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June 20, 2006

We invaded a sovereign nation, without provocation. Had this been done by another country we would have been the first to run to the aid of the invaded country. If we invaded Iraq as a response to the 9-11 attacks, why was that particular target chosen? How many of the terrorists were Iraqi citizens? Where are the WMD? Why is it that neither our inspectors nor those of the U.N. could find the WMD. Why are we even in Iraq?

I strongly support all our troops, they are doing what they were trained to do, and obeying the leader they swore to obey. It is our fearless leader and those who follow him I do not support. How can we stand back and watch a so-called leader, with a personal agenda and faulty intelligence to back his "deciding" to put out men and women in a particularly nasty jeopardy?

It is pretty clear that many Iraqis do NOT want us there. And remember, every time someone calls those who oppose our presence "insurgents", that those insurgents are also part of the Iraqi people. And, if we believe in what we are trying to push down their throats, we need to realize this.

Dee
Beaufort, SC

posted 26 june 2006

June 22, 2006

I am the father of SGT Christopher Monroe, who was killed in Iraq on October 25, 2005. I live in Belton, TX, just outside of Fort Hood. In Killeen, TX, outside of Fort Hood, the AUSA had Col. Gary Cheek, Deputy Directorate for the War on Terrorism, J5, Joint Chiefs of Staff speak at a meeting telling the scope of the War.

In the "Temple Daily Telegram," he states this: "Since the total Muslim population is 1.3 billion, that means the insurgency is as much as 1.3 billion at any one time." As I read that statement, if you're a Muslim, you are a terrorist, period. If this is the mindset of our government, we are in trouble. Get the truth out before we become the next terrorists.

Perry Monroe
Belton, TX

posted 24 june 2006

June 21, 2006

This AM on NPR I heard a report that brought me to tears. It was the story of a soldier named Matt who is missing in Iraq. He's been missing for two years. He has a brother that is a Marine that wants to be deployed. Obviously his mother doesn't want him to go.

As a brother myself I understand his devotion. As an American I understand his idealism. If I could believe that this war was just I would be able to go about my day with a heart full of respect for the soldier that goes to fight and a pride in American actions. But I don't believe in this war. I don't believe our country is "on mission" this time. I believe the death and dismemberment of our troops and of the Iraqi people is a crime. I believe our government is manipulating the minds of the American people and sacrificing our men and women without aim.

I feel pity for the fighters, their families and our country. I pray that the war will end and that divine sense will fill the narrow minds of our fear-driven leaders.

Adam Butler
Austin, Texas

posted 22 june 2006

June 12, 2006

Dear Bring Them Home Now!,

I am writing to introduce you to a new anti-war radio station in Seattle that I have started with my family. Please let your readers know about the station, which plays music and sound clips with an anti-war theme. It is freely available to the public.

You can visit the station on-line. Listen to Dylan, Young, and a host of legendary performers from the old days and the new. For fun, we have included sound clips from the Department of Civil Defense broadcast on stations around 50 years ago. We aim to entertain and uplift people fighting everyday for peace and to bring an end to the Iraq War. The station is available now and we are open to suggestions and submissions for our playlist.

"A time comes when silence is betrayal." -- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Richard A. Hinrichsen
Seattle WA

posted 18 june 2006

June 2, 2006

It's not right that a handful of young volunteers alone shoulder the entire burden of our country at war. No one should have to bear the uncertainty, risk and stress of being recycled back and forth to the hell they face over and over. In fact, they can't bear it without tragic consequences.

Please contact Senators Hagel and Feingold and Representatives Inslee, Murtha or W.B. Jones and demand legislation for an iron clad policy limiting tours in a war zone to no more than two 8 month deployments in a 4 year enlistment for ranks of o-3 and below. The lives of so many young earnest individuals and their families are being destroyed by the present unfair, cruel and counter-productive policy.

If we don't have the volunteers for this, then the country does not truly support the effort and it needs altered or terminated. Please act to end this travesty and betrayal. "Not again, not again." Certa bonum certamen.

A.F.Lynch
Bainbridge Island, WA

posted 11 june 2006

May 27, 2006

Friends:

Go to http://westpointgradsagainstthewar.org, I just learned of this from Karen Kwiatkowski (Lt Col AF, Ret., great essays).

This site is great. It supports my Iraq views entirely as to lies, illegality, etc. Note the West Point code of honor does not tolerate dishonesty, and Honesty is the first 'value' on my home page.

I will try hard for their endorsement

Best regards,

Dave Redick
Republican Candidate for US Senate-Wisconsin
www.redick2006.com

posted 08 june 2006

June 1, 2006

The news about "ethics training" for the troops is another example of how broken our military is today. From the beginning of basic training throughout their careers the brass are forever teaching kill, kill, kill. Now the outcome of that debased training reaches the civilian population and the brass responds with moral training. Maybe they will re-institute compliance with the rules of the Geneva Convention.

Nobody should join the military at a time when they cannot know whether their greatest threat is from obeying or disobeying orders. The responsibility of the leadership is to give direction and to lead by example. When the commanders have no morals then the individual soldiers will be blamed - again.

Terry Riley
Albuquerque, NM

posted 06 june 2006

June 2, 2006

Oh boy....yes, I think soldiers should have more etiquette training. For example, when a soldier busts into a home filled with family, before the soldier slaughters the family, he should say, "May I please kill you?" Then after the murder and stealing of possessions, the soldiers should write a very polite thank-you card.

All of this will be excellent for human relations and many people will not mind being butchered by soldiers who are more polite and clean-shaven. Good oral hygiene is another area of consideration and christ, no family wants to be blown away by some american soldier with ash-tray breath, or someone who throws their cigarette butts on the war!

So, courtesy, values are essential for barbarians who assassinate children as if they are targets for juvenile paint ball games.

Joe Ciarrocca
Veteran
Brunswick, Maine

posted 06 june 2006

May 21, 2006

My son was about to retire (20 years) in December, 2006 and just got orders to go to IRAQ in June for one year. Why now? Since he travels around and is assigned to far-off places I have not seen him in about 3 years. I am devastated. His wife is in denial.

Are there any support groups for mothers/relatives of soldiers in IRAQ? If not, I may just start one online. Any suggestions? God help us.

Thank you,
Mother in New York City

[This mother was referred to Military Families Speak Out]

posted 04 june 2006

June 2, 2006

MSN has a "Week In Pictures" feature where people vote on a selection of news pictures. It is usually a mix of "human interest" and "hard news" pictures. Usually, the more irrelevant and less newsworthy the picture, the more votes it gets.

Thing is, this week they have two very moving, very powerful pictures on the war. One is a fantastic evening picture of the Arlington West protest. The other is a woman crying over the tombstone of her boyfriend killed in Iraq. They are currently respectively #1 and #2 in votes, with more than half the total votes cast. The third place is going to one of the usual human interest BS pictures.

