Operation First Casualty
July 4, 2007
Most reasonable people, regardless of their
political persuasion, are aware of the reality that the first casualty of war
is the truth. Any person who has actually
participated in a war, knows the second casualty is the plan. The list of
casualties and costs escalates from these first two items to include killed and
wounded soldiers on both sides, killed and wounded civilians on both sides -
often in far greater numbers than combatants, despite propaganda to the
contrary by both belligerents - and of course the losses suffered by the
families of the military and civilian victims of war. Let us not forget
also, the cost to national treasuries, and the cost to taxpayers.
Yesterday, July 4th, 2007, Independence Day
for the
The veterans, dressed in authentic desert
combat uniforms, staged a series of mock combat patrols
depicting actions and missions they performed in
Scenario one was called
a "detention" mission, wherein the patrol encountered a peaceful
gathering of Iraqi citizens (portrayed by veterans' family
members, friends, members of Colorado
Veterans for Peace, and Viet Nam Veterans Against the War)
which the patrol dispersed, by apprehending "suspected resistance
leaders" whom they "detained for later
interrogation". Those who were apprehended
were forcibly thrown to the ground, their hands secured behind their backs
with nylon tie-wraps, and bags were placed over their
heads. "Iraqi" bystanders protesting the detention of their
friends or family members were threatened with simulated weapons
(real or toy weapons were deemed too dangerous and intimidating for
the purposes of the production, so the veterans portraying the
occupiers held their hands in positions simulating holding an M-4 assault
rifle) and forced to submit, with loud shouts of "Don't make me shoot
you!"
Scenario two was a "riot
control" mission, wherein an "Iraqi" anti-American
demonstration was broken up by the patrol. The methodology
was similar, except the simulated Iraqis were more militant
and aggressive. The results were the same - violent apprehension and
detention.
Scenario three was a simulated event in
which the patrol received sniper fire from an imagined Iraqi
insurgent. In this scenario, one soldier would go down as if hit by
the sniper. The other soldiers would provide both covering
fire, and administer first aid, before carrying their wounded comrade to
safety.
To move from the site of one scenario to the
next, the patrol used the standard urban combat movement techniques.
These techniques involve cautious, watchful movement taking advantage of
available cover offered by the urban street. It is a slow process,
but essential to survival in a moderate to high threat environment. Using
this movement technique provided not only realism, but time for the
"Iraqi civilian" actors to move up to the next contact point.
The idea was to keep moving, repeating the various scenarios for as
many bystanders as possible.
The production began in
The purpose of this production was to
graphically illustrate to the American public the daily reality of the
American occupation of
Several volunteers served as
pamphleteers, preceding the actors along the route handing
out pamphlets, explaining what was happening, and the reasons these
We were very gratified that the reception was
overwhelmingly positive. Once people understood what was happening, they
very quickly grasped both the seriousness of the production, and the sincerity
of the actors.
At the close of the day, the Iraq Veterans
conducted a memorial ceremony at Veteran's Memorial Park, immediately south of
the
To a man, each of these combat-seasoned
veterans volunteered in the wake of 9/11 to serve their nation in defense
of democracy. And, to a man, after one or more tours in Iraq, each one of
these citizen-patriots realized that they had been lied to by their government,
had been used by politicians to make Iraq safe for exploitation by
corporate profiteers, and having returned alive but physically scarred and
emotionally wounded, are now being given short-shrift with respect to
health care by the military, and the Department of
Veterans Affairs.
The stated goals of the IVAW are: to
bring our troops home now; to care properly for our physically and
emotionally wounded troops in a timely manner; and to pay reparations to
the Iraqi people, who have suffered egregiously as a result of the
American invasion and occupation of their nation.
Colorado Veterans for Peace extends
our deepest gratitude to each of these courageous veterans of the
Charles R. Elliston
303-654-1754 (home)
303-378-2197 (mobile)
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