VETERANS STAND WITH MUSICIANS ON CALL TO CLOSE GUANTANAMO
Senior Interrogator, Counter-Intelligence Agent
Stand Firm Against Liz Cheney's helping al Qaeda
recruit by keeping Gitmo open
WASHINGTON, DC - Veterans with experience in interrogations and intelligence are standing with musicians who have joined the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo (which includes VoteVets.org), and hitting back at those who argue that the prison facility in Cuba should be kept open.
Earlier in the week, a coalition of US and international musicians, including Trent Reznor, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Jackson Browne, Rise Against, Rosanne Cash, Billy Bragg and the Roots announced they were joining the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo (www.closegitmonow.org)
"Guantanamo Bay remains an effective recruiting tool for Al Qaida to this day. The longer it remains open, the longer we'll fail to do all we can to protect ourselves from terrorist attacks. It is the epitome of everything we could have done wrong in the fight against Islamic extremism -- unlawful detentions without charge and torture and abuse. We can only defeat ourselves in this battle, and Guantanamo Bay was, and remains, a big step in that direction," said Matthew Alexander, a former senior military interrogator who led the team that found Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, the former leader of Al Qaida in Iraq. Alexander has conducted over 300 interrogations and supervised more than 1,000. He is the author of How to Break a Terrorist.
A radical neo-conservative group led by Liz Cheney called those who are fighting to close Guantanamo "pathetic" in a story in the Washington Times on Thursday.
Yet, a former counter-intelligence agent in Afghanistan saw first-hand that it's Cheney who is off-base. Jay Bagwell, who served in Afghanistan said in a video recorded previously for VoteVets.org, "Torture makes our troops less safe. Torture creates terrorists. It's used so widely as a propaganda tool, now. In Afghanistan, all too often detainees had pamphlets on them depicting what happened at Guantanamo." That video can be found here:
VoteVets.org is the leading pro-troop, pro-security progressive group of war veterans. It recently joined the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, with Retired Generals Bob Gard and John Johns, and former US Congressman Tom Andrews. The campaign will support President Obama's call to close the prison and urge Congress to reject the scare tactics of Dick Cheney, and the far right, and shut down Guantanamo.
"The welcome mat for memoirs by veterans of operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom might never wear out so long as they write with the savvy of Brandon Friedman . . . Friedman's take is vivid, frank, precise and dramatic."--Military Times
"Add Brandon Friedman's The War I Always Wanted to the ranks of outstanding non-fiction produced by officers from elite combat units in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Always truthful, often excruciatingly so, The War I Always Wanted rises at numerous points to the level of literature."--Steven Pressfield, author of Gates of Fire
"A Time To Lead confirms the rewarding benefits of military service at a time when such service is experiencing considerable strain. It also includes a comprehensive description of America's current national imperatives, which deserve serious consideration."--General Alexander M. Haig, Jr., former Secretary of State
"This is a primer on leadership forged in battle and by decades of experience. . .This isn't just a book; it's a manual for leading people and living a good life."--Barry McCaffrey, General, USA (ret.)
"Whip smart, sassy, with a mouth as foul as a sailor's, 28-year-old Sergeant Kayla Williams. . .tells what it's like to be a female soldier in Iraq."--Booklist
". . .echoes military memoirists from Julius Caesar to Ernie Pyle."--Publishers Weekly
". . .a shocking, on-the-ground view of one military woman's experience in Iraq."--Bookmarks Magazine
Diaries and comments at VetVoice do not necessarily represent the views of VoteVets.org. VetVoice will strive to remove any illegal material as soon as it is flagged. Similarly, VetVoice will use its discretion in determining whether to remove exceedingly offensive material. However, between posting and removal, any offensive or illegal material does not reflect the condoning or endorsing of said material by VoteVets.org or VetVoice.
Similarly, the views expressed on this website are those of the authors alone. Opinions on this website do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Defense or any of its components.
Paid for VoteVets Political Action Committee. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. VoteVets Action Fund is a 501(c)(4) organization which primarily focuses on nonpartisan education and advocacy on behalf veterans and their families. VoteVets Political Action Committee is a federal political committee which primarily helps elect Iraq and Afghanistan war veteran candidates and educates about veterans and military issues aimed at influencing the outcome of the next election.
