More on Adam Kokesh

Yesterday I received an email from Adam Kokesh. You may remember him as the subject of an earlier blog who was recalled into active duty because, as a reservist, he wore an unmarked Marine uniform while protesting the war in Iraq. The military considered giving him an Other Than Honorable discharge, but ultimately gave him a General discharge instead. That means that he won’t have to serve in the military any more, but he has chosen another path to service to his country.

Adam pledges to put his efforts into stopping this war. His method is to work through Iraq Veterans Against the War.

In my response I asked him to go further than that. Here is what I said:

More power to you. You are right that our democracy has failed. The struggle is much larger than just this war or this administration. Our nation must move from its imperial warlike policies to policies designed for the benefit of all people, not just the upper 10% in this and allied nations. Stop this war by all means, but go much further as well.

Be well. Fight hard. Keep in mind that the world's well-being depends
upon America stopping its rape and pillage policies. Stop this war, then turn toward stewardship of the world's resources. That and nowhere else is where our future lies - whether good or bad - it's up to you.

Adam replied with a one-liner: I promise you, we will take this one further.

Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) is a group that could have a meaningful impact on public opinion. As a voice against the war, who has more credibility than those who have served in it? Additionally, who, other than Iraqi citizens has been more of a victim of the war than those called to fight in the service of this corrupt administration?

To donate online, go to www.IVAW.org then click on “Support IVAW,” then click on “Donate Now”. Their top project is to establish a base in Washington DC that they are calling IVAW House. If you want to support that effort go also to “DC IVAW HOUSE” in the “Special Project Support Window.”

Need more reasons to fight against this war? Take this from http://www.americanprogressaction.org/progressreport:

IRAQ -- LOW EFFECTIVENESS OF ESCALATION RAISES QUESTIONS OF LONG-TERM OCCUPATION IN IRAQ: Last week, a fatal bombing that destroyed the Samarra Askariya mosque, which was also severely damaged one year earlier, raised questions as to the efficacy of the U.S. troop escalation. U.S. News and World Report reports this week that "[e]arly indications are far from encouraging" for the escalation. "While sectarian killings appear to have declined at least temporarily in the capital, the Pentagon reports that overall violence levels nationwide remain as high as ever. Indeed, even as U.S. troops boost their presence in some Baghdad neighborhoods, many insurgents appear to have simply moved to outlying provinces that now have a much thinner security presence." Insurgents continue to attack American soldiers at record levels, for example, with May being one of the deadliest months for American forces in the entire war. Despite the clear evidence against the escalation's effectiveness, administration and military officials are attempting to play down expectations of progress by this fall and instead are endorsing a protracted troop presence. Last week, Gen. David Petraeus, the commanding U.S. general in Iraq, stated that "we haven't even started the surge yet," despite nearly all of the 28,000 troops being in place at the time. Yesterday, on Fox News Sunday, Petraeus admitted that he didn't expect the "surge" to be done by September, the date set for Petraeus's supposedly make-it or break-it report to Congress. Petraeus then went on to endorse the "Korea model" for Iraq, which envisions keeping troops in the country for decades. "[T]ypically, I think historically, counterinsurgency operations have gone at least nine or ten years," he said.

ESCALATION IS STRENGTHENING AL QAEDA: The new Pentagon report "documents the movement of significant numbers of Sunni insurgents linked to Al Qaeda in Iraq, confirming anecdotal reports of Al Qaeda fighters leaving Al Anbar and setting up new bases in Diyala province." But the report also shows that the violence "has moved beyond the well-publicized flare-ups in Diyala," to Mosul, Iraq's third-largest city, and the northern city of Tal Afar, "once touted by the White House as a case study in how its new counterinsurgency plan could be effective." During confirmation hearings last week for the new "war czar" Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) quoted "the top CIA expert on radical Islam," who told him recently that the U.S. presence in Iraq is generating more terrorists. "[I]n his opinion, our presence in Iraq is creating more members of Al Qaida than we are killing in Iraq," Bayh said.

More power to Adam and all the other vets who are fighting to stop this horrible war.

Be the change you wish to see in the world. -- M. K. Gandhi

Individually we have little voice. Collectively we cannot be ignored.
But in silence we surrender our power. Yours in Peace -- BR