DT1
Moderator
You know, it's not like I wanted to be right about all of this...
Posts: 428
|
Post by DT1 on Feb 2, 2007 12:43:48 GMT 4
I post this with indescribable sadness, and enduring hope. In memory of a friend that I did not have the chance to meet... In Consientious Objector.
But you see,it's not me. It's not my family...
With her every breath,to her last,she dared you to take that cowardly position. "We are the people who run this country. We are the deciders. And every single day, every single one of us needs to step outside and take some action to help stop this war. Raise hell. Think of something to make the ridiculous look ridiculous. Make our troops know we're for them and trying to get them out of there. Hit the streets to protest Bush's proposed surge. If you can, go to the peace march in Washington on Jan. 27. We need people in the streets, banging pots and pans and demanding,"Stop it, now!"
Don't let the days go by. You only have so many...
Mary Tyler Ivins 1944-2007
It seems that you were taken when we needed you most... You will be missed,and remembered with great fondness,Molly. Your passing has not been yet accepted..I type with tears.. Even your enemies will miss you.
Fly to the angels... Dear,Great Lady.
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Feb 8, 2007 15:57:55 GMT 4
The latest on Lt. Ehren Watada's trial, or now, mistrial, which Watada's lawyer opposed. Past articles on Lt. Watada's case can be found in previous posts here at Conscientious Objector...MichelleSoldier's Court-Martial Ends in MistrialBy MELANTHIA MITCHELL 02.07.07, 6:14 PM ET The judge overseeing the court martial of an Army lieutenant who refused to deploy to Iraq declared a mistrial Wednesday, saying the soldier did not fully understand a document he signed admitting to elements of the charges. Military judge Lt. Col. John Head announced the decision after 1st Lt. Ehren Watada said he never intended to admit he had a duty to go to Iraq with his fellow soldiers - one element of the crime of missing troop movement. Head set a March 12 date for a new trial and dismissed the jurors. Last month, Watada signed a 12-page stipulation of fact in which he acknowledged he did not go to Iraq with his unit, the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, last June. He also acknowledged making public statements criticizing the Iraq war, which he believes to be illegal. In exchange, prosecutors dropped two charges of conduct unbecoming an officer charges against him, and agreed to proceed to trial on the remaining charges: missing movement - for his refusal to deploy last June - and two other allegations of conduct unbecoming an officer for comments made about the case. To prove a charge of missing movement, the prosecutors need to show that Watada did not report when he had a duty to do so. The disagreement that prompted the mistrial was about whether Watada admitted missing troop movement and having a duty to report, or only missing troop movement. "I see there is an inconsistency in the stipulation of fact," the judge said Wednesday. "I don't know how I can accept (it) as we stand here now." Because much of the Army's evidence was laid out in the document, rejecting it would hurt its case, Head acknowledged. He granted the prosecutors' request for a mistrial, which Watada's lawyer opposed. Watada, 28, of Honolulu, was expected to testify in his own defense Wednesday until Head and attorneys met in a closed meeting for much of the morning. In their opening statements Tuesday, prosecutors said Watada abandoned his soldiers and brought disgrace upon himself and the service by accusing the Army of war crimes and denouncing the Bush administration for conducting an illegal war founded on lies. Watada's attorney, Eric Seitz, countered that Watada acted in good conscience, based on his own convictions. Watada could receive four years in prison and a dishonorable discharge if convicted of missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officer for his statements against the war. Watada is the first commissioned officer to be court-martialed for refusing to go to Iraq, said Eugene Fidell, president of the National Institute of Military Justice in Washington, D.C. After concluding the Iraq war was illegal, Watada asked to take a combat post in Afghanistan or elsewhere. The Army refused those requests, along with Watada's request that he be allowed to resign. Watada then made several public appearances to denounce the war. Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed Source: www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/02/07/ap3405988.html
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Feb 15, 2007 19:04:31 GMT 4
Lt. Ehren Watada on Citizen Responsibility (Feb 3rd 2007) (40 min. 25 sec. video)www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cs4YUiQ-DI&eurl= Lt. Ehren Watada speaking on January 9, 2007 at University Temple United Methodist Church in Seattle for his last public speaking engagement prior to his military court martial. Listen to his MOST BRILLIANT speech!
Or read the transcript at www.thankyoult.org/images/stories/watadajan9_uctacoma.pdf Review comments on him HERE: tinyurl.com/3am79lsuch as: "Absolutely amazing speech!" "He makes me want to chain myself to the White House fence." "It left me floored and teary-eyed. That is a great man." "Sometimes a great human being stands up and is seen..." "My husband just watched it. He walked over to me crying." "Lt. Watada has more honor in his fingernail than Shrub has in his whole body." "I know it's 40 minutes, but you won't be sorry. Please find the time." "I beg you ALL to watch this! PLEASE! Lt. Watada will spend years in prison and this is only 40 minutes. NEVER have I heard a greater, more moving speech. NEVER. PLEASE, PLEASE WATCH."
Here is a website to respond to Lt. Watada: www.thankyoult.com/This whole speech should be broadcast on prime-time US television and on all channels at once, for in the words of this magnificent soul are to be found the real State of the Union. His trial was terminated by the judge as you can read in: The Watada Mistrial: Here's What Really Happened. www.truthout.org/docs_2006/020807A.shtmlThe government realized that allowing Lt. Watada further media exposure and opportunities to prove this war is illegal would have been too damaging to them and so they decided to silence him in the futile hope this will all go away. It is everyone's responsibility to ensure that this crime will NOT go away and that Bush and his cohort are unseated for illegally stealing the US presidency and starting an illegal war of aggression, and finally brought to pay for their crimes against the US Constitution and all of humanity.
Check also: Watada Follows Military Rules on Dissent: www.truthout.org/docs_2006/021207S.shtmlWill Watada Mistrial Spark an End to the War?www.truthout.org/docs_2006/021307F.shtmlJeremy Brecher and Brendan Smith write: "Watada's reasoning provides a pivot for redirecting America's understanding of what has happened to us and what we must do about it. He challenges us to confront a chain of implications that starts with the truth about the criminality of the Iraq War, moves through the principles of the Constitution and US and international law, and ends with our personal responsibility."
