From Draft NOtices, January-March 2006
— Rick Jahnkow
Some important stories have appeared recently about disagreements between military commanders and the Bush administration over whether to begin a significant withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq in 2006. A related development is the recent call for an immediate withdrawal by Rep. John Murtha (D-PA). Murtha is a decorated combat veteran who is also considered a military hawk and one of the closest congressional allies of the high-level officer corps.
Peace organizations have been quick to add Murtha’s name to the growing list of those calling for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq, but they’ve given scant attention to the true significance of his voice and the very potent implications of stories about military commanders’ dissatisfaction with their mission.
A more in-depth analysis of these developments and related issues can offer some important lessons on how the peace movement can hasten the end of the occupation and move proactively beyond the limited goal of ending one war.
Committee Opposed to Militarism and the Draft (COMD)
From Draft NOtices, January-March 2006
— Michelle Gutiérrez
After the collapse of the Berlin Wall when militaries seemingly shrank in size, many military personnel from around the globe became part of the privatized military industry (PMI). PMI has grown to operate in more than 50 nations, generating over $100 billion in revenue annually. With a growing military presence around the world, recruitment difficulties, and public policy determined by war profiteers, the U.S. has become the largest consumer of PMI of any nation. While the official number of private contractors in Iraq has been recorded at 20,000, which represents 15% of the troop strength, this figure only accounts for security contractors, those who “carry arms.” Recent estimates of all private contractors have been as high as 100,000. Clearly, private contractors are essential for operations in Iraq, and U.S. military projects are fueling this growing business.
From Draft NOtices, January-March 2006
— Catherine Kennedy
The career fair committee of Kea‘au High School in Hawai‘i was kind enough to allow me to have a table on Friday, Nov. 4, at their high school career fair to discuss with the students alternatives to military enlistment and the realities of war. As far as I know, this is the first time a table like mine has been present at one of these Big Island high school events. I felt it was important to be there to counterbalance the several tables touting careers in the Armed Forces.
I provided interested students with literature on ways to pay for college without the military; lists of ideas for alternative careers that meet kids’ goals for public service, learning a trade or their desire for adventure and travel; and Web sites for researching these choices. I presented pictures of patriotic role models who have worked outside the military to improve living and working conditions of others. I also offered literature that describes the realities of military life and gives kids advice on things to look at in the enlistment contract. I also played a DVD of wounded vets talking about their experiences in Iraq, many of whom are just a few years older than the high school kids themselves.
Ninth CIRCUIT COURT RULING: CONFRONTING MILITARISM BY USING EQUAL ACCESS TO HIGH SCHOOLS
When the military comes to your local high school, you have a legal right to give students an opposing view. This has been the position taken by federal district courts in Florida, Pennsylvania and Illinois and two federal appellate courts. The most broadly-worded decision came from a case that COMD took to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the 1980s. Here is the background:
