In preparation for Sunday’s debut, there will be a LIVE radio program discussing the film. This Friday, Sept 19, from 8-9PM, Director Jamie Moffett, and Lisa Sharon Harper (Executive Director of NY Faith and Justice and featured interviewee in the film) will be guests on The People Power Hour with George Crossley on WAMT 1190AM - Orlando, FL. AND you can also listen live online at www.peoplepowerhour.com. Make sure to tune in!
All week long I try to keep up on national and world events. I do this because I am interested in being educated about what is going on in the world, however, I would be lying if I didn’t say writing for the blog was also a good motivator. Over the past little while though, I found myself becoming very disinterested in what was going on in the world. Most of the news stories I read had to do in some fashion with the War in Iraq, or the battle drums being sounded for Iran. I felt as though I had already written about war, and didn’t want to again. It was only today that it dawned on me: our country is in a war. Right now actually. If we are not careful we might end up in another one. Of course I should be writing about it.
Often I think that we as a nation (myself in particular) try to hide away from the horror being inflicted on those around the world (in our name too might I add). I don’t know about you all, but I often feel that there is nothing I can do to stop this seemingly futile and endless blood fest. I feel small and insignificant in the realm of world politics. And doing something to make a difference, to allow my voice to be heard… well I don’t exactly get the vibe that our government is listening; thus, leaving me rather disheartened. So, instead of keeping an ear to the ground on the violent events of my day, I keep my head buried in it; too annoyed to look up at the world around me.
I wish that I could go on from here to say that I had found a new way to make my voice heard on a nation level. That I had a renewed hope that we, as a people, could make our government listen to us. But none of this has happened. I have however, come to the realization that regardless I must continue to read and write. For to stop, to turn a blind eye, well it is to condone the war and to surrender to the powers that be. And I can tell you that I am not willing to do that. So, I will continue to read and blog about what I find.
That being said, we have all heard that the War in Iraq is going to cost 3 Trillion dollars. That is a lot of money. But if you want to put that into perspective, check out www.3trillion.org. Or at the very least watch their video below:
One quick glance at any recent opinion poll, and you will clearly see that Americans want the war to end, and they want it to end now. There is no doubt, that in the coming election this will be a major issue folks will be voting on. You have to be living under a rock to not hear comments along the lines of, “well as soon as the Democrats are in office….” However, Chris Hedge, calls this statement into serious question. Saying:
“Those of us who oppose the war, who believe that all U.S. troops should be withdrawn and the network of permanent bases in Iraq dismantled, have only two options in the coming presidential elections—Ralph Nader and Cynthia McKinney. A vote for any of the Republican and Democratic candidates is a vote to perpetuate the occupation of Iraq and a lengthy and futile war of attrition with the Iraqi insurgency. You can sign on for the suicidal hundred-year war with John McCain or for the nebulous open-ended war-lite with Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, or back those who reject the war. If you vote Democrat or Republican in the coming election be honest with yourself—you have voted to allow the U.S. government to continue, in some form, the campaign that needlessly kills ever more Americans and Iraqis in a conflict that has become the worst foreign policy disaster in U.S. history and a crime under international law.
‘When will the American people actually vote to give to the world more than bombs and missiles, sweatshops, dubious science, frankenfood, poverty and misery?’ Cynthia McKinney, the presidential candidate in the Green Party primaries, told me. ‘Not only do we need an immediate, orderly withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan, we need an end to the militarism that has placed U.S. troops on the soil of over 100 countries. A true peace agenda means a complete redefinition of security. I remain convinced that if people in Haiti, Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia and Nicaragua can vote a peace and justice agenda into power, then so too can we.’”
Four U.S. Soldiers were killed today in Iraq, pushing the death toll of American Soldiers to at least 4,000. They were killed when a roadside bomb hit their car. It is easy for us, who are so far away from this state of terror, to skim over stories and stats like these without allowing the full gravity of the situation to sink in. So take a second and think about that. 4 people were blown up while driving in their car. 4,000 have been killed over the past 5 years. 4,000.
Numbers of this magnitude are hard to wrap our minds around. But try to remember, these are not numbers, they are people. Each one very dear to someone. Each one with a story, a family, friends and a future before they were shipped over to Iraq. And now their future is forever lost, and their family and friends are left broken and aching from the pain of what will now never be. 4,000 times over.
Many soldiers in Iraq are there because they are victims of the economic draft. According to Logan Laituri, “statistics have proven that recruitment levels verifiably increase exponentially in our most impoverished neighborhoods. The ‘All Volunteer Military’ is not quite, as it is the lack of proper social programs in place that force the least of those among us into a service too many of our own leaders have ambivalently shrugged off.”
Logan is one of the many caught between the sword and the cross. He fought in Iraq, until he came to the realization that you cannot love your enemy while shooting them. So deep was this realization that he decided he would not carry a weapon on his next tour of duty. The Armed Forces however, would not allow him to go without a weapon and to make a long story short, he was discharged.
Logan now has started an organization called Centurion’s Purse, which exists
“To support and defend prospective, current, and former service members while bearing true faith and allegiance to Jesus Christ. For a few months now, a small group of friends have been considering the question of how to serve fellow service members who struggle, as we did and do, with our relationship to the military and how to live conscientiously with one another and ourselves. Some of us are objectors, others remain in service and are prepared to deploy to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. Some have never served in the Armed Forces but have felt the reverberations of friends and family who have. We are united in our desire to serve others who similarly struggle to live as peacemakers in a world of conflict. We hope to redistribute our wealth to help others in need who would see peace as the means and the end, but who may be tempted to settle for less. Today we are near completion of an initiative we call Centurion’s Purse, a program designed to create an alternative to the significant financial incentives offered to enter the military. With the appeal of $20,000 signing bonuses, many unwary citizens recklessly sign eight years of their life away, not taking into account what truly is being asked of them. We aim to do what we can to offer financial support to those who may join the Armed Forces out of financial distress and who may regret their decision in hindsight. Soon, we will begin accepting applications for need-based financial gifts to support those who have incurred debt or are facing debt as a result of their interaction with the Armed Forces.”
Four soldiers died today in Iraq. 4,000 have died of the course of the war. A number which will only continue to rise. Joining the military should be a choice. One made out of will, not financial necessity. Hopefully Centurion’s Purse will give that choice back to the least of these across the nation.
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