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Feb 17, 2007 13:14:01 GMT 4
Court denies Army medic's conscientious objector claimYou should read this article if you are planning to create a conscientious objector status for yourself or if you are helping a youth. You must show a deep, past conviction against war. Photos from antiwar demonstrations and such as proof are helpful. No one, not even a person of The Friends Society, is guaranteed CO status. Please refer to the begining of this thread if you need more infomation.....MichelleCourt denies Army medic's conscientious objector claim By Matt Apuzzo ASSOCIATED PRESS 9:20 a.m. February 16, 2007 WASHINGTON – A federal appeals court refused on Friday to overturn the detention of a U.S. Army medic who declared his opposition to war on the eve of his deployment to Iraq. Agustin Aguayo, who enlisted in 2002 during the run-up to the Iraq war, asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to release him from a military prison. He had sought an honorable discharge as a “conscientious objector.” Aguayo, who has been held in a U.S. prison in Germany since going absent without leave, said he enlisted as a way to earn money for his education. Though military operations in Afghanistan were under way and discussions about Iraq were ongoing, he said he never considered that he'd have to fight. He faces up to seven years in prison on charges of desertion and missing movement and is scheduled to face trial next month, his attorney, Peter Goldberger said. Goldberger said he would ask the appeals court to reconsider the decision. “It breaks my heart because I think he's sincere,” the lawyer added. Goldberger told the court in November that Aguayo's beliefs evolved over time and “crystalized” to the point that he could no longer take a life. The Army said that wasn't enough. To receive conscientious-objector status, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin K. Robitaille said, a soldier must show a deeply rooted objection to war in any form. “These cases are hard for people to believe because they involve a change in people's beliefs, but when you think about how old they were when they signed up, it's not that surprising at all,” Goldberger said Friday. Government attorneys noted that Aguayo applied as a conscientious objector only after receiving his orders to Iraq and did so at the same time as his best friend. They said there was not enough evidence to support Aguayo's argument. The appeals court unanimously agreed, saying it could overturn the Army's decision only in the most extraordinary circumstances. The court found that the military had good reason to deny Aguayo's application. The three-judge panel said Aguayo had little evidence to support his growing moral conviction against war and said the Army appropriately weighed the suspicious timing of his application. “Though Aguayo stated that his Army training caused him anguish and guilt, we find little indication that his beliefs were accompanied by study or contemplation, whether before or after he joined the Army,” Judge David B. Sentelle wrote. Source:www.signonsandiego.com/news/military/20070216-0920-warobjector.html
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Apr 5, 2007 16:20:33 GMT 4
Murtha says draft would ease military's burdenRep. John Murtha recently made the statement that a military draft would ease the burden placed on soldiers and their families. He then went on to say that a draft most likely won't be reinstated, and that he's not calling for a draft. I'm going to quote Mr. Murtha here and say, "You have to listen to what he's said and then think to yourself, now, what does this mean?" I have a bit more to say after you read this short article.....MMurtha says draft would ease military's burden4/3/2007, 4:25 p.m. EDT By KIMBERLY HEFLING The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A military draft would ease the burden placed on soldiers and their families, Rep. John Murtha, a leading Democratic critic of the Iraq war, said Tuesday. Murtha said he's not calling for a draft and believes it won't be reinstated. But he said he thinks there should be a draft when the United States is fighting in a major war. "A draft is the fairest way — if we're going to fight a war — to fight it, because everybody has responsibility," Murtha, echoing comments he made last week to CNN, said in a phone interview from his district in western Pennsylvania. "Everybody should share in this responsibility. Everybody should have the chance to serve." Currently, "only the people who volunteered are serving and paying a high price," he said. The White House and military leaders have opposed a draft, and Murtha said he does not think there is momentum for a draft to be implemented. "Everybody just wants the war to end," said Murtha, a retired Marine colonel and Vietnam veteran. Murtha also criticized President Bush for calling Democrats irresponsible for approving war bills that order U.S. troops to leave Iraq by certain dates. Murtha, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said it's Democrats who are being responsible by looking out for taxpayers' dollars. He noted Bush told the American people there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. "You have to listen to what he's said and then think to yourself, now, what does this mean?" Murtha said. Source:www.pennlive.com/newsflash/pa/index.ssf?/base/news-48/1175631275116820.xml&storylist=pennOK, Murtha says a draft would be a good thing, but we're not going to reinstate it. But for future wars, it's only fair that everyone shares in the responsibility.....Up yours, Murtha. You know, I'm sorry that our military personnel, reserves, and national guard are in a never ending revolving door of service to war. However, our military is totally volunteer and well, the men and women in service chose this employment...it is a risk they took when they joined.
Given that our schools are turning our young peoples' names, addresses, and telephone numbers over to the Pentagon, [part of No Child Left Behind [as cannon fodder] Legislation] I'd think that a reinstated draft would be quite easily accomplished....building a marching army, ready to attack any place were the looting is good, composed of prime, youthful grunts....our nation's precious youth, shanghaied into service.
And our kids....they haven't a clue as to what the rat bastards who set themselves up as leaders have in store for them....a quick death or a slow lingering one, full of radiation poisoning, which, if they survive that, their future children will bear the marks of monstrous deformities.
Last week, I spoke with a group of very nice boys, 7 of them all in 7th and 8th grade. They were from the bottom levels of society...blended families or children of single moms...none of their parents made much money. And I asked them what they knew about the Iraq War....they didn't know much, but some had their suspicions about blood for oil. I asked if it was ever discussed in school....No it wasn't they replied. I asked if any had family members in the service....some had brothers in Iraq. One, God love him, told me he is always at odds with his family due to his antiwar stance. I asked what they planned to do after school and one said he planned to sign-up. I asked why and he told me he thought it would be exciting, that his grandpa had been in the military, and, "to protect our country."....Big sigh from me.
These boys were really sweet. What attracted me to them is that they were actually playing outside...rolling down the hills of grass. We talked together about many things...they seemed pleased that an adult took interest in them. They all wore black ratty clothes and told me the school authorities didn't think much of them, thought that they did drugs because of the way they dressed. Some were in alternative classes, which means their school gave up on them.....I liked these kids a lot; they were so innocent, so eager to talk.....I'll be damned if I see them or any other child sent off to die.....Michelle
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on May 24, 2007 9:01:06 GMT 4
Latino Soldiers Who Refused Iraq Speak OutAaron Glantz SAN FRANCISCO, May 18 (IPS) - A U.S. Army medic who refused to load his gun in Iraq and then escaped through a base window in Germany rather than be deployed a second time returned home to Los Angeles this week after serving six months in a U.S. military prison. Augustin Aguayo, 31, was born in Mexico and grew up in Southern California. After graduating from high school, he married and had twin daughters, but never got a college degree. Aguayo told IPS he joined the military in November 2002 while he was working the night shift at a bank to support his wife and daughters, while he attended community college during the day. "I'm working at night and I hear a radio announcement for the National Guard and that planted the first seed in my head: Work two weeks a year, one weekend a month, make some extra money, serve your country. That's exactly what I needed," he said. So Aguayo went to a local Army recruiting office. The U.S. military had already toppled the Taliban in Afghanistan and President George W. Bush was talking about war with Iraq. Aguayo said the recruiter downplayed the dangers of deployment. "He was a veteran of the first Gulf War and he shared his experience with me," Aguayo said. "He said he was only there for four months, and that it wasn't bad. He said he mostly read books." Aguayo's excitement started to wane, however, once he entered basic training. He said he was disturbed by boot camp chants like "left, right, left, right, KILL" and, although he had enlisted as an Army medic, he realised that he would still have to carry a weapon and fire it at other human beings when necessary. [at one time, medics didn't carry a gun...M]That feeling of unease intensified after his unit received orders to deploy to Iraq. Before leaving for Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, they ran training exercises in Germany. "We would drive around in convoys in the woods in Germany in a training area and constantly targets would pop up and we would fire out the window," he said. "We did this day after day [and] at nighttime. I was part of an infantry battalion . At that point it became clear to me that in today's army a medic isn't just someone who helps people. In all fairness, it's an infrantryman, a rifleman, that has some medical skills." By the time Aguayo arrived in Tikrit, he had already appealed to be discharged from the Army as a conscientious objector. He said he realised that he couldn't kill anyone and went out on patrol and guard duty without loading his gun. "It seemed like the whole point of these convoys was just to start a firefight," he said. "It's like a vicious circle that continues. We're there because there's conflict and there's conflict because we're there. It's a never-ending cycle." He told IPS that what he saw in Iraq strengthened his opposition to killing and war. "One time we were driving around the city setting up checkpoints and we heard an explosion so we went to see what was happening, and a vehicle of Iraqi police had been hit and my unit stayed back and I could see wounded people in the distance," he said. "We just stayed back and that seemed weird to me. I couldn't understand why we just stood there. I couldn't understand why we couldn't randomly help people. We could only help people when we hurt them." Aguayo rode out his deployment and returned to Germany. The next thing he knew, the military denied his application for conscientious objector status, and decided to send his unit back to Iraq for a second tour. But Aguayo could not bear the thought of going to Iraq a second time. So he ran, climbing out a window on his base in Germany. A few weeks later, he turned himself in at Fort Irwin in California, hoping that would get him lenient treatment. Instead, the military shackled him, put him in solitary confinement and flew him back to Germany for trial. He eventually served six months in a military prison. "Initially it was that shocking moment," he said. "I had never gotten in trouble in any kind of way. Just two speeding tickets back when I started driving in 1990. But on the other hand it was also a moment of peace where I could reflect, and I'm really at peace because I finally have what I wanted for so long. I wanted to be separated from the military because this is wrong, because morally I couldn't continue down this path." After his release from prison, Aguayo was joined on a California speaking tour by three other conscientious objectors from the Iraq war: Pablo Paredes, Camilo Mejia, and Robert Zabala. Camilo Mejía was one of the first Iraq combat veterans to refuse to return to Iraq and served almost nine months in prison for his stand against the war. Pablo Paredes refused to ship out to Iraq from the San Diego Naval Station in 2005. He is now a GI rights counselor and counter-recruitment activist. Robert Zabala is a Marine who recently won a discharge as a Conscientious Objector (CO) by a federal judge after fighting for nearly four years to be recognized as a CO. Like Aguayo, Mejia, Paredes, and Zabala are all Latino. "It's hard to overlook," Paredes told IPS. "The evidence is pretty clear that there's a lot of Latino resistance. Part of it is that we're disproportionately targeted for jobs that are high risk -- combat roles, infantry roles. We make up a very small percentage of elite jobs like officers and Blue Angels . We make up only four percent of the officer corps but when the invasion started we were 20 percent of the infantry."
