After Action Report: March For Bradley Manning, and opening day of Bradley's Courts Martial at Front Gate of Ft Meade, Md., June 1-3, 2013

Perspectives on Pfc. Bradley Manning from an Anti-War Veteran

By

Jim Baldridge, 

VVAW/OSS & Baltimore VFP 

  L to R:  Dave Schott - USAF (VFP), Vietnam; Dr. Larry Egbert, US Army (VFP), WWII & Korea;  Jim Baldridge,- USN, Vietnam Era (VFP & VVAW/OSS)  Photo: Bill Perry 

Many came by bus. Photo: Bill Perry

As reported at www.bradleymanning.org , nearly 2,000 activists gathered outside the Main Gate at Ft. Meade Army Post on 1 June to show support for Pfc. Bradley Manning, whose court-martial  trial began on Monday, 3 June.  Veterans from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq--and all times in between our many wars--were in attendance.  Veterans came from all points of the compass:  California, Michigan, New England, Florida, Louisiana, Washington DC, Maryland, states in between, and Canada.  Members of VVAW/OSS (Old School Sappers), VFP,  IVAW, VVAW, and even some who are members of VFW and the American Legion were there as well, as were  citizens of various political persuasions:  Socialists, Communists, Independents, Democrats, Greens, Anarchists and even a few Republicans.   The crowd included students and workers, union members and activists, labor supporters and retirees.  Many had been supporters of Daniel Ellsberg back in the day because of his release of the “Pentagon Papers,” my generation’s Bradley Manning and Wikileaks.  We still support Elsberg, and as the popular chant now goes, “WE ARE ALL BRADLEY MANNING.”

Photo: Bill Perry

My perspective on the Bradley Manning trial, as a Vietnam-era veteran, is that capitalism has once again turned TRUTH into a victim of imperialist war no matter how it lies to justify it.

 

Photo: Bill Perry

VVAW/OSS on the March For Bradley Manning
Photo: Bill Perry

The Manning court martial trial presents challenges to vets.  The massive government PR puts out allegations, disinformation and outright myths about what he is alleged to have done, and what he and his defense team are saying in response.   Too often veterans are expected to support the official government and Pentagon positions, no matter what, but it ain’t necessarily so!  Anti-war vets typically don’t fit this traditional mold, are outspoken, go against the grain and are demonstrative, as we’ve seen at Ft. Meade, Kent State, Chicago and across the country.

The main stream media (MSM) is putting out all the misinformation that the Administration and Pentagon can come up with, all to minimize support for Manning, but it isn’t working!  Aside from the myths and lies being told by the MSM about Bradley Manning and what he did or is alleged to have done, as a Vietnam-era vet I’ve seen the attacks before.  I got out in ’69, and the Pentagon Papers hit the streets 14 months later.  When I heard about the release of the Pentagon Papers I rushed to get to the newsstand because the Papers validated what I had known to be true for the second half of my four years in the service.

Dan'l Ellsberg of Pentagon papers Fame at Ft Meade for Bradley
Photo: Bill Perry

Many “myths” surround the whole Wikileaks/ Bradley Manning situation.  I’ll just discuss a few of them.  First, some say that Wikileaks and Manning are “anti-American.”  Wikileaks clearly disapproved of our invasion of Iraq, which is true of two thirds or more of Americans well before we officially “pulled out.” Does that make the U.S. majority “anti-American?

A second myth is that the information Pfc. Manning “leaked” to Wikileaks was Top Secret.  You wouldn’t know it from media coverage, but none of the information Manning has been accused of declassifying was Top Secret.  None.  Most of it wasn’t classified at all, just somewhat embarrassing when it was publicly revealed.  Even the helicopter gunship video, since called “Collateral Murder",  which has been highlighted at home and around the world. wasn’t classified.

Another “myth” that gets closer to allegations being made against Manning in the military courtroom is that his leaks have gotten people killed and have damaged U.S. “national interests.”  In the three years since the release of the Wikileaks documents, there has been no evidence that anyone other than America’s reputation has been harmed by the leaks.  But I doubt that’s what our government is talking about when it alleges damage to U.S. “national interests.”  Rather, the military would have us believe that in-the-know Americans are what put us at risk, and therefore our lack of knowledge provides us security.  It’s worth noting that while our government doesn’t want us to know what it’s doing, in many of these instances people in other countries already know because they are on the receiving end of it, like death by helicopter gunship, drone and IED’s.

