GI SPECIAL 6E14:
FUCK THE 82ND;
I’M HERE FOR THE PHOTO OP
The disgusting, dishonorable rat traitor piece of shit Bush ignores the salute from soldiers at a review of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, May 22, 2008, at Fort Bragg, N.C. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
It’s Over
[Except For The Dying In Vain]
Former Occupation Ally, “More Powerful Than Any Of Iraq's Elected Leaders,” Now Issuing Edicts Saying It’s OK To Kill U.S. Troops;
17 Million Iraqi Shia Get A Hunting Licence:
Here’s The Good News: “A Publicized Call For Jihad May Come Later”
Comment: T
If “a key stabilizing force” now says it’s OK for millions of Shia to take up arms and kill occupation soldiers, as reported in the news story below, what the fuck are U.S. troops doing hanging around on any inch of Iraq soil?
If the political leaders of the U.S. Empire and the military command do not remove every last one of them immediately, it will be necessary for U.S. armed forces to act accordingly.
During Vietnam, the troops ended that war, not the Democrat or Republican politicians, or the politicians wearing funny looking costumes known as Generals.
The troops knew it was an evil war for Empire, did not wish to continue dying for that rotten cause, knew it could never be won, and stopped fighting it. And that was that.
Here is a blinding flash of the obvious:
GI resistance was the instrument that ended the Vietnam War.
During the Vietnam War, the anti-war movement at home was necessary to stop the war, but it was not sufficient.
Politicians of both parties for the war ran the government and the war went on and on, despite majority opposition to continuing it. Sound familiar?
The resistance in Vietnam was necessary to stop the war, but it was not sufficient.
As long as U.S. Imperial politicians had an army with high morale, ready and willing to fight, the resistance did not and could not end the occupation of their country. They had no hope whatever of a military victory and their generals have said so.
But the rebellion against the war in the U.S. armed forces was both necessary and sufficient to stop the war.
And the war stopped.
GI resistance was the instrument that ended the Vietnam War.
The political right and their allies have spent decades trying to dance around a simple, obvious fact: the rebellion in the armed forces made it impossible to keep on with the war on Vietnam.
Some of these scum are still around today, trying to hide that history from you -- to pretend it wasn’t that way.
Their lying propaganda has one purpose: to keep you from understanding how powerful you are, and what you can do.
When you hear or read the contrary, you know liars are at work who mean you no good, and for their own selfish reasons, want to keep a simple, plain truth from you:
GI resistance was the instrument that ended the Vietnam War.
Without armed forces willing to fight it, it’s very difficult to carry on an Imperial war of conquest.
True then, true now.
************************************
A senior aide to the prime minister, al-Maliki, said he was not aware of the fatwas, but added that the “rejection of the occupation is a legal and religious principle” and that top Shiite clerics were free to make their own decisions. The aide also spoke on condition of anonymity.
May 22 By HAMZA HENDAWI and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA, Associated Press Writers
BAGHDAD - Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric has been quietly issuing religious edicts declaring that armed resistance against U.S.-led foreign troops is permissible — a potentially significant shift by a key supporter of the Washington-backed government in Baghdad.
The edicts, or fatwas, by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani suggest he seeks to sharpen his long-held opposition to American troops and counter the populist appeal of his main rivals, firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi Army militia.
So far, al-Sistani's fatwas have been limited to a handful of people.
They also were issued verbally and in private — rather than a blanket proclamation to the general Shiite population — according to three prominent Shiite officials in regular contact with al-Sistani as well as two followers who received the edicts in Najaf.
All spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.
Al-Sistani — who is believed to be 79 or 80 — has not been seen in public since a brief appearance in August 2004, shortly after returning from London for medical treatment for an unspecified heart condition.
But his mix of religious authority and political clout makes him more powerful than any of Iraq's elected leaders.
For American officials, he represents a key stabilizing force in Iraq for refusing to support a full-scale Shiite uprising against U.S.-led forces or Sunnis — especially at the height of sectarian bloodletting after an important Shiite shrine was bombed in 2006.