"So when it's time to question things, this population of Latinos is the ones who see what war is really about," he said. (END/2007)
Source: ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37796
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Jun 1, 2007 6:39:58 GMT 4
The Ravaged Mind of Military Personnel
I thought I'd put this article here in the CO thread. War destroys everything and everyone it comes into contact with, the oppressed and the oppressor. How many ex-military citizens will nations have that walk around in a mind altered daze, ready to crack at a monent's notice? Everyone of my brothers who have been in combat of various wars have been forever changed, for the worse, by their experiences. Hell, my dad, who served in WWII and was a prisoner at numerous German prision camps, [he was a medic and the Germans forced him to treat their own] continues to have flash backs. Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be soldiers..... MichelleHEALTH-US: For Some Vets, No Way Out of the War ZoneAaron Glantz SAN FRANCISCO, May 25 (IPS) - The widow of an Afghanistan war veteran who was shot and killed by the Maryland State Police is talking to a lawyer after a state attorney's report released this month found the troopers' behaviour was "flawed," "assaultive" and "militaristic". James E. Dean's widow, Muriel Dean, traces her late husband's troubles back to the fall of 2006, when he found out he was being deployed to Iraq. Jamie had already served a 18-month tour in Afghanistan, where he was a sergeant, leading a small infantry unit. He received a number of awards: for service in defence of the nation, good conduct and outstanding marksmanship with rifles and grenades. But he didn't return home the same as he left, and when he went to the Veterans Affairs hospital, they diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder. "Jamie wasn't one to open up anyway," Muriel Dean told IPS. "The only thing he would ever say is 'Nobody understands unless they've been there. You just don't understand.'" He started regular therapy and took his medications, but he also drank. "He told me that I didn't want to know what he had to do over there," Muriel Dean added. "That I didn't want to know about the things he'd seen and the things that had gone on and I never asked why." Muriel Dean said her husband started pulling away from her as the Jan. 14 deployment date grew closer. Then, at 9:10 p.m. on Christmas Day, Jamie barricaded himself inside his father's farmhouse in rural Maryland. He called his sister and told her he "just couldn't do it anymore" and fired a gunshot. Jamie's sister called the emergency services hotline and the police showed up in force. They cordoned off the house and fired tear gas inside. They brought in armoured vehicles and blew a hole in the right side of the house. Just past midnight on Dec. 26, a state police sharpshooter shot Jamie Dean dead. His wife Muriel was furious. "He was on a family farm," she said. "There were no neighbours. There was nobody there with him so if he was going to hurt anybody it was going to be himself. Time was on their side. If they had left him alone, he would have calmed down." "He would have gone to sleep," she said. "He would have been fine." Earlier this month, the Maryland State Attorney's office released a report on the incident. It called law enforcement's response "progressively assaultive and militaristic." The report largely agreed with the Dean family's assessment. "It is difficult to understand the necessity of an aggressive paramilitary operation, vis-à-vis a containment operation, directed at an individual down at the end of a dark road, holed up in his father's house with no hostages." The family's lawyer, Daniel Gunther, is reviewing all law enforcement records carefully. "I'm looking for any deviation from an appropriate standard of care, inappropriate conduct, a course of action that was not necessarily the most viable, one that would not have been typical under those circumstances," he said, adding a lawsuit was a possible, but not definite outcome of the review. Then there is the Army's decision to redeploy Jamie Dean in the first place, despite his diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Pentagon doctors estimate that 12 percent of the 1.5 million veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan suffer from PTSD. However, military guidelines allow commanders to redeploy soldiers suffering from PTSD if their psychiatric disorder is in remission, or if their symptoms do not impair duty performance. Indeed, Jamie Dean was not the first veteran to have a run-in with law enforcement before a second deployment in what officials in Washington call the "global war on terror". In January 2005, for example, 19-year-old Andres Raya of Modesto, California walked out of a liquor store in a Central Valley town and fired off a couple of rounds from his rifle, police told the San Francisco Chronicle. When a police officer pulled up, Raya shot him twice in the head, apparently at close range, then fled through nearby backyard. A Marine on active duty, he had already been deployed to Iraq twice. His family told investigators Raya had expressed concern he would be shipped out again. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Raya served in the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines Regiment of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, which at that time had had more than 30 casualties during the war, mostly in Al Anbar province, a Sunni-dominated region that includes Fallujah and Ramadi. Back in Maryland, Muriel Dean hopes her efforts to speak out will have an impact on police behaviour toward veterans in the future. "God forbid this situation happens again, it needs to be handled differently," she said. "It happens everywhere that law enforcement goes into these situations all gung ho and it's not good for them because these guys are trained just like the cops are. They're trained to kill as well when they're attacked like that. When they're already in their minds in a war zone, you don't put them back in there." (END/2007) Source: ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37899
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Jun 5, 2007 16:30:29 GMT 4
Support Israeli Conscientious ObjectorsWe call on all young people facing mobilization and on all members of the Israeli army to weigh again whether to risk their lives in the service of this repressive and destructive policy.
