0 thoughts on “Picketing for peace”

1. I welcome anyone who has been to Iraq and witnessed the progress we have made to comment.

2. The reference to “progress” in this story refers to the protesters making progress with passersby in their want for peace… They are getting a lot less grief from people on the street than they were at the beginning of the war… it is not refering to whether we are making progress in Iraq.

   Just to clarify, if there was some confusion.

3. I think maybe the protesters should come here and see how well they are recieved. They could meet the people they claim to support. I also remember how these peaceful demontrator spit in my fathers face when he came home from Vietnam and how you and your kind would releive yourselves of guilt at the expense of others, yeah I know thier version of peace. Is it really about peace or is it about them having rights while no one else does. I have also seen these people harrass families of our service members at funerals or wives and children of service memebers at the airport. I only wish you would make a real stand instead of hiding behind the freedoms brought to you by our military. God Bless America and to our military, Thank You for representing our nation.

4. I certainly hope that the protesters are not harassing members of the military.

   If they support the troops and oppose the war, a far better show of support would be to organize events to welcome our troops home and campaign for more programs to help those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, in addition to the protests against the war.

5. Howard is currently in Iraq and needless to say witnesses the progress made there on a daily basis, while being shot at etc. Just an FYI. While understanding who just makes our “oil” prices higher from what I understand he believes in what the military is doing over there as well as met many Iraqi people himself.

6. I’ve read recently that 65% of the soldiers serving in Iraq think it’s time to call it good there.

   As for the soldiers returning from Vietnam who were spat on, someone told me recently that’s an urban myth. I always wondered, because people I knew opposed to the war were not opposed to the soldiers who suffered there, and even though we protested the war, we never did things like spit on soldiers. Who would do that? I’m not saying no one suffered that, but I knew a lot of people opposed to the war, and they were only concerned about the fate of returning soldiers. By the way, those soldiers WERE treated badly by the U.S. Government, as have been the returning soldiers, especially the wounded, from Iraq.

7. If not literally true, Mr. Nichols, who said his father was “spit upon in the face” should print a retraction. This is a poor metaphor and as far as I know, it is an urban myth; that is not to say that the soldiers were treated as well as they deserved by the government or the people they served. I, too, would prefer to hear about Iraq from the people who have been there, and that includes Mr. Nichols, but I’m sure they are not in total agreement either. His reference to “these people” is stereotypic and a gross generalization.
   These protesters should not be confused with the wierdos at godhatesamerica.org who protest at soldier’s funerals because they see the military’s “Don’t ask Dont tell” policy as acceptance or at least toleration of gay people.
   I wonder how many people read Lamar Hankins recent editorial “Bumps in the road?” He wrote about recent hearings in which soldiers did testify: “The hearings were named ‘Winter Soldier: Iraq and Afghanistan, Eyewitness Accounts of the Occupations.’ The name was derived from the Thomas Paine quotation… suggesting that these are the soldiers who are standing up for their country in a time of crisis by telling the truth about what happened and is happening. They are not summer soldiers or sunshine patriots. Much of their testimony is sickening, both to them and their listeners, and it has been ignored by all the major media in this country, which must believe that there is no crisis. The testimony of the soldiers and Marines, and the family members of some who died as a result of the war, might make the listener feel differently.”

8. Well, my father-in-law was in Vietnam and has nothing good to say about how he was treated when he returned. Whether anyone was actually spit on (and I believe some were) is immaterial.

   What matters is what we are doing today, to help those who are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and how people are treating them now. These soldiers deserve our gratitude and support.

   I’ve heard appalling stories about the lack of psychological support for these soldiers in dealing with the effects of combat. It would be nice to see groups protesting that.

9. Truth is not immaterial. To compare all protestors with fanatics who protest at soldiers’ funerals and spit on people is not right or fair. It also discounts one of the freedoms our soldiers are supposedly defending.

   Ted does make an excellent point about the importance of how we are treating our fighting and returning soldiers. I have seen first-hand PTSD and its debilitating effects. Supporting the Troops should be more than a slogan for war propaganda and bumper stickers. Many of our soldiers will be needing a lifetime of help and support long after the wars are a distant memory.

   In my opinion, there are also vast differences in the our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The war in Afghanistan was a response to 9/11, and the Iraq war is a war of choice based on lies and misinformation supplied by Bush and his cronies, most of whom have no first-hand clues as to the ravages of war. The lies and misinformation continue. Like I said, truth is not immaterial; it is essential.

10. Yes Rick, the larger truth is essential. Arguing with a soldier in Iraq about whether or not his father had someone spit in his face does nothing to help anyone.

11. 1 in 5 need some sort of help.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080417/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/troops_mental_health;_ylt=AjpxSK_jlZhJ8qFbCG.we1ys0NUE