From kkelly%nyxfer@igc.apc.org Ukn Jan 31 04:06:02 1993 Received: from cdp.igc.org by css.itd.umich.edu (5.67/2.2) id AA18225; Sun, 31 Jan 93 04:05:55 -0500 Received: by igc.apc.org (4.1/Revision: 1.56 ) id AA07108; Sun, 31 Jan 93 01:08:37 PST Received: by nyxfer.uucp (1.65/waf) via UUCP; Sun, 31 Jan 93 04:00:05 EST for pauls@css.itd.umich.edu To: paul%nyxfer@apc.org Subject: vvawai on gulf war From: kkelly%nyxfer@igc.apc.org (NY Transfer News) Message-Id: <2HH9XB1w165w@nyxfer.uucp> Date: Sun, 31 Jan 93 03:59:36 EST Organization: NY Transfer News Collective Status: RO X-Status: Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit >From vvawai Mon Jan 28 22:10 PST 1991 To: nytransfer Statement from Vietnam Veterans Against the War/Anti-Imperialist On Bush's Plea to Support the Troops Everywhere we turn the government and the press is making public calls to "Support Our Troops". Bush says that the American people are 100% behind them and this call is being played up in the media as the common unity between those who support the war and those who oppose it. But to those of us who oppose this war, whenever we hear the words "Support our Troops," we must ask TO DO WHAT? Do we "Support Our Troops" in bombing Baghdad? Do we "Support Our Troops" in invading Iraq? In other words, do we go along and "Support Our Troops" in continuing this war? The answer is NO! To anyone who opposes this war, the call to "Support Our Troops" can certainly be confusing. Many have loved ones or know someone who is over in the Middle East and don't want to see them die for Bush's oil war. On the other hand, "Our Troops" are the military units that will be causing the death and destruction in the Middle East. The GIs on the front lines are not the ones who started this war, yet they are the ones that will have to kill or be killed because of it. And what of the Arab people? Do we "Support Our Troops" in accomplishing a "quick, decisive victory" which in reality means the deaths of thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of Arabs? Are their lives worth less than ours? During the Vietnam war the "support the troops" slogan was raised by Richard Nixon in a futile attempt to discredit the anti-war movement. Very often the anti-war demonstrators were the troops. In reality many of us as GI's came to the conclusion that we were fighting a war of genocide and that we could no longer unquestionably carry out the orders of the US War Machine. We demanded an end to the war, not support or honor for a job well done. In Vietnam and here in the US, we found the ways and means to resist. A very important part of that resistance was when thousands of us joined with and led anti-war demonstrations. Today we are being told that the anti-war movement we joined with spit on us. And that the reason more veterans have committed suicide than died in Vietnam is that we didn't receive welcome home parades. This is a straight up lie concocted by the government. Our nightmares stem from the war we fought, not the opposition to it. And for many of us our welcome home parades were the demonstrations to stop the war, not the so-called "welcome home" parades which cynically used the names of the dead and the vets in an effort to build public support for futures wars like the one we have now. Throughout the opposition to this war, we need to keep one thing crystal clear-that the responsibility for this war and for the deaths on both sides lies not on the hands of anti-war demonstrators, but on the doorstep of the White House, in the halls of Congress and in the corporate boardrooms. This war is not about anything honorable. At it's most basic level it is about global power politics, and "Blood for Oil." And since there is no honor in this war, there certainly can be no honor in fighting it. No, instead, the honor will be in resisting it and all of the crimes against humanity that will result because of it. We know that many GIs don't want this war, but the government has put them on the front line, where they must choose between their duty to humanity, and their uniform. Many, at great risk, have chosen humanity over uniform, and all those who will make that choice deserve our support. GI resistors are putting it all on the line, can any of us do anything less! Only by the US pulling out of the area will the lives of not only the US GIs but the Arab people be spared. "Support Our Troops" in reality means support for the war and death for the Arabs and the US GIs involved. US OUT OF THE MIDDLE EAST SUPPORT GI RESISTANCE NO BLOOD FOR OIL STOP THE US WAR MACHINE NO MATTER WHAT IT TAKES THE ARAB PEOPLE ARE NOT OUR ENEMY -- Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist, 4710 University Way NE, #1612, Seattle, WA 98105, Message Phone (206) 292-1624, FAX # (206) 325-7794 January 28, 1991 ======================================================= From vvawai Thu Nov 8 00:33 PST 1990 To: nytransfer Subject: vets day posting GIs and Veterans Rally to "Stop the US War machine no matter what it takes!" "Free Jeff Paterson! Support all GI resisters!" Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist (VVAW AI) has initiated a Veterans' Day rally in opposition to the US military build-up and war provocations in the Middle East. At 1pm on Saturday, November 10th, there will be active duty, reservist, and veteran speakers along with others who support GI resistance to the Middle East war moves at the Tacoma Federal Courthouse/Post Office, 11th & "A" Streets. Tacoma, Washington is near Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base. GIs say that the majority of soldiers do not want to go to Saudi Arabia and are opposed to the US presence there. From Marine CPL Jeff Paterson, the first US serviceman to publicly resist the war buildup, to reports of hundreds of AWOL troops at some forts, to a mother in Seattle who reports that her son is AWOL in Saudi Arabia to a number of reservists around the country who have publicly denounced the war moves and some have refused activation, GI resistance to the war in the Middle East is growing. We have heard reports of a soldier in Georgia and 3 soldiers in Texas who upon receiving orders for Saudi Arabia commit suicide. Also GIs report that some soldiers in Saudi Arabia are shooting themselves in the foot to get out. This "GIs and Veterans rally to stop the war machine" will provide an opportunity for service people to publicly express some of the groundswell of opposition to US war moves that is developing on forts and bases across the country. The rally also gives other people the opportunity to express support for the dilemma facing military personnel who do not agree with US actions in the Middle East and to support GI resistance. We ask that GIs and veterans send statements of support for GI resistance to be read at the rally. These statements can be FAXed to us at (206)325-7794, phoned into our message number (206)292-1624 or emailed to vvawai on Peacenet. We also encourage all those in the Puget Sound area to come to Tacoma on Saturday, Nov. 10th and show their support. -- Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist, 4710 University Way NE, #1612, Seattle, WA 98105, Message Phone (206) 292-1624 Veterans say US troops out of Gulf The following statement was written by Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist (VVAW AI). It is our intent to get this message into the hands of as many GIs as possible and your help will be needed. Please copy this statement and distribute it as widely as possible. We are witnessing a military build up unlike anything since the days of the Vietnamese war and the likelihood of the U.S.at war again is very high. The sand is running down in the hourglass and it is very important that we all raise our voices NOW in opposition to continued U.S. involvement in the Middle East. A MESSAGE FROM VETERANS TO THE TROOPS AT FORT SAUDI ARABIA The US government is dressing you up in poison gas suits to play Rambo for them in the Persian Gulf. You are sitting out in the middle of the desert with your ass on the line, wondering what's going to happen next. We suspect you are a decoy to draw the gas attack which would be used as an excuse for a US invasion of Kuwait or Iraq. We know what you are going through, because we spent some time in the shooting gallery too. As veterans we want to say straight up: you have no more interest in fighting in the war the US is preparing for today, than we did in the war they were waging in the 60's. Vietnam era GIs were told that we were bringing Asian people democracy. We wound up killing 2 1/2 million of those people in a war of genocide. You are in the Middle East supposedly to protect "our" oil. You could wind up killing hundreds of thousands. AND FOR WHAT? So that the Pentagon can finally establish Fort Saudi Arabia, like they have been wanting to for so long? So that the US can control the oil resources of that region that don't belong to us in the first place? So they, by extension, can control their main economic competitors like Japan and in Europe who depend on that oil? The bottom line seems to be expanding the US empire as the motive and hair trigger politics and massive troop deployments as the method. The situation is volatile. When the orders come to Rambo out, your response will profoundly impact the lives of millions of people in the Middle East and have unknown effects on world history. The politicians stuck you in a situation where you can't now see the end result of your actions. But you, like us, will have to live with those results forever. The Brass want you to obey, we want you to think. We feel that our experience may have an effect on your decisions. Those of us who sat in the jungles of Vietnam learned that we could see no bravery in "Search and Destroy" missions in which we directed massive firepower to slaughter anything that moved. We could find no glory in