  Imagination is pale and fragile, Dreams grip with a false reality. Imagination can build bridges, Dreams can deceive. When we dream, the experience is often deeply involving. Frightening dreams make us awake trembling and sweating. Pleasurable dreams leave us with lingering desires. Certain dreams are a form of healing, a way for our minds to recircuit and adjust themselves. No matter what, these dreams have no objective reality in our waking world. Imagination is also a form of mental involvement. It is a way of projecting our thoughts into believable images to be contemplated and manipulated. We can play with our imagination, use it to inspire creative projects. Both imagination and dreams are similar activities of the mind, and yet they differ in the level of conscious participation that they permit. In the case of the dream, there is a total suspension of rationality and consciousness, so there is little or no direction possible. There is no mode of control. By contrast, imagination is a tool through which we can make our lives better, different, and creative. By cooperating with it, we can achieve things that “we never dreamed possible.” imagination 365 Tao Daily Meditations Deng Ming-Dao ISBN 0-06-250223-9 today’s art is by Heera Karna my dedication today: for Jeremy and his ride to freedom “lost dreams awaken”
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Monday
dao imagination
Sunday
Iraqi Resistance Report for events of Friday, 8 April 2005.
fair and balanced? read DOD press release with this, you will find it somewhere in there..
Translated and/or compiled by Muhammad Abu Nasr, member, editorial board, the Free Arab Voice.
Friday, 8 April 2005.
Al-Anbar Province.
Al-Fallujah.
Resistance bomb kills three US troops Friday morning in al-Fallujah.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a US armored patrol in the al-‘Askari neighborhood in the east of al-Fallujah (60km west of Baghdad) at 7am Friday morning local time. The blast disabled one US armored vehicle and killed three American troops and wounded four more.
The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a member of the puppet so-called “Iraqi national guard” in al-Fallujah as saying that the blast disabled a US Bradley armored vehicle and inflicted the above-mentioned casualties.
Resistance bombards puppet government office building in pre-dawn hours of Friday.
Iraqi Resistance forces fired three 120mm mortar rounds at the governorate office building in al-Fallujah at 3am Friday morning local time. The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam had no information on the extent of losses or casualties.
Al-Hadithah.
Resistance bomb attack leaves two US troops dead Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a column of three US armored vehicles and two Humvees in al-Hadithah, west of Baghdad at about 8am Friday morning. The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam in the city reported a member of the puppet police as saying that the blast disabled one of the US armored vehicles and killed two American soldiers and wounded four more.
The source said that the bomb targeted a US column that was heading towards the center of town.
Al-Baghdadi.
Resistance bombards US base as Americans continue to blockade city.
Iraqi Resistance forces fired six medium-range Grad rockets at the US base known as ‘Ayn al-Asad in the city of al-Baghdadi, west of Baghdad at about 9am Friday morning. Witnesses who live in the city told Mafkarat al-Islam that six violent explosions shook the US base, sending clouds of smoke rising into the sky.
US forces have been encircling the city for two days, demanding that the townspeople turn in Resistance fighters to the American invader troops.
Baghdad.
Resistance bomb in al-Ghazliyah kills two US troops Friday afternoon.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a patrol of three Humvees in the al-Ghazaliyah neighborhood of Baghdad at about 4pm Friday afternoon. The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam reported residents of al-Ghazaliyah as saying that the bomb exploded on the main road linking Baghdad with the areas to the west. The blast destroyed one of the Humvees, killing two US troops and wounding two more.
Resistance bomb kills three American troops north of Baghdad early Friday afternoon.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a joint US-Iraqi puppet patrol in the ad-Dulayimah area of at-Taji, north of Baghdad at 2pm Friday afternoon. Witnesses who own agricultural fields in the area told Mafkarat al-Islam that the explosion set one Humvee ablaze and killed three US troops and wounded two more. The witnesses said that Resistance fighters had planted the bomb in the middle of an unpaved rural road and that it exploded as one of the American vehicles passed over it.
