Here are some of my sources for information on Iraq:
US casualties and some news stories:
http://icasualties.org/oif/
Daily blog of news stories from all over, along with a lively comment section that often catches errors in those news sources:
http://dailywarnews.blogspot.com/
Another one: http://warincontext.org/
Click on news, or editorials/opinions for various opinions:
http://www.azzaman.com/english/index.asp?fname=news2005-08-2110492.htm
List of news stories here, and I always look at the photo slideshow. The photos often tell something the corporate press is overlooking: http://news.yahoo.com/fc?cid=34&tmpl=fc&in=World&cat=Iraq
The photos are often hard to look at. Imagine how hard it would be to live it. Keep in mind that no news source is infallible, the good ones however do self-correct. Juan Cole is very knowledgeable on the Middle East (Informed Comment blog) but he often jumps to the wrong conclusion.... like saying the death of the innocent guy (shot by police on the London subway) was the fault of the terrorists. He said this the day he was killed, and a couple of weeks later, the truth started coming out - and that innocent death is the rest of police bungling, if not outright testosterone poisoning.
And I also like to read Iraqi bloggers. Sunshine is one of my favorite bloggers, and she is a 13-year-old girl in Mosul. I also like Faiza’s writings and I am happy to say she is a friend of mine. Faiza writes the blog “A Family in Baghdad.” She and her family have moved to Amman, because of the danger. She has two sons who write blogs also. There are about 150 Iraqi bloggers now, with many different opinions (the pro-war ones are much more respectful of Cindy Sheehan than the pro-war crowd in the USA). I cannot read all the Iraqi bloggers any more.
Here’s an example of a news story from Iraq:
More Univ. professors killed By Mohammed Salah
Azzaman, August 28, 2005
Unidentified gunmen have gunned down three university professors, all of them from the University of Mustansiriya in Baghdad. The incident, which took place at main entrance to the campus, takes the number of professors murdered since the U.S.-led invasion of the country to 58. “Unidentified people shot and killed Dr. Zaki al-Ani from the College of Arts and Dr. Hashem Abdulamir from the College of Education,” a university source told the newspaper on condition of anonymity. The third professor, Dr. Sameer Yalda of the College of Economics and Administration, was kidnapped as he left the university and his body was found dumped on a main street in Baghdad. The incentives behind the killings are now known. And the police have not yet solved the mystery behind any of the previous 55 murders of Iraqi university professors. As a result, Iraqi professionals are leaving in droves. Statistics by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research show that more professors have left the country since the U.S. invasion than under the reign of former leader Saddam Hussein.
Without a question, this murder of these three professors did happen, since it is widely reported. It is also widely reported that professors are leaving Iraq in significant numbers. So, it is safe to say that the conclusions reached in this article are correct. How very sad.
The tragedy unfolding in the southern USA is also very, very sad. I would like to recommend that Americans call their local blood bank and see if they need more blood. I have heard they are low, and this is something no other country can do for us.
I wish that we had such extensive, heart-wrenching coverage of the reality of what is going on Iraq, particularly with the US bombing. First, it would inspire Americans to open their wallets to help Iraqis (directly, not via the US government corruption programs) and they would insist on an end to war. It amazes me that there are Americans who feel we cannot leave Iraq because the Iraqis could be worse off. This invasion and occupation has devastated that country and by every available measure, the Iraqis are worse off now than they were three years ago.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we started using our heads to create and protect and conserve – instead of destroy?
Imagine if we really protected and respected the environment, and respected and protected each other…….
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Letter to Christian Science Monitor
Here's what they published the other day (after I corrected the spelling errors):
Our US corporate media are focusing on Cindy Sheehan in an obsessive manner, as they are often prone to do, whether or not the story is of any substance. One could have a long discussion on why they act this way, but I do think this story has substance. We need to find out the real reasons we went to war in Iraq and what this administration hopes to accomplish there. There needs to be an accounting and responsibility for what has happened, both to the grieving parents and to our country and to the world.
But most importantly, to the Iraqi people.
Susan Oehler
Asheville, N.C.
And here is what they did not include, the first paragraph:
Mr. O'Neill claims in his opinion piece (The Iraq War and the Politics of Grief) that "antiwar forces push these families further into the spotlight." This is certainly not true for Cindy Sheehan. She has sought out the spotlight, and spoken out, at every opportunity allowed to her. She has publicly stated that she opposed this war from the very beginning, but did not act on her feelings until after her son's death. She has publicly stated that she regrets not having done so.
Our US corporate media are focusing on Cindy Sheehan in an obsessive manner, as they are often prone to do, whether or not the story is of any substance. One could have a long discussion on why they act this way, but I do think this story has substance. We need to find out the real reasons we went to war in Iraq and what this administration hopes to accomplish there. There needs to be an accounting and responsibility for what has happened, both to the grieving parents and to our country and to the world.
But most importantly, to the Iraqi people.
Susan Oehler
Asheville, N.C.
And here is what they did not include, the first paragraph:
Mr. O'Neill claims in his opinion piece (The Iraq War and the Politics of Grief) that "antiwar forces push these families further into the spotlight." This is certainly not true for Cindy Sheehan. She has sought out the spotlight, and spoken out, at every opportunity allowed to her. She has publicly stated that she opposed this war from the very beginning, but did not act on her feelings until after her son's death. She has publicly stated that she regrets not having done so.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Ali Nasir Jabur
Ali is a 10 year old who lives in Tikrit. I found his picture on Yahoo News photos by the Associated Press. Ali is squatting in the back of a truck, and in one photo he is looking at the photographer, and in another he is holding his head in his hands. There is not a single story written about Ali or what happened to him, just two photographs.
With Ali in the back of the truck is the dead bodies of his parents, his two brothers and his sister. The caption says that unknown gunman wearing Iraqi security forces raided their home the previous night, while Ali was hidden under a blanket. Ali survived. His family is dead. The world barely notices. I noticed.
