Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to return their medals to protest war on terror at Chicago NATO summit, page 1

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:39 PM

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Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to return their medals to protest war on terror at Chicago NATO summit

www.ivaw.org

We, Afghanistan and Iraq veterans, from around the country will converge in Chicago on May 20th to march to the NATO summit and ceremoniously return our medals to NATO generals. We were awarded these medals for serving in the Global War on Terror, a war based on lies and failed polices. This endless war has killed hundreds of thousands, stripped the humanity of all involved, and drained our communities of trillions of dollars, diverting funds from schools, clinics, libraries, and other public....

(visit the link for the full news article)

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chicago.cbslocal.com

Blackmarketeer

+6 more
posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:39 PM

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Iraq and Afghanistan veterans will rally May 20 in Chicago where they will hold a ceremony where they will return their medals awarded for serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, in protest for what they call a war based on lies and failed policies.

Iraq Veterans Against the War calls on fellow service members, veterans, Chicagoans, and everyone who believes in justice, dignity, and respect for all peoples to join us in the streets on May 20th. On this day, we will hold a nonviolent march to the site of the NATO summit where we will ceremoniously return our military service medals. We will demand that NATO immediately end the occupation of Afghanistan and relating economic and social injustices, bring U.S. war dollars home to fund our communities, and acknowledge the rights and humanity of all who are affected by these wars. We wish to begin a process of justice and reconciliation with the people of Afghanistan and other affected nations, fellow service members, veterans, and the American people.

Please visit the link provided for the complete story.

www.ivaw.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

Skewed

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:47 PM

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That in and of itself, deserves a medal.

smyleegrl

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:51 PM

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What a wonderfully positive thing to do! Thanks for sharing OP.

Think it'll make MSM news?

beezzer

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:52 PM

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They are free to do so.

I just have one wee issue with this.

They are awarded the medals due to individual acts of bravery which illustrate character, not political ideology.

If they believe the war is wrong, then they are free to protest. But by denying their individual actsof heroism, well, it seems dichotomous to me.

muzzleflash

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:52 PM

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Taking a stand like that and making a statement against this travesty, that is definitely worth respect.

Although it is entirely for show, hopefully it will send a clear message politically.

Anyways, giving a 'medal' to a man/woman who just went through a living hell as a "reward" is a insult and a slap in the face for the sacrifices they made.

Jouislin

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:54 PM

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Now we need to get into mass refusals to carry out illegal orders.
I heard Julian Assange say that troops were ordered to kill everyone in the vicinity of an IED for example.

oxykerfluffle

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:54 PM

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These guys are my HEROES!!! HOO-RA!

When the men and women who serve can see through the smoke and mirrors then we know the time has come for a change! Iraq and Afghanistan wars are based on LIES and FAILED POLICIES.

it was never about "teh terrorists" it was about WAR FOR PROFIT and NATION BUILDING.

I'd love to see the cops stand in the way of this protest! Ain't gonna happen!

edit on 16-5-2012 by oxykerfluffle because: (no reason given)

muzzleflash

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:54 PM

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You want to reward the soldiers who fight for your freedom?

1) Don't send em off to die for nothing.
2) Make sure when they come home it's to a Free nation not a Totalitarian Utopia.

We screwed up on both counts.

muzzleflash

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posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:58 PM

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Originally posted by beezzer
They are free to do so.

I just have one wee issue with this.

They are awarded the medals due to individual acts of bravery which illustrate character, not political ideology.

If they believe the war is wrong, then they are free to protest. But by denying their individual actsof heroism, well, it seems dichotomous to me.

They didn't go fight this stupid war for a medal.
They went and fought this war to protect the people of the USA and their allies, and to protect our WAY OF LIFE which is Liberty, Friendship, and Trade.

They are coming back home to a screwed up nation of lunatics and authoritarian control policies.
They have been lied to!
Why do you think they want to throw that medal away?

Because they fought for nothing. While they were fighting we lost half our freedoms here on the home front and we are allowing the media to control our society and direct our beliefs.

smyleegrl

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 03:59 PM

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reply to post by Blackmarketeer

I don't know how this happened, was posting in another thread.

Sorry!

edit on 16-5-2012 by smyleegrl because: (no reason given)

usmc0311

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:00 PM

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It's good to see that they are going to be out there. I would give my medals back if I was there. Mine are burried in a box somewhere in a storage space probably never to come out again until after I die. Like others said, giving us medals for the terrors we go through is a slap in the face. At least the service wide, or unit awards, and not the personel awards. My medals mean nothing to me and they never have. I would easily be able to toss them back into the faces of those who construct these wars.

The Sword

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:00 PM

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reply to post by muzzleflash

Well said.

No argument here.

Blackmarketeer

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:02 PM

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reply to post by muzzleflash

Taking a stand like that and making a statement against this travesty, that is definitely worth respect.

Although it is entirely for show, hopefully it will send a clear message politically.

Anyways, giving a 'medal' to a man/woman who just went through a living hell as a "reward" is a insult and a slap in the face for the sacrifices they made.

Couldn't have said it better. These men and women made an extreme sacrifice to earn those medals, and they are willing to throw them back in a symbolic gesture of contempt at TPTB for this travesty of a war. More power to these people!

beezzer

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:02 PM

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reply to post by muzzleflash

They ddn't fight for a medal. The medal just represents the character they showed in the face of danger.

What they do with it is their business.

It is symbolic, but a false symbolism because the medal doesn't represent the government. It represents their strength.

paradox

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:05 PM

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Originally posted by smyleegrl
What a wonderfully positive thing to do! Thanks for sharing OP.

Think it'll make MSM news?

It did here in Chicago at least

edit on 5-16-12 by paradox because: (no reason given)

paradox

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:07 PM

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Originally posted by oxykerfluffle

I'd love to see the cops stand in the way of this protest! Ain't gonna happen!
edit on 16-5-2012 by oxykerfluffle because: (no reason given)

They aren't planning on it...they aren't even going to be wearing riot gear unless people get out of control.

edit on 5-16-12 by paradox because: (no reason given)

muzzleflash

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:09 PM

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Originally posted by beezzer
reply to post by muzzleflash

They ddn't fight for a medal. The medal just represents the character they showed in the face of danger.

What they do with it is their business.

It is symbolic, but a false symbolism because the medal doesn't represent the government. It represents their strength.

Well technically the medals almost always represent ancient polytheistic concepts mixed with some Medieval Christian concepts. Just look at the symbolism employed within any of them.

And you are correct the medal represents their character in the face of danger. Absolutely.

And them throwing it away like this, in a public show of contempt, that shows even more about their characters doesn't it? It reveals that there isn't a medal on Earth good enough for them.

And that's my type of soldier.
One that only cares about the end product, and the fancy icing put on top won't fool them.

bobs_uruncle

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:09 PM

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Originally posted by muzzleflash
You want to reward the soldiers who fight for your freedom?

1) Don't send em off to die for nothing.
2) Make sure when they come home it's to a Free nation not a Totalitarian Utopia.

We screwed up on both counts.

Make sure when they come back, they have a good job waiting and feel useful. The worst thing coming back from a campaign is you feel like you're in an alien world. Retrain them, employ them and if they need psych help, give it to them. Unfortunately the government has screwed all of that up, so I don't really know why the government would expect anything other than what they are getting from many of the returning troops, that being disrespect and disgust. It's going to get worse.

It's probably why there are so many soldier suicides and homeless vets. It's gotta change, soon.

Cheers - Dave

jacobe001

posted on May, 16 2012 @ 04:10 PM

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reply to post by usmc0311

Ditto here.
I would happily turn over my National Defense Ribbon and Medals if it meant more people would wake up to the criminals running this country for their own ends. They only serve themselves and not the best interest of the country.

I did not join to pad the pockets of the greedy and corrupt, but for the freedom and defense of the nation, of which it was for neither. Instead, we are less free than many countries out there and moreso each day.