Bradley Manning’s trial is expected to continue for twelve weeks, through the summer.  You can be sure that U. S. veterans will continue to protest at the Main Gate and be vigilant in the military courtroom to hear what the government and Pentagon are trying to do to Pfc. Bradley Manning.  As vets we object to what is so often done “in our name,” whether it is torture, invading countries that pose no threat to us, looking the other way when sexual assault and suicide decimate the ranks of veterans and active duty, or cover-ups, lies and distortions of truth.

49er Nicole Guiniling, fresh in from Toronto
Photo: Bill Perry

A group of 14 American expatriates from the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, known as the Toronto 49er's, was represented at Ft Meade by Nicole Guiniling, wife of 49er Jules Guiniling. They sent a letter to the VVAW/OSS participants.  It says, in part:

To the delegation of VVAW/OSS:

On behalf of my fellow war resisters in Canada, I would like to extend this formal greeting to all of you who are meeting here today. We are deeply thankful to VVAW/OSS and others involved for the thought they are putting toward the struggle of U.S Iraq and Afghanistan War Resisters in Canada. We are also honored to have one among you, a Vietnam veteran against the war and old school sapper, representing us at this gathering as he did at the medal returning ceremony (in Chicago) last Spring. It was an odd twist of fate that brought him to us but one that we are very grateful for. We have benefited from his friendship, experience, and knowledge of the G.I resistance movement.

Many of you might remember what it was like to be in our shoes, or at least under similar circumstances during the Vietnam War. Unfortunately, we are living proof that not much has changed since then. The imperialist war machine is still turning out young killers with factory-like efficiency. Nowadays at the crew-served weapons ranges at Ft. Benning, they teach you to hold the butterfly trigger for three words, four syllables “die-Hajji-die”. Since the start of these wars, thousands of U.S troops have deployed overseas to kill for and die for these scumbags who run the show: the profiteers and the zealots. But, just as in all wars that are unjust and based on false pretenses, there springs forth an organic resistance to the bullshit.

Young people like Camilo Mejia, Mike Prysner, Kelly Doherty, Jeremy Hinzman, and Bradley Manning. You can’t really fit us into one category. We are not all socialists; we are not all pacifists; not all of us began our resistance from a place of ideology. Some of us had to see and do the things we did to figure out that we didn’t want to do them anymore, and some of us figured it out right away. We here in Canada left our contracts early, while those resisters who chose to stay behind became outspoken while respecting their contracts. Resistance has been unique to each individual—as it should be. 

The Toronto 49er's Resisters Group


www.VetSpeak.org

VVAW/OSS Stands with Bradley Manning and all GI Resisters...

Ed Note:  VVAW/OSS is currently encamped in Millersville, Md. for the occasion of the opening date of the of the Bradley Manning Courts Martial at Ft Meade, Md. We are here in support of Bradley Manning and all Resisters. Yesterday, Saturday June 1st, we participated in a Free Bradley Manning Rally & March staged at the front gate of Ft. Meade, Md. We were there to let Bradley Manning and the US Government know  that we haven't forgotten Bradley and to clearly state to the world, that Blowing the Whistle on War Crimes is not a War Crime. We will be at the gates again tomorrow, Monday, June 3d.

                                 

VVAW/OSS stands with Bradley Manning and all Resisters. Posted below is a letter that came from a group of Resisters in Canada known as the 49ers, it was addressed to the membership of VVAW/OSS while OSS was at their recent National Conference at Kent State on May 3d. We are working closely with these folks, developing an initiative known as Amnesty 2.0. This initiative is for the purpose of educating folks to the plight and circumstances of Resisters everywhere, and  for the purpose of creating support groups for Resisters and their families who currently have been, or are are facing deportation from Canada back into the US (as in the cases of Robin Long and Kim Rivera), and directly into the hands of the US military.

