March 19th - A Day For Action

Originally published here...

We have now entered the seventh year of the occupation of Iraq. Many people feel the war is over and nothing is to be done. This is far from the truth of the situation surrounding us today.

About six years ago, I was being interviewed for a Quality Assurance Supervisor certification by my boat's (USS Santa Fe – SSN-763) Captain. The backdrop to our interview was a picture from the San Francisco demonstrations where a sign was made saying We Support Our Troops Who Shoot Their Officers and the officers in the wardroom joking about not giving me a gun. As someone who was silently opposed to the invasion of Iraq during my military service and was slowly becoming a pacifist, I felt this comment was inappropriate since I could never commit such an act. Just as we began the interview, the clip from Michael Moore's acceptance speech aired where he talks about living in fictitious times with a war based on lies and deception aired. Today these words which were not widely accepted ring true as we the U.S. is currently engaged in occupying two nations, Iraq and Afghanistan, with no plan for empowering the peoples of these countries with self-determination and control of their future beyond the continuing occupation.

Many may feel that talking about the past is not necessary at this point in history, after all we have the first minority president, the occupation of Iraq is ending (maybe), enlistment numbers are increasing due to the faltering economy, and there are many other issues facing this nation. However, we must reflect on the past and ask how we got to where we are today.

Past promises have been made and broken so we must step up and make the current promises come to fruition. A few months before leaving the military, I was told that the mission was accomplished in Iraq and that major combat operations were over. After the war began, I was frantically researching how to avoid supporting an occupation that I felt was unjust. I learned of a Marine who refused to deploy during the first Gulf War in 1991 from a base that was just a couple miles from where I lived in Hawaii at the time. Luckily because the war was declared over, I didn't have to make the same sacrifice that Jeff Paterson did and refuse to deploy with my submarine since our deployment was pushed back later into 2003. I was able to complete my enlistment and leave the military behind with no worry of being recalled like the over 58,000 who have been subjected to stop-loss and been sent to war after their enlistment ended. Now we hear that after over seven years, this program will be phased out, by the end of 2011 just as with the troop withdrawal there is plenty of time for this plan to change unless we demand that it end. We were told that Obama would end the occupation of Iraq and bring our troops home; since he has taken office he has instead shirked off this plan and instead is saying that up to 50,000 U.S. military members will be occupying Iraq until some unknown date . He has also escalated the occupation of Afghanistan with an additional 17,000 U.S. troops with no known plan for their use at a time when NATO countries are being asked to commit 4,000 more troops but few countries stepping forward to continue this occupation .

If we continue to sit back and allow military intervention be the plan for foreign policy and the refusal of self-determination for occupied countries we will continue to live as a country at war. We must take action to end the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. We must also take action to prevent U.S. aid from causing unnecessary death and suffering as we have seen with the aggressive behavior of Israel over the past years, including the use of banned munitions during the recent siege of Gaza

There are many ways to get involved. This weekend the ANSWER coalition is holding marches in DC, Los Angeles, and San Francisco on March 21st and there are other demonstrations around the country to mark the somber day called the anniversary of the invasion and occupation of Iraq. There will be an event at Civic Square/Clas Park in Milwaukee on Saturday. On April, 4th to mark the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech at the Riverside Church, United For Peace and Justice is holding a march in New York City, with local demonstrations planned in many communities like Madison.

It is clear as Obama as said himself that,

"I have always said that I don't think that the LGBT community should take its cues from me or some political leader in terms of what they think is right for them. Real change comes from the bottom up, not the top down."

We must build a movement to demand an end to the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan and take heed from past warnings about militarism from Eisenhower's Farewell Address,

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the militaryindustrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist…. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together."

and Dr. King at Riverside Church,

"War is not the answer. Communism will never be defeated by the use of atomic bombs or nuclear weapons. Let us not join those who shout war and, through their misguided passions, urge the United States to relinquish its participation in the United Nations…. We can no longer afford to worship the god of hate or bow before the altar of retaliation. The oceans of history are made turbulent by the ever-rising tides of hate. History is cluttered with the wreckage of nations and individuals that pursued this self-defeating path of hate."

Today we can substitute terrorism for communism and military aggression and occupation for atomic weapons. We must work to end militarism in all its forms in addition to ending the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.

March 19th can be a day of reflection on the past but it must also be a day that we take action to move our demands forward to create the world we wish to see.

Todd Dennis is a U.S. Submarine Service veteran, a board member of the Clarence Kailin Chapter of Veterans For Peace and the President of the Madison Chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War. He has B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, will be receiving a B.S. in Physics in May and is awaiting word on his application for graduate school in peace studies.

