteran average for the age group.

"Those numbers clearly show an epidemic of mental health problems,'' CBS quoted veterans' rights advocate Paul Sullivan as saying.

CBS quoted the father of a 23-year-old soldier who shot himself in 2005 as saying the military did not want the true scale of the problem to be known.

"Nobody wants to tally it up in the form of a government total,'' Mike Bowman said.

"They don't want the true numbers of casualties to really be known.''

There are 25 million veterans in the United States, 1.6 million of whom served in Afghanistan and Iraq, according to CBS.

"Not everyone comes home from the war wounded, but the bottom line is nobody comes home unchanged,'' Paul Rieckhoff, a former Marine and founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America said on CBS.

The network said it was the first time that a nationwide count of veteran suicides had been conducted.

The tally was reached by collating suicide data from individual states for both veterans and the general population from 1995.

Iraq Vets Against The War - St. Louis

I ran across this video on YouTube. Maybe we should organize an anti-recruitment demonstration in Asheville...Contact me if you are interested.



We are not against recruitment. We are just for truth in recruitment. Speaking from experience, people join the military as a hasty decision and do so without seeing the big picture.
The following 'Points to Consider' was clipped from the American Friends Service Committee website:

1. Do not make a hasty decision by enlisting the first time you see a recruiter or when you are upset.

* A recruiter is a salesperson who will give only a positive, one-sided picture of life in the military. Don't make this important decision when you are depressed, hard up for work, confused or unsure about your future, or pressured by your family. This decision affects many years of your life; don't make it lightly.

2. Take a witness with you when you speak with a recruiter.

* There is a lot of information to take in. A friend can take notes and help you ask questions.

3. Talk to veterans.

* Veterans can give you their view of military life, good and bad.

4. Consider your moral feelings about going to war.

* The mission of the military is to prepare for and wage war. If you cannot in good conscience engage in war or in killing, you should not consider enlisting. If you become opposed to war after you join, you have the right to seek a discharge, but it is a long, difficult, and uncertain process.

5. Get a copy of the enlistment agreement.

* Read the fine print carefully, especially the part about what the military can order you to do. You do have a right to take this home, look it over, and ask others about it.

6. There is no "period of adjustment" during which you may request and receive an immediate honorable discharge.

* Once you have left for basic training, you must fulfill the full number of years (usually eight, with some of these in the reserves) on your enlistment contract. You cannot leave of your own free will. The military, however, may decide you are "unsuitable" and discharge you without your consent.

7. Get all your recruiter's promises in writing but also remember that the military can change the terms (such as pay, job, or benefits) of your work.

* Though there are no guarantees, a written statement may offer you (as a service member) some protection if promises are not met. However, the contract is more binding on you than on the military. You are ultimately responsible for information on the form, so don't tell lies, even if pressured.

8. There are no job guarantees in the military.

* The military is not required to keep you in the job you trained for on a full-time or permanent basis. In fact, most recruiters were involuntarily reassigned to their jobs. Placements are mostly dependent on what the military perceives it needs. Most military jobs are in areas which account for only a small percentage of civilian jobs.

9. Military personnel cannot exercise all of the civil liberties enjoyed by civilians.

* You do not have the same constitutional rights. Your rights to free speech, assembly, petition, and exercise of individual expression (such as clothing or hairstyle) are restricted. You must follow all orders given to you, whether you agree with them and consider them right or fair.

10. Many opportunities exist for you to serve your community and enhance your skills.

* Before you decide to enlist, check out other options that would help you "be all you can be." Travel, education, money for school, job training, and adventure can all be found in other ways. Your local community may even have opportunities that you hadn't considered.