“Make no mistake. The Pentagon’s proposal to transform the military is a smoke and mirrors plan. It does not represent a dismantling of the military-industrial complex but a chilling morphing of it, and will advance American imperial power and further enrich war profiteers even as it cuts out the troops. How Washington plans to screw military veterans.”
READ FULL ARTICLE: http://evergreenedigest.org/pentagon’s-vision-covert-and-endless-war
A Former CIA Analyst’s Perspective
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/03/13/why-cia-director-john-brennan-must-resign/
Set aside for a moment whether the U.S. government has too much or too little money. It’s spending the money it has destructively.
Fifty-seven percent of discretionary spending going into the military is too much.
by Katherine Klingseis, DM Reg March 15 2014
About 100 protesters rallied against drone warfare and U.S. overseas military occupation in Des Moines on Saturday morning.
Protesters from across the country gathered at the Iowa Air National Guard Base in Des Moines, 3100 McKinley Ave., to participate in the rally. Des Moines Catholic Worker and the Des Moines Veterans for Peace chapter organized the rally.
The protest took place at the Iowa Air National Guard Base in Des Moines because the Iowa Air National Guard’s 132nd Fighter Wing will be involved in a mission piloting and controlling armed Reaper Drones.
Opening arguments began in a court martial case Friday in which a US Army general is accused of sexually assaulting a female US Army captain. The case comes as a procedural vote in the US Senate killed a bill, deeply opposed by the Pentagon, which would have removed the prosecution of sexual assault cases from the military commanders of the accused and put them in the hands of independent military prosecutors. Read full article: http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2014/03/08/army-m08.html
3/6/14
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand came up short Thursday in her yearlong campaign to overhaul military sexual-assault policies, falling five votes short of the 60 needed to overcome a filibuster.
The New York Democrat’s bill, which would have removed the chain of command from prosecuting sexual assaults and other major military crimes, was derailed in the Senate on a55-45 vote, closing out one chapter in a debate that divided the Senate but not along typical partisan lines.
Darren Samuelsohn is a senior policy reporter for Politico Pro; Juana Summers is a defense reporter for Politico Pro; and Anna Palmer is a senior Washington correspondent for Politico.
Read Article: http://evergreenedigest.org/kirsten-gillibrand’s-sexual-assault-bill-derailed
Spies of Mississippi is a journey into the world of informants, infiltrators, and agent provocateurs in the heart of Dixie.
The film tells the story of a secret spy agency formed by the state of Mississippi to preserve segregation and maintain “the Mississippi way of life,” white supremacy, during the 1950s and ‘60s. The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission (MSSC) evolved from a predominantly public relations agency to a full-fledged spy operation, spying on over 87,000 Americans over the course of a decade.
The Commission employed a network of investigators and informants, including African Americans, to help infiltrate some of the largest Black organizations like National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). The MSSC was granted broad powers to investigate private citizens and organizations, keep secret files, make arrests, and compel testimony for a state that, as civil rights activist Lawrence Guyot says in the film, “was committed to an apartheid system that would make South Africa blush.” Read More: http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/spies-of-mississippi/
Democracy Now: http://www.democracynow.org/2014/2/25/spies_of_mississippi_new_film_on
FROM The Private Manning Support Network
February 26, 2014
Army whistle-blower Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning took a huge personal risk when she decided to show Americans the true cost of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as other foreign policy decisions.
For her bravery, she was honored at Oxford University on February 17th, when former CIA officers chose her for the annual Sam Adams Integrity in Intelligence Award.
Read More http://www.privatemanning.org/featured/chelsea-manning-acceptance-statement-of-sam-adams-award-for-integrity-in-intelligence
March Across America“Pirate” Michael Clift (part of Occupy Veterans San Francisco) is an army veteran who served during the Cold War. Radicalized by his experience with the military, he has been an artist and activist since 1989. He is traveling across the country to bring awareness to the issues of homeless Veterans and other Veteran issues. Challenging homeless veterans to stand up for their rights as human beings by taking their bodies and voices to Washington D.C.
http://occupyveteranssanfrancisco.weebly.com/march-across-america.html
He is with all humility and upmost urgency asking you to consider what he is doing, and to ask you to make a commitment to support his efforts as he continues on this quest for not only the various organizations such as Veterans for Peace and Occupy, but for all those who are unable to join him in this journey, and for all the uncounted and marginalized people they represent.
He will be creating video posts whenever possible of DOING what he can with the money, like passing out food to the needy, providing first aid, and the like. Donors will have video/photographic proof of the expenditures of their donation, and credit on my web sites, with personal thanks via private e-mail, and “batch” acknowledgements posted on Facebook.
HOW IT WORKS:
The donations go into the Paypal account, and then are transfered into a bank account, where it can used as needed. All one needs to do is make the donation to Paypal (you don’t need a PayPal account to donate) by clicking the PayPal donation button at the site. http://occupyveteranssanfrancisco.weebly.com/support.html
You can attach a note telling him what you would like the donation to be used for.
He has recently been joined on his quest to “March Across America” by Debbie, who had been following his blog and videos on line, she initially came down from Colorado in her van to help One Lib and Michael on their journey. She found Michael on the road, and have now joined forces. They will begin re-transmitting video and live streams, as she has the tools and skill sets previously handled by One Liberty; as well as a vehicle.
ABOUT OCCUPY VETERANS SAN FRANCISCO
Their mission is to encourage Veterans of the United States military to stop taking their own lives with addictions and despair, and to instead take their lives back into their own hands, without depending on either government styled bureaucracy or on the Federal Government itself, which has exploited the soldier and continues to exploit the veteran soldier through many of the various so-called charitable or non-profit organizations.
With our Search and Rescue missions, we connect veterans first with themselves, and then with each other, using a buddy system model that fosters esprit de corps and unit cohesion.
This spring, students will respond to the YES! Magazine article, “Where Dignity is Part of the School Day.”* Fania Davis’ story is about using restorative justice circles in schools in lieu of zero-tolerance punishment. She shows how giving a student the chance to tell his or her story can help teachers and administrators get to the root of a behavioral problem, and ultimately keep kids in school and out of jail.
*This is the print magazine article title. The web version is titled “Discipline with Dignity: Oakland Classrooms Try Healing Instead of Punishment.”
Date: March 4, 2014
Location: North Oxnard United Methodist
2300 West Gonzalez Road, Oxnard
Time: 6:00 pm
—————
6:00 pm I. Call to Order
6:04 pm II. Attendance / Introductions
6:10 pm III. Old Business:
a. Approval of Minutes – Review of February mtg
b . Treasurer’s Report – George
c. Scholarship Committee Report – Laura
d. High School Counter Recruitment Report – Michael
e. Feedback from February activities/events:
1. Feb. 16th – Coffee House Presentation
2. Feb. 18th 6:00pm our member, Lanny Kaufer will speak at the Camarillo Library.
3. March 16th Squashed Grapes Fundraiser status report.
4. Status of application for the Fourth of July Street Fair
6:45 pm IV. New Business
8:00 pm V. Adjourn: