The Sitch

For the RIT chapter of CAN, organizing a national day of action during finals week was quite the challenge. The outcome, however, was worth it.

Around 30 students and allies turned out for a speak-out against the occupation of Afghanistan. Members of CAN, IVAW, and Rochester Against War took a hold of the megaphone and spoke about demanding that Obama take a stand against the occupation, the significance of CAN’s newest point of unity, and how student movements have the power to help stop the war. A hardcore Obama supporter yelled from her dorm room window “Obama!!! Obama!!!”  Within minutes she had joined our demonstration on the residential side of campus. The excitement and expectations that Obama’s election win has raised will be something we’ll be encountering in the coming weeks and months. This is an opportunity to engage students on how “change” ultimately comes about.

“Barack Obama, take a stand! US out of Afghanistan!”

Linking the atrocities being committed abroad to the reality of complicity on our campus, students lead a protest march to the RIT Center for Integrated Manufacturing Services building. This particular building on campus houses humvees, armored personnel vehicles, an old fighter jet, and a number of other projects funded by the Department of Defense. Students are used to work on these research projects under the guise of creating more “green” and “sustainable” technologies. When in actuality, the research is being done to develop methods of producing and maintaining more efficient machines of war. Making renewable energy technology for devices that are utterly destructive to our environment.

A handful of new students were present at the student networking meeting that followed the action, in which strategies for ending the occupation of Afghanistan were discussed. A few members of SDS came out to the networking meeting to contribute to the discussion. CAN Members pointed to the success of CAN as a growing national organization and the accomplishments of the RIT CAN chapter’s organizing efforts since September. New students expressed their desires to organize with CAN, seeing us as a leading force on our campus demanding justice for our veterans and the people of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Whether we measure the success of an action by the numbers in attendance or by successfully recruiting new students to join the Campus Antiwar Network, the nation’s largest and fastest growing student anti-war organization, CAN students at RIT are developing the organizational skills and political confidence to make their voice heard loud and clear. Organizing and participating in the national day of action was no exception. This is only the beginning.

No justice. No peace.
Adriano Contreras on behalf of RIT Antiwar
Campus Antiwar Network

CAN ACTIONS ON NOV. 13
University of Wisconsin, Madison CAN chapter: http://www.dailycardinal.com/article/21356
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign CAN chapter:
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2008/11/14/war_detractors_gather_on_campus_for_day

Rochester, NY.  Following Election Day 2008, Rochester Against War, Rochester Students for a Democratic Society, Campus Antiwar Network, Military Families Speak Out, and local Iraq and Afghanistan Veternas stand together to make the following statement:

Click Here to see the Video
Video by Rochester Indy Media (other media outlets didn’t show up) 

 Article Originally appeared on Rochester Indy Media Website. Link here

RAW Politiko is a member of Rochester Against War and the newest contributor of activist news and political analysis for The Sitch

If you are not excited to see 8 years of Bush and 30 years of Republican ideological dominance crumble into the waste bin of history, then you are probably still rocking back and forth in tears.

The Republicans were trounced eight ways from Sunday last night, despite the racist, fear mongering, smear campaign of McCain/Palin.  America, the home of slavery and Jim Crow, elected a African American president.  Let that marinate for a while.

Given this historic moment, and being the insomniac political junkie that I am, I set to work.  I want to know what will be the pressure points, the issues to push in order to make our government deliver on its promises.   Rochester Against War just took a stand opposing the war in Afghanistan, so I went to check out Obama’s stated position.  I wandered on over to BarakObama.com but found a glaring issue with Obama’s “issues” section.

While you will find subjects like, “Economy, Poverty, Immigration, and even Iraq”, what you wont find is, to me, one of the defining issues of the day, second only to the economic crisis.   THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN.  (screen shot attached)

Check out the Foreign Policy page.  Among the 2,845 word explanation of Obama/Biden’s foreign policy, you wont find mention of Afghanistan there either! Not even once.  In fact, if you do a Google site search of Obama’s website, you get 12 hits, most of which are from the same 2 speeches.