IVAW-Madison thanks concert attendees and silent auction donors for a successful fundraiser

Joan Baez Concert Benefits IVAW-Madison

True Endeavors, a local promoter that we have worked with in the past to table at local music shows, set up the event and arranged for IVAW-Madison to be the benefactor of $1 for each ticket sold for the Joan Baez concert on Saturday. We were chosen from a list of local non-profits by Baez. Thanks to each of the 810 people who purchased a ticket and attended the show and thanks to True Endeavors for suggesting IVAW as a benefactor.

IVAW-Madison also thanks all of those who helped us hold up a silent auction at the event. Thanks to donations from the following businesses, authors, and artists we were also able to raise an additional $800:

• Aaron Glantz: Signed copies of The War Comes Home and Winter Soldier:Iraq & Afghanistan
  


• Capitol City Tattoo: Gift Certificate
  


• Center for Media and Democracy, especially John, Judith and Sheldon: Signed copies of The Best War Ever and Weapons of Mass Deception
  


• Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream: Gift Certificates
  


• Community Pharmacy: Gift Basket
  


• Ear Wax Record Shop: Gift Certificate
  


• Escape Java Joint & Art Gallery: Gift Certificates, being a host for chapter meetings and host for the planning of Madison Winter Soldier
  


• Fair Trade Coffeehouse: Gift Certificates
  


• Film Wisconsin and Scott Robbe: Gift Bag
  


• Gail Ambrosius Chocolatier: Gift Certificate
  


• Mother Jones: Year Subscription
  


• Just Coffee Cooperative: Bags of Coffee, Gift Bag, and Tea
  


• Lazy Jane’s: Gift Certificates
  


• Joan Baez: Signed CDs
  


• Kilmark & Associates: Financial Assesment
  


• La Rocca’s Restaurant & Pizzeria: Gift Certificate
  


• Lakeside Printing Cooperative: Fliers to hand out at concert, IVAW informational brochures,...
  


• Mother Fool’s Coffeehouse: Gift Certificates
  


• Northwood Farm: Gift Certificates for organic beef at their Farmer's Market Stand
  


• Pfister Hotel and Scott Robbe for setting it up: Weekend for two in a luxury room with a Champagne basket
  


• Rainbow Bookstore Cooperative: Gift Certificate
  


• SERRV International: Haitian Handcarved Riverstone Mother and Child
  


• SNAP Fitness: Three Month Membership
  


• Songs for Our Soldiers: a CD to give to each winner in the silent auction
  


• Stephanie Rearick: Signed CDs
  


• Stu Levitan: Signed copy of Madison: The Illustrated Sesquicentennial History
  


• Sundance Cinema: Movie Passes
  


• The Dardanelles: Gift Certificate
  


• The Progressive: Year Subscription

During the current troubling economic times it was difficult to be turned away from many other local businesses that were unable to donate towards the silent auction so we are especially grateful to those that could help us out. If you visit any of these businesses please thank them for supporting our work through their donation to our silent auction.

National Week of Letter Writing to Show Support for War Resisters - March 16-23

Courage to Resist announces a...
National Week of Letter Writing toShow Support for War Resisters
March 16-23, 2009
Where: In your community (at your house, community center, religious space, etc.)


Organize a letter-writing party in your community to show support for war resisters. Robin Long, recently deported from Canada, is serving a 15-month sentence for refusing to fight in Iraq. Tony Anderson is currently serving a 14-month sentencing for resisting deployment to Iraq. Many more war resisters are sitting in prison for refusing to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan, and countless more live with that possibility. Several war resisters have been threatened with deportation from Canada, and Chris Teske and Cliff Cornell have already been forced to leave.
We are asking allies of the G.I. resistance movement to gather together to write:
- Letters of support to war resisters in prison, awaiting court martial, or seeking refuge in Canada
- Letters to the Canadian government asking that war resisters be allowed to stay
- Letters to our own government demanding amnesty for war resisters

War Resister Letter-Writing Parties provide a concrete way to show emotional support for war resisters and establish human connections between civilian support networks and troops refusing to fight. The idea is for a group of people to bring their community together to write letters and to use the occasion to build awareness and solidarity around the issue of G.I. resistance.

We are asking folks to organize their letter-writing events around the sixth anniversary of the Iraq War so that we can take this somber occasion to recognize the brave troops who refuse to fight: the people who give us hope that an end to unjust war is possible.
Courage to Resist will provide you with all of the materials and information you need to host your letter-writing party, including: information and contact info of war resisters, template letters for U.S. and Canadian governments, and literature about G.I. resistance.
If you are interested in organizing a letter-writing party, or if you have any questions, please contact us via email or510-488-3559.

