A word of caution, I grew up in Oakland, California, which sits across from San Francisco and next to Berkeley. The Bay Area is a microcosm of freethinking, of universal acceptance of all people; a cosmopolitan hub of enlightened thinking and a plethora of colors and cultures.
I feel privileged to have grown up in such an amazing place. However, as I have journeyed away from my home, I have realized that a lot of people do not think as I do. Their minds are closed and filled with hate and biases, even at the university level.
By Anthony Wagner
U.S. Army
Iraq Veteran Against the War
I know that these incidents happen more often than not. This is reality, not some video effigy edited to demonize soldiers. What you see in this video and the entire occupation is illegitimate.
Atrocities like this were commonplace in 2004-2005 when I was there with the First Cavalry Division, it's was common in 2007, and innocent casualties are still piling up. The continued Insurgency in Iraq is fed by these kinds of atrocities.
How old is old enough for students to be approached by military recruiters?High school? Junior high? Fourth grade? How about ten weeks into kindergarten?
Last week at the dinner table, my five-year-old son announced blithely, "Soldiers came to school today." He then added, "They only kill bad people. They don't kill good people."He made the announcement with the same levity he uses in recalling the plot line of Frog and Toad or a Nemo video.
“This is so cool! This is so cool!” a thirteen-year-old boy repeated as he squeezed rounds from a real M-16, picking off “enemy combatants” in a video game while perched atop a real Army Humvee. “I just came to the mall to skateboard but everyone said this was pretty cool. I just had to try it and it's great!”
The person reporting on this youthful enthusiasm was Pat Elder, who serves on the Steering Committee of the National Network Opposing the Militarization of Youth. Elder also described young teenagers congratulating each other for “killing ragheads” and “wiping out hajis.”
As school starts back up, look around at the world your students are going to inherit. Over one million Iraqis dead in an unjust and immoral war, and 5 million displaced from their homes . Economic conditions in this country have led more young people to view joining the military as a viable option, and the election of Barack Obama and his popularity with many young people has made “fighting for Obama” seem appealing to some youth.
Obama plans to expand the military by 92,000 in the next months. An intense debate among U.S. policy makers has begun about further expansion of the war in Afghanistan, and many of these voices are already calling for still more U.S. troops to be sent to carry out their deadly mission in Afghanistan. Where are these troops going to come from? They are going to come from those who are in high school now. Your students.
What are you going to stand for? As school starts back up, look around at the world that our generation is going to inherit.
Over 1 million Iraqis are dead in the war, and 5 million have been forced to leave their homes. Despite President Obama’s promise to remove US troops, he’s calling them advisors while leaving them in Iraq. The war in Afghanistan, which we’re told is the “good war” where the “real” terrorists are, is going into its ninth year. It’s based on lies, just like the war in Iraq. What the United States is doing there is horrible and brutal, torturing people and bombing civilians while they sleep, just like the war in Iraq.
Is this OK because Obama -- and not Bush -- is in charge?
(Editor’s note: Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced yesterday that the Army is undertaking a drive to expand its forces with 22,000 new recruits. This article was written before that announcement, but exposes the overall drive to expand and develop U.S. military forces continued and accelerated in the Obama presidency).
The Barack Obama administration is continuing the neo-conservative agenda of US military domination of the world— albeit with perhaps a kinder-gentler face. While overt torture is now forbidden for the CIA and Pentagon, and symbolic gestures like the closing of the Guantanamo prison are in evidence, a unilateral military dominance policy, expanding military budget, and wars of occupation and aggression will likely continue unabated.
By Chippy Dee(This article originally appeared on the web site Desert Peace.)
On Tuesday, July 14th, in front of the Hilton Hotel in NYC members of the World Can’t Wait, youth from the Ya-Ya Network, and their allies had a press-conference and demonstration against military recruiters being invited to the career fair at the 100th Anniversary National Convention of the NAACP. The message was that young people need money for school and decent jobs, not the “opportunity” to be killed or kill others in two illegitimate occupations or to be associated with torture or abuse of detainees in Bagram or Guantanamo.
Over 1000 people, including Howard Zinn, Cindy Sheehan, and Michael Parenti, petitioned the NAACP asking them not to give military recruiters access to their young people. The NAACP rejected their plea.
On Saturday, July 11, the NAACP commenced its Centennial Celebration and Convention at the midtown New York Hilton. Thousands of NAACP members from all over the country descended to participate in a weeklong conference which will culminate with the final plenary speech given by President Barack Obama.
With a long history of support and protection for people of color, the NAACP plans to conduct important forums with speakers such as Attorney General Eric Holder; Governor of New York State David Paterson; Congressman Charles Rangel; and, the Reverend Al Sharpton.
To kick off the convention, there was a Saturday press conference held at the Hilton where the upcoming week’s events were outlined by Benjamin Jealous, President of the NAACP, Julian Bond, Hazel Dukes and Roslyn Brock. Activists from World Can’t Wait, myself and Iliana Correa, attended.
The background to this whole story started about 3 months ago. After organizing protests at the Army Experience Center in NE Philadelphia, I received a list of about 100 stops that the “Army Strong” tour had planned over the summer. On that list was the NAACP Centennial Convention in New York City.
March 12, I’ll attend a board hearing in St. Louis, Missouri, to determine what the nature of my discharge from the Individual Ready Reserve will be. The Army has alleged “misconduct” and they’re shooting for a “general discharge,” but I’m pushing for “honorable,” as my refusal to deploy was not an act of misconduct.
I will attend this hearing in uniform as ordered, but only for the purpose of these administrative proceedings. I’m not contesting the fact that I did not report as ordered to deploy to Iraq. However, I intend to paint a clear picture of my convictions to the military, and I seek to corroborate them with first hand accounts of occupation.
No person is bound to act against the dictates of conscience, let alone their understanding of the law. I know the occupation of Iraq and further, the Global War on Terror, to be an illegitimate and ultimately murderous campaign waged for economic gain, fueled by misinformation and greed. I know it to be in violation of not only international law, but the U.S. Constitution. Far more importantly, it is against the dictates of my own conscience, and never again will I compromise my humanity to support or ignore the crimes of my government.
On Friday, February 6, in an Oakland CA court, Stephanie Tang's trial was POSTPONED TO APRIL 6 due to a schedule conflict for her attorney. Stephanie’s case stems from World Can’t Wait led protests outside the Marine Recruiting Station in nearby Berkeley.
Meanwhile, a successful fundraising party for Stephanie’s legal expenses was held on Saturday, February 7 in Berkeley. We will continue to post information on this important battle. As Stephanie said, "It is absolutely no crime to organize to drive military recruiters out of our communities and schools! What is criminal is this package of war and occupation without end, the torture state and the spying - and no matter who is president, all of this must come to a halt!"
Protesting to Stop Military Recruiting and War for Empire is NO CRIME
Stephanie Tang's trial begins TODAY - February 6
NO CRIME - NO TIME - NO FINE!
We call on the whole community to demand that this politically-charged, politically-motivated case get dropped, right now! What can you do to help?
On February 9, Stephanie Tang goes on trial, facing one year in jail and a $1000 fine. Her case stems from World Can't Wait demonstrations at the Marines Recruiting Station in downtown Berkeley. A leading World Can't Wait organizer, Stephanie is the only defendant still facing charges from the intense months of protests against the recruiters, and she says:
"It is absolutely no crime to organize to drive military recruiters out of our communities and schools! What is criminal is this package of war and occupation without end, the torture state and the spying - and no matter who is president, all of this must come to a halt!"
"I went to get lunch at school and right in front of the cafeteria was 15 recruiters 4 tables pull up bars and prizes”
“But I went to the activities director and she said i can have a waterboarding demo, bull horns, banners”
“haha soo im going to start up a club and prepare so I get as many kids I can to resist club name I think is militarism resistance front”
-3 text messages sent to the tour by a high school student in San Jose, California
On November 4, as people all over the country celebrated an Obama victory, over 70 men, women, and children lay dead in Afghanistan after U.S. bombs rained down on two wedding celebrations. Over the last two years, hundreds of Afghan civilians have been killed in this way, since the U.S. considers any large gathering to be inherently hostile. And there are plans to escalate.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates (who will also be Obama’s Defense Secretary) is sending 20,000 more troops to Afghanistan by this summer. Meanwhile in Iraq, General Odierno just announced that the U.S. will violate their promise of withdrawing combat troops from urban areas in Iraq by June 30th 2009. Contrary to public opinion, the Iraq war is not “winding down” or “over.” There are still 149,000 troops in Iraq. Obama has not been promising to end the Iraq war, but to leave a “residual force” of 50-80,000 troops (not including mercenary soldiers employed by companies like Blackwater) in Iraq – and he is already preparing to break even that weak promise by pledging to “listen to the generals.”
How is the new commander-in-chief going to deal with the challenges of being the #1 superpower in the world, dominating resources and controlling economies of other countries in the name of the “war on terror”? Apparently, Obama has plans to expand the U.S. military by 92,000 troops.
"Our goal is to have the Bush administration tried for war crimes no matter how long it takes. There is no statute of limitations on war crimes," vets say.
Washington - On Saturday, November 15, at 8:00 am, at the National Archives Building on Connecticut Ave., eight military veterans and a military mother climbed a 9-foot retaining fence and occupied a ninety-foot high scaffolding to raise two 450 square foot banners stating, "DEFEND OUR CONSTITUTION. ARREST BUSH AND CHENEY: WAR CRIMINALS!" and "WE WILL NOT BE SILENT." The same message was also displayed at demonstrations in Santa Monica and Long Beach, California on Saturday.
Members of Veterans for Peace (VFP) chose the Archives for their nonviolent protest because it is symbolic of their military oath to "defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic." In September they occupied the Archives for 24 hours, and plan to stay longer this time.
The "We Are Not Your Soldiers" tour will reach into high school classrooms with the participation of veterans of the US wars on Iraq and Afghanistan and activists from World Can't Wait.
Barack Obama says he will expand the US military by 92,000. Where will these troops come from? The military recruiters have a huge budget to recruit youth who are in high school now. They roam the hallways and lunch-rooms, call students at home, and set up at malls where kids hang out
The military cannot fight expand the "war on terror" in Afghanistan without this fresh cannon fodder. Military recruiters now have almost unlimited access to reach high school students because the "No Child Left Behind" law ties funding for schools to whether recruiters can get to students.
The tour will bring students the desperately missing truth of what the "war on terror" is, no matter who is president. The military is already selling the idea that Obama will end the war in Iraq, so people who join now won't be sent to war at all. This is a lie! Many people don't know that Obama has plans to expand the unjust war on the people of Afghanistan, and also to attack Pakistan, and perhaps, Iran.
By Anthony Wagner
. I’m not contesting the fact that I did not report as ordered to deploy to Iraq. However, I intend to paint a clear picture of my convictions to the military, and I seek to corroborate them with first hand accounts of occupation. 
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