Bradley Manning is guilty of nothing more than Speaking Truth to Power about war crimes, the 49ers are guilty of nothing except acting on their conscience and refusing to continue to be a part of a war being prosecuted on false premises and perpetuation of the lie...something Vietnam Veterans understand, very well.  Here is their letter:

To the Delegation of VVAW/OSS:

On behalf of my fellow war resisters in Canada I would like to extend this formal greeting to all of you who are meeting here today. We are deeply thankful to VVAW/OSS and others involved for the thought they are putting toward the struggle of U.S Iraq and Afghanistan War Resisters in Canada. We are also honored to have one among you, Nick Velvet, a Vietnam Veteran Against the War and Old School Sapper, representing us at this gathering as he did at the medal returning ceremony last spring. It was an odd twist of fate that brought him to us, but one we are grateful for. We have benefited from his friendship, experience, and knowledge of the G.I resistance movement.

Many of you might remember what it was like to be in our shoes, or at least in similar circumstances during the Vietnam War. Unfortunately we are living proof that not much has changed since then. The imperialist war machine is still turning out young killers with factory like efficiency. Nowadays at the crew served weapons ranges at Ft. Benning, they teach you to hold the butterfly trigger for three words, four syllables “die-hajji-die”. Since the start of these wars, thousands of U.S troops have deployed overseas to kill for and die for these scumbags that run the show. The profiteers and the zealots. But, just as in all wars that are unjust and based on false pretense, there springs forth an organic resistance to the bullshit.

Young people like Camillo Mejia, Mike Prysner, Kelly Doherty, Jeremy Hinzman, and Bradley Manning. You can’t really fit us into one category. We are not all socialists, we are not all pacifists, not all of us began our resistance from a place of ideology even. Some of had to see and do the things we did to figure out that we didn’t want to do them anymore, and some of us figured out right away. We, here in Canada left our contracts early, while those resisters who chose to stay behind became outspoken while respecting their contract. Resistance has been unique to each individual. As it should be.

During the Vietnam war you had draft dodgers, anti-war veterans, AWOL veterans, and troops refusing to leave the wire. Each resisted in his or her own way and caused the system to collapse. One resister in the U.S who was planning to turn himself in, once asked me “Why don’t you guys just turn yourselves in? Wouldn’t that make more sense if you really want to resist the war and make a statement?”  I couldn’t think of a simple answer but the one I gave him was this. Each of us resisters in Canada left our posts during extreme personal distress. The time to have made a statement like that came and went the moment we set foot on Canadian soil and claimed political asylum. When we did, we took upon ourselves another yoke. The burden to convince the Canadian people that we deserve to be here and to convince the Canadian government to once again make Canada a haven from militarism as it once was during the Vietnam era. If that ever became a reality it would do tremendous harm to the mechanisms of the war effort.

The reality though, is that we up here face heavy legal and political pushback from the conservative Canadian Government. Unlike their Liberal predecessors from the Trudeau era, they are extremely against us. Going so far as to release Operational bulletin 202 which recommends every immigration officer on duty to turn back U.S soldiers trying to seek asylum here. They have continued to tamper in the immigration and refugee process to the point where the former U.N secretary general Kofi Annan has taken interest, urging prime minister Harper to stop dicking around with our cases. After a number of us including Robin Long, Chris Teske, Cliff Cornell, Rodney Watson(who is hiding in a church in Vancouver), and most recently Kim Rivera and her family have been targeted for deportation, it is without a shadow of a doubt that the Conservative party of Canada is aggressively working to get us out of here. They realize the significance of any sort of victory as much as we do.

Early this year my own case went to the Federal Court of Canada, one of the highest courts in the land , where we sought to appeal the negative(bogus) decision the refugee board granted me. In an unprecedented move, the Federal Court Justice presiding my case granted me a re-trial and effectively supported my evidence. He agreed that there have been breaches of the Geneva Conventions in Iraq and Afghanistan witnessed by me and well documented by third party sources. As well, he was in agreement that the United States military justice system concerning the Court Martial of deserters is unfair and out-dated compared to the Canadian, British, and other international standards. The Commander of the soldier being court martialed, chooses the jury and sentencing of said soldier. The Judge presiding over a court martial shares the same chain of command as the Soldier’s commander which threatens any kind of independent decision making on the part of the judge. This was a clear victory for us. A mile stone. For Kim Rivera it was a month too late.

