Military Resistance 8K3 Reintegration[1]

8/8/2019 Military Resistance 8K3 Reintegration[1]

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Military Resistance: [email protected] 11.3.10 Print it out: color best. Pass it on.

Military Resistance 8K3

Afghan Police UnitDefects To Taliban,Leaving Burning Station

Behind:The Taliban, It Appears, HaveReintegration Plans Of Their

Own
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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We Do Our Guerrilla Attacks AndThen Leave The District Center. This

Is Just A BuildingThe Taliban Exist In And Around TheDistrict Centers, And We Have Our OwnJudges, Courts, District Governors And

Other Officials[Thanks to Felicity Arbuthnot, who sent this in.]

November 1, 2010 By DEXTER FILKINS and SHARIFULLAH SAHAK, The New YorkTimes [Excerpts]

KABUL, Afghanistan For months, American and Afghan officials have beenpromoting a plan to persuade masses of rank-and-file Taliban fighters to changesides and join the government.

The tactic, known as reintegration, is one of the big hopes for turning the tide inthe war.

But the Taliban, it appears, have reintegration plans of their own. On Mondaymorning, they claimed to have put them into effect.

In Khogeyani, a volatile area southwest of the capital, the entire police force on dutyMonday morning appears to have defected to the Taliban side.

A spokesman for the Taliban said the movements fighters made contact with theKhogeyanis police force, cut a deal, and then sacked and burned the station. As manyas 19 officers vanished, as did their guns, trucks, uniforms and food.

Even the local police chief, who missed the attack, said he suspected a defection enmasse.

This was not an attack, but a plot, said Mohammed Yasin, the chief of the Khogeyanipolice force. The Taliban and the police made a deal.

A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabiullah Mujahid, said the Afghan officers decided todefect after learning the facts about the Taliban.

We never force people to join us, said Mr. Mujahid, whose name is fictitious. Thepolice joined us voluntarily and are happy to work with us, and to start the holy warshoulder to shoulder with their Taliban brothers.


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The Taliban takeover of the station did not last long in Khogeyani, a district in GhazniProvince. Musa Khan Akbarzada, the provincial governor, said his office lost contact withthe police station at about 5 a.m. Government forces arrived in Khogeyani about threehours later and found the station smoking and abandoned.

Mr. Akbarzada said his Afghan forces would continue searching for the missing policeofficers. Mr. Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, said the police and the insurgents hadalready melted away into the countryside.

The Taliban exist in and around the district centers, and we have our own judges,courts, district governors and other officials, he said. We do our guerrilla attacks andthen leave the district center. This is just a building.

IRAQ WAR REPORTS

Resistance ActionOct 31 (Reuters) & Nov 1 (Reuters) & Nov 2 (Reuters)

QAIYARA - The chief of Qaiyara police station, Lieutenant Colonel Khalid Auda, waskilled and his driver wounded when a sticky bomb attached to his car went off inQaiyara, 290 km (180 miles) north of Baghdad, a Nineveh province police source said.

MOSUL - Four Iraqi soldiers were wounded when two mortars landed at an Iraqi armybase in western Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

TAJI - A bomb attached to a car belonging to Adnan Atallah, a leader of a government-backed militia, exploded in Taji, 20 km (12 miles) north of Baghdad, killing him.

BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi police patrol wounded one policeman inBaghdads southern Saidiya district, an Interior Ministry source said.

FALLUJA - An off-duty policeman was killed when a roadside bomb exploded in front ofhis house in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, police said.

MOSUL - A roadside bomb targeting a police patrol wounded four policemen when itexploded in eastern Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.

MOSUL - A roadside bomb targeting an on-foot police patrol went off and wounded threepolicemen in central Mosul, police said.

HAWIJA - Gunmen in a car shot dead a government-backed militias leader in front ofhis house in Hawija, 210 km (130 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.


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AFGHANISTAN WAR REPORTS

Two Foreign OccupationServicemembers Killed By IED

Somewhere Or Other In Afghanistan:Nationality Not Announced

November 1 AP

Two foreign servicemember died following an improvised explosive device attack insouthern Afghanistan Monday.

