Moments of silence for the 2,000 2,002.
The U.S. Senate is honoring the troops with speeches and remembrances on C-SPAN2. Yes, it’s 2,002 now. Vigils Wednesday … below:
Americans Are Coming Together to Honor the Fallen in Iraq
Join a Vigil Wednesday and Support an End to the Bloodshed
MOVEON LINK to vigil locations
Was it me or did Harry seem to be struggling to not say more….like how these deaths were so unnecessary, these deaths came about for a war based on lies? Am I reading too much into his brief speech?
I Am Not There
Do not stand at my grave and weep;
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn’s rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there, I did not die.
– Mary Elizabeth Frye, 1932
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Together, We Can Do Better For Working Families
WASHINGTON, (U.S. Newswire) Oct. 25 — With Republicans focused this week on pushing through their immoral budget that spends billions more on tax breaks for the wealthy while cutting health care, housing and other assistance for working families, Democrats are determined to do better for American families.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid and House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi met today with Hurricane Katrina survivors to discuss how Republican budget cuts will hurt Gulf Coast citizens, and what the Congress should be doing to help these families deal with the issues that matter most to them.
LEAVE Iraq to the Iraqis
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
.
Sheehan: Oppose Clinton If She Backs War
A Flame For Casey!
LEAVE … Iraq to the Iraqis
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
take 2000 of something around the house, and make stacks.
they needn’t be all the same thing. nickles, pennies, cds, spicejars.
look at those stacks.
now picture 50 more collections of stacks.
then imagine that many graves, and make room for more.
What have I given
Bold sailor on the sea?
In earth or heaven,
That you should die for me?
What can I give,
O soldier, leal and brave,
Long as I live,
To pay the life you gave?
What tithe or part,
Can I return to thee,
O stricken heart,
That thou shouldst break for me?
The wind of death
For you has slain life’s flowers,
It withereth
(God grant) all weeds in ours.
The Debt Unpayable
F.W.Bourdillon
1917
Peace
with their lives for the mistakes and political cowardice of old men and women.
Now they are saying “if I had only known”, I would not have voted to support the war.
They are saying we voted yes “based on the best information available at that time.” (Well – if you don’t ask, you don’t get.)
To our “leaders” that let this pass: Cowards. COWARDS. COWARDS!
You owed these 2002 more than you gave. Now, you owe them more still. They are listening to what you say and watching what you do and with their sacrifice they have gained a window into your souls and a mortgage on your hearts.
Paul Wellstone, in the re-election race of his life, knew better and voted both his mind and his heart. He voted against the war and spoke openly on the Senate floor
Wellstone On Iraq
He is gone. But you that remain, the old men and women that run this land, do you have that courage yet? Do you?
And to the rest of us –
What do we owe these 2002 and the tens of thousands wounded, and many, many more innocent Iraq civilians killed and wounded?
We owe them more than our voices and our words on these pages. We owe them our action and our votes.
We owe them our participation, our blood and sweat and tears participation, in the democracy that they were asked to defend, for if we are to defend it anywhere, we must first defend it here.
Light A Candle For
Peace, Tolerance and Understanding
**
Extremely moving
Interactive Photo Essay of 27 funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq.
**
Oh my…tears rolling down my face watching that photo essay. Thank you for posting that.
We must not be silent.
We must continue to ask, “Why?”
