[This text is machine generated and may contain errors.]
BRAGG BRIEFS
GITS UNITED
J
;
~ew
AGAINST THE WAR IN INDOCHINA
Bragg Briefs is published in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence and
the United States Constitution. [tis a free press, published by aetive duty GIs
stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Bragg Briefs is dedicated to realizing
the vision of the American Revolution of liberty and justice for all peoples.
VOL.3 NO. 10 DECEMBER 1970
Lifer C.O. tries to dampen Christmas spirit
But 82nd troopers fight back
On November 30,1970 Maj. John A. Lasch III del-
ivered an ultimatum to the men of Company B 82nd
Airborne Division to the effect that if they did not
confribute to the United Fund that the men would
not be given half days off during Christmas holidays as
is Ft. Bragg policy.
This proved to be more than the men of Company B
could stand in view of past incidents. They are now
writing to Senator Burch Bayh in hopes that they may
be treated fairly by their commanders.
Since the men initiated the letter to Senator Bayh
they have been given the priviledge of having beer in
the barracks and sold in the messhall. Reveille forma-
tion is being done away with and lights in the bay can
now remain on as long as the men desire.
~ One cannot help but feel that the command struct-
ure is now trying to obuy off� the men of the comp-T
any.
In their letter to the senator the men of the comp-
any feel concern for conditions in the company, such
as the high rate of AWOLTs (because of the conditions},
verbal degradation by NCOTs and officers towards the
men, discrimination due to political beliefs, and unjust
punishment of individuals in certain instances.
In one instance because the man was wounded in |
Vict Nam and has extreme difficulty getting around.
This man, Pvt. Wilson E. Wright is currently awaiting
+ : ~ : I
a Special Court-Martial on numerous charges that are
basically weak grounds for an Article 15. This man is
currently in the Ft. Bragg Stockade, presumably for
violating a pretrial restriction which was not given to
him until the morning after he supposedly broke the
restriction.
The letter was signed by 22 of the 57 EMTs in
Jane Fonda backs
GI drive for justice
There is a major effort by the U.S. government and
the army to black out the knowledge of the existence
of the GI movement from the American public. When
Jane Fonda spoke to wall-to-wall people at Haymarket
Square on November 6th, she stated that this effort by
the government is a good sign of just how important
this movement is.
Jane Fonda came to Fayetteville Friday and Satur-
day, November 6th and 7th, to talk to Ft. Bragg GITs
about their position in the army and in this country,
and what they can do to make the army and govern-
ment more responsive to their needs and desires.
She talked about the oppression she herself has ex-
perienced since she started talking about the war and
the prison systemin this country. She said that she has
been travelling all her life, and that nothing has ever
happened to her until she started talking about Viet-
nam - an example of which is the harrassment she re-
ceived over vitamin pills from customs officials in
- Cleveland , Ohio, a few days prior to coming to Fayette-
ville.
She told of the maltreatment in the prisons, of the
living conditions and loneliness, and the way the jails
hurt people every day -- people who are often inno-
cent, people who are trapped in the prisons for a long
time for minor or trumped-up things because they are
poor or black or lawyerless, or they are struggling a-
gainst powerful people for basic human rights, or be-
cause they are any combination of these things.
The people at Haymarket were told that the most
important thing to people in jail is knowing that there
are brothers and sisters on the outside supporting you.
On the subject of the GI movement, Jane feels that
this is the most important part of the peace movement
because it is the link between the working class and
the essentially middle class peace movement.
People have to disassociate themselves from the
governmentTs actions in Vietnam by supporting the
peace movement financially, by supporting coffee-
houses, by spreading around and talking about things
like Bragg Briefs.
GlTs are getting together in Europe now too, and
the movement is growing every day in this country.
ItTs the responsibility of every person, every GI, to get
involved in life - because itTs our life.
Much of the evening was spent in a question and
(Continued on Page 9)
/
Company B, 82nd Airborne Division. |
discrimination
Two West Point graduates who are active members
of the Concerned Officers Movement. at Fort Bragg
have very cleverly documented racial discrimination
in area housing, and yet the Army refuses to act to
end it.
First Lieutenant Cornelius Cooper had just been
denied off-post housing by a white landlady when his
white friend, First Lieutenant David Vaught
her to rent the same quarters.
visited
She agreed to let Vaught have the apartment and
then confided:
West Point.
I didnTt know they let niggers go to
Yet even after this ~salt and pepper tactic had ex-
posed a clear case of racial discrimination, the Army
refused to correct this injustice.
Usually blacks will meet a double-standard that is
(Continued on Page 11) |
Where not
to do your
Christmas shopping
Well, sorry to report that our guardian angel, this
manTs Army, hasnTt in any way responded to our plea
for assistance in curbing the rampart economic explo-
tation in the city of Fayetteville.