Resistance attacks US convoy in ad-Dulu‘iyah, leaving four US troops dead.
Iraqi Resistance forces armed with light and medium weapons such as RPG7 rocket-propelled grenades and C5K rocket launchers attacked a column of US military trucks loaded with supplies and equipment for the American army on the main road in ad-Dulu‘iyah, north of Baghdad at 11am Friday morning. The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an officer in the puppet so-called “Iraqi national guard,” who asked to remain anonymous, said that the attack set two American trucks ablaze and killed four US troops
Muqtada as-Sadr calls for demonstration against occupation Saturday, 9 April.
Shi‘i religious leader Muqtada as-Sadr called for Iraqis to demonstrate in al-Firdaws Square in Baghdad on Saturday, 9 April to mark the US invasion of the Iraqi capital Baghdad in 2003.
Ashraf as-Sarkhi al-Hasani, a prominent member of as-Sadr’s movement and chairman of the representatives of the movement in Iraq’s southern provinces, said that the Shi‘i religious leader called on Iraqis who reject the occupation, reject oppression, and demand freedom to demonstrate on the anniversary of the US occupation and fall of Baghdad.
Speaking to the United Arab Emirates newspaper al-Khalij, al-Hasani said that the demonstration would be peaceful and would demand the return of the rights of all Iraqis. “We will demonstrate for the truth, peace, freedom, security, the expulsion of the occupier, for preserving our resources, and guarding our sacred places, for the release of the men and women being held prisoner,” he said.
He noted that the demonstrators are not to come solely from the ranks of the as-Sadr movement but from all segments of the Iraqi people.
Ninwa Province.
Tall ‘Afar
Four Americans killed in Resistance bombing early Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a patrol of five Humvees in Tall ‘Afar, northwest of Mosul at 8am Friday. The blast destroyed one Humvee and killed its entire crew, the correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported. Witnesses who live in the area told the correspondent that the bomb was planted by the side of the main road in the city and that the explosion left four Americans aboard one of the Humvees dead.
Diyala Province.
Ba‘qubah.
Resistance car bomb kills seven US troops in Ba‘qubah Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance car bomb exploded by a column of several US Humvees at the western entrance to Ba‘qubah at about 10am Friday morning. Witnesses who live in the area where the attack took place told Mafkarat al-Islam that the blast destroyed two Humvees and killed seven American troops, wounding three more.
The correspondent reported that a white explosives-laden Opel car that was parked by the side of the main road at the entrance to Ba‘qubah exploded as the US column was passing, destroying two US Humvees and killing at least seven troops and wounding three more. Afterwards, US soldiers opened fire indiscriminately around the area, killing one Iraqi passerby and wounding a second.
Babil Province.
Al-Latifiyah.
Resistance martyrdom bomber kills six US troops in al-Latifiyah midday Friday.
An Iraqi Resistance martyrdom fighter drove a black Mercedes car loaded with explosives into a column of 11 armored vehicles and four Humvees on the main road linking Baghdad with al-Latifiyah at 1pm Friday afternoon.
Witnesses told Mafkarat al-Islam that the blast destroyed one Humvee and disabled an armored vehicle, killing six US troops and wounding another four. The witnesses said that the black Mercedes was going along the opposite side of the road on which the US column was traveling. Suddenly he veered to the side and into the column and blew up. After the attack, US forces closed off the area, preventing journalists from approaching.
Salah ad-Din Province.
Bayji.
Iraqi Resistance fires heavy mortar barrage into US base near Bayji.
Iraqi Resistance forces bombarded the US headquarters west of Bayji with seven 120mm mortar rounds at 2pm Friday afternoon, sending plumes of smoke into the sky over the US-occupied facility.
Witnesses who live in the as-Siniyah area, which is near the American base, told the local correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam that they heard six powerful explosions shake the US facility, followed by numerous secondary explosions caused by American munitions or fuel going off. The Americans called in helicopters that flew in over the base in search of the attackers, but found nothing.
Al-Basrah Province.
Al-Basrah.
Resistance sharp shooter kills British soldier in al-Basrah Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance sharpshooter shot and killed a British soldier on Bab Sulayman Street in the middle of the Abu al-Khasib area of al-Basrah on Friday. A shopkeeper in the area told Mafkarat al-Islam that a British foot patrol was proceeding along Bab Sulayman Street, on both sides of which are palm trees when one of the British soldiers suddenly fell dead from a sniper’s bullet.
After the attack, British forces began a thorough search of the area but found nothing.
Albasrah.net
2005-04-09 16:31:51
Translated and/or compiled by Muhammad Abu Nasr, member, editorial board, the Free Arab Voice.
Friday, 8 April 2005.
Al-Anbar Province.
Al-Fallujah.
Resistance bomb kills three US troops Friday morning in al-Fallujah.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a US armored patrol in the al-‘Askari neighborhood in the east of al-Fallujah (60km west of Baghdad) at 7am Friday morning local time. The blast disabled one US armored vehicle and killed three American troops and wounded four more.
The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported a member of the puppet so-called “Iraqi national guard” in al-Fallujah as saying that the blast disabled a US Bradley armored vehicle and inflicted the above-mentioned casualties.
Resistance bombards puppet government office building in pre-dawn hours of Friday.
Iraqi Resistance forces fired three 120mm mortar rounds at the governorate office building in al-Fallujah at 3am Friday morning local time. The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam had no information on the extent of losses or casualties.
Al-Hadithah.
Resistance bomb attack leaves two US troops dead Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a column of three US armored vehicles and two Humvees in al-Hadithah, west of Baghdad at about 8am Friday morning. The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam in the city reported a member of the puppet police as saying that the blast disabled one of the US armored vehicles and killed two American soldiers and wounded four more.
The source said that the bomb targeted a US column that was heading towards the center of town.
Al-Baghdadi.
Resistance bombards US base as Americans continue to blockade city.
Iraqi Resistance forces fired six medium-range Grad rockets at the US base known as ‘Ayn al-Asad in the city of al-Baghdadi, west of Baghdad at about 9am Friday morning. Witnesses who live in the city told Mafkarat al-Islam that six violent explosions shook the US base, sending clouds of smoke rising into the sky.
US forces have been encircling the city for two days, demanding that the townspeople turn in Resistance fighters to the American invader troops.
Baghdad.
Resistance bomb in al-Ghazliyah kills two US troops Friday afternoon.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a patrol of three Humvees in the al-Ghazaliyah neighborhood of Baghdad at about 4pm Friday afternoon. The correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam reported residents of al-Ghazaliyah as saying that the bomb exploded on the main road linking Baghdad with the areas to the west. The blast destroyed one of the Humvees, killing two US troops and wounding two more.
Resistance bomb kills three American troops north of Baghdad early Friday afternoon.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a joint US-Iraqi puppet patrol in the ad-Dulayimah area of at-Taji, north of Baghdad at 2pm Friday afternoon. Witnesses who own agricultural fields in the area told Mafkarat al-Islam that the explosion set one Humvee ablaze and killed three US troops and wounded two more. The witnesses said that Resistance fighters had planted the bomb in the middle of an unpaved rural road and that it exploded as one of the American vehicles passed over it.
Resistance attacks US convoy in ad-Dulu‘iyah, leaving four US troops dead.
Iraqi Resistance forces armed with light and medium weapons such as RPG7 rocket-propelled grenades and C5K rocket launchers attacked a column of US military trucks loaded with supplies and equipment for the American army on the main road in ad-Dulu‘iyah, north of Baghdad at 11am Friday morning. The correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported that an officer in the puppet so-called “Iraqi national guard,” who asked to remain anonymous, said that the attack set two American trucks ablaze and killed four US troops
Muqtada as-Sadr calls for demonstration against occupation Saturday, 9 April.
Shi‘i religious leader Muqtada as-Sadr called for Iraqis to demonstrate in al-Firdaws Square in Baghdad on Saturday, 9 April to mark the US invasion of the Iraqi capital Baghdad in 2003.
Ashraf as-Sarkhi al-Hasani, a prominent member of as-Sadr’s movement and chairman of the representatives of the movement in Iraq’s southern provinces, said that the Shi‘i religious leader called on Iraqis who reject the occupation, reject oppression, and demand freedom to demonstrate on the anniversary of the US occupation and fall of Baghdad.
Speaking to the United Arab Emirates newspaper al-Khalij, al-Hasani said that the demonstration would be peaceful and would demand the return of the rights of all Iraqis. “We will demonstrate for the truth, peace, freedom, security, the expulsion of the occupier, for preserving our resources, and guarding our sacred places, for the release of the men and women being held prisoner,” he said.
He noted that the demonstrators are not to come solely from the ranks of the as-Sadr movement but from all segments of the Iraqi people.
Ninwa Province.
Tall ‘Afar
Four Americans killed in Resistance bombing early Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance bomb exploded by a patrol of five Humvees in Tall ‘Afar, northwest of Mosul at 8am Friday. The blast destroyed one Humvee and killed its entire crew, the correspondent for Mafkarat al-Islam reported. Witnesses who live in the area told the correspondent that the bomb was planted by the side of the main road in the city and that the explosion left four Americans aboard one of the Humvees dead.
Diyala Province.
Ba‘qubah.
Resistance car bomb kills seven US troops in Ba‘qubah Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance car bomb exploded by a column of several US Humvees at the western entrance to Ba‘qubah at about 10am Friday morning. Witnesses who live in the area where the attack took place told Mafkarat al-Islam that the blast destroyed two Humvees and killed seven American troops, wounding three more.
The correspondent reported that a white explosives-laden Opel car that was parked by the side of the main road at the entrance to Ba‘qubah exploded as the US column was passing, destroying two US Humvees and killing at least seven troops and wounding three more. Afterwards, US soldiers opened fire indiscriminately around the area, killing one Iraqi passerby and wounding a second.
Babil Province.
Al-Latifiyah.
Resistance martyrdom bomber kills six US troops in al-Latifiyah midday Friday.
An Iraqi Resistance martyrdom fighter drove a black Mercedes car loaded with explosives into a column of 11 armored vehicles and four Humvees on the main road linking Baghdad with al-Latifiyah at 1pm Friday afternoon.
Witnesses told Mafkarat al-Islam that the blast destroyed one Humvee and disabled an armored vehicle, killing six US troops and wounding another four. The witnesses said that the black Mercedes was going along the opposite side of the road on which the US column was traveling. Suddenly he veered to the side and into the column and blew up. After the attack, US forces closed off the area, preventing journalists from approaching.
Salah ad-Din Province.
Bayji.
Iraqi Resistance fires heavy mortar barrage into US base near Bayji.
Iraqi Resistance forces bombarded the US headquarters west of Bayji with seven 120mm mortar rounds at 2pm Friday afternoon, sending plumes of smoke into the sky over the US-occupied facility.
Witnesses who live in the as-Siniyah area, which is near the American base, told the local correspondent of Mafkarat al-Islam that they heard six powerful explosions shake the US facility, followed by numerous secondary explosions caused by American munitions or fuel going off. The Americans called in helicopters that flew in over the base in search of the attackers, but found nothing.
Al-Basrah Province.
Al-Basrah.
Resistance sharp shooter kills British soldier in al-Basrah Friday morning.