We believe that there is another way.Support for peace and nonviolence are two pillars on which the AFSC is built. The Service Committee was founded in 1917 to provide alternative service for young men in the U.S. who were conscientious objectors during World War I. Opposition to war and violence has continued through succeeding conflicts to the current day. During every conflict AFSC has provided advice and/or support to those seeking to be conscientious objectors. The commitment to the value of peace over violence is based on the Quaker Declaration of 1660 that states: "We utterly deny all outward wars and strife, and fightings (sic) with outward weapons, for any end, or under any pretense whatsoever. And this is our testimony to the whole world." Within Israel, there has been a movement to refuse military service for reasons of conscientious since 1982, and this movement has continued to grow today. The Shministim, a movement of Israeli high school students who have stated their intention to refuse service in the Israeli military, is one especially important part of this movement. The Shministim ground their refusal in rejection of the militarism of Israeli society, and not specific practices of the military. In March, 2005 250 Israeli high school students signed the Shministim letter addressed to the Israeli Prime Minister and other high ranking Israeli officials. The letter outlined their reasons for refusing military service: Letter from the ShministimAriel Sharon, Prime Minister Lt. General Shaul Mofaz, Minister of Defence Lt. General Moshe Yaalon, Chief of the General Staff Limor Livnat, Minister of Education
Dear Sirs and Madam,
We the undersigned, Israeli girls and boys, believing in the values of democracy, humanism and pluralism, hereby declare that we shall refuse to take part in the occupation and repression policy adopted by the Government of Israel. Our backgrounds are diverse, but we all agree that these values form the basis of a just society. Every human being has the right to life, equality, dignity, and freedom. We are bound by our conscience and as citizens of Israel to act in defense of these rights, by refusing to participate in the occupation and repression policy.
The occupation leads to inhumanity and to a massive infringement of the right to life. It tramples on the basic rights of millions of people and inflicts daily carnage and suffering. It leads to the confiscation of lands, to mass destruction of homes and public buildings, to arrests and killings without trial, to victimization and murder of innocents, to hunger, to a denial of medical assistance, to collective punishment, and to the building and expansion of settlements and the negation of any chance of normal living both in the occupied territories and in Israel itself. This flagrant violation of human rights is opposed to our view of the world, and is in contravention of international conventions signed and ratified by Israel.
The occupation contributes nothing to the security of the state and its citizens, but on the contrary, it only aggravates it. It deepens the despair and fans the hatred among the Palestinians, feeds terrorism and widens the river of blood between the two sides. True security will only be accomplished by ending the occupation, dismantling the wall of Apartheid around the Palestinians, and striving for a just peace agreement between the state of Israel and the leadership of the Palestinian people as well as the Arab world. The present policy is not a result of a military necessity, but the outcome of a nationalistic, Messianic fantasy.
The occupation has corrupted Israel, turning it into a militaristic, racist, chauvinistic and violent society. Israel is wasting its resources on the perpetuation of the occupation and repression in the territories, while hundreds of thousands of Israelis live in shameful poverty. In recent years Israeli citizens have experienced a deterioration of all public services. Education, medicine, welfare, pensions, everything to do with the well being of the citizenry has been neglected and sacrificed for the continued existence of settlements which the majority of the population wishes to be evacuated. We cannot stand by idly facing this situation, which amounts to a targeted liquidation of the principle of equality.
We wish to live in a society which pursues justice, upholds equal rights for every single citizen. The occupation and repression policy is an obstacle to the realization of this vision; therefore we shall refuse to take part in it. We wish to contribute to society in an alternative way, which does not involve harming other human beings.
We call on all young people facing mobilization and on all members of the Israeli army to weigh again whether to risk their lives in the service of this repressive and destructive policy.
We believe that there is another way. ******* The AFSC is now working to create an international solidarity network for Israeli conscientious objectors. The AFSC has organized speaking tours for Israeli conscientious objectors and helped build connections between Israeli refusers and U.S. veterans from the war in Iraq who are challenging U.S. foreign policy. In addition, the AFSC organized an internship program for Palestinian and Israeli youth activists to work in AFSC offices in the United States. Several members of the Shministim took part in this program and gained exposure to AFSC's work and anti-militarism work being done in the U.S. Below are some profiles of members of the Shministim. These are the words of young Israelis who are facing one of the most important decisions in their life - whether or not to participate in one of the most respected and revered institutions in Israeli society. In addition to the possibility of being sent the jail, the decision to refuse is one that can carry personal and professional consequences for years to come. AFSC supports the right of individuals to exercise their conscience and applauds the efforts of these young people to challenge their government's policies through peaceful means. Portions of the testimonies below include statements that we would not make based on general Quaker practice and expression. However, we believe it is important to share these testimonies in their own language and for others to hear these voices raised in support of peace. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Profiles of these beautiful young Israelis....military service is mandatory in Israel so you can see that they are also very brave indeed...Michelle Omri Evron, I refuse to serve in the army because I am faithful to the moral principles in which I believe. My refusal to enlist is a protest against the longstanding military occupation of the Palestinian people, an occupation that deepens and entrenches the hatred and terror between peoples. More> Lior Volynitz, By refusing I am sending a message to other soldiers and future conscripts. I would like them to know that there is another way. My message is also addressed to all the people who have suffered from Israel’s policy. I would like them to know that there are Israelis who are different. I sincerely hope that in doing this I will contribute, if only in a small way, towards making Israeli society more just and peace loving. More> Yael Greenvald-Drier, I oppose the militarization of Israeli society, which takes us on the fast track to fascism. Soon, I will get a letter from the army asking me to come begin the paperwork regarding my induction. After I get the letter I will send a letter to the army asking them to release me for conscience reasons. There is a chance that if I refuse to be drafted I will go to jail. More > Michal Stoler, I am currently part of a new group of high school students who refuse to serve the occupation. We are the new generation of 'Shministim' [this means high school senior in Hebrew]. More > Shaul Mograbi-Berger, I am refusing service in the Israeli military because I can't take part in the Israeli occupation of Palestine . I don't want to serve in an occupying army. I also strongly believe in pacifism. More > Alex Cohn, In the next few months I will be recruited by the army. When that day comes I'll simply say that I see the rule that forces me to join the occupation army as an unjust and immoral, and therefore I will not go. I'll probably be punished by being sent to jail. Meanwhile, I am active in a youth refusal movement and working to advance the idea of refusing to serve the occupation. More > Rotem Mor, an Israeli AFSC staff person based in Jerusalem who has served a prison term for his decision to conscientiously object to military service. He now works to support the growing conscientious objectors movement in Israel. More > To finish reading the profiles and more go to:afsc.org/israel-palestine/israelicos.htm------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Note from Michelle: Please go to today's post in our Solutions thread:Re: Solutions « Reply #17 on Today [6/05/07] at 5:03pm » "The World Says No to Israeli Occupation" Take Action 40th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza on June 8
Go To: tinyurl.com/yorw7n
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Jul 6, 2007 16:02:03 GMT 4
Jailed conscientious objector hits out against Libby clemencySubmitted by Canada IFP on Thu, 2007-07-05 19:26. A veteran who spent 14 months in prison for filing a conscientious objector application against redeployment to Iraq has spoken out against the commutation of Scooter Libby's sentence by President Bush. "I was imprisoned for 14 monthsafter trying to apply for conscientious objector status after seeing the reality of the Iraq war," Kevin Benderman, who had to serve his sentence at a prison 3,000 miles from home, said. Kevin Benderman had served as an army mechanic for 10 years when he developed moral and religious objections to the war in Iraq, after serving there in 2003, and refused to deploy there again. After seeing scenes of devastation in Iraq, and through his readings of both the Bible and the Qu’ran, Kevin Benderman filed an application for conscientious objector status on 28 December 2004.