Another Foreign OccupationServicemember Killed Somewhere Or

Other In Afghanistan:Nationality Not Announced

Nov 2 AP

A foreign servicemember died after an insurgent attack Tuesday. The death follows abomb that killed two coalition service members on Monday night.

Military Drone Down In BehsudNov 2 AP

A remotely piloted aircraft crashed in Behsud district in eastern Nangarhar Province onTuesday. NATO said it was not carrying any weapons and the crash was not believed tobe the result of enemy activity.

IF YOU DONT LIKE THE RESISTANCEEND THE OCCUPATION


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Norfolk Soldier Was Outgoing, Funny,Says Family

October 17, 2010 By Lauren King, The Virginian-Pilot

A former Booker T. Washington student from Norfolk who was killed in Afghanistan isbeing described by friends and his former coach as an outgoing, strong-willed classmatewho made them laugh.

Pfc. Tramaine Billingsley, 20, was riding in a convoy Thursday when it was struck by animprovised explosive device, said Travis Billingsley, his brother. The soldier was amongthree who were killed, he said.

Billingsley was stationed at Fort Carson, Colo., his Facebook page indicated. The Armyhas not yet not released any details of the incident.

Travis Billingsley, Tramaines older brother, said he was a happy person, full of life, whocould get along with anyone.

At Booker T. he was a drum major, was in the NJROTC and played varsity soccer.

There are not enough words that I can put together to describe the likability andcharisma of this fallen soldier, his brother Terrance Chambers said in an e-mail.

Tramaine Billingsley was sent to Afghanistan in July on a 12-month deployment. Hisbrother Trevon returned this month after spending a year there. The brothers were in thevicinity of each other in Afghanistan for about a month, Travis Billingsley said.

Tramaines twin, Tramal, is in the Navy and stationed in Italy.

Tramaine Billingsley is survived by his mother, Zelda; sister, Shatara; and four brothers.

We loved him to the fullest and are deeply missing my little brother, Travis Billingsleysaid in an e-mail.

Janita Burgess Hess, who coached Billingsley on the soccer team for three years, wasdevastated Friday morning when a player called her to tell her the news.

She described Billingsley as an energetic jokester who occasionally got under her skin.He was just one of these guys - he was the biggest pain. ... He was the most fun.


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When she took over the team, the players were terrible soccer players. They slowlyimproved. Billingsley even scored a goal, then danced at center field. Hess drove himto and from practice regularly. They talked about his home life and personal things. Sheremembers all the conversations.

As the news spread, Billingsleys friends posted condolences on Facebook.

Delvon Burrus was in the Booker T. band and ROTC with Billingsley.

He was outgoing, loud and very funny, Burrus said.

Marcelis L. Muriel also knew Billingsley from school. He was a decorated ROTC cadet,a determined and strong-willed person and overall just a good guy, he said in an e-mail.

A person who would keep you laughing if you were around him.

Tracie Page was also in the band with him and friends with his twin brother and oldersister.

He was a little guy with a big heart that would befriend anyone, Page said in an e-mail.His efforts as a soldier have gained him respect from our nation, but his efforts at beinga decent human being have gained him the respect of all who knew and loved him. Hewill undoubtedly be missed.

Lance Cpl. Phillip Vinnedge Killed InAfghanistan

10.16.10 By Jeff Small, KSDK

St. Charles, MO

A Marine from St. Charles County was one of four killed in Afghanistan by a roadsidebombing Wednesday.

Lance Corporal Phillip Vinnedges family said Phillip was a loving son, brother and afriend to many, including two organizations close to his heart.


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Vinnedge was on his first combat deployment when he was killed along with three otherMarines. Vinnedge was deployed to Afghanistan on September 27 and died 16 dayslater.

Phillip Vinnedge was a 2009 graduate of Francis Howell Central High School. In school,Vinnedge was recognized for having perfect attendance and being an outstandingstudent.

He loved working with younger kids and trying to bring them up and playing and footballwith kids in the neighborhood because he was always looking for leadership roles, saidfamily friend Robert Palmer.