An Iraqi Resistance sharpshooter shot and killed a British soldier on Bab Sulayman Street in the middle of the Abu al-Khasib area of al-Basrah on Friday. A shopkeeper in the area told Mafkarat al-Islam that a British foot patrol was proceeding along Bab Sulayman Street, on both sides of which are palm trees when one of the British soldiers suddenly fell dead from a sniper’s bullet.
After the attack, British forces began a thorough search of the area but found nothing.
Albasrah.net
2005-04-09 16:31:51
Fire and rage in the shadow of Abu Ghraib
Behind an attack on Iraq's infamous jail lies a simple, insistent demand: OCCUPIERS GO HOME
n orange sun set over the city, casting just enough light to finish the kickabout, when the players heard the unmistakable sound of rockets whooshing overhead.
Seconds later the missiles slammed into Abu Ghraib, the jail adjoining their football pitch. Explosions resounded across the complex and more rockets were launched. The Americans fired back.
The 25 children and seven adults sprinted to a wall enclosing the school grounds and huddled together, waiting for the storm to pass. But the attack intensified and bullets peppered closer so the group scrambled into a communal toilet. They cowered in darkness as hits on their shelter showered dust and masonry fragments. Some of the children started to sob, vomit and soil themselves.
'We put our hands in the children's mouths to stop them crying. It was the most difficult time of my life,' said Abu Mohammad, 38.
For 12 hours the group crouched in the three-square-metres space, murmuring prayers as car bombs detonated outside, until dawn broke and they emerged, waving a white T-shirt, to a scene of devastation.
Last Saturday's attack on Abu Ghraib drew worldwide headlines as one of the boldest insurgent operations in Iraq, which wounded 44 US troops and underlined the vulnerabilities of the occupation two years after the invasion.
Thousands of Shias loyal to the militant cleric Moqtada al-Sadr gathered in Baghdad yesterday, the anniversary of the city's fall and the toppling of Saddam Hussein's statue, to demand an American withdrawal. It is a wish even closer to the heart of Arab Sunnis, who form the insurgency's backbone. The attack on Abu Ghraib, a symbolic target since last year's inmate abuse scandal, underlined a shift from hit-and-run ambushes to large-scale assaults.
To tackle the sprawling complex 20 miles west of the capital, which doubles as a US base, they used almost every type of weapon in their armoury. An internet statement purportedly from the militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi claimed it was the work of his group, al-Qaeda in Iraq, and depicted a heroic, slick engagement which lasted several hours and deployed seven suicide car bombers. 'Then the merciful brigades and Muslim soldiers clashed with the infidels.'
This version, according to senior coalition commanders, was aimed at sympathisers in the Gulf who funded the insurgency and expected to see results before stumping up again.
The Americans painted a less dramatic picture, saying mortar rounds and rockets were followed by attacks by gunmen on foot. At one point, defenders destroyed a suicide car bomb before it reached the walls and rapid-response troops backed by Apache helicopters and artillery repulsed the rest of the attack after 40 minutes.
While conceding its sophistication, a US spokesman said the assault did not breach the walls, free inmates or kill coalition forces and was therefore a failure, costing the insurgents dozens dead and wounded.
Only now have those caught in the crossfire given their version. It partly contradicts the US and al-Zarqawi statements by claiming there was chaos and panic on both sides and, in the aftermath, looting by US and Iraqi security forces.
Mohammad, one of the adults who sheltered in the toilet with the children, including his three-year-old son, lives in Khan Dhari, a district near the jail inhabited by working-class Arab Sunnis hostile to the occupation.
As they do most Saturdays they met in the grounds of a primary school on the south-western side of the jail to play football. Guards in watchtowers would have seen that the group was mostly young children, said Mohammad.
When rockets landed around them, guards returned fire wildly, apparently unconcerned about civilian casualties. Even when searchlights 'turned the place into day', US bullets continued hitting the school despite the absence of rebels there, he said.
At some point the jail gates opened and Humvees roared out - probably the rapid-response forces - only for a black Opel packed with explosives to slip into the convoy and blow up. 'It was a hell of fire,' said Mohammad, a tall, wiry Islamic scholar, who said he saw charred Humvee engines and a human hand and leg.
From the toilet his view was restricted, but the next day relatives and neighbours filled in details. Two suicide bombers in South Korean-made KIA vehicles rammed tanks. Another bomber driving a pick-up truck got lost and knocked on doors asking directions to the nearest US target. 'He was a foreigner and asked why people were not coming out for jihad.'
By 5.45am the football players, thirsty, exhausted and terrified, heard the wail of a mosque's muezzin summoning people to prayer. They ventured out to be met by Iraqi soldiers who were astonished no one was hurt given the damage to their shelter. Suspicious, the soldiers demanded to see the football as proof of their story. It was found in a corner of the pitch.
Mohammad, who made no secret of his sympathy for the rebels, claimed that in the clampdown that followed Iraqi troops broke into dozens of shops and looted fruit, biscuits, soft drinks and electronic goods.
US troops joined in, he said, with one soldier wresting a bag of mobile phones from an Iraqi and several others catching a goat and a sheep which were driven in a Humvee back to their base. There was no way of verifying the allegation.
Two months after the election Iraq's parliament named a President and Prime Minister last week, paving the way for a new government which is expected to accelerate the handover of security from coalition to Iraqi forces and empower the majority Shia community.
But tens of thousands of militant Shias who gathered in Baghdad yesterday demanded an immediate pullout, or at least a timetable. 'No, no, to the occupiers,' they chanted, waving effigies of George Bush and Tony Blair.
Rory Carroll in Baghdad Sunday April 10, 2005 Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005
CBS freelance cameraman shot and wounded by US soldiers
U.S. soldiers wound CBS cameraman
Apr 7 - US troops shot and wounded an Iraqi freelance cameraman who works for CBS News, saying they mistook his video camera for a weapon. Soldiers reportedly shot the cameraman, whose name was not published by Reuters at the request of CBS, while he was covering a firefight in Mosul.
According to a statement released by the military, US troops had been involved in a shootout with at least one suspected insurgent who was "waving an AK-47 and inciting a crowd of civilians." During the incident, soldiers fired at "an individual that appeared to have a weapon who was standing near the insurgent." The military says the incident is under investigation.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an international media watchdog, US troops killed "at least nine journalists and two media support staff" in Iraq between March 2003 and February 2005. American soldiers have also been accused of torturing and sexually abusing three Iraqis who worked for Reuters. Last month, the Army announced it had cleared the accused soldiers of any wrongdoing in that case without interviewing the three Iraqi survivors.
--Chris Shumway
© 2005 The NewStandard.
Online sources used in this news brief:
Reuters: "Cameraman for CBS wounded by US troops in Iraq"Committee to Protect Journalists: "CNN's Jordan is gone, but questions remain"
CBS freelance cameraman shot and wounded by US soldiers
Reporters Without Borders today called for a thorough and transparent investigation into an incident yesterday near the northern city of Mosul in which US soldiers shot and wounded a freelance cameraman working for the US television network CBS News.
"Once again the US forces have targeted a journalist just doing his job," the press freedom organization said. Reporters Without Borders pointed out that this was not the first time that US soldiers shot a cameraman after mistaking his camera for a gun. Mazen Dana, a Palestinian working for the British news agency Reuters, was killed in a similar fashion on 17 August 2003 in Baghdad. The US army claimed that the US soldiers involved had acted according to the rules of engagement.
"We again call on this same army to be more vigilant and discerning in order to avoid these unacceptable blunders," the organization added.
The cameraman was injured in the hip in the course of an exchange of shots between Iraqi insurgents and members of the 1st brigade of the US 25th infantry division. In a statement issued by the Pentagon, the US army said soldiers fired at a rebel who was "waving an AK-47 (assault rifle) and inciting a crowd of civilians."