He was then sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment at a court martial.“Homes were bombed, people lived in mud huts and drank water from the mud puddles," Benderman wrote in his conscientious objector application. "I could not ignore the little girl standing by the side of the road with her mother. Her arm was burned to her shoulder, and she cried in pain. To be aware of the mass graves throughout the area that we were in, full of bodies of women and children and men, all who had died by the hand of war, maybe not our war, but war.” His wife Monica Benderman, who organized a campaign to obtain her husbands released, also hit out at Bush's action. "Parole was denied to Kevin because he had not been 'sufficiently rehabilitated.'", she said. "What were they rehabilitating him from? Not wanting to go to war. During those 14 months Kevin would be sitting in a plastic chair getting shouted at; he was denied his mail at times, they tried to prevent his talking to his attorney and our congressperson. Meanwhile, Libby -- who covered up the truth on issues of war that affect the lives of people like my husband -- is going to walk away."The couple are currently helping America 's veterans through their new organization, Benderman's Bridge. President Bush commuted Vice President Cheney's former Chief of Staff Lewis "Scooter" Libby's sentence saying "I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive." Libby was convicted in federal court for obstruction of justice, making false statements, and perjury in the CIA leak grand jury investigation into the "Plame affair", and sentenced to 30 months in prison. Source: pressesc.com/01183663500_libby_benderman------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Note: See today's post at:Re: What's Up Patrick J. Fitzgerald? « Reply #33 on 07/06/07 at 3:49pm » The freeing of Lewis Libby: Government criminality and the class nature of American “justice”By Bill Van Auken 4 July 2007 The decision of the Bush White House to commute the jail sentence of Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby is a telling demonstration of both the criminal character of the US government and the inequality that pervades American society. Read the rest:tinyurl.com/39xp8t
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Jul 12, 2007 13:38:12 GMT 4
The Other War: Iraq Vets Bear WitnessI am a Conscientious Objector. What does that mean to me? No war, no killing, ever, period. The following is a rather long article and heartbreaking to me, and I wish for all here to read it in its entirety. It speaks of the brutality of my country's war on Iraq and the conquest of its people through nothing less than genocide. The testimonies from American vets give us a look at what happens to a man or woman who begins to kill. Their soul, that divine spark in them, sort of separates from their being. If you raise your eyebrow when I say this, speak of what happens to men's souls during war, I would tell you to go to the PBS website and look up the Frontline episode on Rwanda. Listen to the NATO commander's despair and the testimony from a volunteer who describes how tribal people would begin their hacking of humans at eleven in the morning, how once a human kills their soul sort of cracks and they become soulless entities. I see no difference in this from what American soldiers become when they kill and are encouraged to slaughter innocent victims.
I know many of you who have watched our country engage in what returning veterans describe as "a dark and even depraved enterprise" feel hopeless at times to stop our government. I know that you wrote and sent more letters to your congressional reps than ever before, or for the first time in your life. I know many of you marched for peace, posted on blogs, and wrote editorials all to no avail......What more can you do?!! Don't give up, don't stop until this madness ends.........MichelleThe Other War: Iraq Vets Bear Witness By Chris Hedges and Laila al-Arian The Nation 30 July 2007 Issue Over the past several months The Nation has interviewed fifty combat veterans of the Iraq War from around the United States in an effort to investigate the effects of the four-year-old occupation on average Iraqi civilians. These combat veterans, some of whom bear deep emotional and physical scars, and many of whom have come to oppose the occupation, gave vivid, on-the-record accounts. They described a brutal side of the war rarely seen on television screens or chronicled in newspaper accounts. Their stories, recorded and typed into thousands of pages of transcripts, reveal disturbing patterns of behavior by American troops in Iraq. Dozens of those interviewed witnessed Iraqi civilians, including children, dying from American firepower. Some participated in such killings; others treated or investigated civilian casualties after the fact. Many also heard such stories, in detail, from members of their unit. The soldiers, sailors and marines emphasized that not all troops took part in indiscriminate killings. Many said that these acts were perpetrated by a minority. But they nevertheless described such acts as common and said they often go unreported - and almost always go unpunished. Court cases, such as the ones surrounding the massacre in Haditha and the rape and murder of a 14-year-old in Mahmudiya, and news stories in the Washington Post, Time, the London Independent and elsewhere based on Iraqi accounts have begun to hint at the wide extent of the attacks on civilians. Human rights groups have issued reports, such as Human Rights Watch's Hearts and Minds: Post-war Civilian Deaths in Baghdad Caused by U.S. Forces, packed with detailed incidents that suggest that the killing of Iraqi civilians by occupation forces is more common than has been acknowledged by military authorities. This Nation investigation marks the first time so many on-the-record, named eyewitnesses from within the US military have been assembled in one place to openly corroborate these assertions. While some veterans said civilian shootings were routinely investigated by the military, many more said such inquiries were rare. "I mean, you physically could not do an investigation every time a civilian was wounded or killed because it just happens a lot and you'd spend all your time doing that," said Marine Reserve Lieut. Jonathan Morgenstein, 35, of Arlington, Virginia. He served from August 2004 to March 2005 in Ramadi with a Marine Corps civil affairs unit supporting a combat team with the Second Marine Expeditionary Brigade. (All interviewees are identified by the rank they held during the period of service they recount here; some have since been promoted or demoted.) Veterans said the culture of this counterinsurgency war, in which most Iraqi civilians were assumed to be hostile, made it difficult for soldiers to sympathize with their victims - at least until they returned home and had a chance to reflect. "I guess while I was there, the general attitude was, A dead Iraqi is just another dead Iraqi," said Spc. Jeff Englehart, 26, of Grand Junction, Colorado. Specialist Englehart served with the Third Brigade, First Infantry Division, in Baquba, about thirty-five miles northeast of Baghdad, for a year beginning in February 2004. "You know, so what?... The soldiers honestly thought we were trying to help the people and they were mad because it was almost like a betrayal. Like here we are trying to help you, here I am, you know, thousands of miles away from home and my family, and I have to be here for a year and work every day on these missions. Well, we're trying to help you and you just turn around and try to kill us." He said it was only "when they get home, in dealing with veteran issues and meeting other veterans, it seems like the guilt really takes place, takes root, then." The Iraq War is a vast and complicated enterprise. In this investigation of alleged military misconduct, The Nation focused on a few key elements of the occupation, asking veterans to explain in detail their experiences operating patrols and supply convoys, setting up checkpoints, conducting raids and arresting suspects. From these collected snapshots a common theme emerged. Fighting in densely populated urban areas has led to the indiscriminate use of force and the deaths at the hands of occupation troops of thousands of innocents. Many of these veterans returned home deeply disturbed by the disparity between the reality of the war and the way it is portrayed by the US government and American media. The war the vets described is a dark and even depraved enterprise, one that bears a powerful resemblance to other misguided and brutal colonial wars and occupations, from the French occupation of Algeria to the American war on Vietnam and the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. "I'll tell you the point where I really turned," said Spc. Michael Harmon, 24, a medic from Brooklyn. He served a thirteen-month tour beginning in April 2003 with the 167th Armor Regiment, Fourth Infantry Division, in Al-Rashidiya, a small town near Baghdad. "I go out to the scene and [there was] this little, you know, pudgy little 2-year-old child with the cute little pudgy legs, and I look and she has a bullet through her leg.... An IED [improvised explosive device] went off, the gun-happy soldiers just started shooting anywhere and the baby got hit. And this baby looked at me, wasn't crying, wasn't anything, it just looked at me like - I know she couldn't speak. It might sound crazy, but she was like asking me why. You know, Why do I have a bullet in my leg?... I was just like, This is - this is it. This is ridiculous." Read it all:www.truthout.org/docs_2006/071107R.shtml
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Aug 19, 2007 16:31:46 GMT 4
Pre-Trial Continues for Priests Who Denounce TortureSome who read here may think that I am anti-religious. This is not true, for along with a voracious appetite for meaningful literature, I was deeply influenced by my Catholic upbringing and my exposure to the Catholic militant left during the Vietnam era who called for acts of civil disobedience. There were a host of other Catholic intellectuals who called for social responsibility and reform. I took the message of Jesus Christ to heart and try daily to live by my understanding of his message. [and forgive myself when I fall, only to pick up again]
This post is dedicated to elder friend, Mary, recently passed away. Mary had a strong connection with those who suffered and struggling persons of all ages. She was the first person to call for prayer requests because of her disciplined prayer life. She was a Christian witness who believed in forgiveness, eternal life, and the wisdom of Thomas Merton.