We are happy to walk you through the process of organizing a letter-writing party and brainstorm ways to tailor your event to the needs of your community.
Here are a few of the folks we will be sending letters to:

Anthony Michael AndersonPO Box 305Fort Sill OK 73503-5305Iraq War resister currently serving a 14-month sentence at the Fort Sill stockade. Expected release: November 2009

Robin LongPO Box 452136San Diego CA 92145-2136Iraq War resister deported from Canada currently serving a 15-month sentence at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar brig. Expected release: July 2009

Cliff Cornellc/o Courage to Resist484 Lake Park Ave #41Oakland CA 94610Iraq War resister currently pending court-martial at Fort Stewart, Georgia after returning from Canada.

Generational PTSD

A recent radio report about the effects of PTSD being passed down to future generations inspired a brief search that confirms the same. It stands then that we as a people are still paying for WWII and potentially WWI as well. It's not as if we needed yet another reason to despise war. The premise of one report was how it can take 3-4 generations before the effects "dilute" out of a family. The discussion included on how the 2nd generation may experience "flashbacks" that are not that persons actual memories but that of the one affected by the trauma.
Furthermore the post talked about a Vietnam Vet's spouse. She took on her recent suicidal husband's PTSD. She ended up talking the talk of a vet and even had dreams of combat. This woman had never been in the military nor combat.
Some of the roots of these studies were taken from knowledge of the effects of PTSD on holocaust survivor. Sadly, we continue in multiple senseless wars. Worse, the Obama administration talks of continuing the war in Afghanistan. How many more must be affected by war? Will peace ever be achieved? Either way the peace agenda needs to be sought out.

Resisting Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) Recall

Former Army soldier Evan Michael Knappenberger, left, and former Marine Adam Kokesh begin a seven-day tower-guard vigil against the use of the military's stop loss and inactive ready ready reserve policies, Sunday, Aug. 26, 2007, on the National Mall in Washington.

Photo from AP Photo by Haraz N. Ghanbari

Resisting Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) Recall

Courage to Resist. February 3, 2009 [PDF leaflet]

“If you get recalled my best advice is to follow your heart. Personally, I would not report.” –Former IRR trainer (anonymous)

The Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), sometimes called the Inactive Ready Reserve, is composed of former military personnel who still have time remaining on their enlistment agreements but have returned to civilian life. They are eligible to be called up in "states of emergency".
Despite the recent inauguration of an “anti-war” president, the Army is currently undertaking the largest IRR recall since 2004. Over the last seven years however, thousands of IRR soldiers and Marines have questioned this "emergency" and have simply refused and ignored involuntary activation—without any real consequences.
The most common military enlistment is four years active or reserve duty, followed by an additional four years inactive. These “inactive” years are explained to enlistees as just that, “inactive”—just keep your uniforms, military ID card, and notify the military of address changes.
The current emergency that allows the Army and Marines to recall IRR members is the open-ended “Global War on Terror” that includes the occupation of both Iraq and Afghanistan. Many enlistees do not fully realize that most enlistments actually cover eight years of their life.

Resisting involuntary activation

“The question for IRR members is whether or not they should leave their new civilian lives behind so soon after being discharged to fight in illegal aggressions and occupation. The benefit is certainly not for veterans who, if they have not already been so, stand only to get wounded, killed or sustain psychological trauma in the form of PTSD. I encourage all IRR service members to start questioning what they are being told by a military system that will tell them anything to fill its quotas.” –Benjamin “Benji” Lewis, Marine IRR member facing June 2009 recall

Members of the IRR are not under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) until they report for the Army’s evaluation for activation. Marines may receive orders during periodic musters, sometimes without prior warning.
Since IRR members are not subject to the UCMJ, the military has no formal jurisdiction to take action against IRR individuals if they do not voluntarily report—and there are no corresponding civilian laws requiring IRR individuals to report.
If an IRR member does report—even if only to apply for a waiver from activation—they can again be punished under the UCMJ for being absent without leave and unauthorized absence (AWOL/UA), missing movement, conduct unbecoming, etc. if they later decide to resist.
IRR resisters (individuals who, for whatever reason, do not report) should expect to receive threatening letters and phone calls from the military for at least one year past their report date.
About a third of IRR members recalled do not initially report. However, many will be intimidated into eventually doing so. The military usually tells IRR members that a warrant for their arrest will be issued if they do not report. While it’s true that thousands of federal arrest warrants are issued annually for AWOL/UA active duty and reservists, this is simply not true for IRR resisters.