During the incident, "an individual that appeared to have a weapon who was standing near the insurgent was shot and injured. This individual turned out to be a reporter who was pointing a video camera. Regretfully, the reporter was injured during the complex and volatile situation," the statement said, adding that the incident was being investigated.
The journalist, who CBS News said should not be named for his own protection, was taken to a US military hospital for treatment. The US army described his injuries as minor.
At least 52 journalists and media assistants have been killed in Iraq since the start of the war in March 2003, Reporters Without Borders said.
Three journalists were killed by the US army in a single day, on 8 April 2003. Al-Jazeera cameraman Tarek Ayoub, 35, was killed during a US air raid when a missile hit Al-Jazeera's bureau. Reuters cameraman Taras Protsyuk, 35, a Ukrainian normally based in Warsaw, was killed when the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad came under fire. Spanish cameraman José Couso, 27, who worked for the Spanish TV station Telecinco, was wounded in the same shooting and died on the operating table. The places targeted were all known to be used by journalists but the US army investigation brazenly cleared all those involved.
Reporters Without Borders defends imprisoned journalists and press freedom throughout the world, as well as the right to inform the public and to be informed, in accordance with Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Reporters Without Borders has nine national sections (in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom), representatives in Abidjan, Bangkok, Istanbul, Montreal, Moscow, New York, Tokyo and Washington and more than a hundred correspondents worldwide.
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13118Local groups holding workshops on Alternative to military service
Alternatives to military service
Wayzata (Ohio) resident Nancy Berneking and Minnetonka resident Rich Wildberger want young people to know about military alternatives in case a draft is reinstated.
“We think it is important for young people to think about,” Berneking said.
The two members of St. Luke Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka have devised a workshop on behalf of the church for students and their families to learn about alternatives to military service, including being conscientious objectors. Those who attend the workshop will receive a packet of materials that will help them prepare documents for alternative service in case they are called to military duty.
A conscientious objector is a person who is opposed to serving in the armed forces because of moral or religious principles.
The U.S. military draft ended in 1973. An act of Congress, passed by both the House and Senate, would be needed to reinstate the draft. The bill would also have to be signed by the president. The closest a bill has come in recent years was a bill introduced in 2003 that would have required all young men and women age 18 to 26 to perform a period of military service. That bill was defeated late in 2004.
Since the Selective Service Act in 1940 young men turning 18 have had to register with Selective Service for possible military duty. A portion of the act allows for special exemption from active military service for those who are opposed to war because of moral or religious reasons. According to the Selective Service Web site, “The Alternative Service Program would provide public service work assignments in America’s communities in lieu of military service for men classified as conscientious objectors to all military service.”
This is something Wildberger knows all too well because he was a conscientious objector during the Korean War. He said he became a conscientious objector, like his brother did during World War II, because he is opposed to all war.
“We think that war and killing are wrong and there are other ways to solve conflict,” he said. “The idea of killing in war was always opposed in our family.”
Wildberger was assigned to work in an Illinois mental hospital for two years to complete his alternative service during the Korean War.
He said when he was completing his service no other workers at the hospital realized he was a conscientious objector.
“They didn’t know. As far as they were concerned I was just another guy coming to work there,” he said.
Berneking and Wildberger said the purpose of the workshop is to let those who are opposed to war know that they have to be prepared if a draft were reinstated and before they are in front of their local draft board.
“You can’t do this overnight. There are things you need to do before you come before your draft board,” Berneking said.
She said a conscientious objector must prove and document his or her opposition to war because of moral or religious reasons.
Berneking, whose husband and son are both military veterans, said the workshop is not an attempt to influence anyone on what they should do, but more an attempt to get information out and prepare young people.
“We should help our kids think about this, but we can’t make the decision for them,” she said.
