News from the Colonies - America's War in Iraq

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Redefine91, she wasn't spouting about the glory of dead soldiers she was spouting tjat God was punishing the US with dead Soldiers because we tollorate homosexuals, and XXX movies, and the gay lifestyle, they harrass the families mourning their dead, for their political agenda, and this is just as bad as the sickos out side Walter Reed in Washington, telling our wounded troop that they got what they deserved for serving our country.
 
BR you should consider the possibility that you are being manipulated on this issue.

I did some digging on the Walter Reed protests, and could not find even anecdotal evidence that the protesters you speak of were trying (as a whole) to smear or hurt the feelings of returning combat veterans. Of course there will often be wackos like Bill Phelps in any crowd even as small as these- but they are certainly not representative of Americans who are speaking out against the occupation of Iraq, and it's nether factual nor honest to lump them in as such. This twisting of logic is like saying that all protesters at any execution are all dishonoring the executed. While I personally would not protest at Walter Reed, I do understand several various motives and messages expressed there, and insulting or hurting the troops doesn't satisfy as a fair description of the entire activity.

CNS has been the leading source on this story, and so far as I can tell not much other media has picked up on it- even though many protesters there are expressly trying to draw much greater media attention to the wounded arriving at WRMC. The Walter Reed protests are hardly a major focus of attention by anyone. Cindy Sheehan for instance has declined participation in this scene, suggesting that the Pentagon is a more tasteful venue. Generally it seems to me that Americans are most comfortable ignoring as much as possible the tens of thousands of permanently-disabled vets returning from Iraq.

You have raised the familiar image of protesters spitting on returning Vietnam vets. Here is a link to an examination of this often-heard claim, and I strongly encourage you to read and consider it:

Lembcke The Spitting Image: Myth, Memory, and the Legacy of Vietnam

A time-honored tactic (especially noticeable in the most monstrous regimes of the past) of those who fan the flames of collective belligerence is smearing detractors by popular deception. Please be careful that such manipulators in our own time and midst are not dishonestly and calculatedly playing on your emotions, BR.
 
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How hard did you look? hypewaders, these are just 9 of the sites out of 14,400 and it didn't take any time to find them.

Anti-War Protests Target Wounded at Army Hospital -- 08/25/2005
Washington (CNSNews.com) - The Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC, ... The anti-war demonstrators, who obtain their protest permits from the ...
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewSpecialReports.asp?Page=\SpecialReports\archive\200508\SPE20050825a.html

Crosswalk.com - Anti-War Protests Target Wounded at Army Hospital
The Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC, the current home of ... The anti-war demonstrators, who obtain their protest permits from the ...
http://www.crosswalk.com/news/1347570.html

CODEPINK : CODEPINK Blogs from Washington DC
We came to add our bodies to the numbers, to build the anti-war voice into a mighty ... Then at 7pm we have our evening vigil at the Walter Reed hospital. ...
http://www.onemillionreasons.org/article.php?id=500

Anti-War Protesters taunt wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital ...
Anti-war protestors besieged wounded and disabled soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC, a new web report will claim! ...
http://talk.livedaily.com/showthread.php?t=492021

Anti-War Protesters taunt wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital ...
Anti-war protestors besieged wounded and disabled soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC, a new web report will claim! ...
http://talk.livedaily.com/showthread.php?t=492021

Red Hot Cuppa Politics: Free Speech Meets Cruelty At Walter Reed ...
While our troops are fighting in Iraq, those who are wounded get treated to anti-war propaganda outside of their hospital window at Walter Reed. ...
http://cuppapolitics.blogspot.com/2005/12/free-speech-meets-cruelty-at-walter.html

(DV) Berkowitz: The Politics of Slander
"Anti-war protestors besieged wounded and disabled soldiers at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC, a new web report will claim! ...
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Aug05/Berkowitz0827.htm

lgf: Anti-War Creeps at Walter Reed Hospital
Now, that Walter Reed is set for closing, the anti-war nuts can turn the place ... she appeared outside Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, DC where ...
http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=17209

Blogcritics.org: Anti-War Protestors Tormenting Iraq War Wounded
CNSNews has broken the story on anti-war protesters outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC This is the facility where those with ...
http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/08/25/100503.php
 
I posted the Spitting Image link because it addresses the ploy being used. A headline editorializes, and then the story introduces nothing patently false, yet nothing factually supporting the headline either.