Those of us who remain up here face many challenges. Besides fighting a legal and political battle against an opponent that has more resources than us and is quite determined, we also have our personal demons to deal with. Some of these demons are common to all veterans-even those who didn’t see the front lines of combat-Canada continues to be like a deployment for them. Here, we exist in a sort of legal limbo, where we don’t have rights as all Canadians do. And, neither can we collect the rights we had as active duty service members and veterans. For PTSD mental health care, we must pay out of pocket or fundraise. For unemployment and housing we have to take care of each other. If one guy has a job we try and hook the other guy up. That’s all we have essentially. When we came here we were physically cut off from our family and friends, a social and financial support that most returning veterans can utilize during hard times. We’ve had to figure it out on the go. Suffice to say it’s been interesting.

This is why this relationship between our two generation is important to foster. We don’t have to look ahead of us and stare into a black hole. Time is constantly repeating itself with the events of this war. We are intrinsically linked through our shared experiences. There have been things that you all have went through in the years following the Vietnam war that we have yet to run into. Some of those pitfalls we have reached already. Substance abuse problems, relationship issues, survivors guilt etc. When Barrack Obama got elected, some of the folks up here got excited and thought he would be our Jimmy Carter. He turned out to be more of a Nixon. Nevertheless, It’s important what you all are doing with this amnesty Campaign. Regardless if it’s successful, even if it is a decade from now, recognition of our struggle is good press. Recognition of our mistreatment at the hands of our commanders and peers. Recognition of the unfair trials and sentencing. Recognition of the right to say no and resist on any terms.

Sincerely,

Jules Tindungan

Chris Vassey

Dale Landry

Cory Glass

Chuck Wiley

Christian Kjar

Rodney Watson

Ryan Johnson

Dean Walcott

Phil Mcdowell

Jeremy Hengst

Brandon Hughey

www.VetSpeak.org

Call To Action: June 1st Day of Action in Support of Bradley Manning, Ft Meade, Md.

Join IVAW for the June 1st Day of Action in support of Bradley Manning

June 1 marks the beginning of Bradley Manning’s fourth year in military prison awaiting trial with many violations of due process.  Bradley’s conditions in prison have been described by Amnesty International and the United Nations as torturous.

Join IVAW and others in a show of support before Bradley's court martial.

Whistleblowing should not be a crime.

The U.S. government is attempting to make an example out of Manning, to intimidate anyone who might blow the whistle on government wrong-doing in the future.

But like many of our members who have had the courage to speak out against what our military has done in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bradley Manning was moved to take action due to a crisis of conscience.

The information he made public via WikiLeaks has been an important affirmation of IVAW's work by exposing the atrocities and misconduct of the Iraq war, and supports the eye-witness experiences of many of our members:

●     Bradley released the Collateral Murder video that depicts a U.S. Army helicopter intentionally and illegally targeting Iraqi civilians. IVAW member Ethan McCord was there that day, witnessed the killing, and helped save the lives of Iraqi children who were severely injured.

●     The Iraq War logs Bradley released provided civilian death counts that the U.S. government was withholding.

●     Bradley's leak exposed the corporate interests behind a variety of U.S. armed conflicts worldwide. 

We strongly believe that Bradley Manning’s whistleblowing contributed to the declining public support for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Like Daniel Ellsberg, famed Pentagon Papers whistleblower, Manning should be honored as a person of conscience.

Join us at Fort Meade, Maryland to stand up for Bradley and all whistleblowers.

On June 1, rally and march with the Bradley Manning Support Network, IVAW, Veterans For Peace, and others in defense of Manning and all past, present, and future whistleblowers.

Join Daniel Ellsberg, LGBT activist U.S. Army Lt. Dan Choi, former U.S. diplomat Army Col. Ann Wright (ret.), and former soldier Ethan McCord at Fort Meade.

Buses will be leaving from New York City; Washington, DC; Philadelphia; New Brunswick, NJ; and Baltimore on June 1.  You can find more information about those buses and buy tickets here.  Additional information about travel and lodging can be found here. You can also organize a bus from your own local area.

At Fort Meade, the June 1 day of action will begin with a 1:00 PM gathering on Reese Road and US 175, followed by a march and rally.

The trial, U.S.  v. BRADLEY MANNING, begins on June 3 at 9:00 AM and is expected to last 6-12 weeks.  Supporters are encouraged to attend as many days of this trial as possible.

Can’t make it to Fort Meade on Saturday, June 1st?  Help sponsor travel for others. Each $20 will cover a bus ticket for someone who otherwise wouldn’t be able to come. Please note "Bus Sponsor" in the comments field when making your tax-deductible donation.

Thank you for your continued support                                                                                                                                                          

In Solidarity,

Maggie, Matt, Amadee, and Elly                                                                                                             

Iraq Veterans Against The War Staff

www.VetSpeak.org

Veterans For Peace Applauds Bradley Manning!

Ed Note: This piece was originally posted on the VFP website on March 1st, 2013. I am reposting it here in order to help get the word out far and wide regarding the importance of as many supporters as possible rallying at the gates of Ft Meade, Md, this June. My organization, VVAW/OSS, has already put the trial on their action agenda, and will have folks there for the opening of the trial in July, along with VFP, and many others...hopefully, you too. We were at Quantico, and we will be at Ft Meade as well. We ARE Bradley Manning. WH

"I felt I accomplished something that would allow me to have a clear conscience.”

Submitted by Gerry Condon

VFP Board Member

www.VeteransForPeace.org

Bradley Manning has shown us once again that he is a hero. On Thursday, February 28, he made a profound and historic My statement to a military court and to the world. Reading from prepared notes for over an hour, Bradley detailed how he released classified military and government documents to Wikileaks, and he explained why he did so.

I believed if the public, particularly the American public, could see this it could spark a debate on the military and our foreign policy in general as it applied to Iraq and Afghanistan. It might cause society to reconsider the need to engage in counter terrorism while ignoring the human situation of the people we engaged with every day.... I felt I accomplished something that would allow me to have a clear conscience.”

What Manning released through Wikileaks was evidence of the regular killing of civilians by US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the regular cover-up of these war crimes. The Iraq War Logs and the Afghan War Diaries also revealed that military and civilian leaders were lying to the U.S. people when they presented rosy assessments of the progress of those wars.

Would that we all had listened to these truths when Bradley revealed them almost three years ago. Perhaps we would not still have US Special Forces engaged in murder, mayhem and torture in Afghanistan today

Contrary to the misinformation being transmitted in many mainstream news reports, Bradley Manning did not make a plea agreement, and he certainly did not agree to go to prison for twenty years. Rather, he unilaterally pled guilty to 10 of the lesser charges against him, while maintaining his innocence to 12 more serious charges, especially Aiding the Enemy, which can be punished by life in prison and even the death penalty (Army prosecutors say they will not seek the death penalty – very gracious of them).

Rather than “rolling over” or “caving in,” Bradley has courageously chosen a path which allows him to tell the world the truth and to explain the meaning of what he has done.

Bradley Manning is a champion for peace and justice, for truth and transparency. He had the courage to follow his conscience and to do the right thing, regardless of the consequences. He showed us that courage again in the courtroom this week. The US government and military have already punished Bradley severely and apparently they will try to keep him behind bars for the rest of his life. Veterans For Peace will not allow this to happen.

We demand that the US Army drop all charges against Bradley Manning and release him from prison immediately. We intend to stand with Bradley every step of the way. We will escalate our support actions leading up to his court martial, which is expected to begin on June 3 and to proceed throughout the summer. We will show up en masse at Fort Meade, Maryland for the support rally being planned for Saturday, June 1. We will protest in our hometowns too, including at military recruiting stations. Bradley Manning represents everything that Veterans For Peace stands for and we will not stop until he is free.

www.VetSpeak.org

Two Soldiers, Four Wars, One Name

by NMguiniling

It’s Guiniling. Pronounced “Gah-Kneeling,” it is my husband’s maternal last name, which traces back to the highlands of the Philippines.