Phillip Vinnedge and several of his family members were very active in Boy Scouting.Vinnedge participated in scouting until he joined the Marines. In addition to his love forthe Boy Scouts, family members say Phillip Vinnedge loved giving back through theToys for Tots program.

Lance Corporal Vinnedges parents said they appreciated the outpouring of love andsupport from the community. They also asked that people keep all military men andwomen as well as their family in your thoughts and prayers.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

The four Marines killed had been assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment,based at Camp Pendleton, California.

Tooele Loses First Soldier In War

Pfc. Jordan Byrd

Oct 14, 2010 by Lisa Christensen, Tooele Transcript Bulletin


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Last month, Pfc. Jordan Byrd got permission from the Army to delay his deployment toAfghanistan by a little over a week so that he could be home for the birth of his son,Ayden. The boy was the first child born to Byrd, 19, and his wife, Savanna, 20, whowere married last Christmastime.

That visit was the last time Byrd would ever see his young family.

On Wednesday, Byrd became the first soldier from Tooele County killed in action inAfghanistan. He was shot coming to the aid of another soldier who had also been shot,according to family members.

Official confirmation from the military regarding exactly how and where Byrd was killedhad not been released at press time.

Byrd was stationed in Afghanistan as a medic as part of the 101st Airborne Division inthe U.S. Army. He had been in Afghanistan for about three weeks. The circumstancesof his death are still under investigation, according to Army officials, but that investigationis expected to be concluded by next week.

Family members said Byrd was a positive, energetic man who was devoted to family andwas always eager to lend a hand. He graduated a few months early from Dugway HighSchool in 2009, where he was senior class president, and immediately started classes atthe University of Utah with the aspiration to be a doctor. He joined the military to helpfund his education.

He wanted to be a medic and a doctor, and thought the Army was the best way to getthat, said Jennifer Hoopes, an aunt who lives in Grantsville.

Jody Steinfeldt, another aunt and also from Grantsville, said he was very excited and

passionate about the new chapter of his life. He just loved helping people and he lovedthis country, she said. He was so positive about what he was doing.

Steinfeldt said Byrds announcement that he was joining the military came as somewhatof a surprise. She said Byrd was such a kind, soft-hearted person that she could notimagine him in combat.

I just couldnt imagine him in the Army because he wouldnt hurt a flea, she said.

Byrd surrounded himself with family constantly, Steinfeldt said, and made friends easily.Jennie Martinez, a friend of Byrds who met him when he attended grade school inTooele, said he always tried to lift others up and could brighten anyones day.

He had a really contagious smile. His laugh was one of those infectious laughs. He wasalways trying to include everybody, Martinez said. He was just all around a really easyperson to be with.

Garrett Hensley, a friend from Dugway High, said this devotion to family was nothingnew for Byrd, whom he described as a protector.


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He would stand up for everyone, anyone, even if he got beat in the end, hed stand upfor you, Hensley said. He was a brother to all.

Byrd would have celebrated his 20th birthday next month. Savanna Byrd said the life herhusband lived and the example he set will live on for her and their son.

He was a really, really good person, she said. And he was doing what he loved to do.

A fund has been set up to benefit Savanna and Ayden Byrd at the Dugway FederalCredit Union.

Family Remembers Lance CorporalRaymon Johnson

Oct 22, 2010 By Taylor Barnhill, WTVM

COLUMBUS, GA

A week after being killed during a combat operation in Afghanistan, the body of 22 yearold Lance Corporal Raymon Johnson is back in Columbus.

His family tells you the story of his life and death.

The doorbell rang, I went to the door and I saw them standing there. They sat us downand the words were I regrettably hate to inform you, but Lance Corporal RaymonJohnson has passed away, recalled his father, Gregory Johnson.

His mother Gwendolyn Johnson said, And I said how did he die?. He said he steppedon an IED. It was a nightmare. That was my baby.

His brother Ramon told News Leader Nine, I didnt want to believe it. Really there hasbeen a deep hole in my heart for three or four days. I cant eat, I cant sleep. Its hard.

22 year old Raymon Johnson started working towards joining the Marines when he was just 17 years old.


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His mother said, It wasnt a family decision, it was his decision. We tried everything tokeep him out of the Marines and he asked me to sign the papers and I said no way. Itook him to Washington to Walter Reed so he could see what he was getting in to. Hesaw the wounded soldiers but he was just determined to be a Marine.

His identical twin brother, Ramon, says his bond with his brother is something he willnever forget, It was really amazing when he came home, he lit up the house. Everybodywas glad when he came home, but now hes gone. Its going to be tough. Itll be adefinite change.

Lance Corporal Raymon Johnson will be laid to rest Saturday morning at the BridgeChurch on 2nd Avenue in Columbus.

A viewing has been scheduled at McMullen Funeral Home on Gentian Blvd. inColumbus from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Friday.

Spring Valley Soldier Dies In AfghanistanOctober 21, 2010 By Karen Pearlman, The San Diego Union-Tribune

By the time he turned 16, Rafael Francisco Martinez knew one thing for sure: He longedto join the military.

His father tried to dispel the idea then, and a second time when Martinez turned 22 andexpressed his passion for enlisting in the Army.

I told him again, Youre my only son, you cant join, Rafael Martinez of Spring Valleyrecalled. I didnt want to lose my only son.

But the younger Martinez never lost his desire to serve. In 2007, two weeks after turning33, he realized his lifes dream and became a soldier. He eventually deployed to Iraq,where he received a Purple Heart for his injury in a bomb blast, and then headed toAfghanistan for combat duty in July of this year.

On Oct. 14, an improvised explosive device killed Martinez and two others in his squadas their tank rumbled along a road in northwestern Afghanistan. Martinez, an Armyspecialist who had turned 36 in August, left behind his wife of six years, Christine, andtheir two children, 6-year-old Davina and 10-month-old Rafael III.

His wife; younger sister, Yvonne; and parents, including mother Martha Martinez, plan to

honor his life with a 5 p.m. Sunday memorial service at Funeraria Del Angel HumphreyMortuary in Chula Vista. A celebration of life ceremony will take place 10 a.m. Mondayat Faith Chapel in Casa De Oro, followed by a 12:30 p.m. burial at Fort Rosecrans.

The elder Martinez said even though his worst fears became reality, he respected whatthe Army did for his son. He and the rest of the family had been preparing for thesoldiers next trip home to Spring Valley. That was supposed to happen in November.


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The last day he talked to me in person was on the Fourth of July, when he was here (onleave), the elder Martinez remembered. He said, Dad, the Army is my life. And Iremember all the times thinking, I have to make my son strong. But now I see the Armyalready did that.

Years before his enlistment, Martinez had shown signs of leadership.

At 14, he already held a job that that commanded respect: On the weekends, heoversaw his fathers crew of 10 employees who fixed janitorial equipment. He set thework schedule, made sure they stayed on task and provided English and Spanishtranslations.

He was equally responsible at home, said Yvonne Martinez.

When we were kids, we lived in a very bad neighborhood near Stockton, she said.Mom was afraid to let us out, so we were stuck inside a lot. My brother would invent allsorts of games to keep us busy. I dont know where he came up with most of them. Hehad a great imagination ...

Throughout the years, she said, her brother watched out for her.

(I) always thought Rafael was indestructible, she added.

In the past few years, many people who first knew Martinez as a soldier were surprisedto learn that such a disciplined man had served a considerable prison sentence,according to his family.

While incarcerated, he earned his high school diploma and went on to study sociology,psychology and medicine, Yvonne Martinez said.

He read every single medical book he could find and would help the other inmateswhen they werent feeling well, she said. Even the prison guards would come to himand ask him to figure out what was wrong when they were sick. So many people trustedhim.

The elder Martinez said his son did just about every positive thing he could to turn his lifearound after being released at age 28. The son gradually started a business in SanDiego that does hazardous-material cleanups, with the San Diego County SheriffsDepartment as a client.