<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3842331/>

The most interesting thing is that you are forced to look at the pictures before you can vote or get the url with the vote totals, so people vote without gang mentality. That is, this is highly unscientific evidence of the national mood.

We are well beyond the crossroads. We are winning, and the momentum is ours... Can't let it slide...

Carlos Rivera
Brooklyn, NY

posted 03 june 2006

May 25, 2006

—UPDATE—
May 31, Katherine Jashinski was transferred from Harris County Jail to Miramar Marine Corps Air Station in San Diego, California. KATHERINE'S NEW MAILING ADDRESS IS:

Katherine Jashinski
PO Box 452136
San Diego, CA 92145-2136

Hi,

It is great that you added info on Army National Guard Specialist Katherine Jashinski's sentence on your webpage. Would you also want to post her prison mailing address so people can send her letters of support? (It is likely that she will be moved in the coming days to a military prison, and we will update info on her location as soon as we hear.)

For more information about Katherine, visit <www.myspace.com/freekatherine>

MORE INFO & WAYS TO SUPPORT SPC JASHINSKI:
Katherine Jashinski is a Conscientious Objector whose application for a discharge was denied by the Army after almost 18 months. On May 23 she was court-martialed for refusing to train with weapons and received a bad conduct discharge and a sentence of 120 days imprisonment.

Katherine is currently incarcerated in the Harris County Jail in southwest Georgia. She may be transferred soon, so please send urgent letters of support to:

Katherine Jashinski
Harris County Jail
PO BOX 286
Hamilton, GA 31811

Suggestions for writing to a prisoner:

-All letters must have a return address on the envelope.
-Please also put a return address on the letter itself, as prisoners often not given the envelopes.
-Keep in mind that all mail is read by authorities.
-Most facilities will NOT accept stamps or stamped envelopes mailed to prisoners.

Thanks,

freekatherine

posted 31 may 2006

May 19, 2006

I've been a conservative Republican as long as I can remember and initially supported this war, standing alongside my fellow Republicans thinking I was morally superior for fighting for "freedom."

How wrong I was! I can only say: Forgive me. I need my son's forgiveness first and foremost as he is stationed in Afghanistan, serving a country that doesn't care about freedom....only dominance and oppression. If everyone in our country could see this war through the eyes of our soldiers, they would change their minds too. Here is the blog from my son that CHANGED MY MIND!

WHAT I DO:
I've been here for three months now, and it occurs to me that the war being fought back at home is very different from the war being fought here in Afghanistan. Back home everyone is fighting the Taliban, fighting with their American flags and their "support our troops" bumper stickers, catching highlights on the news that have been edited by the media to make all this look like a war. Meanwhile I'm here fighting with a .50 cal and an M249 that I don't shoot, fighting with weapons that are only pointed at children who get too close to the trucks, fighting not with the Taliban, but with insanity. Fighting with guilt. America's perception of this war is distorted, America believes there's an enemy here capable of threatening the all glorious American way of life, that an evil master mind lurks in the shadows and plans to destroy everything they know to be good and righteous. I know the truth. The truth that the Taliban only exist as a handful of used to be sheep herders and mud-hut merchants that are pissed off because America has put soldiers on their streets. Pissed off because America has sent an invasion force into their country to threaten their way of living.

When president Bush was asked about the terror that America brings to other countries, he told the addressing reporter "dont worry about that.". He should have said "Dont worry about PVT H., He's doing just fine.". Because after all, I am now part of the terror that America has brought to Afghanistan. Thats me, sitting behind the machine gun with the muzzle that passes by the faces of so many innocent people. Thats me smashing the windshields of "incompliant" jingle truck drivers who's only trespass is not understanding the cursing I use to direct them off the road. Thats me, with my sling shot, shooting little kids who throw rocks even though I would only do the same thing in their position. Thats me, terror. What America claims to fight, is what I do.

If this changes even one mind, I'll be grateful. It sure changed mine. I now consider myself a protestor!

With humility,
Danni, Proud mom of a private serving in Afghanistan

posted 22 may 2006

May 2, 2006

FYI:
Film: Charlie Anderson, Iraqi War Vet, Wants Withdrawal of all U.S. Troops Found at: <http://homepage.mac.com/bhughes2/iMovieTheater191.html >

Regards,
William Hughes

posted 03 may 2006

April 15, 2006

Hello,
I just stumbled onto your website & have bookmarked it for future use. I have not finished reading everything, but plan to. The letters & emails that you have received are incredible ... I'm still crying after reading some of them. How sad they are!

I watch Democracy Now to get my news everyday. I no longer listen to the large network news channels, nor do I read the mainstream newspapers. I have written letters & sent emails, etc. I too, am very upset with the state of affairs & this "regime". My heart goes out to our soldiers as well as the innocent Iraqi people. I'm afraid we are living in "evil times" ... it's like a bad nightmare. I do hope & pray things will change soon!

Thank you all for putting together this website, I will share it with my family & friends!

R. Menzel

posted 16 april 2006

April 7, 2006

About a year and a half ago my brother decided to accept an ROTC scholarship from the Army. He is now a graduating senior and is being sent to Kentucky for armor training. Once he is finished in Kentucky, God knows where he'll go. They're telling us it might even be Iraq. This was my brother's decision and I support him 100%, however, due to the nature of his job, I've taken to watching the war in Iraq with great care. I hear news about dead soldiers on TV and I think about my brother; educated, strong and happy, being one of those people some day.

In honor of my brother, I bought a pair of dog tags. I was going to get his name and rank stamped on them, but when I saw the blank metal I realized that it wasn't just about my brother. I realized that it's about everyone in Iraq and in the Middle East. So I wear them blank to symbolize the thousands who fight and who died in Iraq for, what I feel, is no reason at all.

I want to spread the word and get people to wear these blank dog tags in the hope that we can make a new symbol that is close to our hearts. Stickers and magnets are all well and good, but once you walk away from them, it's hard to think on them much. But wearing dog-tags means they are always with you. As they should be.

I need a little help in spreading the word, so I chose BringThemHomeNow.org to start. I'll be all over the internet spreading the message! If you have any tips or ways of helping me spread the word, please contact me at: first_knight@earthlink.net

Thank you!

Sharon Winter
Orlando, FL

posted 08 april 2006

March 30, 2006

I am an ICU nurse in xxx with a CSH (combat support hospital). I have been volunteering to take care of the EPWs (Enemy Prisoners of War). It has been an eye-opening experience. It is so easy to play the role that everyone else plays, hating them. I look at them as an opportunity to test my human compassion.