destroying the village to save it. Similarly, many Beirut vets speak of the rude awakening when they realized that the people they were sent to "protect" hated them and that every US GI was a sitting duck. (Remember the Marine barracks?) Those of us who are vets of the US invasion of Panama ask where is the honor in house-to-house terror, or in pushing back the Panamanian families who had come to mass grave sites seeking to identify and reclaim their loved ones. You undoubtedly will have many of the same experiences we did. Ghosts march through our dreams every night. Your nightmares have yet to begin. CHECK OUT THESE FACTS: - It's one thing to kill, die or get maimed for a worthy cause. But once the smoke clears and the shouting is over, as history has shown time and again, we shouldn't have been in there. - When you are choking in a poisoned atmosphere, remember that you are facing chemical and other weapons sold to Iraq by Western powers only too happy to make a buck off the deal. And ask any veteran who suffers from Agent Orange exposure what help you can expect if you survive. Remember that the US is still operating massive defoliation programs in Central and South America under the phony excuse of the war on drugs. - Remember too, that for 8 years the US government cheered on Iraq while it gassed Iran and its own Kurdish people. - Bush says you are there to stop naked aggression. That hypocrite has no right to speak on this question, having just finished invading Panama. - Saddam Hussein is a reactionary ruler who invaded Kuwait in his own interests. But while the US media calls him a fascist madman, the US government is busily trying to keep you from being able to buy unapproved record albums. In the US, racism and police attacks are on the rise. There are major efforts to stifle political protest, and women are fighting their own government to protect their reproductive rights. Meanwhile, you sweat it out on a lie and a humbug. Sure, there are those Rambozoids who can hardly wait for the order to charge. Well, let those who proudly wear the "KILL THEM ALL AND LET GOD SORT THEM OUT" shirts pay the price. But to those of you who question blindly going along with the program, we have something to say. You should know that while you are carrying out your orders there are veterans from previous wars and military actions leading demonstrations against your presence in the Middle East. We will welcome you back to join our ranks. Like you, we were ordered to do our duty. Take Vietnam (which some of us tried to do). Fooled at first, we began to question the lies and the hypocrisy that put us there. Many of us were sickened by what we were ordered to do. Others were inspired by the heroic resistance of the Vietnamese. We began to resist. Thousands of us in Vietnam (and in the U.S.) refused to carry out orders. Many went to prison rather than bear arms against our so-called enemy. Whole companies and naval units mutinied and refused to fight. A half million US troops deserted. GI resistance took every form, from the fragging of officers, to a number of troops that actually joined and fought for the other side. Out of all that we learned to question what the hell is going on. All the government learned was to tell bigger lies. Welcome to Fort Saudi Arabia. As veterans we came to understand that our duty was to the people of the world and to the future, not to the Empire. We resisted and rebelled. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? US troops out of the Middle East! Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist (VVAW AI) 4710 University Way NE, #1612, Seattle, WA 98105, (206) 292-1624 ======================================================= Subj: VVAW/AI ACTION AT NAVAL RSV STN VETERANS SHUT DOWN MAIN GATE AT RESERVE NAVAL STATION "We are bringing home the war in the Middle East." AUGUST 28, 1990 -- Today members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist marched up to the Naval Reserve Station in Seattle. Dumping sand down in front of the main gate, they said "This is the deserts of the Middle East." Pouring oil over the sand, they said, "This is what the fight is about." Finally spilling blood all over the mess, they said, "This is what it will cost." Then two of the veterans chained the gate closed, chaining themselves to it in the process. "We are shutting down this station. We can't wait until the blood flows to act. We're bringing the war home." One of the Vietnam veterans, Roy Barrington, said, "The Pentagon monsters are preparing for a war that could make the one in Vietnam look like a 'Police Action.' They are willing to murder hundreds of thousands of people to maintain 'The Amerikkkan Way Of Life'. I see nothing sacred in a life style made possible only because of the misery of millions world wide." "Jeff Paterson, the Marine on hunger strike in Hawaii is setting a fine example for others to follow. He has refused to carry out his orders. Can