Vermont soldier offers troops baked goods, way to speak out against war

[cali]

Here's a young activist I really admire, and a project I look forward to supporting. I thought others might be interested. From the article in the Vermont Guardian:

QUANTICO, VA — A Vermont soldier at the center of a national effort to help active-duty military personnel find ways to tell members of Congress they want the United States to pull out of Iraq is now handing out care packages at several military bases around the country that make it easy for troops to speak out.

The care packages include informational flyers and baked goods, as well as copies of the movie, Sir No Sir, a documentary about military resisters during the Vietnam War, and The Ground Truth, which follows soldiers from basic training to deployment to Iraq to their homecoming and reintegration.

“The main purpose of the care packages though, is to carry an appeal for redress in a pre-addressed envelope to the troops,” said Liam Madden, a Bellows Falls native, and U.S. Marine sergeant.

Madden said if 100 care packages can be distributed at each of the bases, he would consider that a success. The idea was kicked around on a conference call regarding the appeal for redress several weeks ago.

<snip>

To donate, checks can be mailed to: Appeal for Redress Holiday Project, P.O Box 53052, Washington, DC 20009-3052, or at www.appealforredress.org

http://www.vermontguardian.com/local/122006/MilitaryCare.shtml

[wicket]

1. K & R

:kick:

[bryant69]

2. That's a good idea

One of the more pernicious ideas espoused by our jingoist brethren is that support for the troops - i.e. wishing them well, means that we support the war. And if we don't suppor the war, than we can't really support the troops. This cuts through that a bit.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[cali]

3. Yeah, it sounds really clever and

well thought out, as well as respectful, and the soldier is active duty.

[IndyOp]

4. Sir! No, Sir!

Powerful movie. http://www.sirnosir.com/

[Morgana LaFey]

7. Even the trailer is really powerful nt

[IndyOp]

5. Important comment from Madden...

“We are working with a few dozen volunteers. Some are getting their first taste of this type of participation,” said Madden. “The project is a coalition of active service members who have submitted appeals for redress, veterans and veterans organizations, military families, and concerned citizens throughout the country.”

Madden said he has not received any hostile responses from his fellow service members or his chain of command.

“I've found that very few people support the occupation, but that many have reservations about us withdrawing too quickly or they feel we now owe the Iraqi people our help,” said Madden. “I also get the impression that the idea of being socially and politically involved is something very foreign to most of the fellow service members I've encountered.”

Interesting... The military is full of people who want to contribute, who want to be involved, and who (for the most part) do so by following orders in a strict authoritarian structure. What would happen if they began to see how citizens can contribute in other ways?

[cali]

6. That is indeed very interesting

Thanks for pointing it out. I skimmed right by it. It also made me think about Madden and the fact that he's a Vermonter. There's a high degree of citizen involvement in Vermont, and its strongly encouraged in everey HS in the state.