However, there has been a tremendous response
from within our own ranks, fellow GITs.
As a consequence weTve decided to ask for a pact
of solidarity among ourselves and during the next
month to buy all our Christmas gifts, monthly needs
and items for daily existence only at the stores listed.
sears, j.c. penny, k-mart, king shopping
center, treasure city. pxTs at bragg
An even better way to get your Christmas presents
and have an enjoyable time in the process, is to make
a little trip to Chapel Hill and visit the street vendors
on Franklin Street.
The street is filled with peopleTs handicrafts at
peoplesT prices.
This is our only means of fighting back. If we blow
this one, weTre only leaving the door open for greater
and ereater exploitation.
page 2
letters to the editor
DISCRIMINATION ON HAY STREET.
On the evening of the 17th of November, three
blacks were ignored by the two white waitresses
working in the Turf Club. Brothers and Sisters, this
shit has been going on far too long! We must work
together to end this senseless racism. Let us know of
any other incidents of this nature we will publish
them and let people know which businessmen they
can trust.
GEN. HESTER SENDS US TEN DOLLARS
* You have rendered your readers a signal service in
your issue (November 1970) oWhy We Lost the War
in Vietnam.� In the hope it may have a very wide dis-
tribution ,J am inclosing the modest sum of ten dollars
to help promote this end. I urge others who can afford
to do so to subscribe at least as much as this: more if
possible, less if not.
If the American people knew the facts disclosed in
this issue of Bragg Briefs, they would force the Nixon
administration to honor the campaign pledge of Mr.
Nixon to end this completely dishonorable war which
already has killed 50 thousand U.S. boys, maimed and
wounded a quarter million more, not to mention the
hundreds of thousands of Indochinese men, women,
and children killed, maimed, and wounded.
This cowardly, illegal, genocidal and utterly immor-
alwar of the U.S. government must be ended. A moral
crusade must be mounted now to persuade President
Nixon to end it now, not in 1972 as he promises.
Every man, woman, and child -- killed, maimed, and
wounded -- is now his and our responsibility.
Hugh B. Hester
Brig. General, U.S. Army (Ret.)
GI THINKS WE SHOULDN'T PRINT
LETTERS FROM LIFERS
I would like to point out that after having read the
October issue of Bragg Briefs and finding the article on
KP in the military I was really able to get a good laugh
, about how people who obviously have a limited scope
~of facts can be so much of an authority on things.
This individualTs fabulous statements on the nicety of
pulling KPin the U.S. Army could very well have been
the work of some lifer trying to keep the masses away
from the truth about KP. In doing some research in
the 82nd Airborne area I found that many of the things
that he said were true indeed, but that they hardly
represent the whole of the Army. I for one had to get
up at 4:00 in the morning in Fort Campbell, and at
4:30 at Fort Gerdon, and thatTs not to mention 5:00
in good old Vietnam. So I would hardly think that
what this individual said to be true for 82nd Div. could
hardly be true for the whole of the Army. To draw an
analogy,itTs like reading only about the ATs in life and
going around trying to tell people about the BTs. -
I would believe that the function of the Bragg Briefs
would be to inform the peoplein and around the Army
(Fort Bragg, and Pope Air Force Base) about the truth
that is in the Army that they would never read about
in normal establishment papers. | think that the edi-
torial staff of Bragg Briefs could have used just a little
more discretion before publishing so ludicrous an arti- _
cle. If people are looking for out and out lies they can
refer to their local news papers who seemingly special-
ize in it.
I would also like to commend the editorial staff of
Bragg Briefs who are working daily to bring the true
issues to the omedia controlled public.� It is in my
Opinion that they have and are doing a fine job and
hope for them the best in their never-ending battle to
try and bring the long-hidden truths about the Army
to the surface for public appraisal. oKeep On Pushing.�
From a GI Who Appreciates a Chance to
Read the Truth about Sick and Corrupt
Establishments.
Brothers:
The 612th Qm Co. Fort Bragg, N.C. is commanded
by some; of the most unorganized officers and NCOTs
in the Army.
Major Robert P. SchlosserTs goal is to keep the
blacks and whites from uniting.
The black soldiers of the 612th Qm. Co. wish to
live together with whites, blacks, greens, etc...with
all races.
To give the people anT example of what the blacks
.and whites are going through - Friday night, the 27th
PARALYZED VETERAN SAYS WE HAVE GUTS
Dear Friend:
Thank you very much for your paper. I am reading
it with great interest and will pass it on. It takes a lot
of guts to put it out and you have my respect. I served
in combat during World War 2 but would go to prison
before I would serve in this immoral war.
Iam a college graduate, but am totally paralysed so
this letter is being written for me -- which is why it is
so short.