When I do it it feels good. Talking to them and letting them know that nothing bad will happen to them while I am with them feels so good. I feel sorry for the staff that feel they need to make fun of them or give them nicknames. I treat them the same way I would want them to treat my friends or family in the same situation. At first, it was hard because there is a built-in affect when it comes to someone that is an enemy. Once I got past that programming, I have had some of the best experiences of my career/life taking care of them.

I talked to an old man the other night. He talked about his fears and desires to see his family. I could relate. I want to go back home and see my family as well. We bonded and I feel protective of him so the next time I got report and the nurse started calling him Tupac because of the way his blind fold was tied I said can you please stop that? I couldn't believe the words came out of my mouth. I mean these people are supposed to be the target of our anger so to just joke is really a way of taking the lesser of evil. I don't see it that way and I am realizing that I am different and it feels good. I am going to keep asking for EPWs.

I am also getting tired of people asking is it an American. I don't care anymore and I will not treat anyone differently. It's who I am and I feel great about that.

I know I have a lot of emotional work ahead of me. I let things here affect me and I have to find a better way of incorporating everything that I have experienced into a more positive outlook. I know that Iraq is in a civil war. It is so sad for the people here. I am going to feel bad leaving. I know they can't leave.

I heard one of your spokespeople on the News Hour with Jim Lehr and could really relate to her. She wants the best for the Iraqi people but knows that we are not doing much for them. I have seen so many Iraqis injured by our forces accidentally. She said that the only internal development she has seen with real effect was the US bases. I agree with her. We are scared to leave the base and do much with the public. It is dangerous. We can't say where and when we will show up to do things because the insurgents can make plans. So we show up at random to do a clinic and have pictures taken. Nothing really comes of it because it is not a resource that they can rely on. Most of the medics tell me that there is not much we can do for them other than say you need to start seeing a doctor. Well, for most of the population that isn't an option. It's like waiting for the big help only to have your picture taken and nothing real is accomplished. I don't want to be a part of this farce any more.

I am an Arabic interpreter and ICU nurse and have been asking to be able to go and help the Iraqi hospitals get on their feet. I am told that that will not happen. We are here to pull our shift and justify the huge KBR contracts. That's all. The American public needs to know the truth about what is going on over here. You can use my words in any way you think may help your cause. Thank you for looking out for us over here.

1 LT XXXX XXXX,
IRAQ

posted 01 april 2006

March 27, 2006

This is a urgent message from my son, Army Major Agustin McLamb-Quinones. Please read and forward to all your e-mail friends and associates. ASAP and ask them to help my son and daughter-in-law and children. Their family is broken at this time, due to their daughter being recently molested by an Army doctor, and yet the Army is sending my son back to Baghdad in 5 days unless enough people get in touch with their representatives and my son's representatives and military superiors on his behalf. (See below.)

My son's wife Francis has collapsed due to all the stress brought on by the assault on her 10 year old daughter, and because they can't get any assistance from their military "family" (the Army). She's a wonderful mother and wife, but, at present, is not capable of handling the children when Augie (my son) is taken away to Iraq in the next few days. He needs his emergency leave extended for a few months to take care of his family until they can function once again.

We are also very concerned that this child predator is still being allowed to see more patients at the Army hospital there in Heidelberg. As a retired police investigator I assure you this is not the first child he has molested and it is very normal to remove such alleged dangerous criminals from their posts (for the protection of the public) until the investigation is complete.

Lord bless you for any assistance you can render. And thank you for sending this on to your e-mail list.

Jack McLamb <jack@cybrquest.com>

Here is my son's story of the destruction of his family:

I am currently in Germany having just returned from my second tour in Iraq due to a family emergency. My daughter was molested when I was in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom One (2003 - 2004). She was only eight years old at the time; she is now ten. We felt it best to seek counseling for her in order to help her deal with the effects of the abuse.

I deployed to Iraq once again on January 9, 2006. But approximately three months prior to my deployment my daughter began experiencing extreme anxiety, followed by severe weight loss (she lost give or take 10 lbs). She became withdrawn, refused to eat, and showed a multitude of other adverse effects. Several doctors could not tell us the causes of her apparent illness. Our once bright morning sun appeared to be slowly dying.

My wife and I believed that our daughter was losing the weight and experiencing the anxiety because she equated my deployment with what happened to her the last time that I left. If only our problems were so simple.

You see, our daughter had been seeing a therapist for approximately a year. Rather than getting better under his care, she became worse. My daughter told my wife that her doctor had been abusing her for sometime. Let me just list a few of the details that our ten year old daughter shared with us:

1. On numerous occasions the doctor got naked. He also made our 10 year old get naked.

2. He poked and slapped her several times with objects that he kept in his office (in a hidden shelf) if she didn't obey him. He additionally fondled her, kissed her, and made her touch his genitals.

3. The doctor told our daughter that I was leaving for Iraq because her Mom and Dad were getting a divorce. He also told her that if she ever told anyone what they did behind closed doors that he would make sure that I would get killed in Iraq.

After reporting this to "the authorities," the perp is (from I was last told) still working at the Heidelberg Army Hospital. My family and I are being stonewalled, and no one has bothered to contact us to follow-up on our daughter's health. In other words, we feel that they are "circling the wagons" to protect their own behinds but in the process have totally forgotten about my daughter. The hospital administration refuses to call or e-mail us or take our calls.

Most law enforcement professionals believe that the average pedophile molests approximately 150 children before being caught. It is therefore outrageous that the Heidelberg Army Hospital chain of command has allowed this animal to continue seeing patients. I am concerned for other children, but I am also concerned that he may be influencing and tampering with possible witnesses (i.e., kids that he may have already molested).

I have been denied assistance by military attorneys. I was told by JAG (Judge Advocate General) that since I have a complaint against a government employee, I cannot use their services. Keep in mind that I am an American soldier serving in a foreign country (Germany) and have to hire a German attorney.

I never understood the Army's campaign slogan, "An Army of One," until my daughter was molested and until I began seeking justice for her. Now I completely understand.

My command's chief concern during this ordeal has been my return to Iraq, and has given minute support..."Wow, we feel for you" is the standard party line. As far as the rest of the military here in Germany is concerned...well, think of the Army's recruiting slogan.

Finally, I have pleaded with my command to allow me to remain in Germany until my children are done with school in June. At that time I will return my family to the states where they can be cared for and protected by a loving family. Only after I have ensured my family's safety, and have spent sometime in therapy with my daughter to repair her fragile mental and physical state, will I return to Iraq to complete my tour. I am not asking to be released from my obligations in Iraq, but only for my return to be delayed.

I have never asked anything of this order to the service that I have given 191/2 years of my life to. Again, all that I am requesting is that I be allowed to remain in Germany so that I can guarantee my family's safety and until they (particularly my ten year old) are somewhat stable.

I am a currently a member of MNCI (Multi National Corps Iraq) currently operating in Iraq. This is my second tour to that country.