Now, isn’t this a little odd considering its one of the two major wars the US Military is currently fighting? 

When you CAN find the country mentioned, Obama is clearly planning to escalate the war in Afghanistan.  At the end of this post you can find a comprehensive set of quotations and links from the Obama/Biden website.  Here are some choice phrases to consider:

– “The scale of our deployments in Iraq continues to set back our ability to finish the fight in Afghanistan, producing unacceptable strategic risks.”

– “When I am President, we will wage the war that has to be won, with a comprehensive strategy with five elements: getting out of Iraq and on to the right battlefield in Afghanistan and Pakistan.”

– “I will never hesitate to defend this country and our critical interests.” 

– “Above all, I will send a clear message: we will not repeat the mistake of the past, when we turned our back on Afghanistan following Soviet withdrawal.”

Those last two should make you feel pretty queasy.  Is he suggesting we should have CONTINUED supporting Bin Laden through the 90’s, that Bin Laden would have been a good ally if we didn’t piss him off? 

Why is this?  Why is Obama’s analysis of Afghanistan, a major war, buried so much on his website.  I don’t think its an accidental oversight.  In fact, Obama has used his website to raise millions of dollars and connect millions of volunteers to each other during his campaign.   What I think Obama and his handlers realize is that his “base” the millions who brought him to power, are under the assumption that Obama is the “peace candidate”  The Democratic party is just fine with this notion and purposely downplay this seeming contradiction.  And so they bury and distract, bob and weave, and allow incorrect beliefs to continue, as long as they deliver their vote on Nov 4th.  Its straight out of the McCain playbook.

In fact, Obama isn’t a “peace candidate”, he falls more on the “Wrong War, Wrong Way.”  The places he plays UP his desire to escalate is among those generals, military contractors, and Washington elite that stand to benefit from US domination of the region.  He is courting them by arguing he can manage the Empire better than old Bushie, who has really made a mess of things.

I think the overall point made is that far from opposing US military intervention, Obama is squarely in the camp of using the US Military to “defend this country and our critical interests.”  As I started this article saying, we should be extremely excited and we should realize that sentiment is moving in a leftward, progressive, whatever word you want to use, OUR direction!

But we should remember, that politicians are bought and sold like credit default swaps.  Unlike Wall St., bankers WE have something to lose and everything to gain by examining in explicit detail what is THE CONTENT of their policies, and who do those policies end up benefiting?

I can remember getting calls from my friends, trapped in downtown Manhattan as the World Trade towers fell.  I also remember that Bush was reading a childrens book in Florida, and Cheney was safe in his bunker. “Our critical interests” are actually “their” critical interests. No Afghani ever gambled my life savings away.  No Iraqi ever denied me healthcare, and no Pakistani ever imprisoned me indefinitely without charge. 

RAW Politiko

===================

Obama by the quotes:  
Lets see what the Obama/Biden ticket says about Afghanistan (ive bolded some of the most important remarks):

– In the Iraq section, under the headings “Resurgent Al Aqaeda in Afghanistan” it says the following: 

The decision to invade Iraq diverted resources from the war in Afghanistan, making it harder for us to kill or capture Osama Bin Laden and others involved in the 9/11 attacks. Nearly seven years later, the Taliban has reemerged in southern Afghanistan while Al Qaeda has used the space provided by the Iraq war to regroup, train and plan for another attack on the United States. 2007 was the most violent year in Afghanistan since the invasion in 2001. The scale of our deployments in Iraq continues to set back our ability to finish the fight in Afghanistan, producing unacceptable strategic risks.

– In a speech given in Des Moines, IA | May 21, 2008, Obama says:

“Change is ending a war that we never should’ve started and finishing a war against Al Qaeda in Afghanistan that we never should’ve ignored.”

– A speech given in Washington, DC | August 01, 2007 titled, “The War We Need to Win” Obama said the following:

And so, a little more than a year after that bright September day, I was in the streets of Chicago again, this time speaking at a rally in opposition to war in Iraq. I did not oppose all wars, I said. I was a strong supporter of the war in Afghanistan.”

