[Previous entry: ""] [Main Index] [Next entry: "Veteran's Day"]

11/09/2003 Archived Entry: ""

Delightful. Take the "Are You a Patriot?" quiz offered in cartoon form by Mark Fiore and find out where you score on a scale of 1-10. BTW, today's blog will be brief because, under my score, was a government order "to report to the nearest Federal Prosecutor's office to answer a few simple questions."

I tip my hat to whomever first came up with the response to that standard pro-war cry, "We must support our troops!" The response: "I agree: Bring them home!" Now there is another way to support American soldiers, "Keep them here!" Specifically, show support for soldiers who are AWOL by denouncing any punishments that are meted out and by making all options known to them. An intriguing one is what has been called "the new underground railroad." The cultural magazine Nuvo reports, "'If everything else fails, people should desert, just as George W. Bush did during the Vietnam War,' [Army veteran Carl Rising-Moore] said. There is a gap in Bush’s military service record from May 1972 to October 1973. Critics have charged he deserted. Rising-Moore said people all over the country are willing to harbor deserters and help them escape to Canada." Rising-Moore is currently in Canada to gather support.

The AWOL "problem" is likely to grow if the occupation of Iraq continues much longer. "According to USA Today, 11 soldiers and three Marines have killed themselves in the past seven months in Iraq. Several other deaths are being investigated as suicides. In addition, the Army has sent 478 soldiers home from Iraq for mental health reasons." Soldiers are literally dying to come home. Bring 'em here are keep them here, even if the "here" is Canada.

Best to all,
mac