If you wish to assist me you can contact my commander directly. He is LTG Peter Chiarelli. His e-mail is Peter.chiarelli@us.army.mil.

Another commander that you can contact is LTG Ricardo Sanchez. He has been forthcoming with me, but is not the ultimate decision maker. His e-mail is ricardo.s.sanchez@us.army.mil.

Whether or not you agree with the following individuals' political philosophies, I can tell you from experience that they care about the individual soldier. They have been very helpful in resolving military issues in the past, especially when the military leaders are covering their behinds. I ask that you contact these officials and your own elected representatives on my behalf as well.

Congressman John P. Murtha: His chief of staff's e-mail address is John.Hugya@mail.house.gov.

Congressman Charlie Rangel (NYC). His e-mail address is info@charlierangel.org. His phone number is 212-862-4990. Please, this is urgent for I am to report to Iraq on 1 April (in 5 days).

May God Bless you all,

MAJ Agustin McLamb-Quinones

posted 30 march 2006

March 27, 2006

I just got this letter a few minutes ago from my (Sunni) "adopted daughter" who lives in a northern Iraq city...they have cut-off their internet, except with pre-paid cards....please note her statements about GIs raiding her house....not to mention the massacre of 24 Shi'ites by US troops yesterday....

This is killing me...she and I have been writing for a long time now, and she truly is like my daughter...she is so fu**ing brave, and I wish I could get her out of there NOW, along with our troops....I deleted most of her name for her protection...

Peace someday,

Ward Reilly
VFP Chapter

Dear Ward,

I did see some war veterans marching on al-jazeera indeed but i can't say I spotted you between the crowd, However,they had so many protests to cover around the globe only summaries of each were shown.

The american news channels were the ones claiming that the protests were not as large as expected world wide. But I think after 3 years the opposition of the war and the neocons is overwhelming. I'm sure had bush been a democratic president the republicans would have had him impeached by now due to his low approval ratings and weak leadership. I truely believe the democrats will take majority of the congress in the upcoming elections next fall.

Yesterday american forces raided our home in what we thought was a usual arrest of my father or brother because this happens almost daily to sunnis in Iraq, but instead some troops just broke down in tears apologizing for the terror these raidings caused to the people. It was very emotional.

24 shiaats were executed yesterday in baghdad by american troops and I can't seem to figure out why? the shiaats have been close to the coalition.Everything is too messed up to try to understand.

I have indeed thought about leaving the country and i have checked so many places for immigration, at least temporarly,but no country wants to bare iraqis anymore and that was very disappointing. In america the only way to get a visa is either through a study course which costs more than even my wealthy family can afford,or like you said through marrying an american citizen and i don't have that option either.. :)

I'll try to get a work visa cause I have heard engineers have a good chance in america and lots of jobs are available for them.And who knows maybe I can give my long lost father a big hug someday.

Love & Peace,
R

posted 28 march 2006

March 21, 2006

Dear People:

Keep up the good work. As a Buddhist priest and former Viet Nam combat veteran, I hope this war ends soon, so we don't destroy another generation.

Peace,

Rev James Koshu
Buffalo, NY

posted 22 march 2006

March 16, 2006

Hi,

On June 26 , 2005, my boyfriend of 5 years was deployed to Iraq. It has been excruciatingly painful, and emotionally devastating to not have him around. But the reason I am writing is to let someone know about the conditions he recently informed me of, as he returned to Iraq from his 2 week leave. "There are no toilets. We urinate in tubes in the ground, and have bowel movements in plastic bags in tents, then burn it."

Now, for the billions of dollars being spent in Iraq, has ANYONE thought of getting our soldiers toilets? He was not in that particular area for more than a few weeks, but there are other soldiers that are still there. Am I the only one disturbed by this? These men risk their lives, and give their lives everyday, and our government cannot provide a port-a-john? Are you SERIOUS????? If there is ANYTHING that can be done to bring these men and women home, or provide them with what they need while they fight for our "freedom", and we fight for theirs, please let me know!

Thanks,

Erin Gaspari, PA

posted 18 march 2006

March 5, 2006

My small donation will follow. I am glad to see a page where we can purchase support the troops-- bring them home NOW.

I have to say this. I knew there were no weapons of mass destruction when we were forced to mass our troops in Kuwait which is a small area and ideal for WMD. Saddam would have used a WMD if he had one.

So I have watched and listened to lie after lie.

Let's get our troops back and let us remove all the warmongers, Republican and Democrat, from our public life.

And if one of Bush's lackeys is reading this, then hear this. Let us put them all in jail and throw the key away.

Charles

posted 11 march 2006

February 28, 2006

Good morning,

I presume you must be very busy and I'm sorry for bothering you with my problems but I really need your help.

I got acquainted (via internet) with an American soldier who was serving in Iraq last summer... Suddenly, he stopped mailing me. I haven't heard from him since last August and I'm very worried. I really didn't know what to do and whom to contact. May I ask you to help me and find him ?

His name is Jefferson Davis McMahan, 45 years-old from Johnson City, Tennessee. He told me he was in the US army. Unfortunately I don't know anything about his unit. His account has been disabled last month. I can't help thinking about him though we never met. I wish I knew what happened to him. I hope he's okay... Could you try and reassure me please? Of course, I don't want to cause you any problems.

I hope your March will help to stop the killings around the world and bring peace on earth... someday...

Take care,

Helene

[BTHN! will forward any information received to Helene]

posted 09 march 2006

February 25, 2006

I am trying to support my sister whose wonderful husband of 22 years left this past Tuesday (his birthday of all days) to go and fight in this crazy fight. His Reserve unit was called up. He will be gone at least 1 year. He served his time in the US Navy and none of us ever thought that he'd be in more danger AFTER he retired. How can my voice and very limited funds help end this mess?

MaryLou Gruel

posted 05 march 2006

March 2, 2006

Hello,

This is to inform you of an international petition for peace to be delivered to U.S. officials and embassies worldwide on March 8, 2006, International Women's Day.

This petition is for all to sign who want peace on earth. Details are at this website: http://www.womensaynotowar.org

"Abolish war." Albert Einstein

Thank you,

Katherine Morgan

posted 04 march 2006

February 28, 2006

Dear Friends,

Sadly the third anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq approaches with Iraq literally in flames. We knew then that this war would open the gates of hell - now tens of thousands of people have paid for that "miscalculation" with their lives: and Peace in the World drifts ever further away.

Last year we marked the second anniversary at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, NC--so much has happened in these past three years, nearly everyday there seems to be a sad anniversary to mark .

For me March 6, 2004 marks the last day I saw Sherwood alive. I make myself remember his last sweet words and feel his strong hug; that way I keep his being close to me and always in the reach of my memory. I did not know at that moment it would be the last time I would touch him as a living being. I saw him last as he walked into his barracks as the full moon rose. Forever, I will see him there in every moon.