It’s not that I find my own given name particularly un-likeable.  As a child of the modern-day ‘blended family’ (and one in which my mother kept her maiden name in marriage), I’ve contemplated the idea of name-changing, hyphenating, and all manner of Onomastics since I was pretty young. For instance, my maiden name, Burton, is of English origin and refers to one “residing near a fort or garrison,” whereas my maternal last name, “Wenger” refers to one’s German place of residence, “on a grassy hill”. But Guiniling is the name my husband and I have chosen for its ability to tell an important chapter of our family history.

It is now only heresay that Inting Guinling, my late grandfather-in-law, was born in August of the year 1900. That date comes from an approximation on his U.S. Army enlistment papers, which were filed some 18 years later. On the paper, Inting’s middle name is listed as “Igorot”, (pronounced Eee-Goo-Root), which refers to the Guiniling family’s tribe—somewhat similar to “Cherokee” or “Navajo”.

At the dawn of World War I, it was to the U.S. Army’s advantage to recruit these highland tribes who had eluded both Spanish and American colonial campaigns. In addition to having had little to no contact with Westerners, this meant the Igorot and other mountain folk knew little to nothing of the effects of the Philippine War of Independence, which took the lives of 600,000 of their countrymen at the hands of both Conquistadores and later, U.S. Marines

 Inting was recruited to the Philippine Scout (PS) special forces unit of the U.S. Army in 1919, and served until the end of the war. He was called back into service for World War II, where he fought in the Bataan Region with the 42^nd and 45^th Infantry regiments against Japanese soldiers. Jon, my uncle-in-law, explained to my husband and I in a recent e-mail:

“When the [U.S. Army in the Philippines] surrendered to the Japanese in 1942, Inting refused to surrender. Instead, he escaped and went back to the mountains and joined the guerrillas fighting the Japanese. He always eluded capture, even after his… units surrendered (Writer’s note: this surrender led to what is known as the ‘Bataan Death March.’ More than half of the P.S. died in battle or as POW’s of the Japanese in WWII). He finally rejoined the U.S. Army in 1944 when Gen. Douglas MacArthur returned to liberate the Philippines from the imperial forces of Japan. When Japan surrendered in 1945, he escorted surrendering Japanese soldiers to Manila to be shipped back to Japan. He was discharged from the U.S. Army in 1946 after 27 years of honorable military service. He earned the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with a combat V, Asiatic Pacific Campaign, World War II Victory Medal and many more. He died on Dec. 21, 1968"

Despite all this, and General MacArthur’s comments in a 1942 Time Magazine article that the Igorots were an important part of the war effort, the Philippine Scouts are still considered “Forgotten Soldiers,” overlooked and under-recognized for their sacrifice. Perhaps Inting’s long list of honours are a true testament to just how incredible his actions were.

There is no doubt in any of our minds that Inting Guiniling is a hero. It was because of him that his entire family was granted U.S. citizenship. He is the reason his daughter, my mother-in-law, was able to attend university tuition-free. He is the reason my husband was born in the United States. He is a hero simply for these gifts that gave his family the chance to have a better life. My husband and I certainly wouldn’t have met and fallen in love without him. (Thanks, Grandpa Inting!)

But war—as many people are touching on this year, as we enter the 11^th round of the Global War on Terror—is about more than heroes and their valiant deeds

My husband’s uncle is the oldest of his mother’s siblings—old enough to remember the war stories, and more..

One morning in the family hut (still, at this time, in the highlands of Mountain Province), Uncle Jon as a child tried to wake his father. Grandpa Inting awoke in a panic, and proceeded to beat his son into the wall of the hut. He would apologize some time later, explaining to Uncle Jon that he didn’t recognize his son—or where he was.

And then there were the times, my husband told me, when his Lola (Grandma) had to flee into the forest with her children, in order to hide from her husband—who would slip into fits of rage, would grab his gun out of the blue and put himself on “guard duty” outside of their home, for indefinite periods of time.