For example, should a soldier "maimed for a lie", be confronted with the presence of another citizen outside a hospital, a citizen dramatically drawing the public's weak attention toward compounding but avoidable personal tragedies, the situation could also be understood as advocacy for our troops.

It is now the national consensus that we were lied to in order for our Iraq campaign to commence. It logically follows that every young American serviceperson injured or killed there has been in effect a casualty of lies. This is not to say these sacrifices represent young lives poorly or dishonorably lived, but instead young lives victimized, traumatized, even deranged or killed for... well, Americans have in the majority agreed that this carnage was commenced dishonestly.

Now, if someone defends another from a wrong, and a third party does not comprehend the wrong, is then any defense or outcry a hostile act of disrespect? And if one protester uses crass tactics, are all protesters nasty people?

Of course not.
 
Just like a liberal , they never do anything wrong, and nothing is good enough proof that they can't deny its validity.
 
That's not fair, BR. I have not been expressing such absolutes as you . I attentively read each an every one of your links. The text of those stories simply does not factually support your premise that the protests are intended to cause psychological harm, or intended to dishonor our troops.

You say nothing is good enough proof for "liberals" like me. That's a little unfair, since you haven't provided it. Did you carefully read the articles you pointed to? If you would please read the link I offered, I would much appreciate your comments. If there's much more to say on these specific protests, then it would be more topical to carry on in a dedicated Walter Reed protest thread.

All of the following quotes are taken directly from your linked "proof", BR:
"The anti-war protesters claim their presence at the hospital is necessary to publicize the arrivals of newly wounded soldiers from Iraq, who the protesters allege are being smuggled in at night by the Pentagon to avoid media scrutiny. The protesters also argue that the military hospital is the most appropriate place for the demonstrations and that the vigils are designed to ultimately help the wounded veterans."

"I am ... offended by the fact that [wounded veterans] have been kept out of the news," Kevin McCarron, Veterans for Peace."

"...we had a very large vigil in front of Walter Reed where injured soldiers are brought. The adversarial group across the street was rude, attacked us verbally hoping for confrontation, and were very noisy and disrespectful of the vets they supposedly support. As usual CODEPINK was about real issues of importance to the folks inside Walter Reed and the people across the street didn't really have a message other than just attacking CODEPINK."

Since the spring, long before an angry mom named Cindy Sheehan set up camp outside President Bush's Texas ranch, anti-war activists have been holding vigils outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center on Friday nights, when many soldiers and their families venture off campus for steak dinners.

They've called for better health care benefits for soldiers wounded in Iraq, protested an early policy of making some soldiers buy their own meals while in care, and accused the military of purposely flying injured troops in under cover of night to downplay the volume of casualties. And they've waved signs protesting the war and the Bush administration.

On March 31, Stars and Stripes, which describes itself as a Department of Defense-authorized daily newspaper distributed overseas for the U.S. military community, reported on a Code Pink vigil: "When we first heard about this [the night-time return of injured soliders], we were appalled," Code Pink organizer Gael Murphy, told the newspaper. "Why are they bringing them in only at night? Is it because they don't want the media to cover it? Is it because they don't want Americans to see the real cost of this war?"

The Stars and Stripes story makes no mention of the wounded being "taunted" or "besieged."

"These are not protests, they are vigils calling for more support for the veterans. We always do them with military families and we get extremely positive responses from the families of the wounded soldiers. In my first DC vigil, the wife of a wounded soldier took me inside to meet her husband," - Medea Benjamin, co-founder Code Pink

"In the past few weeks, however, new people have shown up and have tried to change the tone and be more confrontational. We asked them to remove signs that we found objectionable. While we aren't certain as to who these people are, we think they may be related to the FreeRepublic people who are demonstrating across the street."

"They are trying to create a confrontation and make us look as if we are not supporting the soldiers. It is a smear tactic and is totally untrue. We are only there to say that these soldiers deserve the best possible treatment when they come home."

