An Iraq war Vet Sounds Off on Right-Wing Hypocrites

Charlie Anderson, an Iraq War Veteran who served in the Marine Corps’ Second Tank Battalion and is now Southeast Regional Coordinator of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), wrote something recently I would like you to see.

In a column called An Open Letter to Bubba, Anderson eloquently takes on the fake patriots who festoon their gas-hogging SUVs with “Support the Troops” magnets, while doing nothing to think about the Iraq war and even less to question a president who lied to take us there.

An excerpt:

I’ve seen you around. I’ve seen you driving your gas-guzzling SUV with the “Support Our Troops” ribbon on the back. I’ve seen you wearing your pro-war/pro-bush t-shirts as you walk right past me in my Iraq Veterans Against the War t-shirt as if I don’t exist. And I’ve seen you at anti-war rallies and meetings where I often speak, as you wave your American flag and call me a traitor. In this country we have freedom of speech. But you owe me and every other veteran of this war the respect of listening to our experience.

Your magnet says “support our troops,” but what have you done for us? Not a penny of the proceeds go to us, instead they go to sweatshops in China . You say that I am not supporting the troops when I say that they should come home. But I am, because I know that there was no threat to our nation from Saddam Hussein, I know that they had no weapons of mass destruction, and I know that we were not welcomed in as liberators. I know that the war was not worth fighting. I know, because I fought there. You say I’m confused. But what do you know about ? You’ve never been there.

If you’re not acquainted with IVAW, this piece of writing is a great reason to go there and get to know an organization that is erasing a lot of myths about military support for Team Bush. In addition to learning about their experiences in Iraq, please consider donating to IVAW here.

Finally, if you happen to know any of the bogus patriots that Anderson is talking about, please forward his article to them.