I hope that the killers of these people are found and brought to justice. I hope the people who started this war, which lead to this awful, violent, lawless situation, are also brought to justice. I hope and pray that Ali will be okay, and I hope he finds this blog one day and knows that at least one American noticed what happened, that at least one American cared. And there is one more thing I will do: I will make 100 copies of the photo of Ali in the truck with his five dead family members and I will give one to each and every US Senator's office. I cannot guarantee that the Senators will see them, but someone working in their office will. I will write on there: HELP THIS CHILD. I will point out that they are responsible for having started this war which lead to this horrific loss for Ali, and that they are responsible for this child and his well being. And I will hold Ali and his friends, neighbors, relatives and fellow countrymen in the light.
I wish I could do more. I also wish (unkind and un-Christian as this may be) that this type of loss and suffering would come into the life of each and every warmonger.
May Ali's family rest in peace. May Ali find a decent life inspite of his unbelivable losses and his country in turmoil.
With Ali in the back of the truck is the dead bodies of his parents, his two brothers and his sister. The caption says that unknown gunman wearing Iraqi security forces raided their home the previous night, while Ali was hidden under a blanket. Ali survived. His family is dead. The world barely notices. I noticed.
I hope that the killers of these people are found and brought to justice. I hope the people who started this war, which lead to this awful, violent, lawless situation, are also brought to justice. I hope and pray that Ali will be okay, and I hope he finds this blog one day and knows that at least one American noticed what happened, that at least one American cared. And there is one more thing I will do: I will make 100 copies of the photo of Ali in the truck with his five dead family members and I will give one to each and every US Senator's office. I cannot guarantee that the Senators will see them, but someone working in their office will. I will write on there: HELP THIS CHILD. I will point out that they are responsible for having started this war which lead to this horrific loss for Ali, and that they are responsible for this child and his well being. And I will hold Ali and his friends, neighbors, relatives and fellow countrymen in the light.
I wish I could do more. I also wish (unkind and un-Christian as this may be) that this type of loss and suffering would come into the life of each and every warmonger.
May Ali's family rest in peace. May Ali find a decent life inspite of his unbelivable losses and his country in turmoil.
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Baghdad residents and US Troops
I was looking at Iraq Coalition Casualties webpage, and just noticed the following articles and what was said..... and what was NOT said.
Baghdad civilian death totals are extreme - from Washington Times
http://www.washtimes.com/upi/20050821-110618-6132r.htm
Here's the whole article: "Civilian deaths in Baghdad in July were more than New York City had in all of 2004, and that's excluding car bombings and suicide bombings. Time magazine reports the surge in non-combat related violence is due to the various sects in Iraq who want to start a civil war. Reports that death squads are entering quiet Baghdad neighborhoods and killing innocent civilians are growing. Baghdad central morgue director, Faiq Amin Bakr, said 880 violent deaths occurred in the city in July. There are more than 5 million people living in Baghdad. In New York City, with a population of about 8 million, 571 people were killed in 2004. In Baghdad, another 100 people were killed by terrorism in July.
(There you have it: all those deaths are caused by death squads and terrorists. No responsibility by Americans, and no excuses of PTSD either.)
However, this man lived to tell his tale:
Iraqi General Says US Troops Shot Him - Police
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - "An Iraqi general who commands the country's border defence force was shot and wounded while driving in Baghdad late on Saturday and accused U.S. troops of firing on his car, police and hospital sources said. The report could not be confirmed directly with the general; a U.S. military spokesman said he was unaware of an incident."
(Sorry not to link, but the link is so long, I'm afraid it will mess up the page.)
And finally, even though Baghdad residents are hearty souls who do not suffer from PTSD even after years of war in their city and seeing their neighbor down the street get blow to bits, having US troops fire at them, living without electricity, water, jobs, and the threat of night time raids into their homes by US troops, Iraqi troops, Wolf Brigade, and god-knows-who, this is not true of US service after a year in the conflict zone:
In Two Shooting by Iraq Vets, War Stress Blamed by Associated Press
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nevada/2005/aug/20/082010527.html
"One was a skinny 20-year-old discharged from the Army who couldn't shake the piercing rat-a-tat-tat reminders of combat. The other, a decorated Marine family man whose job preparing bodies of U.S. soldiers for burial had caused clammy, restless nights. Both home from duty in Iraq.."
"Flashbacks, nightmares, a struggle to reconnect to an old life - these are all signs of post-traumatic stress disorder that many soldiers suffer from. The Army's surgeon general has said 30 percent of U.S. troops surveyed have developed stress-related mental health problems just months after returning home. A New England Journal of Medicine study found almost 1 in 6 soldiers showing symptoms of mental stress."
That article is worth reading in full.
See how our media presents things? See how Americans can be so blind?
Baghdad civilian death totals are extreme - from Washington Times
http://www.washtimes.com/upi/20050821-110618-6132r.htm
Here's the whole article: "Civilian deaths in Baghdad in July were more than New York City had in all of 2004, and that's excluding car bombings and suicide bombings. Time magazine reports the surge in non-combat related violence is due to the various sects in Iraq who want to start a civil war. Reports that death squads are entering quiet Baghdad neighborhoods and killing innocent civilians are growing. Baghdad central morgue director, Faiq Amin Bakr, said 880 violent deaths occurred in the city in July. There are more than 5 million people living in Baghdad. In New York City, with a population of about 8 million, 571 people were killed in 2004. In Baghdad, another 100 people were killed by terrorism in July.
(There you have it: all those deaths are caused by death squads and terrorists. No responsibility by Americans, and no excuses of PTSD either.)
However, this man lived to tell his tale:
Iraqi General Says US Troops Shot Him - Police
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - "An Iraqi general who commands the country's border defence force was shot and wounded while driving in Baghdad late on Saturday and accused U.S. troops of firing on his car, police and hospital sources said. The report could not be confirmed directly with the general; a U.S. military spokesman said he was unaware of an incident."