The last time the elder Martinez heard from his son was three days before the blast thatproved fatal. His son called and left the following phone message: Hi Mom and Dad,

Im in Afghanistan, he said in Spanish. Its really cold here. Ive been calling everycouple of days but I keep missing you. ... I will try to call you again soon this afternoon. Ilove you very much. Bye.


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War Profiteering Mercenary CorporationsEmploy Homicidal Maniacs And Taliban

Fighters To Guard U.S. Bases10.18.2010 By Rick Maze, Army Times [Excerpts]

A new Senate committee report reveals why U.S. military commanders are soconcerned that private security contractors working in Afghanistan may pose a threat toU.S. troops and to the overall success of Operation Enduring Freedom.

The report represents the broadest look at Defense Department security contracts sofar, with a review of 125 of these agreements between 2007 and 2009.

The panels report highlights two cases in which security contractors ArmorGroup andEOD Technology relied on personnel linked to the Taliban.

Two rival warlords worked for and provided employees to Armor-Group, which wasproviding security at Shindand Airbase under an Air Force contract, the report said.

Guard uniforms, weapons, explosives and a security access badge to the base, in Heratprovince in western Afghanistan, were found during a raid on an off-base location,revealing plans by Taliban fighters to attack the base, the report said.

Additionally, one of the warlords killed the other in a shootout at a bazaar and a thirdwas killed in a raid by U.S. and Afghan forces during a meeting between that warlordand the Taliban.

Susan Pitcher, a spokeswoman for Wackenhut Services, Armor-Groups parentcompany, said the company engaged workers from local villages only upon therecommendation and encouragement of U.S. special operations troops.

The single largest failure of the anti-war movement at this pointis the lack of outreach to the troops. Tim Goodrich, IraqVeterans Against The War

THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO COMPREHENSIBLEREASON TO BE IN THIS EXTREMELY HIGH RISKLOCATION AT THIS TIME, EXCEPT THAT THE

PACK OF TRAITORS THAT RUN THEGOVERNMENT IN D.C. WANT YOU THERE TO

DEFEND THEIR IMPERIAL DREAMS:


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That is not a good enough reason.

A U.S. soldier wearing a bomb ordnance disposal suit removes live ammunition from ahelicopters wheel in Kandahar province, Afghanistan September 26, 2010.REUTERS/Erik de Castro

A mine sweeper from the Eighth Marines has discovered an IED in the town of Nabuk insouthern Afghanistans Helmand province, October 31, 2010. REUTERS/FinbarrOReilly


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A U.S. Marine from the 8th Marines suffering from concussion rests in a compoundproviding cover after a rocket propelled grenade exploded near his position during abattle against Taliban insurgents in the town of Nabuk in southern AfghanistansHelmand province, November 1, 2010. REUTERS/Finbarr OReilly

A U.S. Marine from the 8th Marines warning his comrades to keep out of the line of firefrom Taliban insurgents during a firefight in the town of Nabuk in southern AfghanistansHelmand province, November 1, 2010. REUTERS/Finbarr OReilly


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U.S. Marines from 8th Marines run under fire after a rocket propelled grenade explodednear their position during a battle against Taliban insurgents in the town of Nabuk insouthern Afghanistans Helmand province, November 1, 2010. REUTERS/FinbarrOReilly

They Claim To Fight Terrorism,But In Fact They Are The

Biggest Terrorists In The EyesOf Our People Because Of Their

Crimes And BrutalitiesOur History Proves That ThisResistance To Occupation Will

Continue Until We Have Won OurFreedom


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Obama Promised Hope AndChange, But Afghans Have Seen

Only Change For The WorseHere He Is Now Seen As A SecondBush

[Thanks to Michael Letwin, New York City Labor Against The War & Military Resistance,who sent this in.]

2 November 2010 Malalai Joya in Kabul, The Guardian [Excerpts]

One year ago Hamid Karzai was declared re-elected as president of Afghanistan, ending

an election that had no legitimacy in the eyes of ordinary Afghans.The presidential election last year was a fraud, with ballot stuffing, vote buying andmassive corruption reported by the worlds media. People had no incentive toparticipate as they knew that both main candidates would bring nothing positive forAfghan people.

