Topic: Military

House GOP Review for 03/06/2008

By Tennessee Republicans | March 7, 2008 |

The House GOP Review is a weekly feature that gives Tennesseans an in-depth look at what our Republican state legislators have been working on this week, and a glimpse into what’s planned for the coming week at our state house. 

A commonsense DUI measure appeared again this week before a House subcommittee after questions and concerns were raised two weeks ago. The “Pass the Bottle” legislation, which would ban open containers in vehicles, was one of several DUI bills rolled out by Republicans as a comprehensive effort to combat drunk driving. Currently, no driver may consume an alcoholic beverage or possess an open container of such while operating a motor vehicle, but passengers may consume alcohol. The bill sponsor, in his opening remarks, said this policy invites drivers to drink as long as there is a passenger to which they can “pass the bottle.”

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Sections: Politics | No Comments

“Disgusted” army wife speaks out on Army’s response to soldier suicide surge

By Debbie Boen | February 4, 2008 |

Editor’s Note: Even as Ms. Boen was preparing this article, the issue of soldier suicide exploded on the news front again with these statistics:

Last fall, there was an article in the Leaf Chronicle [10.12.07] titled, Fort Campbell General stresses suicide prevention. It reported that with nine suicides for the year, and 16 deaths pending investigation, and with three suicides in the last two weeks, the general said:

“This is unacceptable and it must stop. I want everyone associated with Fort Campbell to take pause, and to focus on what we can do as a community to reverse this trend.”

According to the Fort Campbell Courier, [12.20.07 vol. 43, no. 51], Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, Commanding General at Fort Campbell, made suicide prevention his priority since he took command in 2006. He expanded the “buddy care” program, which has soldiers watching out for each other, to “unit watch,” a program used by commanders when a soldier has suicidal thoughts. Now he is training families to recognize signs through “Building Family Resiliency” programs. He was quoted as saying:

“The individual has got to take personal responsibility. They have got to take responsibility for themselves and realize that they can save their own lives. It comes back to the individual.”

An army wife spoke out about these articles and about what was going on at the base because of the suicide scares. This is her view, in her words:

I only became aware of these “programs” when there was apparently an increase in suicides in the November/December time frame.

At first I thought they had to be kidding.

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Sections: Issues, Opinion | 2 Comments

Major Gen. Gration on campaign trail in Clarksville for Obama ‘08 rally

By Terry McMoore | February 3, 2008 |

With Super Tuesday just two days away, the race for both Democratic and Republican nominations escalates. No race is heating more than that of Barrack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

On Monday, February 4, the eve of dozens of state primaries, a rally for Presidential Candidate Barack Obama will be held at the Tropicana Mexican Restaurant, 233A Tiny Town Road in Clarksville at 1:00 p.m.

Retired Major General Scott Gration, Obama’s top military advisor, will be present to speak on behalf of Obama, according to Terry McMoore, Director of the Urban Resource Center. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Politics | No Comments

Omnibus Spending: Senate missed the mark

By Chris Lugo | December 26, 2007 |

Last week the United States Senate passed the Omnibus Spending Bill, which included an appropriation of $70 billion for Iraq, showing that the Senate is once again out of touch with the basic values of the American people. According to a December 13th Gallup survey, Americans say that the war in Iraq is their number one concern, yet this past week the US Senate voted to “stay the course” and handed the President everything he wanted with respect to the war in Iraq.

American’s are highly skeptical about the notion of progress in Iraq, with only 11% polling responding that they are “pleased” with the results of the war. Yet Americans seem resigned to the fact that US troops are going to remain in Iraq. The simple fact is that the United States cannot afford to continue this war. In addition to the complete lack of international support for Bush’s folly, the middle class can no longer afford to pay for the war. The national debt is at an all time high of $9.1 trillion dollars and Congress has appropriated another $580 billion dollars in military spending, far in excess of the actual amount of appropriations needed to defend the national security . «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Opinion | 1 Comment »

Fuel the flame; honor our soldiers

By Christine Anne Piesyk | November 13, 2007 |

World war I officially ended on June 28, 1919, with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles. The actual fighting between the Allies and Germany, however, had ended seven months earlier with the Armistice, which went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918. Armistice Day, as November 11 became known, officially became a holiday in the United States in 1926, and a national holiday 12 years later. On June 1, 1954, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all U.S. veterans.