(Sorry not to link, but the link is so long, I'm afraid it will mess up the page.)
And finally, even though Baghdad residents are hearty souls who do not suffer from PTSD even after years of war in their city and seeing their neighbor down the street get blow to bits, having US troops fire at them, living without electricity, water, jobs, and the threat of night time raids into their homes by US troops, Iraqi troops, Wolf Brigade, and god-knows-who, this is not true of US service after a year in the conflict zone:
In Two Shooting by Iraq Vets, War Stress Blamed by Associated Press
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/nevada/2005/aug/20/082010527.html
"One was a skinny 20-year-old discharged from the Army who couldn't shake the piercing rat-a-tat-tat reminders of combat. The other, a decorated Marine family man whose job preparing bodies of U.S. soldiers for burial had caused clammy, restless nights. Both home from duty in Iraq.."
"Flashbacks, nightmares, a struggle to reconnect to an old life - these are all signs of post-traumatic stress disorder that many soldiers suffer from. The Army's surgeon general has said 30 percent of U.S. troops surveyed have developed stress-related mental health problems just months after returning home. A New England Journal of Medicine study found almost 1 in 6 soldiers showing symptoms of mental stress."
That article is worth reading in full.
See how our media presents things? See how Americans can be so blind?
Driving by......
Frank Rich (NYT) wrote an article today called "The Swift Boating of Cindy Sheehan" that has this statement:
"THIS summer in Crawford, the White House went to this playbook once too often. When Mr. Bush's motorcade left a grieving mother in the dust to speed on to a fund-raiser, that was one fat-cat party too far."
This reminded me of the first time I heard Cindy speak - at Eyes Wide Open in Washington DC last January. It was the evening of the inauguration, and as she spoke stretch limo after stretch limo after stretch limo after stretch limo drive by. Oblivious.
Crawford wasn't the first time Bush supporters drove by Cindy Sheehan and ignored her and the pain inherent in their war policies.
"THIS summer in Crawford, the White House went to this playbook once too often. When Mr. Bush's motorcade left a grieving mother in the dust to speed on to a fund-raiser, that was one fat-cat party too far."
This reminded me of the first time I heard Cindy speak - at Eyes Wide Open in Washington DC last January. It was the evening of the inauguration, and as she spoke stretch limo after stretch limo after stretch limo after stretch limo drive by. Oblivious.
Crawford wasn't the first time Bush supporters drove by Cindy Sheehan and ignored her and the pain inherent in their war policies.
They didn't know? Come on, now!
This is a clip from TV NEWS LIES:
"This weekend CNN will launch a full frontal assault on the truth with their expose on the “intelligence failure” that led the US to believe that Iraq had WMD.
There will be no mention of the overwhelming majority of the global intelligence community who knew Iraq posed no threat.
There will be no mention of the Office of Special Plans set up to re-evaluate the findings of the US intelligence community.
There will be no mention of the cherry picking or the ignoring all opinions that did not support findings that would indicate Iraq was a threat.
There will be no mention on how Scott Ritter, Hans Blix & every single anti-war Bush hater liberal, was 100% correct about Iraq not being a threat.
There will be no mention of the PNAC plan to invade Iraq and about their New Pearl Harbor comments that gave them their free ticket to proceed with their insane plan.
..........You will only see scabs who will take the blame for the administration in order to make it seem as if there were actually people who felt Iraq was a real threat."
Tonight I emailed a women on a local listserve about the war and how we got into it. I told her that I figured out that Iraq had no nuclear WMDs, and even if they did have biological or chemical WMDs, they were not a threat to the USA. I noticed that most of the rest of the world was opposed to this war, including the majority of Iraq's neighbors. Now, if I was smart enough to figure this all out, they were too. And that INCLUDES THE DEMOCRATS. Never forget that Edwards made a bunch of money on this war, all legally. As did Cheney.
The reasons for this war do not lie in failed "intelligence". The reasons lie in the lies. This war is a lie. I remember Aaron Brown on CNN on the night of Powell's presentation to the UN. One would have to conclude he had no ability for critical thinking after watching that. I noticed the rest of the world didn't buy it, and neither did the UN. One would think that was a BIG FREAKING CLUE, IF YOU HAD A CLUE!
I remember Aaron Brown having Scott Ritter on his program and then he spent all his time asking Ritter about a dismissed arrest record instead of the WMD programs in Iraq. Brown acted like a mouthpiece for the Bush administration, and helped keep the American people stupid.
Maybe Brown really is that stupid, I don't know. But the entire White House staff and nearly the entire US Senate can not be that stupid. Especially Edwards: I wrote and told him the truth.
This CNN piece on "intelligence failure" is on Sunday night at 8 and 11 PM. Somebody please watch it and tell me if TV NEWS LIES is correct or not. I pulled the plug on them back in June of 2003. I figured they were useless. I predict that Sunday's program will be a massive "feel good" attempt by CNN to convince the American people that we were all just mistaken, but it couldn't be helped. Everybody was fooled, and no one is to blame. Lest of all, CNN.
"This weekend CNN will launch a full frontal assault on the truth with their expose on the “intelligence failure” that led the US to believe that Iraq had WMD.
There will be no mention of the overwhelming majority of the global intelligence community who knew Iraq posed no threat.
There will be no mention of the Office of Special Plans set up to re-evaluate the findings of the US intelligence community.
There will be no mention of the cherry picking or the ignoring all opinions that did not support findings that would indicate Iraq was a threat.
There will be no mention on how Scott Ritter, Hans Blix & every single anti-war Bush hater liberal, was 100% correct about Iraq not being a threat.
There will be no mention of the PNAC plan to invade Iraq and about their New Pearl Harbor comments that gave them their free ticket to proceed with their insane plan.