I have two sons. One just turned 18 and the other
is at UNC. I donTt know what they are going to do,
but I am going to try to back them up.
Regards,
Frank OTNeill
THERETS TROUBLE IN THE 612TH QUARTERMASTER COMPANY
of November, four black soldiers entered one of the
barracks in what they wish to call their company.
When they walked in, they began to play around
with each other and some of the whites. These guys
_ work with each other everyday.
Major Schlosser found out about how the blacks
and whites were getting together, and it seems feared
it to be part of the GITs United or something.
+ The white guy who was involved in the misunder-
standing stated that what went on was all a bad joke.
Major Schlosser demanded Pvt. Cave, Sp/4 Wil-
mounth to write out a statement on Sgt. McKinney,
PFC Astory, PFC Ferguson, and Sp/4 Seward.
At the present time our commanding officer, Ma-
jor Schlosser is forwarding a court marshall on PFC
Astory.
Sgt. McKinney is one of the outstanding NCOTs in
the company. He has a way with the lower EMTs; he
doesnTt throw his rank around you might say.
Major Schlosser is ~2 a spirit to get Sgt. McKinney
into a lower rank.
Now we ask the people of this United States, our
country where blacks and whites died so others might
live, we ask is this what the United States Army is
coming to be?
Is it so impossible for blacks and whites in 612th
Qm. Co. to be united?
The black soldier of 612 Qm. Co. wants the whites
and other soldiers to unite together and we will all
overcome the Army someday.
The Black Soldiers
612th Qm.Co. "
JEFFERSON, ADAMS,
AND FRANKLIN PROPOSED
THIS AS THE US GOV'T SEAL
BUT IT WAS REJECTED AS
TOO RADICAL
In the last two months, due to the undue harass-
ment, the ohardened convicts� of Cherry Point Brig
have taken it among themsélves to express their
grievences. :
Individuals being beaten, confined to solitary, and
personal servitude prompted them to go on strike.
RIGHT ON BROTHERS
-
If youTre sleeping later these days... page 3
you can thank the men in 39th Med. Grouy
A petition to Congress to abolish reveille forma-
ations, which was circulated in November through- DONT LET IT GRT YOU, GIR.
out the 39th Medical Group gained. the signatures of AMERICAN NATURE
135 men.
It was sent to the GI Office in Washington D.C.
and from this office forwarded to various members
of Congress.
Since this action was taken, a directive from
XVIII Airborne Corps has been issued to the affect
that, as of December 1, 1970, no men in XVIII Corps we (3:7 eS
jurisdiction will stand reveille formation. Men in our ae 8. Von meaeamnate®
. nd * peer so
unit are now awaken at 0600 hours instead of 0500 «omen eG.
hours and our first work formation is at 0730 hours
instead of 0700 hours.
We still manage to get the cigarette butts picked D °
up, the dirt raked and the company area beautified " PES emocrac in ever
each day. The only difference is that the shitty living eer Oat of humanitarian ~conceta. for veut y y
conditions and the made-work which exist through- :
: The Commander of the 39th Med. Group was 7
out the 12th Support Brigade, are a little more bear- anked on: Vadlous. bocasions if cevelié could be. dis. unit on base...NOW
gage ate re aa ane bag De een pensed with. His response was that he had studied
ae Site alternatives to reveille but was never able to figure .
from Congressmen and even one from Representative ChE
fh tsi t f gett ~
George Brown Jr. 29th District, California who off- Out & Way, of getting rid of it. It is extremely hard to
ey believe that with all his years of experience and res-
ered to cosponsor a bill if one could be drafted and pectable degree of education, he was unable to arrive
introduced before the end of 1970 as he will not be at a simple change in policy that has since been insti-
returning to Congress in 1971. We received one un- ised
theti fromSem Rrwis Sr. Senator
ee eR ae ee eee In reference to the above, the enlisted men in the *
from. North Carolina.
714th Preventative Medicine Unit Id like to com-
Every GI on this post better get one thing straight, Se eee ee ee
mend Capt. Robert W. Katayama for having actively
the only time the Army is going to make anything encouraged and supported an enlisted menTs council
more than a token effort to improve your existence
in his unit.
here is when they are forced to. Change will never be peer.
EM SHAFTED AGAIN BY LIFERS
The EMTs have jsut seen their Main Club traded for a barracks-styled
Mess that used to belong to the Sergeants. The EMTs had no say in
the swap, and the Lifers won again. MORAL: HE WHO HAS NO
POWER IS NOT FREE.
What used to be the main E4 club on Bragg 1s no
more. The NCOTs on Bragg evidently werenTt happy
with their new main NCO club so they felt that they
should add the main E-4 club to the list of recreation-
al facilities that they have.
