Sharon,
Sharon, Interfaith folks and Vets,
Sharon wrote to me: As you may know, I am organizing a session here at UAA
while Kathy Kelly is in Alaska. It is on Monday, October 16th at 2:30. I am
arranging this as panel discussion and am looking for someone who would be
willing to speak for the Bush Adm.'s position on the war in Iraq.
My response: The only person I can think of is Rev Rick Koch who is a
chaplain in the Army. He spoke at our forum on the 3rd anniversary of the
war last March. He basically stuck to what he saw while serving in the north
of Iraq where indeed the Kurds are relatively OK with the US occupation. He
did not venture beyond the view of just "helping out, until...???" So he did
not venture into policy or long-term plans or objectives.
I am cc'ing my contacts in the Anchorage Interfaith group who would
certainly know how to get in contact with Rick. If Rick is not able or
willing, maybe someone in this group could offer you a name.
The other person I can think of is Laddie Shaw (landlshaw@gci.net) who is a
Vietnam Vet who guessed that he and I would disagree on some things when I
invited him to join Vets for Peace. I will also cc my Vets for Peace folks
to see if they know of anyone.
Jon Lockert
jon4paz@acsalaska.net
Breathe, smile & work for Peace
-----Original Message-----
From: Sharon K. Araji [mailto:afska1@uaa.alaska.edu]
Jon,
As you may know, I am organizing a session here at UAA while Kathy Kelly
is in Alaska. It is on Monday, October 16th at 2:30. I am arranging this
as panel discussion and am looking for someone who would be willing to
speak for the Bush Adm.'s position on the war in Iraq. Do you or anyone
in the AK for Peace and Justice know who I might contact? I have gone
through a list of about 8 people and only found one who is willing to
take this position.
Thanks,
Sharon K. ARaji
jon4paz@acsalaska.net wrote:
>Note: For those of us who think we can somehow muddle thru in Iraq, the
military folks cited in this article will dissuade you from our wishful
thinking. While it is long article, the kind of world we will live in for
years to come depends on the choices we make now. Please pass on to as many
folks as you can.
>
>Revolt of the Generals
>By Richard J. Whalen, The Nation
>Thursday 28 September 2006
>
> A revolt is brewing among our retired Army and Marine generals.This
rebellion - quiet and nonconfrontational, but remarkable nonetheless - comes
not because their beloved forces are bearing thebrunt of ground combat in
Iraq but because the retirees see the USadventure in Mesopotamia as another
Vietnam-like, strategically failedwar, and they blame the errant, arrogant
civilian leadership at thePentagon. The dissenters include two generals who
led combat troops inIraq: Maj. Gen. Charles Swannack Jr., who commanded the
82nd AirborneDivision, and Maj. Gen. John Batiste, who led the First
InfantryDivision (the "Big Red One"). These men recently sacrificed
theircareers by retiring and joining the public protest.
>
> In late September Batiste, along with two other retired seniorofficers,
spoke out about these failures at a Washington Democraticpolicy hearing,
with Batiste saying Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeldwas "not a competent
wartime leader" who made "dismal strategicdecisions" that "resulted in the
unnecessary deaths of Americanservicemen and women, our allies and the good
people of Iraq."Rumsfeld, he said, "dismissed honest dissent" and "did not
tell theAmerican people the truth for fear of losing support for the
war."</p><p class="mobile-post"> This kind of protest among senior
military retirees during wartimeis unprecedented in American history - and
it is also deeply worrisome.The retired officers opposing the war and
demanding Rumsfeld's ousterrepresent a new political force, and therefore a
potentially powerfulfactor in the future of our democracy. The former
generals' growinglobby could acquire a unique veto power in the future by
publiclyopposing reckless civilian warmaking
>Once we get our troops safely out, a newly elected, post-2008administration
in Washington may be able to begin reassemblingAmerica's scattered global
allies to address the region's problemsanew, next time multilaterally, and
through diplomacy rather thanpre-emptive unilateral military force.</p><p
class="mobile-post"> America is a uniquely favored nation that redefines
itself in eachgeneration. But we have had a lifetime of embracing one
democraticglobal war, and numerous presidentially inspired, politicized
andsecret smaller wars that have turned out badly. Sixty-five years
afterPearl Harbor, we owe it to the past three generations to resume
thedebate on our national identity, suspended on December 7, 1941,
andforeshortened on September 11, 2001.</p><p class="mobile-post"> In the
post-cold war era, we have severely cut back our militarymanpower, reducing
the regular Army to only 480,000 troops, but we havenot cut back
fantastically expensive Air Force weapons systems or thesom
>A key argument in the ex-generals' indictment is this undeniablefact: Our
armed forces are too small to police and reorder the worldand intervene
almost blindly, as we have in Iraq. That invasion actedout the
world-changing daydreams of pro-Israel neoconservative policyintellectuals
like Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle and others who gainedwarmaking power and
influence atop the Pentagon but who evidently neverasked themselves, Suppose
we're wrong? What happens then? Sober,realistic Israelis privately fear the
neocons' "friendship," and whereit has led America, more than any Arab
enemies. In the inevitablepost-Iraq War tsunami of US political
recrimination, such Israelisforesee Christian Zionist evangelicals, whose
lobbying muscle inCongress was decisive in the run-up to the Iraq War,
attempting toscapegoat the high-profile neocons and endangering
Israel'sall-important security ties to the United States.</p><p
class="mobile-post"> Growing public disgust and frustration with the Iraq
>
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Alaskans Working Together to End the War in Iraq
>
>REPLY TO: peace@alaskans4peace.org
>
>
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