He continues:

When I am President, we will wage the war that has to be won, with a comprehensive strategy with five elements: getting out of Iraq and on to the right battlefield in Afghanistan and Pakistan; developing the capabilities and partnerships we need to take out the terrorists and the world’s most deadly weapons; engaging the world to dry up support for terror and extremism; restoring our values; and securing a more resilient homeland.

The first step must be getting off the wrong battlefield in Iraq, and taking the fight to the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

He continues:

Above all, I will send a clear message: we will not repeat the mistake of the past, when we turned our back on Afghanistan following Soviet withdrawal.

http://origin.barackobama.com/2007/08/01/remarks_of_senator_obama_the_w.php

– In a speech given to some Flag Officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force in Chicago, IL | March 12, 2008  he says:

That is why I have consistently called for an increased commitment to Afghanistan, and why I called last August for at least two additional combat brigades to support our mission there. And that is why I will end the war in Iraq when I am President, and focus on finishing the job in Afghanistan.

I will never hesitate to defend this country and our critical interests.

http://origin.barackobama.com/2008/03/12/obama_receives_endorsement_of.php

Doug Noble is a member of Rochester Against War. He published this letter in City Newspaper on October 28, 2008

FOREIGN AFFAIRS: The Next Catastrophe - Afghanistan by Doug Noble

On Friday, October 24, RIT Antiwar organized a counter recruitment action (10am - 1:30) in the Student Alumni Union that led to zero recruitment and a 30 minute ahead of schedule departure by the Marines.

One of our newest CAN members found out the next time recruiters would be on campus and brought the information to our weekly meeting. Having 2 to 3 minor actions against recruitment and war profiteers in just the last month and a half, all 11 core members were up to the task of a total disruption of their recruitment abilities.

Leafletting took place on Thursday morning to get students out to participate in the Friday action. A majority of the people we encountered were supportive of our efforts and some even expressed an interest in participating. On Friday morning before recruiters arrived, we gathered all of our literature, our signs, and held a brief discussion as to why it is that we counter-recruit. This helped to prevent demoralization and provide confidence in case we encountered right-wingers or the administration.

The action itself was a huge success. Every member of the chapter showed up, friends, co-workers, and along with some allies in the International Socialist Organization and Iraq Veterans Against the War. At any given time we had at least 18 people chanting and raising placards/banners. We lined the space that people enter the union. As a result, people entering went around the recruiters. Aside from some hand shakes the recruiters got for their “service to our country”…. which I’m sure they would not have gotten had CAN not been actively protesting them… one lady took a pamphlet and a pencil.

When our commotion caught the attention of the administration, we were lucky to find sympathy towards our action by the Director of Campus Life. However, when a right-winger began to over power our chanting with his yelling, another member of the administration asked us to stop. We reached a compromise that said that we had to pause the chanting for at least an hour, and then we’d be able to resume. That did not mean that our banners had to be put away or that we couldn’t devise a better way to disrupt traffic towards the Marines table.

As a new round of chants started up, members of Iraq Veterans Against the War arrived. Immediately they unfurled their IVAW banner and stood behind the Marines. One of the marines turned around and said “We’re not Iraq Veterans.” Bryan Casler, (former Marine) of IVAW replied, “But we are.” 

Within 5 - 10 minutes the recruiters were out the door.

Nick Morgan has since received medical attention and is recovering from the injuries he sustained outside the final presidential debate on October 15th. As the police used their horses to ram themselves into the protestors, Nick Morgan was hit in the face. But when the cops pull him to the ground, a horse steps on his face and leaves him unconscious and with fractures.

Members of Iraq Veterans Against the War led an action to Hofstra University last night to demand that Senator’s Barack Obama and John McCain answer their questions regarding treatment of veterans in the United States.

The demonstration was met by Nassau County’s FINEST. The police held back the Iraq war vets and other protestors. Unfortunately, they brutalized one veteran with their batons and possibly even hit with a horse.