On the surface this might not look like it was any-
thing to get upset about, but when you stop to think
about the fact that the EM on Fort Bragg now have
very few places to go to and that the main E4 club
was taken away from them for a reason that doesnTt
even make sense, you will tend to become upset and
frustrated and inevitably angered.
We have tried to look into the matter to try and
find something that would justify such an act on the
part of the lifers on Fort Bragg but we found that the
reasons given by the lifers didnTt hold much for fair-
ness towards the EMTs on Bragg. They gave such ex-
causes as, oWe have been runningT the EM club at
a lossTT. Now excuse me, but unless I am mistaken the
club services on army posts are supposed to be in exis-
tance for the sole purpose of giving the EM a place to_
go to without having to worry about getting ripped off
in the profit making clubs in the omilitary towns.
Could it be that the club services on Bragg are con-
cerned with making rioney rather than to give soldiers
a place that they can go to? Maybe, but there is an-
other possibility. Since the removal of all training
schools on Bragg the number of men who show patron-
age to these off post rip off joints was noticably reduc-
ed. Is it not conceavable that the civilians of Fayette-
ville could have possibly influenced the Brass to take
some action to return some of this lost patronage to
the rip off joints? I repeat that this is not a fact but a
strong possibility.
If the brass were so concerned about the money
involved it be rather simple to just change the club
from E4 and below to E-5 and below since there is
virtually no difference from an E-5 and an E at all
nowdays except pay.
No!!! The GITs on Fort Bragg refuse to believe
these tales that the lifers have given to us. We the
GITs on Fort Bragg have a pretty good idea of what
the real reason was and we think that it was and
still is an unjust reason. We the EMTs are going to
band together and petition for a redress of this
injustice.
pose Sanants: ohaar:
aetna
afd
The scheduled PeopleTs Constitutional Convention,
called for and organized by the Black Panther Party
for the end of November in Washington, D.C., was
forced into the streets by government pressure on
all the major meeting sites in the Washingotn area.
The convention was called in an attempt to gain
human rights through a constitution that will truly
serve the people, and to raise the revolutionary con-
sciousness of the participants.
Local churches had to be used for the majority
of the convention. But the space was limited and
cooperation was sometimes touchy.
_ There was a rally Friday night that started at St.
Stephans Church and moved down 16th Street to
Malcom X Park for speeches and music.
Bragg Briefs is published by GITs United Against
the War in Indochina, P.O. Box 437, Sprin
Lake, North Carolina, 28390. \feetings are held
on Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m: at the Haymarket
Square Coffee House and sometimes at the
Quaker House at 223 flillside. Offices at
Haymarket Square. Subscription-donation is
$5 per year.
Editorial Board:
Phil Friedrich - 12th Supp.
Dick Olson - 28th CA,
Bill oIcDonald -714 PVNT Med.
Ed Furin - 327 Sig. Bn. /
Skip - 612 QM Co.
Wayne Wrobbel - 714 PVNT Med.
Gary Lyben - 327 Sig. Bn.
Bill Talbert - 612 QM Co.
Bill Robb - 28th CA.
Mike Dolph = 530 Id. & Id. Co.
vant
ee. and the streets again
become a place to learn
The speeches, music and 10,000 people were all
there, but having no place to meet and lacking any
important speeches, people got edgy.
Saturday afternoon the Panthers fed everyone a
great communal meal, and Saturday evening Mike
~CetewagoT Tabor, of the New York 21, Bob Scheer,
ex-editor of Ramparts magazine, and Huey Newton
spoke to the crowd about the direction and the mea-
ning of the constitutional effort.
Mike Tabor read a declaration from the Black Pan-
ther Party. Some of the main points were:
**The United States is no longer a nation but an
empire.
**Anend to the concept of nation-states, because the
so-called government of the United States is the Op-
pressor of the people of the world acting through
imperialism. Only throughthe destruction of imper-
ialism can the success of the liberation struggles
throughout the world be assured.
**Capitalism is responsible for the oppression of wo-
men, the exploitation of working people and young
people, and racism.
**Support of all revolutionary people struggling for
freedom.
**oAll communities of the world have the power to
determine their own destinies.�
**The outlawing of racial exclusion.
**All clements of oppression would be swept away.
**oWe foresee a system of true communism where
all people produce according to their abilities and all
take according to their actual needs.
**A proportional representation that would assure
minorities of a voice in government.
oHUEY
Huey Newton spoke on intercomunalism, the need
for national boundaries to be abolished in favor of a
world government within a socialist framework, free
of racism and exploitation. "
He said that for the revolution to accomplish this,
such a goal may have to be passed from generation to
generation, and cannot:be accomplished as long as the
~ruling circleT if the United States remains powerful.
