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CounterPunch
November
4, 2002
Unexpected Allies,
Unsung Heroes
by BRUCE F. COLE
Among the most eloquent voices at the Augusta,
Maine peace rally I attended October 26th was Dud Hendrick, board
member of the Maine Chapter of Veterans for Peace and a Vietnam
vet. His staccato litany of the myriad abuses of international
trust that the Bush cabal has perpetrated in just twenty-one
months brought a spontaneous roar from the crowd. His description
of his own coming-to-terms with what he saw and participated
in as a sailor in Vietnam was equally inspiring. He should be
running for office.
Many other veterans attended the event.
I spoke with several and noticed others in the march and at the
rally; in the rain-drenched shadow of the State Capitol Dome
(picture 3,000 protesters of all persuasions, gathered in a downpour,
determined and attentive), a couple of elderly gentlemen held
up a large Veterans for Peace banner. They looked like they could
be retired accountants, or school principals...likely WWII vets.
When we think about protesters who are
veterans, the stereotype of the Vietnam era--unruly hair, screaming
at the barricades with an Apocalypse Now-look in his eye--is
often the image that we reflexively conjure in our minds. Well,
folks, it's time to toss that one out. If you want to get a good
handle on the Armed Services member (retired or active)--or Defense
Department employee--who is fed up with the Powers That Be and
who isn't ashamed to make his or her feelings public, you best
go read (are you sitting down?) Stars and Stripes! That's right,
the official journal of the United States Armed Services.
Since this Spring, their letters-to-the-editor
feature has become so jammed with anti-Bush epistles that a few
days ago a frantic "W" fan felt compelled to post the
following (in the October 28th edition): "...'Stop the madness.'
I'm extremely weary of the tired and ill-conceived arguments
made against President Bush and his administration in the letters
to the editor. Nearly every day I read a letter or two that critiques
and demonizes the president because of erroneous information
accepted as fact." What is the "erroneous information"
that this writer is referring to? Well, the list is pretty daunting.
Click on this link, www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=11241
and http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=11366
to read the last two weeks' offerings (or click on the "letters"
feature at www.estripes.com and look at any recent week's batch
of letters).
Some pretty strong stuff, no? The Bush-backers
are definitely on the defensive. Some of the damning information
presented there (error is in the eye of the beholder, as usual)
may be news to even the faithful readers of this site. Intra-military
disputes undoubtedly qualify for that distinction, and they comprise
a category of hot campaign talking points for any Democrat with
a military base in his or her district. A few of the more incendiary
of these topics are:
outsourcing of base-support work to the
cost-plus benefit of Cheney's Halliburton subsidiary, Kellogg,
Brown & Root--while sidelining service personnel who could
do the job cheaper and with more dedication; Army Secretary Thomas
"Enron" White's proposal to greatly expand "unaccompanied
tours"--meaning that spouses and children have to stay stateside--a
hardship that European Army troops don't have to endure currently
(and a distinctly anti-"family-values" ploy); White
House undermining of "concurrent receipt", a move to
deny retired disabled vets benefits for their service-related
injuries...benefits which non-career vets already enjoy. This
is in order to help pay for "more pressing needs,"
like smart bombs, the occupation of conqured states, and pay
raises for acitve troops (some of whom in turn will be injured
in the next war and subsequently be denied their benefits...Joseph
Heller would be proud); underfunded base daycare facilities,
another "more pressing needs" casualty; underhanded,
bureaucratic discouragement of the use of the VA health system,
aimed at disadvantaged vets; and "stop/loss", the practice
of extending a soldier's enlistment, involuntarily, beyond what
he or she signed up for.
This last outrage, which is designed
to save training money at the expense of experienced GIs, is
no doubt being implemented in anticipation of a war on Iraq.
To compound the outrage, re-enlistment bonuses have been slashed.
In the letters found at the link above, there is one that eloquently
covers this topic (and other subjects more familiar to readersof
this site) , from a particularly brave individual, one Spc. Adam
Redgrave, based in Kosovo. His bold missive, nothing short of
a blazing excoriation of the President and his policies, is likely
to get him into hot water at the very least--a good dressing-down
and/or hazardous duty, for example--or at worst, he could be
court-martialed for insubordination. He deserves our full support.
Any readers out there who are military-connected in any way,
or who have relatives who are, please consider writing a letter
of support for this guy to the editor of Stars and Stripes.
Among the many other anti-Bush controversies
covered in the Stripes forum: the "Chickenhawk" phenomenon;
the folly of invading Iraq; even the "under God" controversy
has had a good airing. And many are sticking their necks out.
When one is immersed in a military environment, standing up openly
and publicly for progressive ideals is about as far from comfortable
as a foxhole is from a sofa. Among the many Stripes letter-writers
who have abandoned their comfort zones are: a VFW post commander;
DOD civilians; spouses of those on active duty; several other
enlisted personnel; and even a few officers...unsung heroes,
all.
This is all very heartening. While the
mainstream media stateside continues to marginalize the burgeoning
Peace/anti-Bush movement, this traditionally most conservative
of publications has stepped in to partially fill the breach by
allowing an unfettered exchange among its readers. More importantly,
such an extreme level of distrust for the current administration,
coming openly as it does from the ranks of its most steadfast
constituency (remember that the Florida overseas ballots allegedly
put Bush over the top in 2000), is a welcome harbinger of profound--and
immanent--political change.
Maybe we are farther ahead in this fight
than we give ourselves credit for. We should not let up now,
not even a little bit.
Bruce F. Cole
is a carpenter, songwriter and political activist living in Maine.
He can be reached at bccpcole@earthlink.net
Yesterday's
Features
Alexander Cockburn
Blowback,
Wellstone and Hitchens
Michael Neumann
Memo to
Christians
Re: Activism and the Israel/Palestine Conflict
Fran Shor
Militarized Masculinity and Homegrown Terrorists
Mary Hughes-Thompson
Olive
Orchards and Armed Zealots
Susan Davis
Proverbial Wisdom:
Right Place, Wrong Time
Jason Leopold
False
Profits:
Sec of Army Thomas White and Enron's Cooked Books
Adam Engel
Samson Agonistes:
Confessions of a Terrorist/Martyr
Russell Mokhiber and
Robert Weissman
A Day
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John Stanton
Should States Secceed?
Gavin Keeney
Parting Shots
Anthony Gancarski
Concerned Citizen: Episode 6. Talk Show Host
David Krieger
The Children
of Iraq Have Names
M. Junaid Alam
No to War Rap
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- Saddam's Amnesty: Could It Happen Here?
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October 26
/ 27, 2002
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A Place
of Tears
Ilija Trojanow
Bali Mon Amour
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Pappy
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Carol Norris
This Message
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