Protesters at Fort Jackson, SC

[CRK7376]

Today I was leaving Fort Jackson,SC through the main gate about lunch time when I looked to my right beside the I-77 on ramp and low and behold...there were about 12 War Protesters and posters. COOOOOL! Unfortunately I was not able to stop and talk with these good folks. When I came back on post after lunch they were breaking up and heading back to their cars parked in the WalMart complex nearby. They were peaceful protesters, no cops or MPs in sight. It was great seeing them. If you were one of them, thank you!

[styersc]

1. This is near my home.

They are the folks from Carolina Peace Resource Center.

http://www.carolinapeace.org/

Come join in.

[Left_Winger]

2. This is near my home as well

As I have never seen what is going on concerning this protest (I work out of town and am gone most of the day), having only read what has been posted here, could you enlighten me as to your intent?

Are you protesting the war and only the war?

Is Ft. Jackson simply the most convinent way for you to do this?

The reason I ask is that I am a veteran. I am against Bu$h's illegal war and I will protest him, his policies and the other politicians who have blood on their hands, but NEVER the troops.

[CRK7376]

3. Just curoius

Life long Dem, hate Bush, been in the Army 25+ years. Was surprised to see them outside the main gate. Would like to have stopped and talked/encouraged them, bad place to stop and was in uniform with my boss....

[Left_Winger]

4. In uniform out in public like that would not have been a good idea

Was this at the Forest Drive gate or the "Main Gate" on Ft. Jackson Blvd.? Or, have the gates been switched? I have lived in "Cola-town" my entire life (excepting military service) and have always thought of the Ft. Jackson Blvd. gate as the main gate.

I really would like the questions I asked to the other poster answered, but I doubt if they ever will.

[styersc]

5. Protest is normally at the Forest Acres (Strom Thurmond Blvd).

Protest is in support of the troops, ie. in opposition to this inane war (Like the Women in Black vigil at the State House every week). Unfortunately there are too many in this country (including you) who tie the troops to the whim of the C in C.

I feel that, as the troops cannot openly argue against poor decisions by the President, it is my duty as a citizen to oppose stupid decisions, particularly when they take the lives of my friends and neighbors.

More importantly, however, I feel no obligation to defend my decisions and actions to you- your military service does not give you "holier then thou" status.

[Left_Winger]

6. Dear styersc...

You wrote:
“Protest is in support of the troops, ie. in opposition to this inane war (Like the Women in Black vigil at the State House every week). Unfortunately there are too many in this country (including you) who tie the troops to the whim of the C in C.”

How am I doing this? I only stated that I would never protest the troops and I asked what you were doing; that was all. Your assumption that I “tie the troops to the whim of the C in C.” is a load of crap. Show me in my post where and how I did that. You can not (maybe that is the reason for your statement later on that you have no obligation to defend your actions or decisions).

You also wrote: ”I feel that, as the troops cannot openly argue against poor decisions by the President, it is my duty as a citizen to oppose stupid decisions, particularly when they take the lives of my friends and neighbors.”

They are my friends, neighbors and children as well. I oppose these decisions and take actions on my own; and I might add, they are more effective than yours albeit not as visible. If you had not been such a jerk in your reply, I just might have explained to you how I accomplish this.

Continuing with your asinine reply: “More importantly, however, I feel no obligation to defend my decisions and actions to you- your military service does not give you "holier then thou" status.”

How do I claim to be “holier than thou”? All I stated was that I would never protest the troops. In conclusion, I only asked you a few questions, not to defend your actions or decisions, and your reply was rude, insensitive and made far too many assumptions; you, neighbor, are the one who is presenting yourself as “holier than thou”.

[styersc]

7. Left_Winger

As you are my neighbor and political allie, I certainly don't intend to offend so allow me to point out elelment in your posts that were read as an offense to me (and others who participate in these protests).

Your comment that you would never protest the troops implies that those of us who are participants, are or would protest the troops. I hear this from Right-Wing-Nuts all day and admittedly may pull the trigger a little bit quickly in defense.

Additionally, "I really would like the questions I asked to the other poster answered, but I doubt if they ever will", also was curt and suggested that I was hiding. I often carry a placard in broad day light to voice my opinion. I am not ashamed or afraid- I do however, work lots of hours. An immediate response is not likely.

Allow me again, to try to draw down our correspondence as I do not mean to offend and as we have lots more in common then not (in regards to our beliefs- seemingly), we waste time and effort nagging on each other.

A more concise and less emotional respnse to your original inquiry- the folks I know involved with these protests are damned decent people who appreciate our troops (many have served and have serving family) and this is not a protest like those portrayed by the Limbaughs and Hannitys of the world (I doubt the folks that they describe even exist).

[Left_Winger]

8. OK... Peace...

My original intent was to find out what was happening, however there was no response so maybe I pushed the buttons a bit too hard to find out the answers. I will apologize for being curt.

One question though: If others were offended by what I wrote, then why did they not respond?

I do think that protesting at the gate of a military installation does send the wrong message, but that is just my opinion. Have not the service members spoken by virtue of their actions? They did volunteer after all; and as Ft. Jackson is primarily an initial entry installation, the majority of the troops there have made their decisions quite recently.

In conclusion, who knows... if we had met under other circumstances we might have made friends.


www.veteransforpeace.com

[thegreatwildebeest]

9. And what if there were?

and this is not a protest like those portrayed by the Limbaughs and Hannitys of the world (I doubt the folks that they describe even exist).

And what if they did? And what, if in fact, people DIDN'T support the troops? This is not, you know, an era of conscription or the draft. When you join the military services you know exactly what you're signing up for and exactly how much input you're going to get into foreign policy decisions (which is to say none). Using the excuse that the troops are seperate from the commanders who shove them out the door is vaguely similar to the millions of other troops who have dodged their own responsibility for their actions by assigning blame to their commanding officers. If you sign up today for the military, you are expressing support for the war, for pre-emptive strikes, for the militarization of the world, and the expansion of US hegemony. Theres no other way to slice it.

[nxylas]

10. Not an era of draft or conscription

But that could change:-

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h109-4752

[Aiptasia]

11. Rose colored glasses

The way I see it, the choice of the military base as a protest spot was for emphasis. Ft. Jackson made a good backdrop behind the protestors, nothing more. Just like making "mission accomplished" speeches in a jumpsuit from an aircraft carrier makes a nice backdrop for your message.

I don't hate the military for taking a blind oath to support the orders of the CiC. On some level, the executive branch of government should feel secure that their orders will be carried out by the military. What I don't support is a CiC that's willing to abuse this responsibility and thereby put the military un-necessarily in harms way. It's not the military's fault they got sent to Iraq.

However, the military has become politicized by all parties to suit their own political agendas. One group spins the military this way, one group spins it that way. The military officers and enlisted aren't allowed to express opinions of their own on the subject, until they're discharged from service. Emotions about the war would be better placed on the shoulders of the spin doctors and the politicians they support.

And finally, everyone hearing the various messages are left to view the same issue with rose colored glasses, bringing their own thoughts and emotions to the table. Keep that in mind when reading/responding to messages on boards like this one. Take everything with a grain of salt, and realize sometimes clarification of intent/purpose is required.