The Gift That Keeps on Giving

Ninety-three countries signed a treaty banning cluster bombs yesterday. I say blessing be upon them. Unfortunately our government chose not to even attend the gathering. You can read the linked article and many more for information on who else chose not to attend. I am enraged but not surprised.

I often say I do not use the word “evil” in my vocabulary much because I think it is impossible to judge what evil is, as it is so subjective. Also I think it is a word that is overused to the point that it loses all meaning. But if I were to identify anything as “evil” from my standpoint, there are two items on the list. One is methamphetamine, an insidious scourge sweeping through our communities like a uncontrolled wildfire, leaving destruction everywhere it goes.

The second item deserving of my highest condemnation are cluster bombs. I call them the “Gift that keeps on giving”. They deserve to be included on the list of weapons of mass destruction. The indiscriminate nature of the way they kill is a crime against humanity. Those who choose to order their use deserve to be tried for war crimes. As you may have judged, I am very opinionated on this matter, to the point that I sometime find it difficult to even write rationally on the subject and lose all sense of objectivity.

Just a little primer here. Cluster bombs are 1,000-pound munitions that break into the 202 bomblets, and each bomblet fractures into 300 fragments of steel. The exact 'footprint,' or landing area, of the bomblets is difficult to control and have an initial failure-to-explode rate of some seven percent. 98 percent of the deaths are civilians and a third of those are children. These unexploded little bombs are scattered all over Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Most recently Israel left the “gift that keeps on giving” for the children of Lebanon before they left the war zone.

Shortly after we started bombing Afghanistan “back to the stone age” Cynthia McKinney used her seat in the Congress to question Pentagon leadership about the similarity between food packets and cluster bombs dropped on Afghanistan. Both being bright yellow in color and similar in size. Children in Afghanistan would rush out seeking much needed food being dropped in humanitarian aid, instead to be blown to pieces as they touched the bomlets. Sweet…

I could go on and on about this but I will close this post for now. In closing I would encourage you to join an organization working on this issue such as the Cluster Munition Coalition or Human Rights Watch. There are many others but that is a good start. Do Google searches for more information. Most importantly I would suggest writing the President elect Obama and ask him to reverse the United States stance on the issue and perhaps even suggest we stop selling them to Israel like Regan once did. I haven’t looked recently to find where best to write a message to Obama but perhaps his web site would be a good place to start.

Work for Peace

Ghost Dancing

Today I am writing about the fact that people are living in a state of extreme crisis on the Reservations in South Dakota. On 6th November, a blizzard struck the Great Plains, covering the state in 4 feet of snow and parts of the Lakota reservations in up to 20 foot drifts. The governor of South Dakota declared a state of emergency --but the reservations are exempt from any assistance. I haven’t been able to find out exactly why that is. Bottom line is that they need help desperately. Many parts of the rez have no water or electricity. Food is also scarce. An appeal has been sent out for people to help any way they can. Native activist Russell Means has issued an International Disaster Declaration.

In September of 2007 the UN passed the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. At that time American Indian activists withdrew from all treaties with the US Government and started contacting foreign governments to solicit support. Well I say good for them! It is unclear what, if any, support they have received. But it is clear that many Native Americans are against that action. Some agree with Rosebud Sioux Tribe President Rodney Bordeaux who said “The issue isn't whether we should withdraw from our treaties; the issue is what we should do, and what we should have been doing, to enforce our treaties and to make a better life for our future generations.”

I bet they sure could use a bailout like the auto industry wants. But in their case they don’t need a bailout. They simply need for the government to pay them they money they are owed. Some estimate that that the government owes Native Americans as much as $137.5 billion in back royalties. Couldn’t they fast track through some of the fucking bureaucratic red tape and give them a few billion? Or even just a few million?

There is a class action suit called Cobell v. Kempthorne (previously called Cobell v. Norton) where an estimated 500,000 Native Americans are trying to recover this money that essentially has been stolen from them over the years. Just another example on the Trail of Broken Treaties.

All the while we send billions around the world in foreign aid. A good chuck of it military foreign aid I must add. Right here within our midst are these “reservations” that are worse off than some “third world” countries. Pine Ridge being a prime example.

I could go on and on about this subject but I will close for now. Do what you can. Send some money. Pray for them. Write to Bush and Obama. And while we're at it, since today is thanksgiving, let's all be thankful that we are not living in Pine Ridge tonight….