..........You will only see scabs who will take the blame for the administration in order to make it seem as if there were actually people who felt Iraq was a real threat."
Tonight I emailed a women on a local listserve about the war and how we got into it. I told her that I figured out that Iraq had no nuclear WMDs, and even if they did have biological or chemical WMDs, they were not a threat to the USA. I noticed that most of the rest of the world was opposed to this war, including the majority of Iraq's neighbors. Now, if I was smart enough to figure this all out, they were too. And that INCLUDES THE DEMOCRATS. Never forget that Edwards made a bunch of money on this war, all legally. As did Cheney.
The reasons for this war do not lie in failed "intelligence". The reasons lie in the lies. This war is a lie. I remember Aaron Brown on CNN on the night of Powell's presentation to the UN. One would have to conclude he had no ability for critical thinking after watching that. I noticed the rest of the world didn't buy it, and neither did the UN. One would think that was a BIG FREAKING CLUE, IF YOU HAD A CLUE!
I remember Aaron Brown having Scott Ritter on his program and then he spent all his time asking Ritter about a dismissed arrest record instead of the WMD programs in Iraq. Brown acted like a mouthpiece for the Bush administration, and helped keep the American people stupid.
Maybe Brown really is that stupid, I don't know. But the entire White House staff and nearly the entire US Senate can not be that stupid. Especially Edwards: I wrote and told him the truth.
This CNN piece on "intelligence failure" is on Sunday night at 8 and 11 PM. Somebody please watch it and tell me if TV NEWS LIES is correct or not. I pulled the plug on them back in June of 2003. I figured they were useless. I predict that Sunday's program will be a massive "feel good" attempt by CNN to convince the American people that we were all just mistaken, but it couldn't be helped. Everybody was fooled, and no one is to blame. Lest of all, CNN.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
The story of our "Vigil for Cindy"
Tonight, over 264 people in Asheville came together to hold a candlelight vigil to show support for Cindy Sheehan. The main reason Cindy is popular in Asheville is because she came to speak at our Peace Rally last March and she touched a lot of hearts. I first started emailing Cindy sometime last fall. In January, I realized that she would be at the EYES WIDE OPEN exhibit in DC, where I was volunteering to work. That was the first time I got to talk to her in person. She was a terrific speaker, and as she spoke, I struggled to keep the candles going in the cold DC wind. (More on my experiences in DC last January are in my blog.)
I asked Cindy to come to Asheville to speak at our rally, which she gladly did, at her own expense. She had spoken in Fayetteville the day before. As always, she was a great speaker. Some time after that, I looked at Cindy's statements and pictures with her meeting with Bush in June 2004. I asked her about these statements, and the first thing she said was that she was still in shock when that meeting took place. She then said that she went on (after the Bush meeting) to investigate further what was going on in Iraq and how we got into that war in the first place. In short, she educated herself. She saw through all the lies behind this war. That was what inspired her to become an activist. And she is, quite clearly, driven.
It was a great pleasure to go on the radio program Listen To Women with Cindy and two Vets for Peace and two local poets on the evening of the Peace Rally. It was a great program that we did.
I have found over the past year that I do not agree 100% with Cindy's positions. One example of that was when I gave her grief this past June for giving hugs to Representative Walter Jones (R- NC). Jones had changed his position on the war: when it started, he was all for it. Today, he is calling for the US troops to come home. But I was still thinking that Jones was doing this for political expediency, not from a change of heart. One factor that caused me to see him in this light was the fact that he eloquently went on and on about the American losses in this war, while he did not bring up the Iraqi losses, which were far, far worse. Cindy defended him, saying that he had to come farther than she did, but the important thing is that he has awakened to the truth about this war. So, I decided to go meet Representative Walter Jones, and it was claiming that I was a friend of Cindy's that got me in the door. I took along my display boards of Iraqi casualties, which I showed to his staff. I did not see Representative Jones until I returned later to see if Cindy was available to go to lunch with me (she was involved with the media, I think Democracy Now! was doing an interview). Then I got to talk to Jones, and I could tell that he was aware of the price the Iraqi people are paying and aware of the nonsense of this war.
Tonight, we held a "Vigil for Cindy." It was one of 1,700+ rallies across the nation. As people spoke and sang, I did exactly what I did in DC when I listened to Cindy speak: I struggled to keep the candles light. Tonight, it was not a cold wind that blew out the candles, it was instead a soft and gentle summer rain. I find gentle summertime rains to be a blessing and a joy.
They did weaken the paper bags used for the luminaries, however, which caused them to fall over on the flame and then go up in a small, but spectacular fire.
It was cool to watch.
I asked Cindy to come to Asheville to speak at our rally, which she gladly did, at her own expense. She had spoken in Fayetteville the day before. As always, she was a great speaker. Some time after that, I looked at Cindy's statements and pictures with her meeting with Bush in June 2004. I asked her about these statements, and the first thing she said was that she was still in shock when that meeting took place. She then said that she went on (after the Bush meeting) to investigate further what was going on in Iraq and how we got into that war in the first place. In short, she educated herself. She saw through all the lies behind this war. That was what inspired her to become an activist. And she is, quite clearly, driven.
It was a great pleasure to go on the radio program Listen To Women with Cindy and two Vets for Peace and two local poets on the evening of the Peace Rally. It was a great program that we did.
I have found over the past year that I do not agree 100% with Cindy's positions. One example of that was when I gave her grief this past June for giving hugs to Representative Walter Jones (R- NC). Jones had changed his position on the war: when it started, he was all for it. Today, he is calling for the US troops to come home. But I was still thinking that Jones was doing this for political expediency, not from a change of heart. One factor that caused me to see him in this light was the fact that he eloquently went on and on about the American losses in this war, while he did not bring up the Iraqi losses, which were far, far worse. Cindy defended him, saying that he had to come farther than she did, but the important thing is that he has awakened to the truth about this war. So, I decided to go meet Representative Walter Jones, and it was claiming that I was a friend of Cindy's that got me in the door. I took along my display boards of Iraqi casualties, which I showed to his staff. I did not see Representative Jones until I returned later to see if Cindy was available to go to lunch with me (she was involved with the media, I think Democracy Now! was doing an interview). Then I got to talk to Jones, and I could tell that he was aware of the price the Iraqi people are paying and aware of the nonsense of this war.