those of us that are outraged by the current situation do anything less? My answer is HELL NO!" "I am gladly becoming a 'law breaker' to prevent another generation of cannon-fodder from being sent to kill and die for the real criminals. Any charges I receive today for trying to halt the bloodshed are nothing compared to those the people in this country face from the people of the world if we allow the US government to carry out its aggression." "Members of VVAW AI are proud to be on the front lines of this battle. We are calling on veterans, youth, and all others who refuse to remain silent to join with us." Brian Chambers, the other Vietnam veteran said, "Almost twenty years ago over a thousand Vietnam veterans returned their medals forcibly to the capitol steps, saying 'Never again.' That's what we have got to do here today. We can not just carry on business as usual. The real hostages in the Middle East crisis are the people who live there, who are being threatened by the US military presence and its threat of war. The US is not there to protect anybody's way of life. Not ours, not theirs. It is there to grab hold of control of oil, and grab hold of the world. And we have to oppose it. We are calling on Vietnam veterans to get out here and stand up against these murdering bastards, and build a mass movement to oppose this war." After 5 hours the cops moved in, cutting the chains and arrested the two veterans. They were later charged and released. VVAW AI has vowed to bring the war home. We are calling for sustained, high intensity, non-violent direct action to stop the military build-up and prevent the massive bloodshed which US rulers have in store for the Arab world. Vietnam Veterans Against the War Anti-Imperialist 4710 University Way NE #1612, Seattle, WA 98105 (206) 292-1624 ============================================ From vvawai Sun Oct 7 23:27 PDT 1990 To: nytransfer Subject: leaflet re: Jeff Paterson day The following is the contents of a leaflet calling for a national day of support for Jeff Paterson, the first active duty GI to refuse orders to the Persian Gulf. Please join in this support effort by reproducing and distributing this leaflet and by organizing support actions on the 16th of October in your area. NO U.S. AGGRESSION IN THE MIDDLE EAST - NO BLOOD FOR OIL! HELL NO - WE WON'T GO! U.S. OUT OF THE GULF, NOW! FREE JEFF PATERSON! THE U.S. WAR MACHINE is moving towards the brink of full scale war in the Persian Gulf. On August 29th, 1990, Corporal Jeff Paterson, a 22-year-old Marine stationed in Hawaii, sat down on the runway of the Kaneohe Marine Corp Air Station, and refused to board a Saudi-bound plane. Jeff didn't wait until the mass graves were dug or the body bags came home. Neither can we. Jeff Paterson is the first political prisoner of this war. On August 16th, when he publicly announced his refusal of orders to be deployed to Saudi Arabia, Jeff said: "I cannot and will not be a pawn in America's power plays for profits and oil in the Middle East." Jeff was "volunteered" by his commander to be the first to ship out of his unit, despite their duty to place him in a position least in conflict with his beliefs during the processing of his application for conscientious objector status. He was ordered to deploy in the midst of his widely publicized hunger strike. Jeff was thrown in the brig for three weeks and permitted one off-base phone call per week. He has faced intense and often "illegal" official harassment. He was placed under strict media gag orders. Jeff's application for status as a conscientious objector awaits decision, and now he is facing a full court martial. During the Vietnam war, the people and the government both learned that GI resistance made a dramatic contribution to disabling the U.S. war machine. Today as the crisis in the Persian Gulf heats up, this lesson has already begun to play out: active duty and reserve forces are being sent to kill and die for America's interests in the Gulf, but around the country many men and women in uniform are saying HELL NO, WE WON'T GO! This courageous resistance needs our encouragement, loud and strong - and it will grow. Jeff Paterson is the first active duty GI to say NO to this war. But he is the first of many. On Tuesday, October 16th, around the country we will declare our support for Jeff Paterson, and we will take determined actions to build even more and wider resistance to this war. OCTOBER 16 NATIONAL "FREE JEFF PATERSON DAY" initiated by the U.S. Out of the Persian Gulf/Committee to Defend Jeff Paterson [Hawaii defense/support group]--Refuse and Resist! -- and the Stop the U.S. War Machine Action Network. For more information and to organize: U.S. Out of the Persian Gulf/Committee to Defend Jeff Paterson 808/533-7434 Refuse and Resist! 212/941/5474 Stop the U.S. War Machine Action Network 212/642-5228 or 415/273-2427 NY Transfer News Collective Internet: nyxfer@panix.com Modem: 718-448-2358