The Israeli Siege in Gaza

President Bush and Secretary Condoleezza Rice have pretty much given up on the Israeli/Palestinian peace process and are leaving it up to Obama now. The fundamental issues of the conflict have not yet been resolved. Borders of a Palestinian state; security arrangements; the fate of Palestinian refugees who left their homes in 1948, or were forced to leave; and the status of Jerusalem. The blockade of a million and a half Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is now entering its third week.

And if Benjamin Netanyahu (Bibi) gets elected in the new elections in Israel the road to peace is most likely to become that much harder to accomplish. He has actually said that he would end Israel’s current negotiations with the Palestinians if elected prime minister. Can you hear my huge sigh at this point?

Two American activists are now in a new prison in Israel, recently being moved from simply jail. Amy Goodwin interview and video here. They are Donna and Darlene Wallach. They believe that they were actually kidnapped because they were in Palestinian waters not Israeli waters when they were arrested. What do you think and why isn't anyone from the department of state working to help get them out or even find out what they are charged with?

This situation is one of the most important issues on my personal plate, but like so many others it brings me much frustration while trying to think of what I can do to break the “Israel is always right” mindset of the United States government. Obama doesn’t seem to be much different than those who have come before, with the exception of Jimmy Carter.

Here is a woman telling why Americans go to Gaza and this man has some more articulated reasons.

Here is the link to the Free Gaza Movement.

Here Archbishop Tutu describes his feelings after visiting Gaza. The Nobel peace laureate Desmond Tutu has called Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip an "abomination".

So where do we go from here? How can we move this up on President elect Obama's incredible list of things to do?

Is Defense Secretary Gates Best Obama Choice for Peace?

As some of you may know there has been legislation floating around congress to institute a cabinet level Department of Peace for quite a few years. At the end of this CNN news video clip, Wendy Green representing the Peace Alliance, points out that Robert Gates may be already on line with the agenda of the Department of Peace and many in the alliance think he may be the best choice for Secretary of Defense. To bolster this thought is this speech Gates gave last year at Kansas State University. It is rather long but a good read. While recognizing winning the war in Afghanistan cannot been done my military alone he praises the work of non military people and organizations that have done remarkable work in making Afghanistan a more civilized, livable and less violent place. Here is a little thought toward the end of his address:

“I have been heartened by the works of individuals and groups like these. But I am concerned that we need even more civilians involved in the effort and that our efforts must be better integrated.

The way to institutionalize these capabilities is probably not to recreate or repopulate institutions of the past such as AID or USIA. On the other hand, just adding more people to existing government departments such as Agriculture, Treasury, Commerce, Justice and so on is not a sufficient answer either – even if they were to be more deployable overseas. New institutions are needed for the 21st century, new organizations with a 21st century mind-set.”

The Idaho Peace Coalition has been campaigning for the Department of Peace since the beginning and maybe now is the time that there will be a climate that it may have a chance to become a reality. We now also have a facebook page. Please join us and work for a more peaceful world and put an end to war.

The Economy, the Military and the War on Terror

It is mostly agreed that one of the main reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union was a bloated military budget. Some estimate that 70% of their money went to their military industrial complex. Most agree that it was over 50%. It doesn’t take much to investigate what I just said.

Though some may wish to argue this, near 50% of our federal tax money currently is going to pay for past, present and future wars.

The Economic Disaster That is Military Keynesianism by Chalmers Johnson is a good read.

Excerpt:

….”It is virtually impossible to overstate the profligacy of what our government spends on the military. The Department of Defense's planned expenditures for the fiscal year 2008 are larger than all other nations' military budgets combined. The supplementary budget to pay for the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, not part of the official defense budget, is itself larger than the combined military budgets of Russia and China. Defense-related spending for fiscal 2008 will exceed $1 trillion for the first time in history. The US has become the largest single seller of arms and munitions to other nations on Earth. Leaving out President Bush's two on-going wars, defense spending has doubled since the mid-1990s. The defense budget for fiscal 2008 is the largest since the second world war…..”

Another read from May of 2007:

Washington, DC: The Center for Economic and Policy Research released a report today estimating the economic impact of increased U.S. military spending comparable to the spending on the Iraq war. The report, presenting the results of a simulation from the economic forecasting company Global Insight, shows the increased level of military spending leads to fewer jobs and slower economic growth. Report

Of course by now we are all well aware of the warning that Dwight D. Eisenhower had for us all about the military industrial complex.

So my question is how much of this economic collapse be laid at the feet of our defense budget? Much I think. And this brings on another question. Are we fulfilling the desires of Osama bin Laden? In his Letter to America he stated his intent and later just before the 2004 elections he announced his plans for destroying America through economic strangulation. Is his plan working?