A senior aide to the prime minister, al-Maliki, said he was not aware of the fatwas, but added that the “rejection of the occupation is a legal and religious principle” and that top Shiite clerics were free to make their own decisions.
The aide also spoke on condition of anonymity.
Fatwas are theological opinions by an individual cleric and views on the same subject can vary.
In the past, al-Sistani has avoided answering even abstract questions on whether fighting the U.S. presence in Iraq is allowed by Islam. [So much for “the past.”]
Such questions sent to his Web site — which he uses to respond to followers' queries — have been ignored. All visitors to his office who had asked the question received a vague response.
The subtle shift could point to his growing impatience with the continued American presence more than five years after the U.S.-led invasion. [About as “subtle” as a meat axe.]
It also underlines possible opposition to any agreement by Baghdad to allow a long-term U.S. military foothold in Iraq — part a deal that is currently under negotiation and could be signed as early as July.
Al-Sistani's distaste for the U.S. presence is no secret. In his public fatwas on his Web site, he blames Washington for many of Iraq's woes.
But a more aggressive tone from the cleric could have worrisome ripples through Iraq's Shiite majority — 65 percent of the country's estimated 27 million population — in which many followers are swayed by his every word.
[Gee, you think? This story just keeps on getting better and better, doesn’t it. Shit, let’s see, 65% of 27,000,000; that’s only about 17 million that just got their U.S. soldier hunting licence.]
A longtime official at al-Sistani's office in Najaf would not deny or confirm the edicts issued in private, but hinted that a publicized call for jihad may come later.
“(Al-Sistani) rejects the American presence,” he told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment to media.
“He believes they (the Americans) will at the end pay a heavy price for the damage they inflicted on Iraq.”
Between 10 and 15 people are believed to have received the new fatwas in recent months, the Shiite officials told the AP.
Most of those seeking al-Sistani's views are young men known for their staunch loyalty to al-Sistani who call themselves “Jund al-Marjaiyah,” or “Soldiers of the Religious Authorities,” according to the Shiite officials.
Al-Sistani's new edicts — which did not specifically mention Americans but refer to foreign occupiers — were in response to the question of whether it's permitted to “wage armed resistance,” according to the two Shiites who received them.
Al-Sistani's affirmative response also carried a stern warning that “public interest” should not be harmed and every effort must be made to ensure that no harm comes to Iraqis or their property during “acts of resistance,” they said.
“Changing the tyrannical (Saddam Hussein) regime by invasion and occupation was not what we wished for because of the many tragedies they have created,” al-Sistani said in reply to a question on his Web site.
“We are extremely worried about their intentions,” he wrote in response to another question on his views about the U.S. military presence.
In perhaps another sign of al-Sistani's hardened position, he has opposed disarming the Mahdi Army as demanded by al-Maliki, according to Shiite officials close to the cleric.
Disarming the Mahdi Army would — in the views of many Shiites — leave them vulnerable to attacks by armed Sunni factions that are steadily gaining strength after joining the U.S. military fight against al-Qaida.
MORE:
Vietnam: They Stopped An Imperial War:
Honor And Respect To Them All
MORE:
Vietnam: They Stopped An Imperial War:
Honor And Respect To Them All
Rachel Berman’s submission to the ‘My Favorite Veteran’ album for a chain of Minnesota community newspapers.” [Background information forwarded by Max Watts, Australia]
This is a photo of my dad, US Army Sp/4 Andy Berman, and other active duty GIs near Fort Bragg, N.C.
It was taken on December 11, 1971, during a protest demonstration by soldiers against the war in Vietnam and racism in the military.
Regulations at the time required soldiers who wished to protest the war to do so out of uniform. Today dad is an active member of the Twin Cities Veterans for Peace. In the photo, dad is carrying the sign reading “End Racism at Fort Bragg.”
MORE:
Vietnam: They Stopped An Imperial War:
Read About It:
SOLDIERS IN REVOLT: DAVID CORTRIGHT, Anchor Press/Doubleday, Garden City, New York, 1975. Now available mailorder in paperback from Haymarket Books.