Tonight, we held a "Vigil for Cindy." It was one of 1,700+ rallies across the nation. As people spoke and sang, I did exactly what I did in DC when I listened to Cindy speak: I struggled to keep the candles light. Tonight, it was not a cold wind that blew out the candles, it was instead a soft and gentle summer rain. I find gentle summertime rains to be a blessing and a joy.
They did weaken the paper bags used for the luminaries, however, which caused them to fall over on the flame and then go up in a small, but spectacular fire.
It was cool to watch.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Cindy Sheehan's statement
This is George Bush’s Accountability Moment
This is George Bush’s accountability moment. That’s why I’m here.
The mainstream media aren’t holding him accountable. Neither is Congress. So I’m not leaving Crawford until he’s held accountable. It’s ironic, given the attacks leveled at me recently, how some in the media are so quick to scrutinize -- and distort -- the words and actions of a grieving mother but not the words and actions of the president of the United States.
But now it’s time for him to level with me and with the American people. I think that’s why there’s been such an outpouring of support. This is giving the 61 percent of Americans who feel that the war is wrong something to do -- something that allows their voices to be heard. It’s a way for them to stand up and show that they DO want our troops home, and that they know this war IS a mistake… a mistake they want to see corrected.
It’s too late to bring back the people who are already dead, but there are tens of thousands of people still in harm’s way. There is too much at stake to worry about our own egos. When my son was killed, I had to face the fact that I was somehow also responsible for what happened.
Every American that allows this to continue has, to some extent, blood on their hands. Some of us have a little bit, and some of us are soaked in it. People have asked what it is I want to say to President Bush. Well, my message is a simple one. He’s said that my son -- and the other children we’ve lost -- died for a noble cause. I want to find out what that noble cause is. And I want to ask him: “If it’s such a noble cause, have you asked your daughters to enlist? Have you encouraged them to go take the place of soldiers who are on their third tour of duty?” I also want him to stop using my son’s name to justify the war. The idea that we have to “complete the mission” in Iraq to honor Casey’s sacrifice is, to me, a sacrilege to my son’s name. Besides, does the president any longer even know what “the mission” really is over there?
Casey knew that the war was wrong from the beginning. But he felt it was his duty to go, that his buddies were going, and that he had no choice. The people who send our young, honorable, brave soldiers to die in this war, have no skin in the game. They don’t have any loved ones in harm’s way. As for people like O’Reilly and Hannity and Michelle Malkin and Rush Limbaugh and all the others who are attacking me and parroting the administration line that we must complete the mission there -- they don’t have one thing at stake. They don’t suffer through sleepless nights worrying about their loved ones.
Before this all started, I used to think that one person couldn’t make a difference... but now I see that one person who has the backing and support of millions of people can make a huge difference. That’s why I’m going to be out here until one of three things happens: It’s August 31st and the president’s vacation ends and he leaves Crawford. They take me away in a squad car. Or he finally agrees to speak with me.
If he does, he’d better be prepared for me to hold his feet to the fire. If he starts talking about freedom and democracy -- or about how the war in Iraq is protecting America -- I’m not going to let him get away with it. Like I said, this is George Bush’s accountability moment.
MoveOn and True Majority has asked people to hold candlelight vigils to show support for Cindy Sheehan. I often find I am not on the same page as MoveOn, but this is one event I agreed to host. There will be a candlelight vigil at 7:30 PM on August 17, 2005 at Pack Square in downtown Asheville. I will do the candle luminary around the fountain again, and after it gets dark, it is beautiful.
This is George Bush’s accountability moment. That’s why I’m here.
The mainstream media aren’t holding him accountable. Neither is Congress. So I’m not leaving Crawford until he’s held accountable. It’s ironic, given the attacks leveled at me recently, how some in the media are so quick to scrutinize -- and distort -- the words and actions of a grieving mother but not the words and actions of the president of the United States.
But now it’s time for him to level with me and with the American people. I think that’s why there’s been such an outpouring of support. This is giving the 61 percent of Americans who feel that the war is wrong something to do -- something that allows their voices to be heard. It’s a way for them to stand up and show that they DO want our troops home, and that they know this war IS a mistake… a mistake they want to see corrected.
It’s too late to bring back the people who are already dead, but there are tens of thousands of people still in harm’s way. There is too much at stake to worry about our own egos. When my son was killed, I had to face the fact that I was somehow also responsible for what happened.
Every American that allows this to continue has, to some extent, blood on their hands. Some of us have a little bit, and some of us are soaked in it. People have asked what it is I want to say to President Bush. Well, my message is a simple one. He’s said that my son -- and the other children we’ve lost -- died for a noble cause. I want to find out what that noble cause is. And I want to ask him: “If it’s such a noble cause, have you asked your daughters to enlist? Have you encouraged them to go take the place of soldiers who are on their third tour of duty?” I also want him to stop using my son’s name to justify the war. The idea that we have to “complete the mission” in Iraq to honor Casey’s sacrifice is, to me, a sacrilege to my son’s name. Besides, does the president any longer even know what “the mission” really is over there?
Casey knew that the war was wrong from the beginning. But he felt it was his duty to go, that his buddies were going, and that he had no choice. The people who send our young, honorable, brave soldiers to die in this war, have no skin in the game. They don’t have any loved ones in harm’s way. As for people like O’Reilly and Hannity and Michelle Malkin and Rush Limbaugh and all the others who are attacking me and parroting the administration line that we must complete the mission there -- they don’t have one thing at stake. They don’t suffer through sleepless nights worrying about their loved ones.
