Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) is a group of veterans from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. We are committed to saving lives and ending the violence in Iraq by an immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces. We welcome all active duty, reservist, and recent veterans into our ranks.
The following is an Appeal from
Stan Goff – Feral Scholar
Stan Goff – Writer, Speaker, Consultant
Full Spectrum Disorder
Stan Goff’s career as a soldier in Army Special Operations (Delta Force, Rangers, and Special Forces) took him from the invasions of Vietnam, Grenada and Haiti, to the training grounds of the cruel and corrupt Colombian and Peruvian armed forces. He taught Military Science at the US Military Academy at West Point, conducted classified missions in El Salvador and Guatemala, and was deployed with the ill-fated Task Force Ranger (of Black Hawk Down fame) to Mogadishu. There are snapshots of those experiences in the new book, Full Spectrum Disorder and other books of interest.
Stans Appeal for IVAW
This is an appeal from Stan Goff on behalf of Iraq Veterans Against the
War. It is an appeal for money, so let me get that right out front.
to become a “recurring” supporter, by providing an automatic monthly
deduction transfered to IVAW of as much as you can afford — $10, $100,
$500… as much as you can afford.
Now I break, once again, from the appeal. Stan is asking for people to become “recurring” monthly donors. Knowing many cannot participate in this manner, and especially with giving to other organizations etc., a One Time Donation, of an affordable amount would Help IVAW to Grow and Accomplish their Many Missions in seeking to end this occupation of IRAQ and ‘Bring The Troops Home, NOW!
opposition to the war than the people who participated in it, and who
are now speaking out against it. IVAW’s membership includes hundreds
of highly-motivated, talented young people, who have shown a special
character. They are now students, workers, musicians, philosophers,
geographers, playwrights, public speakers, writers, film-makers, and
several have spent time in prison for their beliefs. People like
Camilo Mejia, Stephen Funk, Kevin Benderman, Charlie Anderson, Mike
Hoffman, Kelly Dougherty, Pablo Paredes, Tim Goodrich, Pat Resta, Jimmy
Massey, Jose Vasquez, Ivan Medina, Tina Garnanez, Alex Ryabov, Garret
Reppenhagen, and many others. These are the people whose voices are
amplified by contributions to IVAW.
IVAW has never had a lot, but after the expenses incurred to support
Cindy Sheehan, the Crawford to DC Bus Tour, and the September 24
antiwar demonstration, there is not enough money in the bank right now
to even make payroll for the part-time staff that keeps the
organization afloat.
The organization needs around $10,000 a month cash flow to support its
recent expansion in membership and the next year’s organizational
development and objectives. Those objectives include organizer
training for members, chapter concentration to develop local
self-sustaining nuclei, Katrina survivor self-determination support
work, and counter-recruitment initiatives. These are the IVAW
priorities for the next year, in addition to the primary mission — to
stop the war against Iraq.
IVAW is the only organization of its kind, with its membership drawn
from armed services veterans who were on duty after September 11, 2001,
the day of the event upoon which the Bush administration built it’s
so-called Global War on Terror. IVAW could seek a lot of foundation
money if it were to change one thing in its mission statement, and that
is the demand for immediate and unilateral withdrawal of all American
forces from Iraq. Calls for indefinite plans of “phased” withdrawal
are much more popular with foundations who are reluctant to endanger
quietly favored elected officials who have been less than sterling on
the war by confronting them with their complicity in letting the Bush
administration have its way. IVAW could change that mission and have
access to more money. But it will not.
IVAW will not take money that has these kinds of unstated strings
attached. So it needs the support of independent antiwar activists who
share IVAW’s core beliefs that the occupaiton must leave as a moral
imperative and that the Iraqis will be better off without the
occupation — that the occupation itself is the catalyst for most of
the violence there, including attacks by Iraqis against other Iraqis.
The way this movement becomes independent and stays independent is
through the support of people who share its core mission and values.
Please, please help us build a sustianing financial floor under this
extremely important organization. They need to be focused on their
work, not on finances.
Thanks so much for your support of my work, and for whatever you can
commit to IVAW.
Yours very sincerely,
Stan Goff
If deciding to donate, visit the IVAW Site, after placing Amount click Continue, on the Next Page scroll to bottom and Click Continue again to fill in Information. As this is going through thr Veterans For Peace Membership/Donation Site your Donation to IVAW will be partly down that second page.