Berneking said she wants members of the community who have relatives in the military or who might be offended by the idea of the workshop to remember that the goal is not to influence the youth, but to prepare them with as much information as possible about a life-or-death situation.
“We understand that not everybody is in the same place, but we want to support our young people in whatever they do. Just getting the information out there should not be objectionable; it’s law.”
Wildberger said that with military recruitment down and older Americans serving in the military, a draft could be a possibility in the future. He said that if a draft were reinstated it might be too late for a conscientious objector to avoid military service if they hadn’t prepared for that day ahead of time.
“We are trying to let people think about this before it happens,” he said.
By Joe Kieser Sun Newspapers (Created 4/7/2005 9:18:07 AM)
Wayzata (Ohio) resident Nancy Berneking and Minnetonka resident Rich Wildberger want young people to know about military alternatives in case a draft is reinstated.
“We think it is important for young people to think about,” Berneking said.
The two members of St. Luke Presbyterian Church in Minnetonka have devised a workshop on behalf of the church for students and their families to learn about alternatives to military service, including being conscientious objectors. Those who attend the workshop will receive a packet of materials that will help them prepare documents for alternative service in case they are called to military duty.
A conscientious objector is a person who is opposed to serving in the armed forces because of moral or religious principles.
The U.S. military draft ended in 1973. An act of Congress, passed by both the House and Senate, would be needed to reinstate the draft. The bill would also have to be signed by the president. The closest a bill has come in recent years was a bill introduced in 2003 that would have required all young men and women age 18 to 26 to perform a period of military service. That bill was defeated late in 2004.
Since the Selective Service Act in 1940 young men turning 18 have had to register with Selective Service for possible military duty. A portion of the act allows for special exemption from active military service for those who are opposed to war because of moral or religious reasons. According to the Selective Service Web site, “The Alternative Service Program would provide public service work assignments in America’s communities in lieu of military service for men classified as conscientious objectors to all military service.”
This is something Wildberger knows all too well because he was a conscientious objector during the Korean War. He said he became a conscientious objector, like his brother did during World War II, because he is opposed to all war.
“We think that war and killing are wrong and there are other ways to solve conflict,” he said. “The idea of killing in war was always opposed in our family.”
Wildberger was assigned to work in an Illinois mental hospital for two years to complete his alternative service during the Korean War.
He said when he was completing his service no other workers at the hospital realized he was a conscientious objector.
“They didn’t know. As far as they were concerned I was just another guy coming to work there,” he said.
Berneking and Wildberger said the purpose of the workshop is to let those who are opposed to war know that they have to be prepared if a draft were reinstated and before they are in front of their local draft board.
“You can’t do this overnight. There are things you need to do before you come before your draft board,” Berneking said.
She said a conscientious objector must prove and document his or her opposition to war because of moral or religious reasons.
Berneking, whose husband and son are both military veterans, said the workshop is not an attempt to influence anyone on what they should do, but more an attempt to get information out and prepare young people.
“We should help our kids think about this, but we can’t make the decision for them,” she said.
Berneking said she wants members of the community who have relatives in the military or who might be offended by the idea of the workshop to remember that the goal is not to influence the youth, but to prepare them with as much information as possible about a life-or-death situation.
“We understand that not everybody is in the same place, but we want to support our young people in whatever they do. Just getting the information out there should not be objectionable; it’s law.”
Wildberger said that with military recruitment down and older Americans serving in the military, a draft could be a possibility in the future. He said that if a draft were reinstated it might be too late for a conscientious objector to avoid military service if they hadn’t prepared for that day ahead of time.
“We are trying to let people think about this before it happens,” he said.
What’s next
What: A workshop about alternative military service and conscientious objection
When: 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 17
Where: St. Luke Presbyterian Church, 3121 Groveland School Road, Minnetonka
Information: 952-261-0624.
By Joe Kieser Sun Newspapers (Created 4/7/2005 9:18:07 AM)
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