Vermont Vets Put Themselves on the Line for the Sake

[marmar]

from HuffPost:




Dan DeWalt
Vermont Vets Put Themselves on the Line for the Sake
Posted March 21, 2008 | 07:44 PM (EST)



"I can't go back in time and take back what I've done... At one point I was a monster, and I created hate and destruction amongst many people. I am sorry for doing so and I will never turn back into the monster I once was." These were the closing remarks of John Turner, former Marine returned from Iraq, testifying in early March with three other former members of the armed forces, to students at the University of Vermont. His Marine dress uniform jacket, with seven shiny medals lined up across his chest contrasted sharply with the bandanna tied around his head, the soft beard that has grown in since his discharge from the service, and the palpable sadness in his countenance as he spoke, an unbearably painful ordeal of confession and revelation.

Turner, former Marine Matt Howard, and Army veterans Drew Cameron and Adrienne Kinne all spoke about their personal experiences in the military during the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Members of Iraq Veterans Against the War, they are determined that their fellow Vermonters, be they students or neighbors, are fully aware of the criminal nature of the war policies of Bush/Cheney.

While the two hundred students who attended that evening may have been irrevocably changed by what they heard, those outside the room were destined to remain unaware, because no one from the press was there to cover the event. Indeed, the press release promised "testimonies from U.S. veterans who have served in the global war on terror -- find out what is really happening on the ground," and referencing the Winter Soldier testimony from the Vietnam era that "exposed the criminal nature of the Vietnam War...today vets from the current occupations assume the same responsibilities as their predecessors." But neither the U.V.M student paper, curiously named the Vermont Cynic, nor the Gannet owned Burlington Free Press sent a reporter to listen. Nor did the Vermont Cynic respond to several queries requesting comment; and Patrick Garrity, Metro editor for the Free Press explained that "tough decisions are made every day on what to cover or not." As to this particular event, he said, "What led to our particular reason why we didn't cover it - I couldn't say." After being apprised of what they may have missed, he responded "Just because we didn't pick up a story on one day doesn't mean that we won't go back to cover it."

....(snip)....

These veterans decided to speak out as victims of an administration's gross negligence and deceit. Their testimony places some of them at grave risk being charged with war crimes or ignoring security restrictions. If they had chosen to remain silent, they could have been protected by a wall of denial and suppression provided by the military that they served. By deciding to clear their consciences and to try to do what they can do repair the damage they have helped the American military to cause, the have unalterably changed the trajectory of their futures. Whether they alone will bear the awful cost of what they witnessed, as well as the possible costs of speaking out -- depends on what those who hear their stories decide to do. If their audiences decide that their own silence would make them complicit, and if the press decides that war crimes being committed today, in our names are front page news, then these veterans will at least have taken a first step beyond their own personal redemption.

The Bush/Cheney administration has established a new paradigm of criminal and immoral actions as public policy. Congress has countenanced these actions, and the courts have failed to check them. It remains to be seen whether the nation can match these veterans' courage to stand tall and say "not now and never again." ......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-dewalt/vermont-vets-put-themselv_b_92852.html