This year I will go to Istanbul, Turkey for an International Peace Conference from March 1 to 5. I have been invited to speak at a conference sponsored by the Turkish Peace Movement. Activists from Turkey as well as Iraq, Iran and Europe will be there. The Turkish people mark this date as a victory because they were able to unify to prevent the US from using Turkish bases for the invasion of Iraq.

It will be blessing to finally meet people from Iraq who struggle for Peace. I go with, I hope, few illusions, but with hope that people of good will can and must seek common ground if there is ever to be Peace. No illusions but hope that in the grief shared there is truth shared and threads that can bind our hearts and somehow bend the will of the World towards Peace.

In Philadelphia we will mark the 3rd anniversary of the war on March 19 at 6:15 at the Liberty Bell. Across the country and the Globe people will gather on that weekend to witness the third year of this catastrophe and to demand that it end.

I believe with my heart that we as human beings are capable of solving human conflict without violence, I understand that the task is confounding, and that it would be easier to turn away, but the choice for violence has lead to profound misery --let us call up the courage of the fallen--each of us can carry their courage to seek the path to Peace.

With love and hope,

Celeste Zappala
Mother of Sgt Sherwood Baker, KIA 4/26/04
Gold Star Families Speak Out
www.gsfso.org

posted 01 march 2006

February 14, 2006

Ladies and Gentlemen, Were the attached article not so tragic, it would be laughable in the least and moronic at best considering the subject matter - the current administration and its paranoiac stance on civil rights and freedom of speech.

Please censure the bureaucratic stiffs at the VA for harassing a woman whom shows her patriotism by speaking out on some very serious matters which only points out the shortcomings of "W" and his "Asses of Evil" cabal whom would rather chastise someone than attempt to fix the "problems" mentioned. What makes this instance so inane is the fact Bush and Co. have created them all, and now are spending their nights soaking their beds and pillows sweating out "tomorrow's news" and what charges will be leveled at them. How much, do you suppose, of the White House budget goes toward "damage control" and how much effort is wasted in CYA'ing these days?

It's sad that an administration is so morally-deficient, inept and narrow-minded that some little VA nurse, who contributes more socially and spiritually in one workday than the "Asses of Evil" have since they were "appointed" to office, could so terrorize them with one little letter to the editor. Don't they have anything better to do? Gee whiz, Dudley!

Jess Paul Tomey
Huntington, WV

VA Nurse Investigated for 'Sedition' for Criticizing Bush
By Matthew Rothschild
The Progressive
8 February 2006

Laura Berg is a clinical nurse specialist at the VA Medical Center in Albuquerque, where she has worked for 15 years.

Shortly after Katrina, she wrote a letter to the editor of the weekly paper the Alibi criticizing the Bush Administration.

After the paper published the letter in its September 15-21 issue, VA administrators seized her computer, alleging that she had written the letter on that computer and accused her of "sedition."

Here's what her letter said.

"Dear Editor:

"I am furious with the tragically misplaced priorities and criminal negligence of this government," it began. "The Katrina tragedy in the US shows that the emperor has no clothes!" She mentioned that she was "a VA nurse" working with returning vets. "The public has no sense of the additional devastating human and financial costs of post-traumatic stress disorder," she wrote, and she worried about the hundreds of thousands of additional cases that might result from Katrina and the Iraq War.

"Bush, Cheney, Chertoff, Brown and Rice should be tried for criminal negligence," she wrote. "This country needs to get out of Iraq now and return to our original vision and priorities of caring for land and people and resources rather than killing for oil. ... We need to wake up and get real here, and act forcefully to remove a government administration playing games of smoke and mirrors and vicious deceit.

Otherwise, many more of us will be facing living hell in these times."

After her computer was seized, Berg wrote a memo to her bosses seeking information and an explanation.

Mel Hooker, chief of the human resources management service at the Albuquerque VA, wrote Berg back on November 9 and acknowledged that "your personal computer files did not contain the editorial letter written to the editor of the weekly Alibi."

But rather than apologize, he leveled the sedition charge: "The Agency is bound by law to investigate and pursue any act which potentially represents sedition," he said. "In your letter ... you declared yourself 'as a VA nurse' and publicly declared the Government which employs you to have 'tragically misplaced priorities and criminal negligence' and advocated, 'act forcefully to remove a government administration playing games of smoke and mirrors and vicious deceit.' "

Berg, who is not talking to the press, is "scared for her job" and "pretty emotionally distressed," says Peter Simonson, executive director of the ACLU of New Mexico.

"We were shocked to see the word 'sedition' used," Simonson tells The Progressive. "Sedition? That's like something out of the history books."

In a press release, Simonson also said: "Is this government so jealous of its power, so fearful of dissent, that it needs to threaten people who openly oppose its policies [in a letter to the editor of a paper] with charges of 'sedition'?"

The ACLU of New Mexico is working in Berg's behalf. It has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documents relating to this incident. And it is asking "at the very least" that Berg "receive a pubic apology from Mr. Hooker to remedy the unconstitutional chilling effect on the speech of VA employees that has resulted from these intimidating tactics," according to a letter from the New Mexico ACLU to the VA's Office of Regional Counsel.

Hooker refused to return a phone call, and the VA's Office of Regional Counsel refused to comment but referred questions to public affairs. "While [the] VA does not prohibit employees from exercising their freedom of speech, we do ask that such activity occurs outside government premises and not during their official tour of duty," says Bill Armstrong, a public affairs specialist for New Mexico's VA Health Care System. "When we have reason to believe that this policy is not being adhered to, we have the obligation to review an individual's computer activity."

The VA in Washington also refused to comment on the sedition charge.

"We don't discuss internal personnel issues," says Phil Budahn, a VA spokesman in Washington, D.C.

Berg has an additional concern: that the VA may have got the FBI on her case.

A union employee "shared with me that Mel Hooker conveyed to him that my letter had been reported 'up through VA channels' to the FBI in Washington, and that this had been discussed and confirmed" with union officials at the national office, Berg wrote in her November 2 complaint. (The union she belongs to is the American Federation of Government Employees.)

Hooker denied that the VA had contacted the FBI. "The Agency has no knowledge of any report alleged to have been made to the FBI regarding you or your letter," he said in his November 9 memo.

Meanwhile, Senator Jeff Bingaman, Democrat of New Mexico, has taken up the Berg case.