Hucy also said that there cannot be a peopleTs re-
volutionaty constitutional convention until land is
liberated, for we have been denied the use of public
institutions that are supposed to belong to the people.
Huey stated he would not consider it fair for the
Black Panther Party to draw up a constitution and
oDrop it on the peoples� head.�
LEST WE FORGET THIS CHRISTMAS
(Feople are sill dying
WHO IS NIXON TRYING TO KID? :
Who is Nixon trying to kid?
Two years ago he told the voters he had a plan to
end the war in Vietnam.
But more than 11,000 young Americans have died
since he took over.
Six months ago he sent troops into Cambodia and
agreed to help Vietnamese units in that,yland.
Today the Cambodian government is complaining
that the Saigon army is beginning to behave like a
conquering power instead of an ally.
None of this is too surprising to anyone who
knows of the traditional rivalry between the Viet-
namese and the Cambodians. But wonTt it be a
pretty sight if the Saigon army and the Cambodian ar-
my decide to fight it out?
Nixon said he would be frank and and candid about
the war.
But he did not tell the American people ot the U.S.
Congress that we had bombed North Vietnam in mid-
November.
They had to find that out from Hanoi.
Nixon has publicly expressed concern about US.
pilots who were shot down while attacking North
Vietnam. " :
But the rescue attpemt was nothing more than a
publicity stunt which endangered the lives of all the
pilots in North Vietnam.
Nixon talks of helping the people of South Viet-
nam.
But according to a survey conductedT theUS.
military (and inserted into the Congressional Record
in July by Senator Stephen Young) 65% of the Viet-
namese want us to leave their country, and only 5%
want us to stay
Nixon says that his Vietnamization scheme - which
is based on the ridiculous assumption that the Sai-
gon regime will be able to win a war that we couldnTt-
is succeeding.
But according to a recent CIA study, the Saigon
government is riddled like a piece of Swiss cheese
with people (30,000 est.) who support the NLF.
Nixon believes that he can disguise a militaristic
and imperialistic policy with noble rhetoric and by
co-opting the symbolism of the peace movement (as
he did when he flashed the peace sign at demonstra-
~tors in San Jose).
Some people are obviously still fooled.
But we think that in the end Americans are going
to realize that Nixon is not ending the war-but just
dragging it out.
Indochina...
in
WHAT DEGAULLE TOLD KENNEDY
IN 1961 ABOUT VIETNAM
oFor you, intervention in this area will
represent an inextricable entanglement.
oFrom the moment that nations become
awakened no outside power, no matter what
its means, can ever impose its authority.
oYou will experience this.
oEven if you can find governments on the
spot, which, for their own interests are
willing to obey you, the people themselves
will not agree and - by the way they did
not invite you.
oThe ideological considerations you evoke
will change nothing. That is why, the more
you commit yourself over there against
communism, the more the communists will
appear as the champions of national inde-
pendence, the more sympathy they will
receive.
oWe French have had this experience. You
Americans yesterday wanted to replace us
in Indochina. Now you want to rekindle
the war that we have halted.
o| PREDICT THAT STEP-BY-STEP YOU
WILL BE SUCKED DOWN INTO A BOT. .
TOMLESS MILITARY AND POLITICAL
QUAGMIRE, NO MATTER HOW LAVISH
THE INVESTMENT IN LIVES AND
TREASURE.
oKennedy listened to me, but events
were to show that | had not convinced him.�
e5
EMERGENCY NUMBERS
Haymarket Square 485-9792
Quaker House 485-3213
Post Inspector General 396-5106
Post JAG 396-5506
Rap House 396-2895
369-7513
82nd JAG 396-1904
ae nace eae mn Roe Ct ramet he ROO hi etn Oe tt nt I Vee SANA me Nc hn te
One of the greatest lies ever put over on the Ameri-
can people is the assertion that America has a free en-
terprise system. A Mos small portion of our business
is free enterprise: small shops, restaurants, etc. (now
threatened by chains and franchising), but the majori-
ty of business is controlled by monopolistic, domin-
eering corporations. American law says that anyone is
free to compete in the business world, but it should be
obvious that social conditions outweigh the laws. Is
the workingman actually free to compete with General
Motors?
The ofree enterprise� system says that competition
should be encouraged, but corporations found that
competition reduces profit. It does so because of the
fact that to compete, one corporation must make a
better product than its competitor. By working to-
gether, and pretending to compete, large corporations
can build cheap goods, knowing they wonTt be forced
off the market. Once corporations grow large enough,
they can produce goods at far less expense than small
business, thereby cancelling out new competitors. This
is what leads to monopolies and closed markets. This
control over the market is not something new. As far
back as 1888 the problem was recognized. President
Grover Cleveland said, oAs we view achievement of ag-
gregated capital, we discover the existence of trusts,
combinations, and monopolies, while the citizen is
Struggling far in the rear or is trampled to death be-
neath an iron heel. Corporations which should be care-
fully restrained creatures of the law and the servants
of the people are fast becoming the peopleTs masters.�
Attempts were made by the Federal trade commis-
sion and the anti-trust division of the Department of
Justice. Though attempts were made, they met with
little success. When the Standard Oil Company was
odissolved� in 1911, JTPT Morgan said, oNo law can
make a man compete with himself.� He was proved
correct.
