Sheehan draws tears of support
Common Dreams
by Greg Moses

"When Robert DeLozier saw the story of Cindy Sheehan on television Sunday, he told his spouse right away: 'I'm going up there. We have to drop everything and go.' At the Sam's Club of all places, says Robert, he nearly broke down crying while he was shopping Monday morning thinking about what Sheehan was doing in memory of her son Casey, who was killed in Iraq last April. 'She's a strong woman,' says Robert via cell phone as he drives back home Monday night. 'She feels she has been wronged. She feels her son has been wronged. And she feels like this whole occupation of Iraq is wrong. She is strong and powerful enough to take a stand. When I see it, it just strikes a chord. She's speaking truth to power. That's it. David and Goliath.'" [Editor's note: Sheehan's vigil is making headline news around the country; her son would be very proud. This is a wonderful example of what one brave, determined individual can do to mobilize others . See Military families to join Sheehan in Texas MLS] (08/09/05)


http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0809-21.htm

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Just plain stupid
Strike the Root
by Harry Goslin

"Excuses can be made for why people who seem to be intelligent become irrational, blood-thirsty, warmongering nationalists: caught up in the moment, the need to be part of the crowd, patriotism, education, up-bringing. But at some point in life, excuses cannot be made for making bad decisions, especially when the consequences of those decisions reach beyond the individual making them. When that threshold is crossed, it should be safe to say that many people become just plain stupid." (08/09/05)

http://www.strike-the-root.com/52/goslin/goslin6.html

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Freedom and Firefly
AFF Brainwash
by Sara T. Hinson

"At its best, science fiction advocates liberty. While Star Trek lamentably supported a "Federation knows best" mentality, other works like Star Wars and Robert Heinlein's novels have promoted the dissolution of central rule and the triumph of the individual. For the science fiction writer, space means one thing: freedom. Like the Wild West where men made their own rules and property rights were enforced at the end of a landowner's shotgun, space has afforded the hope that one day man can move beyond the reach of any government's oppressive hand." (08/07/05)

http://www.affbrainwash.com/archives/020132.php

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Is being a conscientious objector now criminal?
CounterPunch
by Monica Benderman

"As I am certain you are all aware, my husband, Sgt. Kevin Benderman, was sentenced to 15 months confinement, loss of rank, forfeiture of pay and a dishonorable discharge last week, the charge being “Missing Movement” or failure to get on a plane. In actuality, the charge was “filing a Conscientious Objector packet against the recommendation of his commander, who had no intention of allowing my husband to follow his conscience, and therefore serving notice to the rest of our military that they should not follow suit.” .... My husband’s case for Conscientious Objection was brushed aside and mishandled so that his entire career of service came down to a meeting with his Command Sgt. Major that lasted less than one hour. My husband’s testimony regarding this meeting has remained unchanged, as has my witness to that meeting. The Command Sgt. Major’s testimony was re-written and sworn to on at least 5 separate occasions, each testimony contradicting another, even as they were presented in my husband’s court martial." (08/09/05)


http://www.counterpunch.org/benderman08092005.html

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What one mom has to say to Bush
CounterPunch
by Mike Ferner

"'That lying bastard, George Bush, is taking a five-week vacation in time of war,” Cindy Sheehan told 200 cheering members of Veterans For Peace at their annual convention in Dallas last Friday evening .... She told the audience of veterans from World War Two to today’s war in Iraq, that the two main things she plans to tell the man she holds responsible for son Casey’s death are “Quit saying that U.S. troops died for a noble cause in Iraq, unless you say, ‘well, except for Casey Sheehan.’ Don’t you dare spill any more blood in Casey’s name. You do not have permission to use my son’s name. And the other thing I want him to tell me is ‘just what was the noble cause Casey died for?’ Was it freedom and democracy? Bullshit!." (08/09/05)


http://www.counterpunch.org/ferner08092005.html