These used to be the things that every military family had a story about, but no one was allowed to speak of. Paranoia, unpredictable rage and violence, and ‘hyper-vigilance’— a term described by post-trauma psychiatrist Kathleen Whip as, “When you’re in a constant state of readiness, even when you don’t have to be”—are all the symptoms we know today associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. Certainly, the word didn’t exist in Inting’s day—some refuse to believe it exists in 2012.

It was in part the acknowledgement of PTSD’s existence that my husband refused a second deployment. After 15 months in Afghanistan, he was unwilling to return there or go to Iraq. From the Panjwai Massacre to the torture of Afghan detainees; from Abu Ghraib to White Phosphorus, it has become clear that this decision may have saved his sanity.

He didn’t qualify for C.O. Status (a Conscientious Objector in the U.S. Army must categorically oppose all forms of violence, including self defense). A request of transfer to a non-combat role was ripped up by his commanding officer. Isolated, depressed, exhausted, trapped, and clearly suffering from PTSD, my husband did what was best for his own self-preservation: he went to Canada. He separated himself from his trauma, and sought to understand it and come to terms with it. He did not, as his grandfather and countless others did before him, resign to it as a “necessary evil” of man, of war, of life.

Soldiers today have more information about PTSD than any generation before them. Should we still be thinking of war the same way? Should my husband, for instance, have committed himself regardless, like his grandfather did–despite his knowledge of PTSD and things like international law?

Soldiers who leave the army, as my husband has, face courts-martial and jail time for refusing to destroy themselves and other people in the process. A jail sentence of one day over a year will brand you a felon for the rest of your life. Felons, in exchange for their crimes, forsake the right to vote and bear arms in all but two U.S. states.

 Former U.S. soldier Robin Long served a 15 month sentence in2008-2009 for going AWOL to Canada, refusing to fight in the Iraq War 

Where two U.S. wars gave one Guiniling citizenship for his family, two other wars may be what takes it away. 

As the notoriously anti-war veteran and writer Kurt Vonnegut would have said, “So it goes”.

Canada, since Vietnam, has changed its tone on the subject of War Resisters and Draft Dodgers (there is no “draft’ per se, but Stop-Loss legislation in the U.S. is a de-facto draft of servicemen and women, and it has led many to re-deploy indefinately—not disconnected from the greatest suicide epidemic that the country has ever seen). Whereas Pierre Trudeau’s Liberals welcomed them in the 1970s, Harper’s Conservatives find the cacophony of PTSD claims and human rights abuses—all the natural bi-products of war—to be highly inconvenient in a time they are trying to re-brand of Canada as a Warrior Nation.

Come what may, “Guiniling” is more than a name for my my husband and me. It is the story of a legacy and a family, born of war and its plurality of meaning.

I remain optimistic. After all, ‘Nicole’ means “Victory of the People”.

NMG

Related Articles:

http://vetspeakblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/robin-long-prisoner-of-conscience_17.html

http://vetspeakblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/us-iraq-war-resister-kimberly-rivera.html

http://vetspeakblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/vfp-shout-out-yo-robin-long-supporters.html

Ed Note: This piece was originally published on November 10th on Nicole's Blog. She has agreed to share it  here on VetSpeak in support of our mutual mission to put a human face on the Toronto Resisters (49ers), as we work torwards Amnesty for all Resisters and Deported Veterans.

www.VetSpeak.org

Veterans Day 2012: Still at War

Ed Note:  Thanks to Mike Hearington of VFP for sharing this piece with us. WH

Thoughts on Veterans Day

By John Cory

November 11, 2012

Veterans Day—A national Hallmark Card for war inked with survivor's guilt.

We have numbered wars like SuperBowls (WWI and WWII), marked them by time (the Hundred Years' War and the Thirty Years' War), masked them with a gentle oxymoron (the Civil War) and fogged their battles in terms of weather (Rolling Thunder and Desert Storm). War is a lesson in geography like the Spanish-American War, the Mexican-American War and the Vietnam War or, as the Vietnamese call it, the American War. Modern war is waged on an "ism" like Communism or Terrorism.

We never run out of names, terms or reasons for war. And there is always an anniversary for war or a battle or its start, a day of  red poppies and marketing to ensure romantic remembrance of death and destruction.

