Greetings from Dubrovnik, Croatia.

I may be in what many could call a paradise but I’ve kept my eyes to reading the news from back home.

Aside from the hope of the American people in 2006 for the Democrats to end the war in Iraq, that election was very much also a result of picking the ˝lesser of two evils.˝ And look where we are now… The Democratic led Congress has passed yet again another $160 billion for the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. They’ve granted immunity to telecoms for a week’s worth of warrant-less surveillance. They’ve done nothing is respects to advancing towards universal healthcare (which a majority of Americans support). When articles of impeachment are introduced to impeach Bush and Cheney for the war crimes, crimes against humanity, and outright lies to the American people… the Democrats rule it out. Yes there are exceptions. But the real anti-Iraq War Democrats are just a handful.

Now we have Barack Obama as the presumptive nominee to the party. Amazing that the party of slavery for the first time in history has had an African American lead its party. But we must not forget that his policies are not in our interests. Americans want single-payer universal healthcare… Obama says NO. Americans say no to torture… Obama stays silent. Americans want an end to the war in Iraq… Obama plans to keep 40-60,000 troops. American’s don’t agree with war in Iran… Obama is keeping all options on the table and pushing right wing propaganda.

How is this the lesser of two evils? Could it be that Republicans are just more honest with their ridiculous policies and agendas? The Democrats for far too long have been trying to represent the interests of the poor and working class. We need to hold them accountable instead of voting for them blindly. Change, like Obama said, does come from the bottom. But by instituting policies and making decisions that go against the interest of the working class and the impoverish, our fight becomes harder and harder.

We need real change. Only we can bring that change by organizing people to demand it.

Together we can change this country.

YES WE CAN.

PS- props to John McCain for being honest about what he’s gonna do and for being a worthless individual.

Hey everyone,

Photos from my time Studying Abroad in Croatia are now up in the left sidebar of the Sitch.

It will be updated often. Take a look and enjoy.

Adriano

Robynn served in Iraq, Africa, and other parts of the world. Now she’s a activist with the Rochester chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War. This interview is her second time speaking out. She discusses her deployment and being a female in the military. This video interview was made the weekend of May 17, 2008 in Watertown, NY for the Fort Drum Festival in support of soldiers and their families.

Interview by Brian Lenzo. Video by Adriano Contreras

For more information on Iraq Veterans Against the War in Rochester, visit RochesterIVAW.com

“The Substance of Obama’s Liberalism” by John Pilger

None of the candidates represents so-called mainstream America, which has made clear in poll after poll that it wants the normal decencies of jobs, proper housing and health care, and U.S. troops out of Iraq.

To read John Pilger’s article visit SocialistWorker.org

One of the highlights of last weekend’s celebration at Fort Drum included IVAW’s confrontation with Fort Drum’s Colonel Riddle. They demanded answers and his time to discuss the current veteran healthcare crisis and in particular that of the area. As Watertown, NY held their Armed Forces day parade, members of IVAW, VVAW, Veterans for Peace, and veterans from other past wars waited for it to be over to speak with him. His response could not have been any colder and its all been captured on video.

First Video is of IVAW confronting Colonel Riddle. The Second video is of IVAW members speaking in front of the news media and independent media.

Videos by Adriano Contreras

Confrontation

Speaking with the Media

For more info about Iraq Veterans Against the War visit IVAW.org

For more info on the two Iraq Vets being interviewed visit Rochester IVAW

This currently serving member of the military speaks of his healthcare horrors and some of his experiences. This is video we shot this past weekend and this is his first time speaking out. He is a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War.

Video by Adriano Contreras. Interview by Brian Lenzo.

For more information on Iraq Veterans Against the War visit, IVAW.org

In the coming days, I’ll have some exclusive interviews of members involved with Iraq Veterans Against the War and their supporters. The series of interviews were taped the weekend of May 16, 2008 when a March to Fort Drum, NY culminated in a festival in support of soldiers and their families. More details to come along with video footage of what took place… stay tuned.

Here’s the first of those videos. This is Bryan Casler a former US Marine and member of Iraq Veterans Against the War in Rochester, New York.

Video by Adriano Contreras. Interview by Brian Lenzo.

For more videos of Bryan’s testimonies check out the videos of him at the IVAW Winter Soldier this past March:

Part One

Part Two

Visit IVAW.org

From the IVAW Website:

IVAW member Matthis Chiroux announces his refusal to deploy to Iraq

Sgt. Matthis Chiroux, who served in the Army until being honorably discharged last summer after over four years of service in Afghanistan, Japan, Europe and the Phillipines, today publicly announced his intention to refuse orders to deploy to Iraq.

Sgt. Chiroux made made his announcement in the Cannon House Office Building Rotunda after members of Iraq Veterans Against the War testified before the Congressional Progressive Caucus during Winter Soldier on the Hill.

Sgt. Chiroux made the following statement to the press:

Good afternoon. My name is Sgt. Matthis Chiroux, and I served in the Army as a Photojournalist until being honorably discharged last summer after over four years of service in Afghanistan, Japan, Europe and the Phillipines. As an Army journalist whose job it was to collect and filter servicemember’s stories, I heard many stomach-churning testimonies of the horrors and crimes taking place in Iraq. For fear of retaliation from the military, I failed to report these crimes, but never again will I allow fear to silence me. Never again will I fail to stand.

This occupation is unconstitutional and illegal and I hereby lawfully refuse to participate as I will surely be a party to war crimes. Furthermore, deployment in support of illegal war violates all of my core values as a human being, but in keeping with those values, I choose to remain in the United States to defend myself from charges brought by the Army if they so wish to pursue them. I refuse to participate in the occupation of Iraq.

To donate to IVAW’s Legal Fund to support Matthis and other servicemembers who are refusing to support the occupation of Iraq, use our online donation form and select “Legal Fund” under special projects.

If you would like to send a message of support to Sgt Matthis Chiroux, email thankyoumatthis@ivaw.org.

Adrienne Kinne Speaks Out

Check out this exclusive video interview and/or transcript on Democracy Now!, where Adrienne Kinne of Iraq Veterans Against the War details her experience as an intelligence officer.

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/5/13/fmr_military_intelligence_officer_reveals_us

When I first started the Sitch it aimed to just be a blog about whatever I wanted to talk about when I sat at the computer. Slowly I began to think about what I wanted to write about, so that when I got to the computer I can nail some solid reviews, critiques or whatever. My biggest realization, which should have just been a duh!, was that the Sitch was an opportunity to give voice to student activism and radical politics. I’m sure there are plenty of radical blogs out there but so few are devoted to student activism and even fewer to the politics I hold.

It was nice to see month-to-month growth. February saw my biggest day at 17 views!!! It was exciting. March came around and my biggest day was 23 views!! Fantastic. Then April hits and the Campus Antiwar Network East Coast Conference introduced so many new readers. April 8th was my biggest day ever… about 180 views. Today, the Sitch reached 1,000 views. In the last 6 weeks, of those 1,000, 700 people visited the Sitch.

I encourage people who do read the Sitch to give feedback and make comments on posts. The best way to keep this thing alive and interesting is to have some discussion on here. Tell other people about the Sitch. Keeping reading and if you haven’t done so already subscribe to the RSS feed of this blog.

Happy statistics aside, there are 1.2 million Iraqis dead and dying. 4,000+ soldiers dead and dying. Millions of Iraqis displaced. Millions around the world in starvation and dealing with the rise of food costs. Israel continues to hammer the Palestinians. At home, 50 bullets murdering an innocent isn’t enough to punish someone if you’re an arm of the government (NYPD). The Left in Latin America is growing, but so is the agenda of the US to destroy it. $126 for a barrel of oil. $4.00+ for a gallon of gas. Afghanistan is still occupied. The environment is shit and the biggest polluter in the world (us) isn’t doing jack shit about it. Obama, Hillary, McCain are offering the same if not better ways to keep the rich richer and the rest of us dying and broke.

We have a lot of work to do.

No justice. No peace.