By 1935 one-tenth of one per cent of all cor pora-
tions owned controlling interest (52% in this case) of
all other corporations. One-tenth of one per cent re-
ceived over 50% of the net incomes of all corporations.
This is a perfect example of o~the rich get richer and
the poor get poorer.�
Some may say, oCorporations are owned by many
stockholders.� The truth is that even though stock
ownership is spread out among many people, the lar-
gest part of the stock sold by a corporation is in the
hands of a very few, and they make the huge profits.
DEPRESSION
The concentration of wealth is one of the basic
faults of the capitalist economy. The workingmanTs
income is generally too small to consume all.the goods
produced, and at the same time, the capitalist has far
too much money to spend on consumer goods, or in-
vest in a market burdened by the poverty of the mas-
sion.
With the market flooded by goods and with no de-
mand for all the goods produced, production is then
slowed down. To slow down production, workers are
laid off. Being laid off gives them even less money
than they had, and therefore leads to even less demand:
for goods.
WAR IS BIG BUSINESS
Capitalists found that only in time of war could
full use of money, materials and manpower come a-
bout.
full
Large monopoly industry, having found they could
produce goods at a much greater rate than their coun-
trymen could consume them, were forced to go to new
markets. One of the richest markets to be found was
the government, and specifically the Defense Depart-
ment. The government could purchase a tremendous
amount of goods, at a terrible cost to the taxpayer,
and at a large profit to big business. These expendi-
tures on the part of government could easily be justi-
fied as oin the national interest� or to opreserve free-
dom.�
As an example, after World War II the need to jus-
tify the defense spending was great. It wasTat this time
that the military began to preach the unbelievable sto-
ry of the omonolithic communist conspiracy to con-
quer the free world.� These stories not only justified
the defense spending, but also made conditions ripe
for war with the communist countries.
On June 25, 1950, units of the US-controlled South
Korean Army crossed over the 38th parallel and the
Korean war began. This was a tremendous help to big
business. It not only led to big profits, but also sub-
Stantiated the fear of communism, since Americans
were told they were defending the free world.
When the Korean war was over the ocold war� be-
gan again. However, it was not long before the US gov-
�,�rnment was involved in another war oto preserve free-
dom� -- Vietnam.
Now with opposition to the war in Vietnam grow-
ing, the military-industrial complex must look for a
new country and a new war. It has been found in the
name of Israel.
With the increased production, due to near-constant
war, big business needs foreign countries for natural re-
sources and a place to unload surplus goods. Although
profits from these foreign ventures are taken by big
business, the US government (military) is used to pro-
tect the investment.
President Taft said that, owhile our foreign policy
should not be turned a hairTs breadth from the straight
path of justice, it may well be made to include active
intervention to secure for our merchandise and our
capitalist opportunity for profitable investment.�
With the balance of big business changing in the world
and each government trying to keep the profits of its
countryTs business high, war inevitably comes about.
Imperialism leads to war and capitalism leads to im-
perialism.
THE BIGGEST WASTE
Another basic fault of capicalism is that it is waste-
ful and inefficient. Under capitalism some of the pop-
ulation can not work even if they want to, while thou-
sands are able to receive incomes without working.
The system is also wasteful because it employs
thousands of salesmen and advertisers who spend their
time in the absurd practice of selling different brands
of the same product.
Another example of wastefulness is that the system
is not concerned with taking care of the people it is
Supposedly serving, but instead is concemed with the
margin of profit and keeping a high demand for goods,
which leads to destruction of foodstuffs and manu-
factured goods. And it must be remembered that cap-
italism leads to war, the biggest waste of all.
IRRATIONAL
An obvious fault of capitalism is that it is irrational.
A system cannot serve the needs of the people when
it is more concerned with the margin of profit the
Capitalist receives.
Capitalism, with its many faults and contradictions
is a very unjust system. Capitalism cannot be re-
formed, the faults are inherent in the system itself.
To serve the needs of the people capitalism must be
replaced.
SOCIALISM " A PLANNED ECONOMY
Socialism is not a cure-all for societyTs problems,
but it will alieviate the problems created under cap-
_ italism, that is: poverty, exploitation, insecurity and
war.
Socialism is not a reformed capitalism but a com-
pletely different economic system, free of contradic-
tions.