MORE:
Vietnam: They Stopped An Imperial War:
Read About It:
Vietnam GI: Reprints Available
Not available from anybody else, anywhere
Edited by Vietnam Veteran Jeff Sharlet from 1968 until his death, this newspaper rocked the world, attracting attention even from Time Magazine, and extremely hostile attention from the chain of command. The pages and pages of letters in the paper from troops in Vietnam condemning the war are lost to history, but you can find them here.
Vietnam GI was a most important organizational weapon that served the movement inside the armed forces against the war.
The Military Project has copied complete sets of Vietnam GI. The originals were a bit rough, but every page is there. Over 100 pages, full 11x17 size.
Free on request to active duty members of the armed forces.
Cost for others: $15 if picked up in New York City. For mailing inside USA add $5 for bubble bag and postage. For outside USA, include extra for mailing 2.5 pounds to wherever you are.
Checks, money orders payable to: The Military Project
Orders to:
The Military Project
Box 126
2576 Broadway
New York, N.Y.
10025-5657
All proceeds are used for projects giving aid and comfort to members of the armed forces opposed to today’s Imperial wars.
MORE:
Vietnam: They Stopped An Imperial War:
See It For Yourself:
Like It Says On The Poster:
“If You Every Wanted To End A War … The Suppressed Story Of The GI Movement To End The War In Vietnam”
Sir! No Sir!
The Sir! No Sir! DVD is on sale now, exclusively at http://www.sirnosir.com/home_dvd_storefront.html
Also available is a Soundtrack CD (which includes the entire song from the FTA Show, “Soldier We Love You”), theatrical posters, tee shirts, and the DVD of “A Night of Ferocious Joy,” a film about the first hip-hop antiwar concert against the “War on Terror.”
DO YOU HAVE A FRIEND OR RELATIVE IN THE SERVICE?
Forward GI Special along, or send us the address if you wish and we’ll send it regularly. Whether in Iraq or stuck on a base in the USA, this is extra important for your service friend, too often cut off from access to encouraging news of growing resistance to the war, inside the armed services and at home. Send email requests to address up top or write to: The Military Project, Box 126, 2576 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10025-5657. Phone: 917.677.8057
IRAQ WAR REPORTS
Ohio Soldier Killed In Tikrit
U.S. Army Pvt. Branden P. Haunert, 21, of Cincinnati, Ohio, died from wounds suffered when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device or roadside bomb in Tikrit, Iraq May 18, 2008.. He was based at Fort Campbell, Ky. (AP Photo/US Army)
Blue Ash Soldier Killed in Iraq
Branden Haunert
May 19, 2008 Local 12
A Sycamore High School grad is dead, the victim of a roadside bomb in Iraq.
The family Branden Haunert received a call Sunday afternoon, telling them Branden was killed when the Humvee he was riding in was hit by a bomb in an area northwest of Baghdad.
Haunert was in the Army and had only been stationed in Iraq for 5 weeks. He is one of six boys in his family, and he hails from Blue Ash. Branden graduated from Sycamore High School in 2005. Two of his brothers still attend Sycamore, one is a freshman and the other is a senior. Counselors are there today to help students and staff deal with his death.
Branden was a pitcher and third baseman for his high school team. One of his brothers is now on the team and is determined to play in a playoff game today at 4:30 against Mason.
Branden went through Army training at Fort Benning, Georgia and was at the top of his class. He then went to Fort Campbell for five weeks of airborne training. Branden served in the 327th Infantry, 2nd Battalion, 101st Airborne Division.
Sadr City: Uneasy Truce:
Occupation Backs Away From Full Scale Attack In Favor Of Pretense Of Control;
“In One Instance Not Previously Disclosed, An American M1 Tank Was Damaged By An RPG-29, An Advanced Anti-Tank Weapon”
Nor is it clear how energetic Iraqi soldiers will be in carrying out searches in a Mahdi Army stronghold.