Before this all started, I used to think that one person couldn’t make a difference... but now I see that one person who has the backing and support of millions of people can make a huge difference. That’s why I’m going to be out here until one of three things happens: It’s August 31st and the president’s vacation ends and he leaves Crawford. They take me away in a squad car. Or he finally agrees to speak with me.
If he does, he’d better be prepared for me to hold his feet to the fire. If he starts talking about freedom and democracy -- or about how the war in Iraq is protecting America -- I’m not going to let him get away with it. Like I said, this is George Bush’s accountability moment.
MoveOn and True Majority has asked people to hold candlelight vigils to show support for Cindy Sheehan. I often find I am not on the same page as MoveOn, but this is one event I agreed to host. There will be a candlelight vigil at 7:30 PM on August 17, 2005 at Pack Square in downtown Asheville. I will do the candle luminary around the fountain again, and after it gets dark, it is beautiful.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Bless the children....
Every night, I look at the photos from Yahoo News. There are a bunch of photos there tonight of children who have been hurt by violence in Iraq. The news story says the Iraqis claim the US military fired at them, and the US military claims they did not. Regardless of who fired the weapon, it is the US military's responsibility to keep the children safe. They are failing to do so.
There are also pictures of Iraqi homes that have been trashed by US troops doing searches at 3 AM. If this happened in America, having foreign troops come into people's homes for searches and trashing the homes, there would be an insurgency that would put all prior insurgencies in the entire history of the world to shame. Imagine how that type of search in the middle of the night would scare the heck out of the children..... Imagine how it would undermine their beliefs that Mommy and Daddy, who are big and strong and know everything, would keep them safe......
God Bless the Children caught up in war.
There are also pictures of Iraqi homes that have been trashed by US troops doing searches at 3 AM. If this happened in America, having foreign troops come into people's homes for searches and trashing the homes, there would be an insurgency that would put all prior insurgencies in the entire history of the world to shame. Imagine how that type of search in the middle of the night would scare the heck out of the children..... Imagine how it would undermine their beliefs that Mommy and Daddy, who are big and strong and know everything, would keep them safe......
God Bless the Children caught up in war.
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Lighting Candles
Last night, our local Peace Coalition group marked the 60th anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki. We had a candlelight prayer vigil in our square downtown here in Asheville. We started with a circle with about 35 people there, and then we set up candle luminaries and floating candles around the fountain in Pack Square. It looked quite beautiful and peaceful.
I don’t know if our prayers and wishes for the innocent victims of war will stop any future killing or stop any future wars or even stop any more dropping of nuclear bombs. I just know I have to light a candle (well, many of them) against the darkness and the evil of war and nuclear bombs. I know we have to win this struggle before we put an end to any more innocent lives, before we ruin our world with nuclear pollution. Never in the history of humankind has a weapon been made and then not utilized, but with these nuclear weapons, we must make sure that does not happen – not now, not ever.
Also, I want to say I am so proud of my friend, Cindy Sheehan, who is protesting outside Bush’s ranch in Texas. She is finally getting some publicity (more than she got for our March 19th/20th rallies and march). I am proud of what she is doing, and proud to call her my friend. I can only imagine that camping out in the Texas heat is much easier than burying your child from a senseless war.
Cindy and Gold Star Families for Peace have asked all of us to call the White House (202-456-1111) or email Mr. Bush (president@whitehouse.gov) and tell him: “ Talk to Cindy”.
And contributions to Gold Star Families for Peace or Code Pink would also be appreciated.
I don’t know if our prayers and wishes for the innocent victims of war will stop any future killing or stop any future wars or even stop any more dropping of nuclear bombs. I just know I have to light a candle (well, many of them) against the darkness and the evil of war and nuclear bombs. I know we have to win this struggle before we put an end to any more innocent lives, before we ruin our world with nuclear pollution. Never in the history of humankind has a weapon been made and then not utilized, but with these nuclear weapons, we must make sure that does not happen – not now, not ever.
Also, I want to say I am so proud of my friend, Cindy Sheehan, who is protesting outside Bush’s ranch in Texas. She is finally getting some publicity (more than she got for our March 19th/20th rallies and march). I am proud of what she is doing, and proud to call her my friend. I can only imagine that camping out in the Texas heat is much easier than burying your child from a senseless war.
Cindy and Gold Star Families for Peace have asked all of us to call the White House (202-456-1111) or email Mr. Bush (president@whitehouse.gov) and tell him: “ Talk to Cindy”.
And contributions to Gold Star Families for Peace or Code Pink would also be appreciated.
Thursday, August 04, 2005
response to those on the wrong side of things
The following comments were in response to a website called Right Wing News. The comments from Right Wing News are in quotes.
"Given all that, how any informed person can buy into Lancet's numbers is simply beyond me."
The larger point is this: if we are there to bring the Iraqi people freedom and democracy, how come this administration is making NO efforts to record and document the number and type and severity of civilian casualties and civilian suffering? This speaks volumes.
"Furthermore, after the war had begun, in September of 2003, President Bush himself publicly & explicitly said: "We have no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with the 11 September attacks." It doesn't get much clearer than that."
You are right, it doesn't get much clearer than that, even though Bush mentioned terrorism about 33 times in his speech last month to bolster support for the Iraq war. Why are we in Iraq? WHY HAVEN'T WE CAUGHT BIN LADEN?
"The problem with trying to claim that the war in Iraq was preordained during some 1998 PNAC meeting is that the United States government has been trying to find a way to get rid of Saddam Hussein since the Gulf War."
Go read PNAC. They are interested in way more than the Middle East. If you have no morals and want to get rich, buy stock in companies like Lockheed Martin. The time to do something about Saddam was early 1980's. Reagan blew it. Rumsfeld was buddy-buddy with Saddam back then. Oh, and who was it that thought we should have a proxy war against the Russians in Afghanistan???? That turned out not to be such a great idea, arming and training Bin Laden's group. But for those with no morals and the right stocks, it was financially very rewarding.