Karzai had lost his popularity way before the 2009 election.

This was due to the ever increasing corruption of the government, the never-endingcrimes of the many fundamentalists and warlords in his regime, and the financialscandals and corruption of his brothers.

In Kandahar people even started calling Ahmed Wali Karzai the little Bush, after thehated US president.

The vast majority of Afghans have lost all hope in Karzai.

For us his words and actions have no value, and that includes his latest peacenegotiations and other measures.

Its important to say that these so-called elections havent damaged Afghanistan asmuch as the US and its NATO allies have, with their bombing and occupation.Wikileaks has exposed some of the truth about the civilian toll of this war against theAfghan and Iraqi peoples.

Afghans hold the US and NATO, and their puppet Karzai, responsible for these warcrimes. They claim to fight terrorism, but in fact they are the biggest terrorists in theeyes of our people because of their crimes and brutalities.

Unfortunately the Afghan people are not yet strong enough to drive out the US,overthrow the mafia government of Karzai and bring an end to the crimes of the Talibanand other fundamentalists.


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Our history proves that this resistance to occupation will continue until we have won ourfreedom.

Until both the US and the fundamentalists of both the Northern Alliance and Talibanbrands are driven out of power in Afghanistan, we cannot see a bright future.

It is now more than five years since I was elected to the Afghan parliament. Myexperience of this democratic process was to see my microphone cut off, and to bethreatened with death by other MPs many of whom teamed up to remove me illegallyfrom my seat.

My case alone is enough to prove that womens rights in Afghanistan have not truly beensafeguarded our situation was just invoked to justify the war.

In fact, its important to remember another document that Wikileaks exposedearlier this year: a CIA paper assessing western public opinion on the war thatrecommended using testimonials by Afghan women expressing fear about aTaliban takeover in the event of NATO pulling out.

A Time cover story featuring the disfigured Bibi Aisha was a clear example of using theplight of women as war propaganda.

The headline What happens if we leave Afghanistan could have, or shouldhave, been What happens while we are in Afghanistan, because crimes ofmutilation, rape and murder against women are commonplace today.

Many warlords and commanders aligned with NATO and Karzai carry out their sexist,misogynist crimes with impunity.

Time could, for example, have done a cover story condemning the law signed by Karzaiin 2009 that legalised crimes against Shia women, or about the shocking levels ofwomen committing suicide by self-immolation.

We had another so-called parliamentary election in September, but I chose not to run.

Any hope I had for using the ballot box to achieve change in Afghanistan is gone.

Like last years presidential vote, Septembers election was full of the buying andselling of votes one province, Paktika, reported a turnout of 626%. This sort ofthing is the reason elections in Afghanistan long ago became a bad joke.

Tomorrow there is an election in the US, and it is now two years since Barack Obamawas elected president. His surge of troops has brought only a surge of violence, and hisexpansion of the war into Pakistan has claimed many innocent lives. Obama promisedhope and change, but Afghans have seen only change for the worse. Here he is nowseen as a second Bush.

The only change that can make us hopeful about the future is the strengthening andexpansion of a national anti-fundamentalist and democracy-loving movement. Such a


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movement can be built only by Afghans. And while we want the worlds support andsolidarity, we neither need nor want NATOs occupying forces.


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NEED SOME TRUTH?CHECK OUT TRAVELING SOLDIER

Traveling Soldier is the publication of the Military Resistance Organization.

Telling the truth - about the occupations or the criminals running the governmentin Washington - is the first reason for Traveling Soldier. But we want to do morethan tell the truth; we want to report on the resistance to Imperial wars inside thearmed forces.

Our goal is for Traveling Soldier to become the thread that ties working-classpeople inside the armed services together.

We want this newsletter to be a weapon to help you organize resistance within thearmed forces.