"Never mind that the protesters are telling the truth. Never mind that this country is run by chickenhawks. These protesters are hurting peoples' feewings. Aw, my feewings are hurt and my leg is missing..."

"Another imbecilic attempt to equate truthfully exposing the terrible lies of Bush/Rove with "kicking around" wounded soldiers. News flash: not all soldiers are thrilled with fighting for huge oil company profits."

"what's cnsnews? i really doubt that most of the anti-war crowd likes the idea of taunting the wounded... the insurgency is over? news to me... i'll have to look into that. sounds like bull."

"oh my god. cnsnews is a conservative rag... i'm going to try to look this up elsewhere, see if i can get a better idea of what's really going on. that's like quoting fox news as truth..."
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About anything that harass wonded troops, yes I think in absolutes, and I think its absolutly despicable. And quoteing ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, CNN, is quoting truth? How many times have the new organs been caught makilg up news stories? way to often, and you can politically correct the name of anything you do but its still the same,

As for the article:
The Spitting Image: Myth, Memory, and the Legacy of Vietnam

Besides the fact that no returning soldiers landed at San Francisco Airport, I find it hard to believe that the same veteran was spat on three times in one pass through the airport.

My flight came in at San Francisco airport and I was spat upon three times: by hippies, by a man in a leisure suit, and by a sweet little old lady who informed me I was an "Army Asshole."
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Returning flight did land at San Francisco, there are or were Air Force bases around the San Francisco area and when they were done out-processing you there were shuttle bus's that would take you to SFO/LAX it was one of the largest return sites for returning troops from Vietnam.
 
Why don't you read your own quoted quote again more carefully, maybe your last post in entirety:

no returning soldiers landed at San Francisco Airport
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But do try again, I appreciate it.
 
BUT THEY FLEW OUT OF THERE BY THE THOUSANDS ON THEIR WAY HOME, USUALLY WITHIN 24 hr OF HITTING THE BIG PX'S, aka. THE WORLD, aka, THE UNITED STARES OF AMERICA, ON THEIR WAY HOME!!!!!
 
But never landed there. You are using this silly unfounded contention in order to prove or discredit what point, BR?
 
How dumb are you, there are and were Air Force Bases all around San Franscio but the one that most of the returning G.I. came through was Travis Air Force Base, and once processed out on Leave, or ETS, Discharge, they took shuttles to SFO/LAX, and this is when they had to pass through a gauntlet of anti war protesters, Yes you may be right in that they didn't land at SFO/LAX, coming in but they had to go through SFO/LAX going out, so the whole picture is not being shown of what happened and you are using half a picture to spread a lie.
 
No, this is your attempt at a critique of an article I linked. Rather than confront the premise of the article, you have rather clumsily tried to discredit the story over an unimportant detail. Please just drop this distraction and try again.
 
Unimportant detail? a, excuse me the returning troops to get out of town from Travis, had to go through SFO/LAX, this is how they completed the return to there families, and even if they didn't land at SOF/LAX, it was a part of their RTCONUS and family, so who is picking out small detailes to discredit the U.S. Soldier, as a lier?
 
The liberation of the Iraqi children

http://www.evolutionquebec.com/site/irak/enfanlib.html

irakid01.jpg
 
May people see that no matter what we claim Saddam Hussein, Hamas, or Hezbollah does to civilians, WE do it too.

6 Marines charged in Iraq assault

Assault charges were filed against six Marines on Thursday as the result of an incident that occurred in April in the Iraqi village of Hamdania and was uncovered during an unrelated investigation into the slaying of an Iraqi civilian later that month, military officials said.

Three of the Marines charged Thursday are currently in the brig at Camp Pendleton on murder and kidnapping charges in connection with the April 26 slaying of 52-year-old Hashim Ibrahim Awad in Hamdania. The other three had not been charged in that case.

Meanwhile, a seventh Marine, an officer, is expected to be charged next with in the assault, according to Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, the Marine Corps' defense coordinator for the Western United States. The nature of the assault was not described.
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The six charged in the assault were identified as Lance Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo, Pfc. Derek I. Lewis, Lance Cpl. Henry D. Lever, Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas and Lance Cpl. Jerry E. Shumate Jr.
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May they forever live in shame, knowing that they have shamed the Star Spangled Banner.
 
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