"I am writing to express my deep concern regarding news reports that Ms. Laura Berg ... was investigated for sedition after writing a letter [to a public newspaper] that was critical of the current Administration," Senator Bingaman wrote to R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, on February 7. "In a democracy, expressing disagreement with the government's actions does not amount to sedition or insurrection. It is, and must remain, protected speech."

posted 18 february 2006

February 8, 2006

Dear BTHN!--

I am writing just to call your attention to the wonderful video for Robert Cray's anti-war blues "Twenty." It features the 2000-plus combat boots from the Eyes Wide Open display which has traveled around the country. The song itself is very powerful, but the video images make it hard to watch and almost impossible to tear your eyes away from.

Here's a link you can click on to watch it: <http://www.afsc.org/iraq/cray-video.htm> [click on "Watch it now" below the picture of Robert Cray on the linked page, ed]

Peace,

DON,
CT & NY

posted 10 february 2006

January 29, 2006

First, I want to thank all of you for your service and for your efforts to organize and give your fellow veterans a voice. As the Army-brat/daughter of a Vietnam Vet I have tremendous respect and reverence for those who have served in our Armed Forces.

Not sure if you know, but there are currently 53 veterans running for Congress in 2006 as Democrats. There are a number of Iraq and Afghanistan Vets among this group. They are organizing and building a true coalition. They intend to meet in Washington DC to respond to Bush's State of the Union Address this month.

I know that as a non-profit group, Bring Them Home Now! can't endorse any candidates, but I think people visiting your site and reading your letters, especially those who share your strong advocacy for veterans' rights, will be very interested.

Good luck to all of you and best regards...

Allison O'Kelley
Suwanee, GA

posted 04 february 2006

February 1, 2006

Dear Friends,

As most of you have probably heard, I was arrested before the State of the Union Address tonight.

I am speechless with fury at what happened and with grief over what we have lost in our country.

There have been lies from the police and distortions by the press. (Shocker) So this is what really happened:

This afternoon at the People's State of the Union Address in DC where I was joined by Congresspersons Lynn Woolsey and John Conyers, Ann Wright, Malik Rahim and John Cavanagh, Lynn brought me a ticket to the State of the Union Address. At that time, I was wearing the shirt that said: 2245 Dead. How many more?

After the PSOTU press conference, I was having second thoughts about going to the SOTU at the Capitol. I didn't feel comfortable going. I knew George Bush would say things that would hurt me and anger me and I knew that I couldn't disrupt the address because Lynn had given me the ticket and I didn't want to be disruptive out of respect for her. I, in fact, had given the ticket to John Bruhns who is in Iraq Veterans Against the War. However, Lynn's office had already called the media and everyone knew I was going to be there so I sucked it up and went.

I got the ticket back from John, and I met one of Congresswoman Barbara Lee's staffers in the Longworth Congressional Office building and we went to the Capitol via the undergroud tunnel. I went through security once, then had to use the rest room and went through security again.

My ticket was in the 5th gallery, front row, fourth seat in. The person who in a few minutes was to arrest me, helped me to my seat.

I had just sat down and I was warm from climbing 3 flights of stairs back up from the bathroom so I unzipped my jacket. I turned to the right to take my left arm out, when the same officer saw my shirt and yelled; "Protester." He then ran over to me, hauled me out of my seat and roughly (with my hands behind my back) shoved me up the stairs. I said something like "I'm going, do you have to be so rough?" By the way, his name is Mike Weight.

The officer ran with me to the elevators yelling at everyone to move out of the way. When we got to the elevators, he cuffed me and took me outside to await a squad car. On the way out, someone behind me said, "That's Cindy Sheehan." At which point the officer who arrested me said: "Take these steps slowly." I said, "You didn't care about being careful when you were dragging me up the other steps." He said, "That's because you were protesting." Wow, I get hauled out of the People's House because I was, "Protesting."

I was never told that I couldn't wear that shirt into the Congress. I was never asked to take it off or zip my jacket back up. If I had been asked to do any of those things...I would have, and written about the suppression of my freedom of speech later. I was immediately, and roughly (I have the bruises and muscle spasms to prove it) hauled off and arrested for "unlawful conduct."

After I had my personal items inventoried and my fingers printed, a nice Sgt. came in and looked at my shirt and said, "2245, huh? I just got back from there."

I told him that my son died there. That's when the enormity of my loss hit me. I have lost my son. I have lost my First Amendment rights. I have lost the country that I love. Where did America go? I started crying in pain.

What did Casey die for? What did the 2244 other brave young Americans die for? What are tens of thousands of them over there in harm's way for still? For this? I can't even wear a shrit that has the number of troops on it that George Bush and his arrogant and ignorant policies are responsible for killing.

I wore the shirt to make a statement. The press knew I was going to be there and I thought every once in awhile they would show me and I would have the shirt on. I did not wear it to be disruptive, or I would have unzipped my jacket during George's speech. If I had any idea what happens to people who wear shirts that make the neocons uncomfortable that I would be arrested...maybe I would have, but I didn't.

There have already been many wild stories out there.

I have some lawyers looking into filing a First Amendment lawsuit against the government for what happened tonight. I will file it. It is time to take our freedoms and our country back.

I don't want to live in a country that prohibits any person, whether he/she has paid the ulitmate price for that country, from wearing, saying, writing, or telephoning any negative statements about the government. That's why I am going to take my freedoms and liberties back. That's why I am not going to let Bushco take anything else away from me...or you.

I am so appreciative of the couple of hundred of protesters who came to the jail while I was locked up to show their support....we have so much potential for good...there is so much good in so many people.

Four hours and 2 jails after I was arrested, I was let out. Again, I am so upset and sore it is hard to think straight.

Keep up the struggle...I promise you I will too.

Love and peace soon,

Cindy

posted 02 february 2006

January 28, 2006

It took a while to get it published, but "Riportiamoli a casa," a book telling the story of the Bring Them Home Now! campaign through its own words, came out here in Italy in mid-September. The introduction is by North Carolina vet and military dad Lou Plummer and it has a history of the beginnings of the campaign by Dennis O'Neil. At the heart of the book are dozens of letters translated into Italian from the BTHN and MFSO websites (plus one message of solidarity from Israeli conscientious objector, Matan Kaminer, to an American CO, Stephen Funk, that I translated from the "Not In Our Name" site).

The book first came out from a small publishing house (see the Edizioni Alegre web page for more info), but was then taken up by a national newspaper after images of Cindy Sheehan being arrested wearing a BTHN T-shirt in front of the White House brought the Bring Them Home Now! campaign to Italian national attention. Thousands of people have now seen it, it's been read by hundreds of kids in schools, and it's even been reviewed on national television!

Word gets around...and it's still going.

Now we're working on getting an anti-war campaign off the ground among military families and vets here in Italy.

All thanks to your example...

Philip Rushton
Rome, Italy

posted 30 january 2006

January 28, 2006

BRING THEM HOME NOW....PLEASE.........

My son is a SSG in the Army in Iraq. And I never thought I'd have to go through this. Every day is such a struggle. Our Troops should NOT be there.