That is war after all - a marriage of violence and glory "until death do us part."

War is a true never-ending story. And when the shooting stops, we file the body parts and memory fragments on a bookshelf for later reference when we write about war, searching for Kevlar words to protect the troops as we recon the thesaurus of emotions and memories for the building blocks that frame a new rationalization for more war.

And everyone wants a good war story to lead the six o'clock news or top the bestseller charts. It has to be heroic and noble, a tale of sacrifice for the greater good or better yet, a battle of reluctance turned into righteous annihilation of the enemy. It has to be a story about us versus the faceless and godless enemy that leads to triumph and victory, albeit a world-weary victory, thrust upon us. We didn't want to destroy the village but we had to destroy the village in order to save the village. Like that ominous voice of movie previews, we utter the words: In a world of kill or be killed, there can be no doubt.

Of course we don't tell real war stories. We write recruiting posters. We have perfected the perverted normalcy of war and made it a family affair

In the recent election cycle only 3 percent of voters listed war as a topic of concern when voting for a candidate. 

The thing they never tell you, the lie of all lies, is that you can go to war and then come home.

You can't.

www.VetSpeak.org

Clock's ticking...Bring a Friend: Occupy Freedom Plaza, Washington D.C., Oct 6th - ?

OCTOBER2011 COALITION TO OCCUPY FREEDOM PLAZA
IN WASHINGTON, DC BEGINNING OCT 6^th

www.VetSpeak.org

Bradley Manning Support Network Newsletter - A New Year Call to Action

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Ed Note:  Bradley has been promoted to Corporal by some members of VVAW (my organization of choice).  But, he needs more than moral support, as reflected in this e-mail that I received from VVAW.  If you are an activist/organizer looking for somewhere to direct your energy; here is a Peace & Justice issue worthy of your consideration, and possible involvement.  As we are all looking around  for things to rally around for the new year, this one stands out as a priority issue, regardless of what organization you might work with.  Is there a question in any one's mind that Bradley is not what we called back in the day, a political prisoner?  Well, then...help to Free Bradley! WH
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 On Mon, 12/27/10, Vietnam Veterans Against the War wrote:

 Bradley Manning Support Network

Supporter Newsletter

Exposing War Crimes Is Not A Crime!

* * * * * * * * * *
December 22, 2010
xIssue: 2.1
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A Typical Day for P.F.C. Bradley Manning
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• Find out what Bradley Manning's daily existence is like in this blog post written by his lawyer, David Coombs.    No push-ups, sit-ups, or pillows.  What next?

http://www.armycourtmartialdefense.info/2010/12/typical-day-for-pfc-bradley-manning.html

The Inhumane Conditions of Bradley Manning's Detention
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• Month upon month in solitary confinement and punitive restrictions are leading to a depressed physical and mental state for Bradley Manning. All without being convicted of anything at all

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2010/12/14/manning

Bradley Manning Support Network Condemns Unjust Detainment of Activist.

The F.B.I. detained a developer helping the Bradley Manning Support Network and confiscated his property with no formal charges made.

http://www.bradleymanning.org/13410/bradley-manning-support-network-condemns-unjust-detainment-of-activist/

Bradley Manning Support Network accepts responsibility for all expenses to defend accused Wikileaks whistle-blower.

We (meaning all of you!) have already provided half of the funds required for P.F.C. Manning's legal defense, but there are still other expenses just to maintain the Network. Please consider helping us meet our goal!

http://www.bradleymanning.org/15585/bradley-manning-support-network-accepts-responsibility-for-all-expenses-to-defend-accused-wikileaks-whistle-blower/

What Can I Do?

Join the fray!  Learn ten simple ways we've come up with for you to help Bradley Manning (plus one more written in the comments section by a very helpful supporter). 
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Together we can!

http://www.bradleymanning.org/what-can-i-do/

The Bradley Manning Support Network is an ad hoc, international grassroots effort to help accused whistle blower Pfc. Bradley Manning.

www.bradleymanning.org

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/savebradley
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/savebradley
Media: +1 (202) 640-4388 or Press@bradleymanning.org


www.VetSpeak.org