[PAA-Discuss] Out of Afghanistan / Pakistan ....RIGHT NOW

[Bart Boyce]

Zhaleh ,

The Scahill piece , The Secret US War in Afghanistan ,

( PAA Digest volume 53 issue 24 ) confirms what we already

know about the way our foreign policy is being managed .

There is little or no accountability whatsoever .

The
use of private companies like Blackwater for sensitive operations such
as drone strikes or other covert work undoubtedly comes with the
benefit of plausible deniability that places an additional barrier in
an already deeply flawed system of accountability

The JSOC through the arm of Xe and Blackwater SELECT , furtively

performs the most odious, illegal , unsavory drone murders and deepens

the United States image as World Bully . And "we" didn't do it .....yeah , right .

One organization that may bring deeper focus on our shared national bad karma

is championed by Chris Hedges , The Truth Commission on Conscience in War .


  
 










 
  

 
  
This Truth Commission, rather than focus on troop
deployments or withdrawals, has been designed to step back and ask the
most important questions: Are the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan just?
Are they permissible under international law? Are they moral? And if
they are not, as I believe they are not, what are the options for a
person of conscience serving in uniform?

 --  Mr. Christopher Hedges, Pulitizer-prize winning war correspondent for The New York Times and author of War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning



Today, President Obama will accept the Nobel Peace Prize while
30,000 troops prepare to deploy to Afghanistan. But what if many of
them, like so many Americans, object to this war? What does a soldier
face if he or she believes a war violates the standards of just war or
the Nuremberg Principles?

Squeezed between moral conscience and a call to serve their
country, soldiers face sanctions, court martial, dishonorable
discharge, and prison, not prizes, if they object to the Afghanistan
War. Military regulations today do not protect freedom of moral
conscience for U.S. service members who object to a specific war; they
only recognize objectors who oppose war in any form. 
With an all volunteer military, fewer than 1% of U.S.
citizens in combat, and repeated tours of duty for most soldiers, the
military is experiencing unprecedented rates of PTSD, depression, and
suicide. Soldiers and their families are paying what New York Times
columnist Bob Herbert called a  ";Fearful Price," while the rest of the country carries on, oblivious to the human cost of two wars.

We urge you to help us support soldiers of conscience by donating to the work of the Truth Commission on Conscience in War,
March 21-22, 2010, at New York's Riverside Church. The Truth Commission
hearings will launch a major nationwide effort to support the rights of
conscience for service members who object to a particular war.

Thanks to all of you who have already donated. We deeply appreciate your support.


Help us spread the word about it, and, if you haven't
already done so, urge your organization to co-sponsor the Truth
Commission! Contact us via Rita Brock ritabrock at sbcglobal.net to co-sponsor.


Help us honor and protect freedom of conscience for our nation's service members and further the cause of peacemaking. Please donate now!

Peace,

The Truth Commission Planning Committee:

Rita Nakashima Brock

Gabriella Lettini

Erin Reese

Cathy Ryan

Ian Slattery

Justin Waters


Truth Commission Organizers:

Faith Voices

Luna Productions

The Riverside Church

Starr King School for the Ministry

Union Theological Seminary


Current Co-Sponsors:

Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary

Buddhist Peace Fellowship

Chicago Theological Seminary

Drew Theological School

Graduate Theological Union

United Theological Seminary 

Yale Divinity School

Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America

Catholic Peace Fellowship

Center on Conscience & War

Christian Reformed Church in North America

Disciples Justice Action Network

Fellowship of Reconciliation

Friends for a Non-Violent World

Iraq Veterans Against the War

Jewish Peace Fellowship 

Justice & Witness Ministries, United Church of Christ

Mennonite Central Committee U.S.

New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends

Park Avenue Christian Church

PeaceMajority Report

Progressive Christians Uniting

The Shalom Center

United Church of Christ

Women in Islam

World Christian Student Federation of North America


                             -------------------------

I like Bill's ideas of doing absolutely everything we can to
get our nation out of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Lets talk about it at the PAA meeting tonight .
b











  
 










 
  

 
  
This Truth Commission, rather than focus on troop
deployments or withdrawals, has been designed to step back and ask the
most important questions: Are the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan just?
Are they permissible under international law? Are they moral? And if
they are not, as I believe they are not, what are the options for a
person of conscience serving in uniform?

 --  Mr. Christopher Hedges, Pulitizer-prize winning war correspondent for The New York Times and author of War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning



Today, President Obama will accept the Nobel Peace Prize while
30,000 troops prepare to deploy to Afghanistan. But what if many of
them, like so many Americans, object to this war? What does a soldier
face if he or she believes a war violates the standards of just war or
the Nuremberg Principles?

Squeezed between moral conscience and a call to serve their
country, soldiers face sanctions, court martial, dishonorable
discharge, and prison, not prizes, if they object to the Afghanistan
War. Military regulations today do not protect freedom of moral
conscience for U.S. service members who object to a specific war; they
only recognize objectors who oppose war in any form. 
With an all volunteer military, fewer than 1% of U.S.
citizens in combat, and repeated tours of duty for most soldiers, the
military is experiencing unprecedented rates of PTSD, depression, and
suicide. Soldiers and their families are paying what New York Times
columnist Bob Herbert called a  ";Fearful Price," while the rest of the country carries on, oblivious to the human cost of two wars.

We urge you to help us support soldiers of conscience by donating to the work of the Truth Commission on Conscience in War,
March 21-22, 2010, at New York's Riverside Church. The Truth Commission
hearings will launch a major nationwide effort to support the rights of
conscience for service members who object to a particular war.

Thanks to all of you who have already donated. We deeply appreciate your support.


Help us spread the word about it, and, if you haven't
already done so, urge your organization to co-sponsor the Truth
Commission! Contact us via Rita Brock ritabrock at sbcglobal.net to co-sponsor.


Help us honor and protect freedom of conscience for our nation's service members and further the cause of peacemaking. Please donate now!

Peace,

The Truth Commission Planning Committee:

Rita Nakashima Brock

Gabriella Lettini

Erin Reese

Cathy Ryan

Ian Slattery

Justin Waters


Truth Commission Organizers:

Faith Voices

Luna Productions

The Riverside Church

Starr King School for the Ministry

Union Theological Seminary


Current Co-Sponsors:

Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary

Buddhist Peace Fellowship

Chicago Theological Seminary

Drew Theological School

Graduate Theological Union

United Theological Seminary 

Yale Divinity School

Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America

Catholic Peace Fellowship

Center on Conscience & War

Christian Reformed Church in North America

Disciples Justice Action Network

Fellowship of Reconciliation

Friends for a Non-Violent World

Iraq Veterans Against the War

Jewish Peace Fellowship 

Justice & Witness Ministries, United Church of Christ

Mennonite Central Committee U.S.

New York Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends

Park Avenue Christian Church

PeaceMajority Report

Progressive Christians Uniting

The Shalom Center

United Church of Christ

Women in Islam

World Christian Student Federation of North America



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