The signature at the bottom of my posts is the motto of The Thomas Merton Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. I too have reflected on Merton's thoughts, frequently. Merton, a Trappist monk and priest, took bold stances on issues like the Vietnam War, racial integration, the nuclear threat, and his feelings about what various seekers East and West have in common. Like Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his Nazi prison, he began to see the monk not, as he had believed in his youth, as someone special, undertaking feats of incredible ascetic heroism for the love of God, but as one who was not afraid to be simply 'man,' who as he lived near to nature and his appetites was the measure of what others might be if society did not distort them with greed or ambition or lust or desperate want.
So, as you see, I am not anti-religious; it just depends on what kind of religious life one chooses to follow when I am critical of religion. There are many approaches to God and religion and I am delighted to read the wisdom found in all faiths and practices. I call on all the faithful of Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Others to answer the Creator's calling, in our World now, and to rise up in defiance against evil acts that so mark our World.
Yours in the Light, Michelle
PS: After you read the following, go to the source for an AV interview with Father Louis Vitale. Pre-Trial Continues for Priests Who Denounce Torture By Sari Gelzer T r u t h o u t | Report Monday 13 August 2007 Two Roman Catholic priests, who were arrested as they approached the Fort Huachuca gatehouse on November 19, 2006, will face a continuance of their pre-trial hearing this August 13 in Federal Court in Tucson, Arizona. The intent of Franciscan Fr. Louis Vitale, 74, and Jesuit Fr. Steve Kelly, 58, was to speak with enlisted personnel and deliver a letter denouncing torture to Major General Barbara Fast, commander at the post. The letter addressed to Major General Fast voices the priests' concern with what is being taught to interrogators who are being trained at Fort Huachuca, the headquarters for the intelligence services of the US military. "The Army Field Manual on interrogation (Human Resource Exploitation Training Manual) was written at Fort Huachuca," wrote Bill Quigley, law professor and human rights lawyer at Loyola University New Orleans. Quigley, who also happens to be representing both priests in this case, goes on to say: "A number of the officers and soldiers responsible for human rights abuses at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison have worked at or were trained at the Headquarters for Army Intelligence Training at Ft. Huachuca." Before becoming the Commander of the US Army intelligence Center in Arizona, Major General Fast was the top US intelligence officer in Iraq. She was responsible for reviewing the status of detainees at Abu Ghraib before their release, and was serving her post during the period in which practices of torture by US military personnel were occurring in the prison. The priests found it fitting to discuss US acts of Torture with Major General Fast and ask her what is specifically being taught to US military interrogators at the US base. In their letter, they address Major General Fast: "We are here today as concerned US people, veterans and clergy, to speak with enlisted personnel about the illegality and immorality of torture according to international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions. We condemn torture as a dehumanization of both prisoners and interrogators, resulting in humiliation, disability and even death." The priests were at the base in Sierra Vista, Arizona as part of a demonstration of over 120 people that gathered on Sunday, November 19, 2006, to protest military training that fosters torture. Frs. Vitale and Kelly were stopped as they approached the military gates. When they were not allowed to go inside to speak with the service men and women being trained, the two men knelt in prayer and were arrested. The demonstration at Fort Huachuca was held in conjunction with the 16th annual vigil at Fort Benning, Georgia, organized by the group, School of the Americas Watch. On Saturday, November 18, 2006, over 20,000 protesters arrived at Fort Benning to call for the closing of what was formerly known as the School of the Americas. The school's name was changed in 2000 to the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC). A Congressional task force found that soldiers, responsible for the massacre of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her teenage daughter in El Salvador in 1989, were trained at the School of the Americas, which moved to Fort Benning from Panama in 1984. The protesters accuse the school of participating in mass human rights abuses in Latin American and beyond. Fr. Vitale and Fr. Steve Kelly face federal and state charges of trespass and refusal to follow police orders. Fr. Vitale is co-founder of the Nevada Desert Experience, a faith-based organization that has opposed nuclear weapons testing for a quarter of a century. He was arrested at a Fort Benning Protest in 2005 and served six months in federal prison. Fr. Kelley has served time in federal prison for the nonviolent, direct disarmament of nuclear weapon delivery systems. In December of 2005, he served as chaplain for Witness to Torture, a delegation of US anti-torture activists who peacefully marched in Cuba to the gates of the Guantanamo Bay naval base and prison camp. Links To View the Letter: tortureontrial.org/media.html#letter For Information on the Trial: www.Tortureontrial.org School of the America Watch: www.soaw.org/Source and AV link:www.truthout.org/docs_2006/081307J.shtml
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Oct 5, 2007 11:08:16 GMT 4
Continuing to follow the case of First Lt. Ehren Watada here at Conscientious Objector: The second court-martial of war resistor First Lt. Ehren Watada is scheduled to begin Tuesday, October 9. The story below details Watada's attorney's challenge to the proceeding. Second Trial Illegal, Watada Argues By Mike Barber The Seattle Post-Intelligencer Wednesday 03 October 2007 Lawyers turn to federal judges in Seattle to stop new court-martial. Lawyers for Fort Lewis 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, who in June 2006 went public with his refusal to serve in Iraq and said the war is illegal, asked the U.S. District Court in Seattle on Wednesday to halt his court-martial, which is only days away. Watada's second court-martial is slated to begin Tuesday. His first court-martial earlier this year ended in a mistrial before a jury could deliberate. Watada's lawyers said they hope for a decision Friday. Monday is a federal holiday, Columbus Day. Before Watada's lawyers announced their move, Fort Lewis officials issued a news release saying the court-martial was slated for 9 a.m. Tuesday. Watada is charged with missing movement with his unit to Iraq and of conduct unbecoming an officer for anti-war statements he made in the media and as a speaker at the national convention of Veterans for Peace in Seattle in the summer of 2006. If convicted, he could face up to six years in prison. Watada's case is being appealed on grounds that a second court-martial violates his constitutional protections against double jeopardy - being tried twice on the same charge - because he was court-martialed earlier this year on those charges. But, over his objection, a mistrial was declared "without there being the requisite manifest necessity for such declaration," said court papers filed Wednesday. The military judge, Lt. Col. John Head, ordered a second trial. The U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals and Head have ruled otherwise, dismissing the double-jeopardy claims. The issue last month was presented to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, the military's highest court and made up of civilian judges who hear military issues. "We believe we have a strong case and are looking forward to litigating the double-jeopardy issue in federal