LA COLOMBE
Why all these bugles crying for squads of young men drilled
To kill and to be killed and waiting by this train
Why the orders loud and hoarse, why the engine’s groaning cough
As it strains to drag us off into the holocaust
Why crowds who sing and cry and shout and fling us flowers
And trade their right for ours to murder and to die
The dove has torn her wings so no more songs of love
We are not here to sing, we’re here to kill the dove
Why has this moment come when childhood has to die
When hope shrinks to a sigh and speech into a drum
Why are they pale and still, young boys trained overnight
Conscripts forced to fight and dressed in grey to kill
These rain clouds massing tight, this trainload battle bound
This moving burial ground sent thundering toward the night
Why statues towering brave above the last defeat
Old word and lies repeat across the new made grave
Why the same still birth that victory always brought
These hoards of glory bought by men with mouths of earth
Dead ash without a spark where cities glittered bright
For guns probe every light and crush it in the dark
And why your face undone with jagged lines of tears
That gave in those first years all peace I ever won
Your body in the gloom, the platform fading back
Your shadow on the track, a flower on a tomb
And why these days ahead when I must let you cry
And live prepared to die as if our love were dead
J. Brel
There was an interesting interview on Dutch television about a new book (“Kill, kill, kill”) from a former US marine, Jimmy Massey. NO USA PUBLISHERS WANTED TO PRINT THE BOOK. (He finally found one in France)
In his book he admits that he alone killed 30 innocent unarmed Iraqi civilians.
If you are interested, I have included a link to the interview beneath.
http://cgi.omroep.nl/cgi-bin/streams?/tv/nps/nova/sb.20051025-a.asf?start=0:29:10.1&end=0:37:59.
8
(hope this works)
It worked and thanks for the link!
It worked!!
I was enthralled but frustrated as hell that I don’t know Dutch (stupid American education system — being monolingual is a terrible handicap!) — is there a transcript anywhere? Is this on regular Dutch TV? At the end there, were they reading Lynndie England’s testimony at trial? Funny, how we have never heard any of that!
Thanks, oo!! That was awesome!
Hi there,
Yes, this was on regular Dutch TV, they don’t really dare to come out ‘full blown’ yet but the stories are coming in slowly and not too high profile. I guess a lot of Dutch people don’t want to piss off the US, and for good reasons, but the general opinion in Europe is that something about the US is fundamentally wrong, although few dare to express it.
they don’t have a transcript as of yet. But the most important things i summed up in my original posting.
Another very informative link from Dutch TV about 9/11:
http://tweevandaag.nl/index.php?module=PX_Story&func=view&cid=210&sid=29882
On Nightline tonight:
The Cost of War: Paying the Price at Home
Oct. 25, 2005 —
As the death toll of American troops in Iraq reached 2000 today, the military disagrees it’s a milestone, but many people do see it that way. Faced with a war growing more unpopular with the public, President Bush today met with military spouses and said more sacrifices will be needed before the war in Iraq is over.
The toll on soldiers and their families has made recruiting more young men and women to join the military especially difficult. Tonight on “Nightline,” correspondent Neal Karlinsky brings us the story of a battle going on at a high school in Seattle, Washington between military recruiters and parents. …
Requiem aeternam, requiem aeternam
Mama, mama, forget your pies
Have faith they won’t get cold
And turn your eyes to the bloodshot sky
Your flag is flying full
At half mast, for the matadors
Who turned their backs to please the crowd
And all fell before the bull
Red was the color of his blood flowing thin
Pallid white was the color of his lifeless skin
Blue was the color of the morning sky
He saw looking up from the ground where he died
It was the last thing ever seen by him
Kyrie Eleison
Mama, mama, forget your pies
Have faith they won’t get cold
And turn your eyes to the bloodshot sky
Your flag is flying full
At half mast, for the matadors
Who turned their backs to please the crowd
And fell before the bull
Black and white were the figures that recorded him
Black and white was the newsprint he was mentioned in
Black and white was the question that so bothered him
He never asked, he was taught not to ask
But was on his lips as they buried him
Rex tremendae majestatis
Requiem aeternam, Requiem aeternam
I must admit, when I think of The Association, I think of love songs like “Cherish” and “Never My Love”…not of an anti-war song like this. But there you have it…
And now, e’er we part, let us call to mind those who have finished their earthly course and have been gathered to the eternal home. . .
Ernest Bloch, Avodath Hakodesh
Paul Wellstone. 21 July 1944 – 25 October 2002
and 2000 soldiers and countless Iraqis and others he would not lightly have seen die.