Committee Opposed to Militarism and the Draft (COMD)

: Rick Jahnkow; Articles Archive; 01 July 2003; Hits: 1098

The Ballot Trap

From Draft NOtices, July-August 2003

— Rick Jahnkow

Having worked on Eugene McCarthy's campaign in 1968, George McGovern's in 1972, and several congressional races (including one for a third-party candidate), I am aware of the old — and continuing — debate on the relationship between social change and the electoral process.

Some argue that we should work within the Democratic Party to move it leftward; that we should support electable moderate candidates who will reward our campaign efforts in their behalf by giving a hearing to our views; that we should back progressive candidates who will, at least, stimulate public discussion of the issues we want to have raised.

Others contend that our electoral efforts ought to be confined to radical or third-party slates; that we should ignore national campaigns and work only for local candidates and referenda; that we should limit our participation to the casting of ballots on election day, or that we shouldn't even bother doing that.

"Support the Troops"

From Draft NOtices, May - June 2003

— Mernie Aste and Molly Morgan

Waging empire abroad requires a propaganda war at home, and peace activists have been challenged by a powerful sound-bite blitz since 9-11. As Bush, Inc. moves from its war of conquest to occupation and exploitation, the rest of us can reframe our strategies and language, including unpacking one of the most vexing phrases —"support the troops."

For centuries a dominant feature of U.S. political culture has been dualism: framing all issues as black or white, good vs. evil, with no opportunity to be neither, both, or something else altogether. Framing debate in this way not only serves as a red herring to keep people from asking deeper questions, but is also part of a classic divide-and-conquer strategy that keeps the majority of people from making common cause against the oligarchy. Part of the brilliance of such jingoistic phrases as "united we stand," "these colors don't run," "freedom isn't free," and "support the troops" is that they are ambiguous, implying a political stance without being specific. They also allow a speaker to set a trap for responders.

Military Family Violence: A Hushed Epidemic

From Draft NOtices, May - June 2003

— Lorraine Demi

Studies suggest that domestic violence rates are two to three times higher in U.S. military families than in the country's civilian population. In fact, military domestic violence incidents increased from 18.6 per 1,000 marriages in 1990 to 25.6 per 1,000 in 1996. Rates then fell slightly from 1997 to 1999, but more moderate to severe incidents were reported, showing an increase in the severity of violence in military homes, even if reported incidents lessened slightly. Unfortunately, these numbers are still dramatically underestimated due to three mitigating factors: (1) the military only recognizes violence against a legal spouse as domestic violence -- so these numbers exclude violence against girlfriends or boyfriends and unmarried, live-in partners; (2) commanders often handle domestic violence cases informally, and then don't report the "resolved" cases; and (3) a certain number of domestic violence cases are not reported in civilian populations, but even more are not reported in military relationships due to fear, intimidation, and a forced code of silence.