court," one of Watada's lawyers, Ken Kagan, said. Kagan and Jim Lobsenz, both of the Seattle law firm Carney Badley Spellman, Wednesday filed a writ of habeas corpus and a request for an emergency stay in Seattle federal court because the Appeals Court for the Armed Forces has not ruled and the trial date is quickly approaching. Among other remedies, Watada's lawyers have asked the federal court in Seattle "to issue a writ of habeas corpus releasing (Watada) from all restraint imposed by the pending court-martial charges, and declaring any trial on such charges to be barred and prohibited by the double-jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment." After learning of the new court challenge, Fort Lewis officials said in a statement that they had followed the law in scheduling a second court-martial. "We've not seen the filing or heard a ruling on it from the court, so we will not speculate on what effect it may have on next week's scheduled trial. However, the government has followed the law and rules throughout the process of bringing this case to trial. The U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals in Balston, Va., determined that this case was not prohibited by double jeopardy and may properly proceed to trial. The court issued its ruling after considering comprehensive briefs and arguments from the parties." Kagan said he thinks that there's a likelihood a federal judge will accept the case because military officers are federal officers who fall under the Seattle federal court's jurisdiction. Kagan said he believes there is "a good chance" the court-martial will be delayed because local federal judges feel bound by precedents of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and other higher civilian courts. "Those circuits have looked at this issue and concluded when there is a decent double-jeopardy claim, you have to stop the trial, and you've got to review it," Kagan said. Court documents show that Watada's term of service as an active-duty military officer ended in December, but he has been held over because of the legal proceedings. He refused to go to Iraq in June 2006 with the 3rd Stryker Brigade. Source:www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100407R.shtml
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Oct 6, 2007 19:21:42 GMT 4
Also see below: Watada Court-Martial Stopped The Whole World Will Be Watching By Bill Simpich t r u t h o u t | Perspective Saturday 06 October 2007 Until today, the story about the impending second trial of United States v. Lt. Ehren Watada was how the Army was planning on a proceeding with very little publicity and almost no witnesses. It almost worked. In a last-minute ruling at 4:48 pm on Friday, the Hon. Benjamin Settle stayed the Watada trial from beginning on Tuesday, October 9 and set a hearing for Friday, October 19. His ruling also states that the trial cannot begin until at least October 26. The bigger question is whether it will ever happen at all. Now there is no chance that this case is going to escape strict international scrutiny. None. Antiwar activists are jubilant at this unexpected turn of events, as the anticipated media coverage of this clash will inevitably encourage participation in the nationwide "Iraq Moratorium" community events on October 19 and the national mobilization against the war in eleven major cities on Saturday, October 27. (Source: www.unitedforpeace.org/. ) During the first trial in February 2007, Lt. Watada and his defense team put on a stunning display of resistance before a bull-headed judge in the heart of Fort Lewis and in the eyes of the mainstream media. Every prosecution witness had attested to the stout heart and integrity of the defendant. Lt. Watada was about to tell his story about his belief in the illegality of the war in Iraq, based on his officer's oath to the United States Constitution, (Source: www.thankyoult.org/content/view/1039/74/.) to what seemed like the entire world. (Source for this and succeeding trial description: www.thankyoult.org/content/view/1014/70/#Day%201.) Abruptly, the judge halted the trial. Lt. Watada had submitted a document in open court at the beginning of the trial admitting that he had knowingly not boarded a plane to Iraq. The judge ruled that the lieutenant had made a fatal admission that would prejudice his defense. It was the kind of argument that one might expect from a desperate defense attorney, but not from a judge. To top it off, Lt. Watada's own lawyer was asking for the trial to go forward even while the judge had ruled out all of Watada's defenses! It was apparent to observers that there was a real possibility that the military jury would be extremely lenient in deciding on Watada's guilt and sentence. Since then, the question in activist and legal circles has been whether Lt. Watada should be forced to endure a second trial. The basis of the doctrine of double jeopardy is to ensure that the prosecution doesn't get a "mulligan" ( i.e., "do-over") whenever things aren't going their way. The word was out that the Army Court of Criminal Appeals had granted a stay, and the assumption was that judges would spend years hoping that this would all somehow go away. However, when the Army Court of Criminal Appeals ruled this summer in favor of the prosecution, the army saw an opening for a "snap trial". Activists were not following the case closely, believing that the stay was still in effect. Although the appellate court's decision dissolved the stay, that word didn't get out due to lack of publicity. Two weeks ago, Watada's lawyers had gone to the next level - the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces - and that court was apparently happy to do nothing and watch Lt. Watada go down. (Source: 10/5 Seattle P-I.) The general rule is that a civilian judge will not interfere with a military proceeding. That's apparently why Watada's legal team waited until Wednesday to file their motion for stay. At that point, they could legitimately argue that they had exhausted their remedies. The squeeze play to avoid publicity was in full effect. Early on Friday, Fort Lewis Public Affairs announced that media wanting to cover the trial had until Saturday at 4:30 pm to register with their office. (Source: David Mitchell and Gerry Condon, Courage to Resist; CtR organizer Jeff Paterson's letter.) Rather than seek the testimony of journalists as in the initial trial - which only resulted in even further publicity - the Army subpoenaed regional anti-war organizers in an attempt to use their testimony against Lt. Watada. It was a big moment for Northwest activists, who had been struggling to ensure at least a respectable showing of support for this unexpected trial. Their hands were already full in handling the campaign for Iraq war resister Robin Long, who was arrested on Monday in a small town just north of the Washington state line. Will Iraq War resisters be given sanctuary in Canada, like the Vietnam war resisters? The question is not yet settled, but the outpouring of support persuaded Canadian officials to temporarily release Long on Wednesday rather than deport him back to the US. The Watada victory was their second big win of the week. (Source: Courage to Resist, 10/3) What has not changed is that Lt. Watada is facing six years in prison. One year of his looming prison term is based on a "conduct unbecoming an officer" charge, solely for a few well-chosen words in a historic speech last year to the Veterans For Peace Convention, with fifty Iraq War veterans standing by his side: "Today, I speak with you about a radical idea. It is one born from the very concept of the American soldier (or service member). It became instrumental in ending the Vietnam War - but it has been long since forgotten. The idea is this: that to stop an illegal and unjust war, the soldiers can choose to stop fighting it ...
"I tell this to you because you must know that to stop this war, for the soldiers to stop fighting it, they must have the unconditional support of the people. I have seen this support with my own eyes. For me it was a leap of faith.