If you like what youve read, we hope that youll join with us in building a networkof active duty organizers. http://www.traveling-soldier.org/

And join with Iraq Veterans Against the War to end the occupations and bring alltroops home now! ( www.ivaw.org/ )
http://www.traveling-soldier.org/http://www.ivaw.org/http://www.ivaw.org/http://www.traveling-soldier.org/


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MILITARY NEWS

THIS IS HOW OBAMA BRINGS THE TROOPS

HOME:BRING THEM ALL HOME NOW, ALIVE

The remains of Army Spc. Pedro A. Maldonado of Houston Texas, upon arrival at DoverAir Force Base, Del. Oct. 31, 2010. Spc. Maldonado, 20, of Houston, Texas, died Oct.29 in Kandalay, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit withrocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

FORWARD OBSERVATIONS


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At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. Oh hadI the ability, and could reach the nations ear, I would, pour out a fiery stream ofbiting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke.

For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder.

We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake.

Frederick Douglass, 1852

Poor Peoples Stimulus Package

From: Mike HastieTo: Military ResistanceSent: October 17, 2010Subject: Poor Peoples Stimulus Package

Poor Peoples Stimulus Package

Whenever the American people havea choice between bombs and bullets,or education and health care,we always seem to choosebombsandbullets.


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Thats because,Freedom Is Not Free.

Mike HastieVietnam VeteranW-A-R ( Wealthy Are Richer )

Photo and caption from the I-R-A-Q (I Remember Another Quagmire) portfolio ofMike Hastie, US Army Medic, Vietnam 1970-71. (For more of his outstanding work,contact at: ( [email protected] ) T)

DANGER: POLITICIANS AT WORK

POLITICIANS CANT BE COUNTED ON

TO HALT THE BLOODSHEDTHE TROOPS HAVE THE POWER TO

STOP THE WARS
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


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CLASS WAR REPORTS

Parents Defy Chicago CityGovernment:Activists Seize And OccupyNeighborhood Community

Building Scheduled For

Demolition And Transform It Into ASchool Library:They Think We Are Going To Get

Tired Of This


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Theyre Giving Me More Strength

The building facing demolition. Daniel Shea for The Wall Street Journal

A homemade protest banner on a fence near the building. Daniel Shea for The WallStreet Journal


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September 22, 2010 By Laurie Rojas, The Nation & OCTOBER 1, 2010 By JOEBARRETT, Wall St. Journal [Excerpts]

CHICAGOAraceli Gonzalez is getting used to spending restless nights on an airmattress inside a run-down building behind her daughters elementary school.

They think we are going to get tired of this, she said Tuesday night, explaining hermorning dashes home to prepare her children for school and herself for her job at abank.

Theyre giving me more strength.

Ms. Gonzalez, 46 years old, is among dozens of parents at Whittier Dual LanguageSchool who have been holding an around-the-clock sit-in for more than two weeks toprevent the city school district from tearing down the roughly finished one-story building,which has served as a community center and after-school activity hub for decades.

A Chicago Public Schools (CPS) spokesperson responded by saying the buildingis structurally unsafe, and that the district lacks the money to renovate thestructure. In conclusion: That building has to come down.

But as the Chicago Tribune reported on Monday September 20th, when theparents hired an engineering firm, Ingenii LLC, to assess the building, they cameto the opposite conclusion. With the exception of the roof, the structure is ingood condition and suitable for continued use.

School-district officials say the building, in a poor Latino neighborhood southwest of theLoop, is unsafe and would be too expensive to bring up to current building codes. Itsnot even a building. Its a structure, said Monique Bond, a spokeswoman for the

Chicago Public Schools. It would need to be torn down and rebuilt from the ground up.

There is no money for that, she said.

Since the protest began, the parents have been accepting donations of books andworking to convert the 2,000-square-foot building into a library for the school, oneof 160 in Chicago that doesnt have one.

On Thursday, the parents dedicated the library, despite the orange sticker on thefront door warning that the building was Off Limits and threatening fines of $25to $100.

At a time of school-budget cuts and teacher layoffs, parent groups across the U.S. havemarched on school-board offices, staged call-in campaigns and shouted downadministrators at school-board meetings.

But it is rare for parents to go to such lengths to protect something that looks from theoutside like a long-deserted Pizza Hut.