"Why are we going to invade Iraq? Nine days after 9/11, George Bush said, "(W)e will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation in every region now has a decision to make: Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime."
Does this mean that Bush is going to do some shock and awe on Britain? They clearly have terrorists there, and if we bomb them to rubble, that will take care of that problem.
"Kerry even pointed out that he thought Saddam might give WMDs to terrorists."
Do you really think Kerry is that stupid? Or Bush? How come some right-wingers like you think the "Democrats are stupid, too!" is a valid argument? It makes you look stupid to argue that Democrats are as stupid as Republicans, because, frankly, neither group is stupid. And the political posturing done to make them look like they are really fighting each other is for the stupid American’s entertainment. It serves no other real purpose. Meanwhile, they get rich.
'The man who blew up the World Trade Center in 1993 was sheltered by Saddam Hussein'
I don't know about the rest of Hitchen's claims, but this one isn't true.
"What the 9/11 Commission was trying to get across was that there was no evidence that Saddam and Al-Qaeda collaborated on specific attacks, not that they didn't have a working relationship."
If they had a working relationship then they would have collaborated on attacks. That's what terrorism is: attacking civilians to inspire terror. It is not about garden parties or charity balls.
“Consider this comment by former CIA Director George Tenet in a letter to the Senate Intelligence Committee on October 7, 2002: "Credible reporting states that al Qaeda leaders sought contacts in Iraq who could help them acquire WMD capabilities. The reporting also stated that Iraq has provided training to al Qaeda members in the areas of poisons and gases and making conventional bombs."
That would be the same Tenet that said finding the WMDs in Iraq would be a "slam dunk".
"Here's more from Richard Miniter, author of "Losing Bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror": "
Hey, remember when Clinton wanted to bomb Afghanistan to get Bin Laden and the Republicans said he was "wagging the dog" to detract from his Oval Office blowjob? I'm glad Clinton didn't bomb Bin Laden because I am sure that he (like Bush) would have killed civilians. Do you think Bush is at all concerned about the civilians who died in the bombing of Iraq? No, I don't think so either. By the way, I know a couple of Americans who were in Baghdad in the summer and fall of 2003 and they met a baby whose parents, siblings and aunts were bombed to death in April 2003 by US bombs. The baby was thrown from the house and landed in a puddle in a neighbor's yard. They call her the "miracle baby" since she survived and no one else in her family did. That was one of the "surgical strikes" to get Saddam. The family had never even talked to Saddam, much less had him in their home. Do you think anyone will bomb you in your home one day?
“We had already been bombing the Iraqis in the no-fly zone and we increased the pace to soften them up a bit just in case we had to go in. It probably saved the lives of some of our soldiers and almost no one except members of Saddam's government seemed upset about it while it was actually going on."
That bombing killed civilians too, and I (for one) was upset about it. Why did we need to "soften them up"? Didn't we have the superior military? Do you think the 9/11 attacks and the London bombings were to "soften us up"? I know for a fact that lots of Iraqis were upset about the US bombings all along. I would be upset too if someone dropped (or set off) bombs in my country. How about you?
"Bush, like a lot of other people, was wrong about Saddam Hussein having stockpiles of WMDs. But without question, he did not lie about it."
Now, if I started a war that turned out to be over a bunch of baloney about invisible WMDs.... and I didn't lie about it.....I'd be pissed off as all hell at the fools who mislead me. I'd fire Tenet for his stupid comments about "slam-dunk". I'd damn sure fire a heck of a lot more people than just Tenet. But, I'm an audiologist. And I knew they were not going to find any nuclear WMDs in Iraq. That was very clear. And, it was unlikely they would find any other kind of WMDs there, but if they did, those weapons would not be able to hurt the USA. And, amazingly enough, most of the countries around Iraq did not feel threatened at all, and did not support a war. What's up with that? I remember Powell and Rice claiming in 2001 that Saddam was contained and not a threat. Funny how nobody else in DC remembers that. I knew Powell's presentation at the UN in 2003 was based on heresy and circumstantial evidence. The rest of the world (outside of the USA) figured that out too, which was why the UN did not pass a resolution to go to war in Iraq. I remember people like Cheney and Rumsfeld and Tenet saying they knew where the WMDs were - yet they would not tell the UN inspectors. Now, why was that?
Could it be they wanted a war, no matter what? And did all those Democrats who also claimed to believe all this WMD nonsense also feel that way? I sat in on a public US Senate Armed Services Committee meeting last month, and it was all about POLITICAL POSTURING and damn little else. Little concern about the troops, none for the Iraqi people that we are supposedly bringing "freedom and democracy" to (and I don't believe that one either), but lots of concern about how the American public is starting to NOT support this war - which impacts on their REELECTION PROSPECTS.
There is not a dime's worth of difference between most of the Republicans and the Democrats up in DC today. And none of them were so stupid to really think there was a treat in Iraq to the USA, no matter how they lie or how they act. And the majority of them (Cheney and Edwards, for sure) made a great deal of money off this war while their kids don't serve. Think about it. Either they lied, or they were very STUPID. Do you really think they are that STUPID with all that wealth they have?
"Given all that, how any informed person can buy into Lancet's numbers is simply beyond me."
The larger point is this: if we are there to bring the Iraqi people freedom and democracy, how come this administration is making NO efforts to record and document the number and type and severity of civilian casualties and civilian suffering? This speaks volumes.
"Furthermore, after the war had begun, in September of 2003, President Bush himself publicly & explicitly said: "We have no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with the 11 September attacks." It doesn't get much clearer than that."
You are right, it doesn't get much clearer than that, even though Bush mentioned terrorism about 33 times in his speech last month to bolster support for the Iraq war. Why are we in Iraq? WHY HAVEN'T WE CAUGHT BIN LADEN?