"For other soldiers, they do not have that luxury. They must know it and you must show it to them. Convince them that no matter how long they sit in prison, no matter how long this country takes to right itself, their families will have a roof over their heads, food in their stomachs, opportunities and education." Bill Simpich is a civil rights attorney based in San Francisco. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Watada Court-Martial Stopped By Mike Barber The Seattle Post-Intelligencer Friday 05 October 2007 Lawyers call a second court-martial double jeopardy. A federal judge in Tacoma has delayed the court-martial of 1st Lt. Ehren Watada, a Fort Lewis Army officer who refused to deploy to Iraq. In a rare intervention of a civilian court in the military justice system, U.S. District Court Judge Benjamin Settle granted the emergency stay to stop the court-martial. Watada's trial, slated to begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, is now postponed until at least Oct. 26, the judge ruled. In granting the stay at 4:48 p.m. Friday, Settle wrote, "The court concludes as a preliminary matter, that it has jurisdiction over the petition and the petitioner's double jeopardy claim is not frivolous." Watada's first court-martial earlier this year ended in a mistrial, and his lawyers argue that a second court-martial would amount to trying him twice for the same charges. Settle was careful to point out that "the issues raised by the petition for habeas corpus bear no relation to the charges or defenses in the petitioner's (Watada's) court-martial proceedings." Settle was a military lawyer in the Army in the 1970s and was recently appointed to the federal bench by President Bush Quoting case law, Settle wrote, "The irreparable harm suffered by being put to a trial a second time in violation of the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment stems not just from being subjected to double punishment but also from undergoing a second trial proceeding." Because the case is being heard in federal court, the U.S. Attorney's Office now is arguing the government position with a military lawyer's help. "Judge Settle has now preserved the status quo, giving us an opportunity to more fully brief him on the issues. We look forward to doing that," said Brian Kipnis, chief of the civil division for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle. Watada's lawyers, Jim Lobsenz and Ken Kagan of the Seattle firm Carney Badley Spellman, have argued that the circumstances of a mistrial declared in Watada's court-martial in February result in double jeopardy. The mistrial was declared over Watada's objections and after a panel of military officers acting as a jury had heard evidence but not begun deliberations. Watada's appeals have been dismissed by the military trial judge and the U.S. Army Court of Appeals. An appeal was made Sept. 18 to the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, the highest court in the military justice system. Lobsenz and Kagan said they were compelled to ask the federal court on Wednesday to stop the court-martial. Watada's trial approached, and nothing had been heard from the armed forces appeals court. With Monday a federal holiday to observe Columbus Day, time was even shorter, they said. Settle indicated at a hearing on Thursday that he might defer to the military appeals court if it made a decision by Friday, but at close of business Friday, it hadn't ruled. Watada publicly refused to go to Iraq with the 3rd Stryker Brigade in June 2006, contending that the war there is illegal and has exposed members of the military to war crimes. He has been charged with missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officer. He could be sentenced to up to six years in prison if convicted. Settle has set up a briefing schedule to examine the merits of the double jeopardy argument and how long he will continue the stay. The government has until Oct. 12 to file its arguments, and Watada's lawyers must reply by Oct. 17. Another hearing is planned for Oct. 19. Source for both articles:www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100607Z.shtml
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Oct 11, 2007 13:49:56 GMT 4
The Draft Card is on the Table— But No One Looks Like They are Going to Pick it up!August 22nd, 2007 On Friday, Aug 10, Michelle Norris of NPR’s All Things Considered pressed “War Czar” Lt. General Douglas Lute about whether or not he foresaw a return to the draft. He responded, “I think it makes sense to certainly consider it, and I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table, but ultimately, this is a policy matter between meeting the demands for the nation's security by one means or another.”This has resulted in a flurry of discussion about the draft in some circles, reporters pressing the issue in press conferences (such as August 14, 2007’s National Press Club meeting with Gen. George L. Casey), and many calls to Selective Service and the Center, and has evoked responses from at least 2 presidential candidates. (Edwards and Clinton). CCW has monitored draft issues for decades, and we have always warned that the government has retained the possibility of resuming a draft if it felt it was necessary because of military shortfalls. And with the current wars and shortfalls, we have urged our supporters to be prepared for the possibility even though we didn't see any evidence of an imminent draft- and we continue to encourage people to be ready, just in case. The fact that such a statement was made by such a highly placed official in an administration that has always said publicly that a draft was bad policy and unnecessary is cause for some concern. Was the administration floating a trial balloon, to see how the public would react to a draft as some have suggested? We have carefully investigated this matter, and as of this writing we see no evidence that the administration is gearing up for a draft. In fact, Selective Service officials have told us that they have not been told to gear up for such a scenario. On Friday the Associated Press quoted National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe saying, "The president's position is that the all-volunteer military meets the needs of the country and there is no discussion of a draft. Gen. Lute made that point as well." And he did. In the same interview he went on to say, “Today, the current means of the all-volunteer force is serving us exceptionally well. It would be a major policy shift — not actually a military, but a political policy shift to move to some other course.” So the evidence suggests that this is not a trial balloon moving towards a draft. However, our advice to be ready just in case still stands. A lthough there is no immediate evidence that the draft is returning, now is a good time to make sure that your representatives in Congress hear from you: A draft is unacceptable!
With increase pressure on meeting recruitment goals, the discussions of a possible invasion of Iran, the possibility of the return of the draft remains.
Find your congressional members at:www.house.govwww.senate.govSource:www.centeronconscience.org/UAA/08222007.shtml Washington, DC 20009 | Phone: 202-483-2220 E-mail with questions or comments at: webmaster@CenteronConscience.org © 2007 Center on Conscience & War Center on Conscience & War | 1830 Connecticut Ave. NW |
|
|
michelle
Administrator
I have broken any attachments I had to the Ascended Masters and their teachings; drains your chi!
Posts: 2,100
|
Post by michelle on Nov 7, 2007 14:36:22 GMT 4
Conscientious Objection - The GI Rights Hotlinewww.objector.org/girights/gettingout/co.htmlA conscientious objector (CO) is a person who believes that it is wrong to kill another human being in war. The military defines conscientious objection as a "firm, fixed and sincere objection to war in any form or the bearing of arms" because of deeply-held moral, ethical, or religious beliefs. A lot of people in the military believe it's too late to be a CO now that they have enlisted, but the fact is many people realize they are opposed to participation in war after joining the military, and they are discharged as COs. CLIP Check also: Getting Out: A Guide to Military Discharges at www.objector.org/girights/getting-out.htmlHundreds of U.S. Soldiers Emerge as Conscientious Objectorswww.commondreams.org/headlines03/0415-11.htm(...) The Center on Conscience and War (CCW), which advises military personnel on CO discharges, reports that since the start of 2003--when many soldiers realized they might have to fight in the Iraq war--there has been a massive increase in the number of enlisted soldiers who have applied for CO status. (...) As it is in the British army, CO discharge is a long-established practice in the U.S. armed forces and always peaks in wartime. CCW says there were an estimated 200,000 COs in the Vietnam War, 4,300 in the Korean War, 37,000 in World War II and 3,500 in World War I. The military granted 111 COs from the army in the first Gulf War before putting a stop to the practice, resulting in 2,500 soldiers being sent to prison, says Bill Gavlin from the Center on Conscience and War, quoting a report from the Boston Globe newspaper.During that war, a number of U.S. COs in Camp LeJeune in North Carolina state were "beaten, harassed and treated horribly," Gavlin says. In some cases, COs were put on planes bound for Kuwait, told that they could not apply for CO status or that they could only apply after they'd already gone to war. As far as Gavlin knows, that type of treatment has not happened this time. But he has counseled service members who were harassed. For example, one woman was told that if she applied for CO status she would be court marshaled. It is not an offence to apply, and her superiors did it, Gavlin says, "to intimidate her." CLIP PBS re-broadcasts THE GOOD WAR AND THOSE WHO REFUSED TO FIGHT IT (Oct 3, 2007) www.centeronconscience.org/UAA/10032007.shtmlTHE GOOD WAR AND THOSE WHO REFUSED TO FIGHT IT is the story of 40,000 Americans who refused to shoulder weapons in "the good war" because their conscience wouldn't allow them to kill another human being. In the face of criticism and scorn, these CO's challenged the limits of democracy and applied their non-violence to pioneer social movements that transformed America in the years to follow. (...) The program is now available on DVD for the home market CLIP Conscientious Objectorwww.geocities.com/conscientious_objectors/We are not just one country, we are one world Resolve not to do irreparable harm to the world while wrapping yourself in our nation's flag. War is the greatest disservice to our world, our country, and ourselves. Have you realized a contradiction between your convictions and your contract? It's Not Just a Job!It's a Crime Against Humanity! AWOL in Canada Videoswww.fluxview.com/AWOL_American_Military.htmVideo coverage of the June 17th 2006 Peace has no Borders event in Canada to support AWOL American soldiers who have fled the USA instead of killing innocent people./ AWOL GI's Have Been Going to Canada for Two Yearswww.resisters.ca/AWOL_in_Canada.pdfFor over two years now, AWOL U.S. soldiers, sailors, and marines have been arriving in Canada, most of them after receiving orders to deploy (or re-deploy) to the Iraq War. So far, not one of them has been deported back to the U.S. Thousands of AWOL GI's are also in the U.S. The Pentagon estimates about 8,000. With proper counseling, some have been able to gain administrative discharges from the military.
|
|