Vt. soldier will ask Congress to end war
EVAN LEHMANN, Banner Washington Bureau
Article Launched:10/24/2006 03:08:39 AM EDT
http://www.benningtonbanner.com/...
Tuesday, October 24
WASHINGTON -- An active duty Marine from Rockingham, Vt., who served in Iraq is using a military whistleblower provision to ask Congress to end the Iraq War.
Sgt. Liam Madden, 22, said he's joining dozens of active duty service members in the orchestrated campaign to protest the administration's rationale for the 2003 invasion and the ongoing occupation.
This is big, folks. Very big. As far I can determine from my limited search capability, it is the first attempt by
acitve service personnel to use Whistleblower Protections to speak out against any war.
It's going to hit all the media outlets.
It's going to bring back visions of the
Winter Soldier effort
"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman." Thomas Paine
Many of us know of this effort by way of John Kerry's testimony in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1971, when he asked all us
""How do you ask a man to be the last man to die in Vietnam -- How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?"
Read more about this effort ..
http://www.williambowles.info/...
and here
http://www.appealforredress.org/
Supporting groups are here
http://www.ivaw.org/
http://www.mfso.org/
http://www.veteransforpeace.org/
http://www.militaryproject.org/
Make no mistake about this, this is a huge breaking story and as jimstaro's diary told us {sadly almost ignored and slipped right off the diary list}, this effort will take a leap forward tomorrow.
Liam Madden and other service personnel who are appealing for redress through the Whistleblowers Act are active duty servicepeople, and they are putting themselves at serious risk of retribution from the military as well as the Bush civilian administration.
They are to be commended for their sense of duty and bravery in doing so. We must do our part to increase the visibility of their actions, to make this step our troops are taking worthwhile.