"The problem with trying to claim that the war in Iraq was preordained during some 1998 PNAC meeting is that the United States government has been trying to find a way to get rid of Saddam Hussein since the Gulf War."
Go read PNAC. They are interested in way more than the Middle East. If you have no morals and want to get rich, buy stock in companies like Lockheed Martin. The time to do something about Saddam was early 1980's. Reagan blew it. Rumsfeld was buddy-buddy with Saddam back then. Oh, and who was it that thought we should have a proxy war against the Russians in Afghanistan???? That turned out not to be such a great idea, arming and training Bin Laden's group. But for those with no morals and the right stocks, it was financially very rewarding.
"Why are we going to invade Iraq? Nine days after 9/11, George Bush said, "(W)e will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation in every region now has a decision to make: Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime."
Does this mean that Bush is going to do some shock and awe on Britain? They clearly have terrorists there, and if we bomb them to rubble, that will take care of that problem.
"Kerry even pointed out that he thought Saddam might give WMDs to terrorists."
Do you really think Kerry is that stupid? Or Bush? How come some right-wingers like you think the "Democrats are stupid, too!" is a valid argument? It makes you look stupid to argue that Democrats are as stupid as Republicans, because, frankly, neither group is stupid. And the political posturing done to make them look like they are really fighting each other is for the stupid American’s entertainment. It serves no other real purpose. Meanwhile, they get rich.
'The man who blew up the World Trade Center in 1993 was sheltered by Saddam Hussein'
I don't know about the rest of Hitchen's claims, but this one isn't true.
"What the 9/11 Commission was trying to get across was that there was no evidence that Saddam and Al-Qaeda collaborated on specific attacks, not that they didn't have a working relationship."
If they had a working relationship then they would have collaborated on attacks. That's what terrorism is: attacking civilians to inspire terror. It is not about garden parties or charity balls.
“Consider this comment by former CIA Director George Tenet in a letter to the Senate Intelligence Committee on October 7, 2002: "Credible reporting states that al Qaeda leaders sought contacts in Iraq who could help them acquire WMD capabilities. The reporting also stated that Iraq has provided training to al Qaeda members in the areas of poisons and gases and making conventional bombs."
That would be the same Tenet that said finding the WMDs in Iraq would be a "slam dunk".
"Here's more from Richard Miniter, author of "Losing Bin Laden: How Bill Clinton's Failures Unleashed Global Terror": "
Hey, remember when Clinton wanted to bomb Afghanistan to get Bin Laden and the Republicans said he was "wagging the dog" to detract from his Oval Office blowjob? I'm glad Clinton didn't bomb Bin Laden because I am sure that he (like Bush) would have killed civilians. Do you think Bush is at all concerned about the civilians who died in the bombing of Iraq? No, I don't think so either. By the way, I know a couple of Americans who were in Baghdad in the summer and fall of 2003 and they met a baby whose parents, siblings and aunts were bombed to death in April 2003 by US bombs. The baby was thrown from the house and landed in a puddle in a neighbor's yard. They call her the "miracle baby" since she survived and no one else in her family did. That was one of the "surgical strikes" to get Saddam. The family had never even talked to Saddam, much less had him in their home. Do you think anyone will bomb you in your home one day?
“We had already been bombing the Iraqis in the no-fly zone and we increased the pace to soften them up a bit just in case we had to go in. It probably saved the lives of some of our soldiers and almost no one except members of Saddam's government seemed upset about it while it was actually going on."
That bombing killed civilians too, and I (for one) was upset about it. Why did we need to "soften them up"? Didn't we have the superior military? Do you think the 9/11 attacks and the London bombings were to "soften us up"? I know for a fact that lots of Iraqis were upset about the US bombings all along. I would be upset too if someone dropped (or set off) bombs in my country. How about you?
"Bush, like a lot of other people, was wrong about Saddam Hussein having stockpiles of WMDs. But without question, he did not lie about it."
Now, if I started a war that turned out to be over a bunch of baloney about invisible WMDs.... and I didn't lie about it.....I'd be pissed off as all hell at the fools who mislead me. I'd fire Tenet for his stupid comments about "slam-dunk". I'd damn sure fire a heck of a lot more people than just Tenet. But, I'm an audiologist. And I knew they were not going to find any nuclear WMDs in Iraq. That was very clear. And, it was unlikely they would find any other kind of WMDs there, but if they did, those weapons would not be able to hurt the USA. And, amazingly enough, most of the countries around Iraq did not feel threatened at all, and did not support a war. What's up with that? I remember Powell and Rice claiming in 2001 that Saddam was contained and not a threat. Funny how nobody else in DC remembers that. I knew Powell's presentation at the UN in 2003 was based on heresy and circumstantial evidence. The rest of the world (outside of the USA) figured that out too, which was why the UN did not pass a resolution to go to war in Iraq. I remember people like Cheney and Rumsfeld and Tenet saying they knew where the WMDs were - yet they would not tell the UN inspectors. Now, why was that?
Could it be they wanted a war, no matter what? And did all those Democrats who also claimed to believe all this WMD nonsense also feel that way? I sat in on a public US Senate Armed Services Committee meeting last month, and it was all about POLITICAL POSTURING and damn little else. Little concern about the troops, none for the Iraqi people that we are supposedly bringing "freedom and democracy" to (and I don't believe that one either), but lots of concern about how the American public is starting to NOT support this war - which impacts on their REELECTION PROSPECTS.
There is not a dime's worth of difference between most of the Republicans and the Democrats up in DC today. And none of them were so stupid to really think there was a treat in Iraq to the USA, no matter how they lie or how they act. And the majority of them (Cheney and Edwards, for sure) made a great deal of money off this war while their kids don't serve. Think about it. Either they lied, or they were very STUPID. Do you really think they are that STUPID with all that wealth they have?
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