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Veterans for Peace activists march in Boston's 2014 Veterans Day parade. (Photo: Tim Pierce/Veterans for Peace/Flickr/cc)
Condemning Trump's Pardons for Blackwater Murderers--and Illegal, Unjust, Unending War
"We call on President Trump to pardon real heroes like Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, and Edward Snowden."
Dec 25, 2020
President Trump's pardon of convicted mass murderers adds insult to injury for the people of Iraq, who lost hundreds of thousands of their loved ones as a result of the unjust and illegal U.S. war and occupation. Pardoning war criminals also adds insult to injury for the U.S. veterans who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and who carry the trauma of having witnessed atrocities against innocent civilians.
"Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars."
There are "rules of engagement" that soldiers are supposed to follow to avoid committing war crimes. But these rules are frequently disregarded when soldiers are asked to fight unwinnable wars against entire populations. Young soldiers with lethal weapons are overcome by fear, vengeance, racism, and hatred, and they know that there will be no price to pay for murder.
When of a few mercenaries--"soldiers of fortune"--were finally held accountable for their unforgivable crimes in Iraq, they are now pardoned by the president, who is Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. military. This sends the wrong message and must be rejected. Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars.
Veterans For Peace continues to call for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops and mercenaries from Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and all of the Middle East and Africa. We call on President Trump to pardon real heroes like Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, and Edward Snowden, and much-loved political prisoners like Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu Jamal. Such pardons would help to heal the wounds of war. President Trump's pardons do just the opposite.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
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President Trump's pardon of convicted mass murderers adds insult to injury for the people of Iraq, who lost hundreds of thousands of their loved ones as a result of the unjust and illegal U.S. war and occupation. Pardoning war criminals also adds insult to injury for the U.S. veterans who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and who carry the trauma of having witnessed atrocities against innocent civilians.
"Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars."
There are "rules of engagement" that soldiers are supposed to follow to avoid committing war crimes. But these rules are frequently disregarded when soldiers are asked to fight unwinnable wars against entire populations. Young soldiers with lethal weapons are overcome by fear, vengeance, racism, and hatred, and they know that there will be no price to pay for murder.
When of a few mercenaries--"soldiers of fortune"--were finally held accountable for their unforgivable crimes in Iraq, they are now pardoned by the president, who is Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. military. This sends the wrong message and must be rejected. Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars.
Veterans For Peace continues to call for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops and mercenaries from Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and all of the Middle East and Africa. We call on President Trump to pardon real heroes like Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, and Edward Snowden, and much-loved political prisoners like Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu Jamal. Such pardons would help to heal the wounds of war. President Trump's pardons do just the opposite.
President Trump's pardon of convicted mass murderers adds insult to injury for the people of Iraq, who lost hundreds of thousands of their loved ones as a result of the unjust and illegal U.S. war and occupation. Pardoning war criminals also adds insult to injury for the U.S. veterans who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and who carry the trauma of having witnessed atrocities against innocent civilians.
"Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars."
There are "rules of engagement" that soldiers are supposed to follow to avoid committing war crimes. But these rules are frequently disregarded when soldiers are asked to fight unwinnable wars against entire populations. Young soldiers with lethal weapons are overcome by fear, vengeance, racism, and hatred, and they know that there will be no price to pay for murder.
When of a few mercenaries--"soldiers of fortune"--were finally held accountable for their unforgivable crimes in Iraq, they are now pardoned by the president, who is Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. military. This sends the wrong message and must be rejected. Soldiers have the right and the responsibility to refuse illegal orders to kill innocent civilians or to participate in illegal and unnecessary wars.
Veterans For Peace continues to call for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops and mercenaries from Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, and all of the Middle East and Africa. We call on President Trump to pardon real heroes like Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, and Edward Snowden, and much-loved political prisoners like Leonard Peltier and Mumia Abu Jamal. Such pardons would help to heal the wounds of war. President Trump's pardons do just the opposite.
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