“I am refusing to go. I was honorably discharged in May 2007. I served a tour in Afghanistan and one in Iraq. We need to get this information out there that veterans like me have a choice.” –IRR resister (anonymous)

Failure to contact

Thousands of IRR members have successfully refused involuntary recall in the last few years. They have done so by not reporting for activation and passively ignoring the military.
For example, they refuse to sign for certified letters and they do not take phone calls unless from a recognized caller. Many change their phone number, or at least their outgoing phone message to not include their name—all for “plausible deniability”. If contacted by the military, family members of the IRR individual often explain, “That person cannot be reached here, please do not call again. Good bye.”
If the military can’t contact an IRR individual, they file them away as a “failure to contact.” Usually, at the end the enlistment agreement, the resister will receive an honorable discharge from the IRR—but it really doesn’t matter.

Types of discharge from the IRR

If the military believes that a no-show is due to something other than a “failure to contact”, the military is more likely to eventually discharge the individual under a “General” or “Other Than Honorable” classification from the IRR. This is more likely to occur to individuals who “make contact” with the military via phone or letters, but do not report—including individuals who publicly refuse IRR recall.
The type of discharge one receives from the IRR has absolutely no impact on the individual’s honorable discharge from active duty. One’s GI Bill education benefits, VA medical benefits, and DD-214 remain unaffected.
A “bad” discharge from the IRR may negatively impact an individual during an in-depth background check. These are done for job applicants applying for positions with the FBI, CIA, Homeland Security, etc.

Requesting an exemption from activation

“Our mission was to receive, process, and retrain IRR soldiers who reported for duty. It was a nightmare. Many IRR soldiers no longer had their uniform issue and had to buy a new issue at a cost of several hundred dollars. The IRR soldiers were restricted to training areas and billets…. They were not too thrilled.” –Career military veteran and former IRR trainer (anonymous)

Upon call up, individuals are usually screened for medical and “personal status” in order to qualify or disqualify them for activation. About 50% of those that report request a deferment or exemption. Many receive activation delays, and about 50% of those that request an exemption get it.
IRR members most likely to receive exemptions include those with medical disabilities rated at 30% or more by the Veterans Administration (or a claim pending for the same that is judged by the IRR mobilization authority as “likely to succeed”). For these cases, it is sometimes possible to receive an exemption without reporting.
Applying for an exemption usually means reporting for the evaluation, and that means real repercussions if an individual resists later. Whether or not to take the chance on an exemption is a huge decision.

Courage to resist unjust war

“I served in the Army as a Photojournalist until being honorably discharged last summer after over four years of service in Afghanistan, Japan, Europe and the Philippines…. I received a letter from the Army ordering my return to active duty, for the purpose of mobilization for Operation Iraqi Freedom…. This occupation is unconstitutional and illegal and I hereby lawfully refuse to participate.”—Matthis Chiroux, outspoken recall resister currently contesting on principle his “General” discharge from the IRR

Courage to Resist is unaware of any IRR resister who has faced legal consequences or a loss of benefits. That doesn't mean it is impossible for any particular case to be a first. However, it would seem that the most likely “worst case situation” is that a resister could somehow be compelled to report for activation after initially refusing. The military is more interested in deploying NCO’s (non-commissioned officers) than taking on questionable legal cases.
Soldiers and Marines even face aggressive and misleading recruitment tactics towards the end of their enlistments. Currently, the threat of an IRR recall is one of the most effective pitches. It goes something like this: “If you leave now, we’ll just recall you after you settle into civilian life. Reenlist to know who you’ll be serving with and get that bonus you deserve.”
One might expect a disclaimer here for IRR individuals to consult with an attorney before making decisions. The problem is that some resisters pay thousands in legal fees to lawyers with good-looking websites for little more than help assembling an exemption package.

- If you decide that you require legal representation, we suggest contacting the National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force at http://www.nlgmltf.org/ or 619-463-2369 for a referral.

- Many IRR resisters are members of Iraq Veterans Against the War—http://www.ivaw.org/ or 215-241-7123.
- For general information about getting out of the military, contact the GI Rights Hotline at 877-447-4487.

This overview is based on Courage to Resist’s direct experience with dozens of IRR resisters, GI rights counselors across the country, and civilian lawyers specializing in military defense. This information may change. Updates can be found at www.couragetoresist.org/irr

"By refusing activation, I refused to participate in wars that serve the purposes of furthering the careers of politicians and high-ranking officers…. The military is a force that rules through fear of retribution for disobeying its will. In reality, more than a third of IRRs simply refuse to report to duty."—Brandon Neely, former Army MP, Iraq veteran, recall resister eventually discharged “honorably” from the IRR

Feedback
Courage to Resist wants to hear from soldiers and Marines with experiences regarding the Individual Ready Reserve since 2001 in order to improve this overview. Be sure to note if we may publish quotes from you and if we may use your name when doing so.
Courage to Resist - www.couragetoresist.org - 510.488.3559484 Lake Park Ave #41, Oakland CA 94610
couragetoresist.org/irr