Socialism operates under the principle of collective
effort for collective benefit. Production will come
about because of the need for goods, not for the need
of profits. Socialism is not concerned with keeping up
a high demand for goods. With the elimination of pro-
fit, production can continue as long as it serves the
needs of the people.
oGentlemen, in times like these we must all make
sacrifices " let's lay off another 500.�
COMMITTEE OF] |. \
LIGHT INDUSTRY] | INDUSTRY
The fear workers now have of depressions, infla-
tions, layoffs, etc., will vanish because workers can re-
ly on a planned economy to insure constant employ-
ment and a constant flow of goods.
With the means of production in the hands of the
workers, no one man will be in the position to exploit
another. No individual can make a profit off anotherTs
labor.
When the measure of a manTs success is no longer
the amount of money he has, then men will no longer
feel the need to step on each other.
Another and perhaps the most important change
would be the elimination of imperialist wars. Although
foreign market could be utilized, the absolute need
for them would be greatly lowered.
The essence of socialism is that the goods producing
capital of a country (factories, shops, etc.) would no
longer be owned and mismanaged by a few, but would
be owned by all, for the benefit of all.
CENTRALIZED PLANNING
FOR SOCIALISM
Centralized planning is necessary to a socialist econ-
omy. Many feel that it is too big a job for the economy
of a large industrial nation to be planned by a small
group of officials. This has been proven wrong by
many countries. A planned economy has been used
successfully by the Soviet Union, Cuba, North Korea,
and other socialist states.
The argument has been brought up that the US (cap-
italist) has the highest standard of living in the world.
But it must be noted that the US was one of the earli-
est countries to industrialize. The socialist states have
done in 50 years or less what the United States took
200 years to do. This fact must be accepted regardless
of oneTs opinion of the Soviet states.
As an example of centralized planning we will dis-
cuss the Soviet Union. Their economy is handled by
the State Planning Commission (Gosplan). The task
taken on by the Gosplan is to accumulate statistics on
the number of workers, mines, factories, resources,
railroads, trucks, ships, docks, etc. With these statis-
tics they determine what a factory, for instance, did
the year before, what it will do the present year, what
it will do in the future. The ideas put out by the Gos-
plan are not the final plans, however. The plans must
be approved by all the people. Each phase of industry -
has its own planning committees which work their way
up to the central committee. This diagram shows it
more clearly.
GOSFLAN]
HEAVY
MINES TRANSPORTATION
SUIPS RS
WORKERS | WORKERS] [WORKERS
This diagram is obviously incomplete, but it illus-
trates the idea of different levels of committees.
Under thissystem the citizens of a socialist country
can control their economy. They decide what they
have, what they need, and how they will go about
getting what they need.
The aim of a socialist is to set up a society which
would be free of the contradictions and evils of the
capitalist society.
The only thing that most Americans know about so-
cialism is that they donTt like it. It is either taken asa
joke, or feared because it would enslave ofree Ameri-
oe common belief couldnTt be farther from the
truth.
All citizens of America are slaves now -- because of
capitalism. It goes without Saying that the one excep-
tion is, of course, the capitalists themselves.
Capitalism is a system whereby a small segment of
society can control the masses simply by owning and
manipulating all resources and wealth as is necessary.
This wealth includes everything from natural resources
(land, oil, iron, etc.) to all means of production (fac-
tories, shops, etc.). By incorporating this system, cap-
italists need not work, but only sit back while the work-
ing class supports them. One class lives by owning;
the other class lives by working. Capitalists get their
income by controlling the production of goods; the
working class, on the other hand, gets its income by
producing the goods for the capitalists.
It is therefore obvious that the capitalist needs to
be producing goods constantly and the worker, who
is also the consumer, needs to purchase these goods as
they are produced. The wise and successful business-
man is the one who invests the least possible into pro-
duction, yet takes back as much from the market as he
can.
One of the major expenses of production is labor.
It is in the capitalistsT interest to pay the lowest wages
possible and still employ workers. The capitalist must
make profits or he ceases to be a capitalist, and the
worker must make decent wages to survive. When the
worker makes a lot of money, the capitalist cannot af-
ford to pay labor to produce goods; yet when the
worker is not paid enough, he cannot pay for the goods
produced. Each can succeed only at the expense of the
Other. The so-called oharmony� between labor and
capital is non-existent.
With the capitalists need to constantly produce
goods, there also arises the need for constant markets.
As an example, when the automobile industry man-
ufactures enough cars to satisfy the needs of America
it cannot afford to stop production. Instead, they try
to convince Americans that they oneed� a newer and
obetter� car. To do this the industry procures an ad-
vertising firm, at a great expense, to convince the con-
sumer of his need. One would think that the money
spent on advertising could be more wisely spent on the
product to be advertised. But instead, as an added bo-
nus to the customer, to help him decide, the original
automobile is produced so poorly that the need does
actually exist to replace it.