If Bush wants to be there, they should send HIM. Let his family worry if he will come home dead or alive. And for what? Why are we still there? My Heart goes out to all the TROOPS that are more than willing to protect OUR COUNTRY. Not everyone else's. GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Sincerely,
Susan Leslie

posted 29 january 2006

January 25, 2006

I want to convey my utmost support in your tireless and righteous struggle to end this illegal & immoral war that has cost us over 2,200 lives. I fail to see any positive outcomes in this war of attrition. Many of our young people are being wasted on the battlefield, and the only ones that are benefiting are the huge corporations like Halliburton, (the veep`s old company), which has poisoned the drinking water that our soldiers and the Iraqi people rely on to survive.

This war constantly claims more lives than it claims to be saving. Human rights abuses go unpunished. Corrupt, do-nothing governments retain their power. 3 plebiscites later, and nothing has changed. This war must stop. There must be a better route for America. Bring our G.I.`s Home, and Bring Them Home NOW!

Sam Bradley
Orlando, FL

posted 28 january 2006

January 16, 2006

How do you attract people to Peace and Activism? Reach out to them with what they already are into. For me, PackerBackerBob!, it's sports, music and a party.

Ask someone who's not involved (or gasp! a Right-leaner) to go to a protest, and the answer will likely be NO. But invite them to a bar for a Jam, and they're more likely to join you.

And what's the biggest sporting event of the year – The Super Bowl, of course! People everywhere love a good mid-winter, post-holiday party. And you know the troops are gonna be watching, and would love to be with you.

The 2nd Annual "Smart People's" Super Bowl Party is bigger than ever, and focused on "Fighting For Peace". PackerBackerBob! sez "a smart person is somebody who can tell when somebody is Full of Bull..."

I'm bringing in the two best musicians I met protesting at Crawford to perform for the entire Super Bowl week– Dennis Kyne and Jesse Dyen. These guys are on the Front Lines of the Fight for Peace. Dennis plays "Combat Rock from a Combat Veteran", and Jesse is more folk-like, but with ATTITUDE. His powerful, soulful "Sons and Daughters" is a hit with Cindy Sheehan and everyone at peace rallies. It's quickly becoming the peace anthem.

Make it truly SUPER hopeful for our troops and all war victims. Let them know we're still thinking of them during this week of football and commercials.

If you can't make it to Chicago, then host your own party. Imagine fans and peace activists doing it all over the country. Inviting vets and their families, of course. Or better yet, have a peace vigil while tailgating outside the stadium on game day. Sure, maybe it won't be big this year, but, unfortunately, the war will still be going on next year.

Suggestions for hosting a "Fighting For Peace" Super Bowl party

1. Raise $$ - donate 25% of gambling $$ to Gold Star Families for Peace or other org's.
2. Invite local vets, their families, and politicians
3. Download Jesse's "Son's and Daughter's", and play it before the game
4. Honor the Troops in a Good Way – moment of silence, etc
5. Party hard for the troops who would love to be there, but can't.
6. Sing the Camp Casey Bears fight song during all time-outs

PackerBackerBob! (a Bears fan) Oehmen

posted 22 january 2006

January 18, 2006

Dear Bring Them Home Now!,
 
I received this on the 9th, from OIF veteran Douglas Baker, along with contact info I wish I'd used more of.  I wrote him back but didn't call.  He killed himself two days ago.

The Freeway Blogger

Spc Douglas Barber: PTSD- Every Soldier's Personal WAR! 1/9/05

By Doug Barber

In the last month I have been working with Jay Shaft, the editor of Coalition For Free Thought in media regarding my experiances in Iraq and since coming home from the war. We have only touched on some of the struggles of being a soldier, however we have not dug deeply into the personal war that Operation Iraqi Freedom has caused for returning soldiers.

Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush do not want to reveal to the American people that this war is a personal war. They want to run the war like a business, and thus they refuse to show the personal sacrifices the soldiers and their families have made for this country.

My thought today is to help you the reader understand what happens to a soldier when they come home and the sacrifice we continue to make. This may be lengthy, it may be short; but no matter how long it is, just close your eyes and imagine a flag drapped coffin.

Inside that coffin is the body of a man or woman who will never get to live their life to the fullest, yet they bore the total cost so that we could live free. Their soul is somewhere else and all we have is their memory which over time will be forgotten by other everts of greater importance. The families of these soldiers have a hole in their hearts that will never be replaced, even though they have pictures and happy memories.

Some families will refuse to believe they are gone, but still their sons and daughters are the heros of a country that sent them to war. This war on terror has become a personal war for so many, yet the Bush Administration does not want journalists or families to photograph the only thing that is left of our soldiers who have died. They do not want the people to remember that image of a flag draped coffin as the last memory this country will ever have of our fallen men and woman.

They say that America will raise their voices and demand a stop to the war, but my question is why should we not show the results of war? For us as a country, we send these soldiers to war and we see their faces while they are alive. I say let their memories live on in every photo, even when they do come home in a flag drapped coffin. Let their sacrifice be forever etched in the memory of America. We owe their families this at the very least.

All is not okay or right for those of us who return home alive and supposedly well. What looks like normalcy and readjustment is only an illusion to be revealed by time and torment. Some soldiers come home missing limbs and other parts of their bodies. Still others will live with permanent scars from horrific events that no one other than those who served will ever understand.

We come home from war trying to put our lives back togather but some cannot stand the memories and decide that death is better. They kill themselves because they are so haunted by seeing children killed and whole families wiped out.

They ask themselves how you put a price tag on someone elses life? The question goes unanswered as they become another casualty of the war. Heros become another statistic to America and they are another little article relegated to the back of a newspaper.

Still others come home to nothing, families have abandoned them: husbands and wives have left these soldiers, and so have parents as well. Post Tramatic Stress Disorder has become the norm amongst these soldiers because they don't know how to cope with returning to a society that will never understand what they have had to endure to liberate another country.

PTSD comes in many forms not understood by many: but yet if a soldier has it, America thinks the soldiers are crazy. PTSD comes in the form of depression, anger, regret, being confrontational, anxiety, chronic pain, compulsion, delusions, grief, guilt,dependance,loneliness, sleep disorders, suspiciousness/paranoia, low self-esteem and so many other things.

We are easily startled with a loud bang or noise and can be found ducking for cover when we get panicked. This is a result of artillery rounds going off in a combat zone, or an IED blowing up.

I myself have trouble coping with an everyday routine that deals with other people that often causes me to have a short fuse. A lot of soldiers lose multiple jobs just because they are trained to be killers and they have lived in an enviroment that is condusive to that. We are always on guard for our safety and that of our commrades. When you go to bed at night you wonder will you be sent home in a flag draped coffin because a motar round went off on your sleeping area.

