Putting the $ where their mounths are.....

Fort Lewis Soldier Says He'll Refuse To Go To Iraq

June 6, 2006

By Keith Eldridge

SEATTLE - As thousands of Fort Lewis Army troops prepare to head back to Iraq, one of their officers is making a stand.

A lieutenant says he is going to refuse to go, saying it's an unjust war. Anti-war groups are rallying to his defense.

Lt. Ehren Watada of the Stryker Brigade writes, "I refuse to be silent any longer. I refuse to watch families torn apart, while the President tells us to ‘stay the course.’ I refuse to be party to an illegal and immoral war against people who did nothing to deserve our aggression.

"I wanted to be there for my fellow troops. But the best way was not to help drop artillery and cause more death and destruction. It is to help oppose this war and end it so that all soldiers can come home." - signed LT.....

*You can read the entire story on the Komo news website.

Lt. Watada just happened to be a member of the brigade that I had deployed with to Iraq about two years ago.

By signing up as a member of the military, you've sworn to defend your country by participating in war, regardless of whether or not you think your country was in the right. While I admire Lt. Watada for boldly expressing his opinion, I'm afraid that the army will either put him in jail or succeed in shipping him to Iraq.

I realize that he did try to resign his commission, but the army with their shortage of people, is not likely going to let him go unless he has some kind of catastrophic injuries.

However, it makes me think about how the politicians who govern us are big on talks and not action. GW Bush's children are not contributing to the war effort, nor are his relatives, to my understanding, in fact, he did not even complete his duty tour with the nationl guard. I find it very hard to fathom that people who have never been in the military claim to know what is best for the military, and I think you see where I am getting to.

I'm not wholly opposed to this current administration, in fact, I am sure that the powers that be are probably made up of many good people. I just think that they've somehow lost their ways, keeping their focus on non-sensical issues, and not being specific about how to resolve some really serious domestic issues, plus how to take better care of soldiers currently serving.

And that's my two cents.