And if deciding to Help IVAW I say ‘Thanks’ from Stan and Myself and All Veterans For Peace
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James Starowicz
USN ’67-’71 GMG3 Vietnam In-Country ’70-’71 COMNAVFORV
Member: Veterans For Peace
Please give genrously folks, these young people are continuing their service to all of us and deserve our support in any and all the ways that we have to give.
Thanks, jimstaro!
These are the guys that Cat (Brinnaine) shuttled to and from the airport and who I and Lee drove out to Crawford with. If you can find a way to send them a dime I did see what they do with it, and they pinch it until it squeals twice before they turn it loose! They really believe in what they are doing!
As always with requests like this I fall back on mentioning my sister who I’ve mentioned before has to help me out with monthly expenses(you could say she’s the wind beneath my wings and echoes all the sentiments I usually post here) which is my roundabout way of saying I will ask if she will donate. Since she just said yesterday that she was wondering which other vets group to send money to-as she already donates to several-I imagine she will be happy to make this group part of her list.
Please give, I will when my december VA check comes in.
This Group has Accomplished and Awful Lot in a Very Short Time [seems Life has been on ‘Speed’ as it pertains to Iraq, even the Conflict itself] on So Little and Have Grown!!
Just like the Groups before, VVAW, Veterans For Peace and Oh So Many they want to, and will Accomplish even More, with All Of Our Help!!!!!!!
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Hey Stan,
You know Dean Read, my SGM in 7th Group? If you do, send me an email, I’ve been trying to contact him but can’t find any info – typical SF guy, disappeared.
Stan Goff – Feral Scholar
The above is his very active Blog, the other link, at the beginning of the Diary is his WebSite but it doesn’t look like it’s been updated recently. The E-Address within it is still one of his though!
I see him Infrequently, even though he’s only up near Raliegh NC, but Everyone Is Just Too Damn Busy, Thank God For This Technology!!!!!!!!!
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Thanks Jim
When I was at Crawford I basically “stole” about 6 “I support IVAW” bumper stickers – I was in a hurry to catch a ride with ‘leezy and didn’t have time to dig out some money for them. I told Scott – “I’ll send some money to IVAW later.” Forgot to do it.
Taken care of now.
Another reason I wanted to donate is that I have a student who is very active in IVAW and VFP – he’s working very hard with them on various projects and I can see it’s taking its toll on him. If you know any of these guys, you can see how hard they are working to stop this damned tragedy. As Stan says, no group has more credibility than those who have served.
(BTW, another student, at another campus happened to follow me into the parking lot the other day and made a point of walking out with me after class to say how much she appreciated my bumper sticker. “It says exactly what needs to be said,” she said. Jim – where can people get these? I didn’t see them the IVAW site.)
And you’re right their is nothing on their site, nor on the VFP site, if you’re asking about the “I Support IVAW” Bumper Stickers you mention you got in Crawford.
My guess is, even though VFP is Helping that Organization Expand and become Self-Sufficient, the money within IVAW isn’t there to expand the Merchandise Area of the Organization, Plus the fact these folks have been Extremely Busy, as have we all.
But now that you’ve put the thought in my head I’ll see what I can Do about resolving this as it is a good way to raise needed funding.
If you still have one of your stickers, not used, you could Print Up some to pass out to those who request one!
Or even Copy their Logo, Resize, and make prominant the Site URL nd pass those on they could get the Visitors to the site and possible Donations!
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IF YOU DON’T LIKE THE RESISTANCE
END THE OCCUPATION
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Please Give and Help This Orginization Grow
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Jim – I’m not sure I have the skills to make more of these (though I do have a couple left). And I really think that what’s needed is more that say “I support Iraq Veterans Against the War.” I would hesitate to put a bumper sticker with just their logo on my car because I feel like it would appear that I am claiming to be an Iraq War veteran myself. (I’m not any kind of veteran, except maybe a veteran of outrage at criminal wars, having lived through the Vietnam era.)
I hope you can get them to put some up at their site – maybe they could work with Cafe Press and put a link to it on the IVAW site?
Having had the privalage of meeting several IQAW in Crawford and especially Scott and his story I sent a donation in their honor today. I cannot be a recurring donor right now but will continue to contribute when I can. Thanks Jim for reminding us that these vets need our help.
Sorry, that should be IVAW.