Take a look at some of the images:
http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2008/10/100775.html

MORE FOOTAGE:
Video footage of the cops using their horses to push people back. At the 1:30 mark on the video a cop spits on protestors.

The Campus Antiwar Network (CAN) took on a major shift in organizational priorities at the 2008 National Conference, ”It’s Up to Us to Stop the War”, the weekend of October 10-12 at DePaul University.

During the opening plenary on why the U.S. is in the Middle East, two members of CAN tackled the two pillars of U.S. imperialism today: oil and empire. They challenged the ideas that the race for oil is an issue of the past couple of decades or motivated entirely by consumption. In addition to breaking down some of the myths of about the state of Israel and its oppression of the Palestinians, the imperial role of Israel and Saudi Arabia, and how they factor into the U.S. thirst for geopolitical domination.

With the absence of a workshop on immediate withdrawal from Iraq, new workshops addressed more movement-important questions. Afghanistan took center-stage at the conference this year in light of the decision by the ruling class to pummel that country with a surge in military forces. Presentations were given on Palestine, the role of multinational corporations in their pillaging of Columbia, torture, the Iraqi refugee crisis, and divide and conquer strategies in Iraq. Some students could even be heard saying, they’ve learned more at a workshop then they have in a semester long college course.

With that excitement students broke out into strategy workshops to put their ideas and their experiences into shaping a new way to organize when they return to their campuses. There was something for everyone: working with veterans, publicity and media, the economic war on students, a report back from the RNC student contingent, and the basics on how to develop a CAN chapter. The “How to Start a CAN Chapter” workshop took on questions of confronting and working around university policy in order to promote their chapter. A student from Drake University spoke of not being able to approach people while tabling at her student union and having to sit behind the table waiting for people to come to her. While some constructive suggestions were given, another student recommended the table be on wheels, so that she could approach people and still be behind the table.

On the evening of October 11, members of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) gave testimony of their experiences. Imagery provided confirmed the use of white phosphorus on Iraqis. Chaos and a lack of infrastructure are rampant. The dehumanization of not only Iraqis, but gays in the military was expounded on. As well as the subordination of women and ethnic minorities; a product of the systemic trickle down policy of the military. In reference to the United State’s goal to rid Afghanistan of women’s oppression, to paraphrase one of the veterans, “if you think that the military is on some feminist mission to free the women of Afghanistan, you are mistaken.”

Organizing from the bottom is a challenge. Yet the Campus Antiwar Network was able to double in size within the last year to over 50 chapters. Remaining independent from any political party has definitely added to its success, given the Democratic and Republican party alliance on the War on Terror. But surely the democratic process, the ability for each student to have say and take part in their action, has allowed for members to flourish and leaders to develop.

There is no greater example of the democratic process within the anti-war movement than the voting session that was held on Sunday October 12. For seven hours, a delegated body of students debated and voted on the direction CAN should take for the next year. Structurally, CAN will take on more responsibility in getting members educated on Afghanistan and Palestine. Politically, the movement took a large step and has added to its points of unity the immediate withdrawal from Afghanistan. In solidarity with their allies in IVAW, CAN now also stands for full economic reparations to the people of Iraq and Afghanistan for the destruction of their country; as well as, full health and educational benefits for all military personnel regardless of their discharge status.

In an election season plagued by messages of change, perhaps we should examine where these cries of hope stem from. Around the world, war and occupation for the control of oil and geopolitical dominance of the Middle East have proven, people of the world will not tolerate oppression on such a massive scale. When pushed to the brink, Iraqis have fought back. In the United States, the majority of the people have had it with a trillion dollars worth of destructive “liberation” in Iraq. The deregulation of our industries coupled with the attack on social spending has led to a rise in unemployment. Not to mention the housing, banking, food, gas, healthcare and education crisis; a result of opposing parties with supposedly different alternatives. The neoliberal policies of the last 30 years have all been discredited.

