Run, G.I. Joe, run!

This article by David Swanson on desertion in the US army is a must read. Excerpt:

As long as there has been a U.S. military, people have been leaving it. That choice has never been more appropriate than today. Individuals who signed up to defend the United States are engaged in a war that was sold on the basis of lies, was entirely unnecessary, is making us less safe, has nothing to do with defending anyone, and which involves the horror of slaughtering men, women, and children by the hundreds of thousands. The majority of Americans want the war to end and just voted accordingly in the Congressional elections. The majority of Iraqis want the war to end. The majority of American service men and women in Iraq want the war to end. And taking part in this war is illegal, whether you are ordered to do so or not.

Approximately 6,000 Americans have refused to report for duty or deserted in order to avoid taking part in this war, or to avoid taking further part in it. Many have objected to the stop loss program that requires them to serve longer than they had agreed to. Others have objected to the rationale behind the war and the horrors that are part of it.

Interestingly, the same article on Alternet says 8,000 Americans deserted instead of the 6,000 mentioned in the original article posted just 2 days earlier.

2 thoughts on “Run, G.I. Joe, run!

  1. Hmm……..no idea about the numbers there…..but Alternet usually gets its records right…..and has the balls to give us news as it really happened…doesnt really rely on “embedded-paid-by-Fox-CNN-redneck-Bush-supporters” for its news……..

    Fucking sad to be made to fight and maybe even die for a war that shouldnt have been a war in the first place…..

    Like Jay Leno joked – “”Oscar nominations came out. Up for best actor, Sean Penn for ‘Mystic River,’ Jude Law for ‘Cold Mountain,’ and of course, George W. Bush for ‘Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction.'”

    and a killer….
    “President Bush is in the hot seat over Iraqi pre-war intelligence. Remember the good ol’ days when the only thing the president was trying to cover up was a stain?” —Craig Kilborn

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