Veterans For Peace, Linus Pauling Chapter

Message from the President

Opinions among VFP members about working with Indivisible vary, with some arguing that it is a “Democratic front group” that should be shunned, while others see the large demonstrations and want to work with local organizers to help build a more powerful antiwar movement at the grassroots level. Count me in with the latter group. If local organizers of Indivisible chapters are not following the dictates of national leaders, then being a part of it means that we might be able to influence how they operate.

Indivisible’s national leadership failed to mention Gaza when they organized folks across the country for their Hands Off event, but Palestine was definitely represented. People showed up in large numbers around the country wearing keffiyehs and carrying Palestinian flags and signs that said “Hands off Gaza.” Antiwar organizers could not possibly have mustered by ourselves the kinds of crowds that brought out local press coverage everywhere. It was an opportunity not to be missed.

Clearly, protesting at occasional large events isn’t enough to build an effective antiwar movement, but it does provide opportunities for organizing. Folks who come out with signs, shirts and flags indicating that the issue is important to them can meet each other and make plans to meet later to organize together. Attendees who focus on the suggestions of national leadership about what to protest are reminded of the ongoing genocide, even if they weren’t encouraged to protest it. This can lead to more fruitful conversations that could lead to more volunteers to work on Palestine solidarity. Finally, VFP and other veteran group members can talk to fellow veterans and encourage them to join their organization and work on the wider issue of ending war.

An even more effective tactic than showing up at another organization’s event is to work directly with local organizers to put the issue of war a part of their protests. In Eugene and Corvallis, OR, members of Party for Socialism and Liberation have done just that. They had  a seat at the table in determining programming at large events. At the Hands Off event in Eugene, half the speakers focused on Palestine and the genocide in Gaza despite the fact it wasn’t on the list of causes to protest recommended by Indivisible national leadership. At No Kings III in Corvallis, there were speakers from PSL and other leftist groups that they selected. That is how I was invited to speak there.

As you can see in the above video, I used the opportunity to criticize the national leadership of Indivisible as well as that of the Democratic Party. I contrasted their failure to oppose the genocide or effectively oppose the war in Iran to the efforts of the local leaders to include antiwar voices, and pointed out (as did the PSL speakers) that support for war is one issue that has bipartisan support. I was called “courageous” by some for merely pointing out the elephant in the room, but the response from the crowd was overwhelmingly positive. In fact, I was invited to speak to a meeting of an Indivisible chapter in Linn County by one of their leaders who had watched the video.

There is a difference between confronting an issue and being confrontational. To confront merely means to face it. The only way to fix a problem is to name it so that everyone needed to find a solution knows what it is. To be confrontational means to antagonize those who disagree with you. That never convinces those who do not already agree with you. We need to make this struggle biparstisan.

As a growing number of Americans realize, simply replacing Trump with another member of the War Party who happens to be a Democrat will not solve the systemic issues that led to his election. It won’t even bring us back to the pre-Trump status quo, because there is no returning now. The international order as well as the American economy is irreversibly changed. We have the opportunity and the duty to educate the public about the root cause of the genocide and the immensely unpopular war against Iran. In a word, the problem is imperialism.

American acceptance of imperialism under the rubric of a “rules-based order” has led not only to supporting Israel’s genocide and 7-front war, but the destruction of the American economy, which is about to undergo an unprecedented shock when the dollar ceases to be accepted as the world’s reserve currency and nations turn away from Western financial institutions designed to profit the oligarchs in the US and around the world who see America and other nations of the imperium as prize targets for neoliberal transfer of wealth.

Fortunately, the spike in gas prices that is rekindling inflation has made a lot of Americans recognize that we are becoming the Empire’s victims in a way that it previously treated only the Global South. The spike in gas prices is directly attributable to the decision to wage unprovoked war on Iran. Many know that the New York Times reported that Netanyahu’s 1-hour presentation to Trump’s war cabinet was “pivotal” in this decision.

Making the connection between the genocide in Gaza and the disastrous attack on Iran with support for Israel is a critical part of organizing resistance against the Empire. In making the case to Americans of both parties, it is important to make the connection between outrageous spending on wars for Israel, higher gas and food prices, destruction of the health care system, outrageous inequality, and all the other ills that Congress is not addressing.

All are related to the fact that the oligarchs who pull the levers of power in Washington are senior managers of a global corporate empire whose lust for power and control does not stop at the borders of the US. All veterans took an oath to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. We are trained to focus on our mission and not any differences we may have with one another. That’s why we need to take the lead in making Americans of all political persuasions understand that those of differing political views are not the enemy. The Empire managers, and the injustices they perpetrate, are our real enemies.

Our mission is clear.