Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Winter Soldier testimony starts Thursday
Admiral William Fallon's resignation as head of the US Central Command overseeing Middle East operations is a powerful statement by a military leader. Not that he had a choice, after opposing US policy with regard to Iran. He also was the messenger who said that Afghanistan is not doing well and that the soldiers necessary to bring that operation under control are tied down in Iraq.
Of course, we always shoot the messenger, but Fallon's message has been heard. Shinseki was heard before him, and so on.
When the military itself begins to object to a war, the light goes on at the end of the tunnel.
In 1971, at an event called Winter Soldier, a group of Vietnam War veterans exposed the corruption, the abuses, and the human rights violations of that war.
Starting tomorrow, Thursday, another group of courageous soldiers will do the same for the Iraq war. On Maui, the event will be recorded and broadcast by Akaku, but so far the best bet for everyone else will be to use your computer to catch the streaming program or to view the on-demand video afterwards. In either case, a good starting point is here, How to watch and listen to Winter Soldier.
According to their web page:
Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan will give veterans and service members the chance to speak out and share their experiences about what is really happening, day in and day out in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The four-day event in Washington, D.C. will bring together veterans and service members from across the country to testify about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan - and present video and photographic evidence. There also will be panels of scholars, veterans, journalists, and others to give context to the testimony.
As the event is taking place in Washington, groups all over the country will be gathering to watch the testimony live via audio and video feed.
The event runs from Thursday March 13 to Sunday March 16.
Here's a "trailer" snipped from their web page:
Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan
And 5 minutes of Pete Seeger on Winter Soldier:
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