The building, which dates to the mid-1800s, has been maintained haphazardly. The redmetal roof is rusting. Huge broken flood lights on the roof are missing guide wires. The


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concrete floors have chipped paint and the walls and ceiling are neither insulated norfireproof.

But the building has long been a focal point for the neighborhood. Rose Escobar, 55,who attended the school and later sent her children and grandchildren there, remembersplaying games, carving pumpkins and having Christmas parties there.

I hate to see it torn down, she said, as she dusted off and disinfected a set of donatedencyclopedias. I dont think its fair to the kids at the school.

More recently, the building has served as a meeting place for students mothers totake classes in sewing and English as a second language. They call it thecasita, or little house.

Fourth-grader Osvaldo De Paz said his mother has taken English classes there, while hestudied English and Spanish at school. Then its fair, he said, as he sat doing his mathhomework in the building this week, because its more like equal.

Last year, the school district said it had received $1.4 million of funding forimprovements at the school. In consultation with parents, it expanded the cafeteria, builtnew science and computer rooms and installed a parent meeting room.

But the parents balked at the plan to spend $356,000 of the money to knock downthe building.

We thought we could put that money to better use, said Gema Gaete, acommunity organizer working with the parents. And because the school had nolibrary, the idea emerged to create one, she said.

In a series of meetings since last November, the district and the parents failed to reach

agreement.

Ms. Bond said the cost of tearing down the building and replacing it with an acceptablelibrary could be $5 million to $20 million.

Parents say the $356,000 already allocated would go a long way toward upgrading thebuilding because they can call on free labor from workers in the neighborhood.

Finally, with a looming school-district deadline for boarding up the building,parents decided to take it over on Sept. 15.

Chicagos Gapers Block reported that the sit-in has withstood several visits by

the police including an arrest threat that was averted after more than 100students, parents and community members pushed past barricades to support theprotesters.

After initial confrontations with police and school officials, the parents have repainted thebuilding, organized health fairs and yoga classes and slept in shifts.

This is Chicago, said Ms. Gaete, recalling Mayor Richard M. Daleys 2003 decision tocarve giant Xs in the landing strip at Meigs Field as the city slept.


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Whole airports can disappear overnight.

No talks are under way between the parents and the district, which hasnt agreed toconditions set by the parents.

Meanwhile, donated books have streamed in from as far away as Minnesota andNew York.

A group of high-school students from New Orleans recently pledged to hold a bookdrive, Ms. Gaete said.

A group called the Chicago Underground Library offered expertise on cataloging andsetting up the library. The parents have cataloged about 600 books in the library, andhundreds more need to be unpacked.

Osiel Gomez, 9, said he is looking forward to checking out books from the library.We keep on reading the same books, he said of the small collection in hisclassroom.

Asked if he had taken a peek at the offerings before the new library opened, he said, Iwant to be surprised.

Parents and community activists sit outside the building facing demolition. Daniel Sheafor The Wall Street Journal

MORE:


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UPDATE:Possible Settlement For La Casita

OCTOBER 27, 2010 By JOE BARRETT, Wall St. Journal

CHICAGOA sit-in by parents at a condemned building on the playground of anelementary school in a poor Latino neighborhood here appears headed to a resolutionafter more than 40 days.

Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Ron Huberman sent a letter formalizing asettlement that would halt destruction of the building.

Instead, he expects to turn the building over to the parents for $1 a year, evaluate whatneeds to be fixed to bring it up to code, help find sources of money for the repairs andbuild a library for students inside Whittier Elementary.

Parents were waiting to review the letter Wednesday evening and decide the fate of the24-hour-a-day sit-in that began Sept. 15.

The parents had been using the more than 100-year-old building, which they call LaCasita, or little house, as a community center, with adult classes and other activities.Since the sit-in began, they assembled a library with more than 1,000 donated books forthe school, one of 160 in the city that dont have one.

While the parents were able to persuade union electricians to stop the school systemfrom turning off power to the building, the schools were successful in shutting off theheat.

The letter says the parents have agreed to keep children out of the building, limit thenumber of adults there and maintain the building using free labor from licensedtradespeople in the neighborhood.

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