On edit:
Nothing in the campaign platforms of either Republican Senator John McCain or Democratic Senator Barack Obama suggests they plan to significantly reduce military spending.

McCain says the United States must enlarge the size of its armed forces. That alone will guarantee that operational and support costs, traditionally one of the highest categories of US military spending, stay high. Likewise, Obama supports plans to increase the size of the army by 65,000 soldiers and the marines by 27,000 troops.

Obama and Peace

So, for all of you who believe a vote for Obama is a vote for peace here is a minor wake up call. I have been suggesting for months to people to go to Obama's web site and read his foreign policy before becoming a Obama-maniac. And as I also have been saying, when he becomes president there may be some buyer's remorse and some wailing and gnashing of teeth...

Don't get me wrong. I suppose I will probably vote for Obama. But everyone needs to be aware of what they are going to get and not be surprised when the mythological mesmerizing Obama-god turns out to be just a man.

How Obama, who traditionally supports trimming the defense budget, can square his support for expanding personnel programs, force-level increases, more deployments to Afghanistan and an army reset is a question he has not addressed.

Excerpt from his speech yesterday:

There is no challenge greater than the defense of our nation and our values. The men and women of our military – from Fort Carson to Peterson Air Force base, from the Air Force Academy to the ROTC students here on campus – have signed up at a time when our troops face an ever-increasing load. Fighting a resurgent Taliban. Targeting al Qaeda. Persevering in the deserts and cities of Iraq. Training foreign militaries. Delivering humanitarian relief. In this young century, our military has answered when called, even as that call has come too often. Through their commitment, their capability, and their courage they have done us all proud.

But we need to ease the burden on our troops, while meeting the challenges of the 21st century. That’s why I will call on a new generation of Americans to join our military, and complete the effort to increase our ground forces by 65,000 soldiers and 27,000 Marines.

A call to service must be backed by a sacred trust with anyone who puts on the uniform of the United States. A young person joining our military must know that we’ll only send them into harm’s way when we absolutely must. That we’ll provide them with the equipment needed to complete their mission safely, and deployments that allow adequate time back home. They must see that we’ll care for our military families while they’re deployed, and that we’re providing our veterans with the support, benefits, and opportunity that they have earned when they return home. That’s what I’ve fought for on the Senate Veteran’s Affairs Committee. That’s what I’ll promise as Commander in Chief.

Who is guilty of murder?

Yesterday 23 year old sniper Sgt. Evan Vela was convicted of murder in the death of an unarmed Iraqi man. http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2008/02/10/tearful_us_soldier_admits_killing_iraqi/

His commanding officer testified with the following:

"I told Sgt. Vela to pull out his 9-mm (pistol) and 'crack it.' I told Vela to shoot," said Hensley, who was acquitted in November of murder charges in this shooting and two earlier killings but was convicted of lesser charges. He received immunity for testifying Friday. When asked why he didn't kill al-Janabi himself, Hensley said: "Sgt. Vela happened to be the guy with the pistol. The Iraqi's head was at his (Vela's) feet. I would have gladly shot him myself."

As you all know I am totally against war and the especially the “collateral damage” civilian carnage. But I have to say that I feel so badly for this young man and feel he is getting a raw deal here. The one who gave him the order has immunity for his actions and that seems so fucked up to me.

The military goes into schools, use their dirty tricks http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/05/12/MNGF4CNN711.DTL

to get kids to join, train them to be killers and to obey orders. Even though they are also taught that it their l right and duty to disobey “unlawful orders”. http://www.omjp.org/ArtLarryDisobey.htm

Even though “I was only following orders” http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/timeline/nurem.htm

should not be an excuse for war crimes I believe that war is a crime itself. So who is the real murderer here? Sgt. Vela is just another victim of the ones who taught them to kill and sent them to war.

The number of Iraqi and Afghani civilians who have died can be and are being argued about all the time. But the indisputable fact is that more civilians die in these wars than combatants. Dropping of cluster bombs in my opinion is a war crime.

And those who are really guilty of murder will never stand before a court. George Bush, Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz and the list of neo-cons who planned and orchestrated the war in Iraq . Wars of aggression. http://www.wagingpeace.org/articles/2005/03/00_krieger_war-illegal-illegitimate.htm

are illegal under international law and preemptive war http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Preemptive_war

is very specific in its use. Just War Theory is a guide used for a long time also to judge if a war is acceptable. Pope John Paul recognized that the war in Iraq was not justified under Just War criteria and said so at the time.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0210-03.htm

I could go on as you know, and I might. The question is this. Is Sgt. Vega a murderer? And if so why are the ones who sent them to murder not also on public trial?