Saturday, November 10, was a day of parades, ceremonies, and memorials, flags, uniforms and speeches honoring the veterans of American wars, including the current conflict in Iraq. Sunday, November 11, was the actual holiday, the Holy Day of Days for veterans across the country. So what happened in Clarksville on this Veteran’s Day?

The light went out. An unheralded extinguishing of eternal flame in downtown Clarksville, a flame that is supposed to be a blaze of flame in the night sky over the city. This darkening should be considered an insult to every person serving in the military today, and to every citizen of this country. The darkening of the flame (which has happened before with no fanfare) is also a slap in the face to the vets of Vietnam, Korea, both world wars, and every other war in our history. The fact that it happened on Veteran’s Day and as Christmas lights are being illuminated citywide just magnifies the force of that slap. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, News, Politics | 1 Comment »

Alternatives to Violence Program: Releasing the anger

By Christine Anne Piesyk | October 8, 2007 |

“I would not volunteer my time for such a long weekend if I were not convinced of the efficacy of the program.” — Polly Coe

With those words, Coe said it is not too late to register for the next offering of the Alternatives to Violence Program, a transformative weekend program designed to break down the barriers of suppressed emotions and thus learn new strategies to break the cycle of anger and violence.

Coe, a licensed therapist, is once again offering this three-day workshop October 12-14 at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship at 3035 Highway 41A South. The $30 fee includes food and facilities costs. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Arts and Leisure, Issues, News | No Comments

One Soldier’s Wife: Stoic stance serves to hide a breaking heart

By Debbie Boen | October 1, 2007 |

“Soldiers do change during war, because how they cope tends to be individualist, isolating, not reaching out to others … I think that this war also damages the souls of many soldiers … Real men, soldiers, are evidently supposed to suck it up and kill on demand without a conscience, without feelings … – Polly Coe, Licensed Therapist

While our troops are overseas, scattered across the deserts of Iraq and spread over the mountainous terrain of Aghanistan, soldier’s wives juggle a variety of roles, stepping into and out of them based on deployments. It’s hard to keep all the balls in the air, and sometimes they all come tumbling down, rolling across the floor in every direction. As a representative of Clarksville Online, I spoke with one such wife, Shelly, who is reeling from the impact of life as a military spouse during war. I give you her story, followed by the complete text of Therapist Polly Coe’s comments on the impact of the Iraq War on our troops and their families.

The following is a transcript of my questions (CO) and Shelly’s answers:

CO: How’s the war been to you?

Shelly: When it broke out, we had just arrived in Clarksville (Jan 2003); we bought a house and a month later he was gone. When he’s in Iraq I don’t listen to the news. I can’t. And I keep it away from the kids. Things that happen in the war are too close to home; it upsets the kids. There’s a mechanical problem with aircraft and everyone is asking me if he’s OK. I honestly don’t know and I don’t want to hear or talk about it.

CO: How does the war upset the kids?

Shelly: Dad’s gone all the time. They idealize Dad, especially when he’s not here. A picture gets built up in their heads of the perfect Dad. They miss him and they ask, “why can’t he call, why can’t he come home?” It’s especially hard on birthdays and Christmas. We’ve had the “missed” Christmas, the early and late Christmas; the Christmas where Dad came to our hotel. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, Politics | No Comments

Irate reader, soldier chastises as “un-American” the voice of opposition

By Christine Anne Piesyk | September 14, 2007 |

I received an irate e-mail for my views on September 11, the war in Iraq and Bush’s America as a whole. I was called unpatriotic for not flag-waving Bush’s war. I was told to “grow up.” Sorry, but I did that the first time I buried a friend killed in Vietnam. He was 19.

But Iraq is not about Vietnam, and not really about September 11th; that was just the excuse that triggered a rush to war in oil-rich country.

Here’s the letter:

“Wow, did you really write that in the Clarksville Voice? If so, you really should be ashamed of yourself, and consider renouncing your American Citizenship (since you seem to be so angry and ashamed of the actions we have taken to prevent another attack) and go live among those “innocents being slaughtered” you so fondly speak of.

“I personally remember everything about that awful Tuesday morning six years ago. I was awake, but still in bed in my apartment in Nashville, TN; when one of my friends and my Dad called nearly simultaneously to alert me about this terrible “accident” at the World Trade Center. I immediately turned on Fox News and within seconds, the second plane hit the other tower, then news of the Pentagon being attacked, and then ANOTHER plane going down en route to the White House.

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Sections: Opinion, Politics | 6 Comments