Even students feel the heat. As we scramble to deal with tuition and food increases, a majority turn to loans due to the cutback of federal and state grants. While $12 billion a month are spent murdering people abroad for profit and empire, the latest New York State budget intends on cutting $31 million from the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) grants for college students. Since I’ve been at RIT (2004), tuition has gone up nearly $5,000 while my financial aid package increasingly adopts more loans. The rise in food costs has even affected prices on campus. Just take a look at the Ritz Sports Zone, where the “Ancho Grill” no longer offers a meal for less than $2.

Capitalism, in this country, with all its wealth has hit an economic slump. But rather than using its vast wealth to save itself from its own extinction, by providing workers and their families with tax reliefs, subsidies, or perhaps an equal and democratic ownership of resources, it pushes the working class deeper and deeper into despair by cutting jobs, wages, and social programs. But when Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are in trouble we’ve been able to find all the time and resources to bail them out.

The candidates of “change” each have their plans to make our lives better. McCain is proud of the fact that he’s going to continue the policies of the Bush administration, with the continuous tax relief for the rich.  His attitude toward the plight of the poor and oppressed is synonymous with the Reagan era. Obama’s proposal to give the middle class tax cuts fails in comparison with not providing families with single-payer universal healthcare, end to war, alternative energy, and affordable education… that a majority of Americans want.  With the development of mass production, we now have the ability to feed, clothe, and house everyone a hundred times over. Yet people around the world go hungry and live on the streets everyday.

This bipartisan assault from the ruling class parties in the U.S. has got to end. Change comes from the self-emancipation of the masses and the demands we make on the leadership we elect. Take a look at the civil rights, women’s rights, gay liberation, and anti-war movements of the 60s. Each of which forced the leadership in this country to take action, pass laws, and end wars. The sit-down strikes of the 30s were great examples of times when workers realized they held the power to keep society functioning. The ability to harness that power, to create a system without systemic oppression, hunger and exploitation is possible. Only if we educate ourselves and organize our campuses and communities against the oppressive and exploitative nature of the system, can we unite and fight for a better world.

It has been quite a summer.

My time in Croatia was just amazing. I met so many different people and saw some of the most beautiful things ever. Studying abroad I learned about art history of the region and about global warming and the destruction of our planet. Both of them were amazing classes and we were quite lucky to have the professors that taught us. Aside from the typical tourist things, I learned much about the culture, language and its “communist” history. This former member of the Yugoslavia is now a haven for national pride and one of the economically strongest countries to emerge out of the former federation. However, the struggle for decent life still remains as will always be the case under capitalist institutions. While they’re healthcare system is a form of single-payer universal healthcare and the transportation systems rival some of the American ones, unemployment and hunger are still issues. Inner class divisions remain. One guy that I talked to spoke badly of the unemployed claiming that they were lazy and opportunistic. He said that he went out job hunting and found one. It doesn’t pay much but at least he has one, he noted. The European Union is about to include Croatia and thus forcing upon that country its strict immigration and economic policies. One of the biggest issues of capitalist economy is its ignorance of local people’s needs. And if it is aware of the needs it tailors it to suit a business model…if it’s profitable, it’s a go! Croatia was great and someday I’ll return.

Back in Rochester for the summer, I took it upon myself to redesign The Sitch and give it more of a purpose besides its blog function. www.TheSitch.com is the new home of the blog and it is now hosted on a private server instead of Wordpress.com. I can host my own videos, photography, and more. Here are some of the plans I have for the site:

The Sitch on the Street - a word on the street portion of the site that’ll feature a series of video clips of everyday people answer current events/political questions. There will be the ability to have reader’s questions asked to the people the videos will feature.

Videos - Simply just a page where I’ll archive videos of activism events and any exclusive videos that I film like the interviews with the Iraq war veterans in May.

Photos - Same thing. Here we’ll find a archive of photography from activism events and other photos I deem worthy of posting.

Contributors - I would like to get other people’s opinions written up on this site and I’m currently searching for people to do so.

There’s much more to come… Videos of Son of Nun performing, a speech on how the Vietnam War was ended, and the revolutionary year of 1968.

Stay tuned and welcome to The Sitch.