Soldiers live in deplorable conditions where burning your own feces is the order of the day. Where going days on end with no shower and the uniform you wear gets so crusty it sometimes sticks to your body becomes a common occurence. We also deal with rationing water or even food for that matter. So when a soldier comes home to what they left they are unsure of what to do being in a civilized world again.

This is what PTSD comes in the shape of--soldiers can not often handle coming back to the same world they left behind. It is something that drives soldiers over the edge and causes them to withdraw from society. As Americans we turn our nose down at them wondering why they act the way they do. Who cares about them, why should we help them?

Talk show hosts like Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh and so many others act like they know all about war; then they refuse to give any creadence to soldiers like me who have been to war and seen the brutality of war. These guys are nothing but WEAK SPINELESS COWARDS hiding behind microphones while soldiers come home and are losing everything they have.

I ask every American who reads this e-mail to stand up for the soldier who has given their everything for this country to stand up to these guys in the media; ask them why they don't pick up a weapon and follow in the steps of a soldier. Send this e-mail to as many people on your e-mail lists and ask them to do the same.

There needs to be a National awareness for every Veteran who has ever served in any war. Send e-mails to the Big Mouths on TV and ask them to have soldiers like me on their programs. I am asking you as Americans to BOYCOTT every TV show or host/journalist that refuses to tell the real truth.

THIS IS A PERSONAL CHALLENGE TO BILL,SEAN AND RUSH TO HAVE ME ON YOUR PROGRAM TO SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT. Other wise you are nothing but dirt under every soldiers boot!

Spc Douglas Barber

posted 20 january 2006

January 14, 2006

Thank you for being out there. Our son is serving in Iraq. It feels like no one cares: they put a yellow ribbon on their car and allow Bush's friends to keep on doing what they want. Mainstream media is in their chickenhawk pocket, farting out a half truth every thousand lies.

We will pay for this for a long time. I just hope all of our servicemen and woman can come home as soon as possible. Thank you again.

Patriotic Parents

posted 19 january 2006

January 16, 2006

Phil Berrigan Memorial Chapter #105 of Veterans for Peace marched today in the Baltimore 2006 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade, and handed out hundreds of Vets for Peace flyers, Bring Them Home Now! cards, and War Resisters League MLK quote hang tags to the very receptive crowd, mostly African American. We were accompanied by waves of emphatic shouts, "That's right! Bring them home now! Bring our troops home now!", as we passed along the parade route and people saw the BTHN! cards and signs.

Baltimore VfP has participated in the MLK Parade for 3 years now, the 2004 Parade being the Baltimore chapter's first public appearance after its October, 2003 founding. We mount our chapter banner, a VfP flag, a Maryland state flag and an upside-down US flag in a frame in the bed of a member's pickup, having first done that sadly in recently deceased chapter co-founder Peter Molan's truck.

Since MLK Day in Baltimore tends to be cold and windy, marchers rotate in and out of the truck to warm up after freezing their bare fingers handing out literature. In previous years the inverted US flag has drawn much comment, all positive once the "dire distress" meaning is explained, but this year "Bring Them Home Now!" was the attention-getter.

Peace,

Ellen Barfield
Baltimore, MD

posted 17 january 2006

January 10, 2006

I picked up a handful of the BTHN postcards at the Veteans for Peace convention in Dallas last year. I gave them out at our weekly vigil supported by the Quakers and the State College Peace Center.

I would like to get more cards to hand out. People really respond to them!

I can hand out 30-50 each week so please send what you can to help us spread the word of BTHN.

Thank you.

Ron Matason
Veterans For Peace, Ch 17
State College, PA

[Our reply]
Dear Ron —

Thank you for your support of the Bring Them Home Now! campaign, and even more for taking action to end this criminal occupation. Veterans like yourself have earned the right to speak out and your voice is one that other Americans need to hear.

A couple of hundred cards went in the mail to you today. Quite a few people have told us they are particularly useful at events like vigils because they catch the eye and are easy to hand out. Also, since they are smaller and on heavier stock than leaflets, folks passing by are more likely to take them, and to hang on to them. Over 140,000 have been distributed so far and brought thousands of people to the website.

Of course they are also a little more expensive to produce than leaflets, so a small donation to help us keep them in print would be welcome. There's a donation button on the home page of the website. In any event, the important thing is to keep distributing them, so when you start running low again, just holler!

Greetings to everyone in VfP Chapter 17 and thanks again for all your efforts.

posted 14 january 2006

January 5, 2006

Hello, my name is Kristen Burkhart and I am worried. I'm the wife of Billy L. Burkhart, a SPC in the US Army now serving in Iraq. I just want to know when they plan on sending them home? I think they just need to leave us out of this and let the Iraq people take over their own country.

Well, I just wanted to say: I love you Billy and come home soon to me and your two beautiful kids.

Thanks,

Kristen Burkhart

posted 06 january 2006

January 7, 2006

Hi there!

Last March, in Fayetteville, NC, you handed out lots of postcards with the picture of the 2 soldiers and the saying Bring Them Home Now! On the back was information about your group and your statement of purpose. I took a bunch of them and put them everywhere.

But I have an idea. Could you make the same postcards up, but leave the back for an address, short message and return address? Then hand out boxes and boxes of them to people to send into their elected representatives?

I am doing something like this: I am handing out postcards addressed to our representative, and Senators Dole and Burr (in North Carolina). But my postcards are blank, and I don't have any cool graphics..... but you do!

If you decide to do this, I would like to order some and hand them out!

Thanks,

Susan Oehler
Asheville, NC

[Our reply]
Dear Susan—

Thank you for your suggestion, for your support of the Bring Them Home Now! campaign, and most of all for standing up and speaking out against this unjust and unjustifiable war. We will be posting your email in the Sound Off section of our website within a day or so, so keep your eyes peeled. The more ways that regular people come up with to put maximum pressure on our elected officials and on the too-timid mainstream media, the sooner we can in fact make bringing them home a reality.

We will take you suggestion of postcards seriously when it comes time, probably in a month or two, to reprint the BTHN! cards. In the meantime if you need any of the "traditional" version with the Statement of Purpose on the back for distribution, just send an email from the website with a mailing address and how many you can use, and they'll be on their way to you pronto.

Thanks again for all you are doing!

Peace,

Dennis O'Neil for BTHN!

posted 10 january 2006

January 2, 2006

Hello. My name is Nathan and just four months ago I received a hardship discharge from the army. I had spent a year in Iraq, Tagi to be exact, and I have grown strongly against the war and against our government in general.

I was curious if there was anyway I could help or contribute. I feel that I owe something to those who don't really know what's going on. I really don't want to sit back and watch this go on without at least trying to make a difference.

Thank you.
Nathan Brinlee

posted 04 january 2006

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