In this way the capitalist is assured of constant pro-
duction, and the worker is assured of constant wages.
These wages are spent purchasing the capitalistTs goods,
éach time at a profit for the capitalist, and a loss to
the worker.
This system is employed by all manufacturers, not
" just the auto industry. Make note of the new models
of t.v.Ts, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. Each
yearTs model is obetter� or oimproved.� The exam-
ples of deceit by big business are too numerous to
mention.
The Soviet system is not necessarily the only system
that could be used. It must be noted that the United
States would not need to go through the tremendous
Struggle jo industrialize. The US is already heavily in-
dustrialized and could step into a socialist economy
easily. Of course there would be a letdown for the
Rockefellers, Fords, Duponts, etc. The US would not
become Russian but would develop the type of social-
ism best suited for itself.
People in the United States must begin working for
socialism. Capitalism is destroying itself and will de-
stroy America with it. Only through socialism can
America save itself and what it stands for.
Capitalism is the law of the jungle, survival of the
fittest. Socialism is civilization, cooperation and bro-
therhood.
---- Pete Gorczynsky
page 8
Peace Conference Hosted
: by GI's U nited
é a Biase
Plans Future
Actions Statewide
There is now national coordination starting to
take place around the concept of the people of this
country taking it upon themselves to end the war in
Vietnam by developing and signing a peace treaty
between themselves and the people of Vietnam,
outside of the unresponsive Nixon administration.
GITs Unitedof Fort Bragg sponsored a statewide
conference November 21 and 22'at Haymarket.
Square in an attempt to start area-wide coordination
on this action.
There were approximatly 60 people representing
a dozen statewide organizations, who came to study
and discuss the Provisional Revolutionary Govern-
ment of VietnamsT 8 point peace program, and try
to develop means of relating alternatives to the
present non-efforts towards peace of the federal
government to the people of North Carolina, "
LITERATURE FROM REP
Radical Education Project has lots of lit about and for
all parts of the growing movement for liberation which
is rising within the belly of the U.S. monster. We make
a few cents above cost on each piece of lit, which we
use to get more information into the hands of the people
so all orders should be prepaid. Please order at least
one dollar of lit.
ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE !
(75¢) All Power to the People, Black Panther introd.
(20¢) Black Workers in Revolt
(I5¢) Fight On To Victory! League of Revolutionary
Black Workers
(35¢) Basta Ya! The Story of Los Siete de la Raza
(I5¢) Tierra O Muerte -The Land Belongs to the People
(20¢) We may not have much, but there's a lot of us!
On working women and women's liberation
(25¢) Protective Laws - for women, for everyone, or
none at all?
(10¢) Man's World and Welcome to It! introduction
(I5¢) The Gay Manifesto - on Gay Liberation
(35¢) Radical Defense Handbook
(50¢) Firearms and Self-Defense
(20¢) Birth Control Handbook (NOT TO BE RESOLD)
(I5¢) Having A Right-On Baby
(75¢) The Earth Belongs to the People, Ecology & Power
(20¢) Building a Rank & File Caucus - UAW Black Panthers
(20¢) Day Care, Who Cares?
(10¢) Vietnam & the Third World, Che Guevara
(50¢) Vietnam: A Thousand Years of Struggle
(20¢) Private Power and the New Indochina War
(35¢) The Red Book, Quotations from Chairman Mao
(25¢) The Other Israel, background on Middle East
free More information on Radical Education Project
~free Radical Education Project lit list
Elease add 10% postage and handling costs
The first day of the conference was given mos-
tly to workshops discussing the points of the Pro-
visional Revolutionary Governments peace plan.
Each workshop took one of the 8 points to discuss,
and then bring to the general body an explaination "
and workable form for statewide action.
During the second day of the conference the
results of Saturdays work were altered somewhat,
and plans were discussed on having a large confer-
ence on the Peace Treaty idea sometime in the near
future. CoordinationT between the various groups
was set up, and ideas about the roles of various
areas in the state on this action were talked about.
Information about the*planned state con fer-
ence will be forthcoming, and the PRG peace
proposal and results of the GITs United confer
ence can be obtained at Haymarket Square or
the Quaker House.
Total Enclosed
Mcil to: REP, P.O.Box 56I-A, Detroit, Ml 48232
Dinner at Haymarket
GITs and civilian supporters joined tog@ther on
Thanksgiving Day, NovemberT 26, to hold a peopleTs
dinner in Haymarket Square coffeehouse.
A joint project of Haymarket are, Quaker
House, Friendship House, and many other residents of
Fayetteville/ Fort Bragg (even including a few friendly
merchants), the meal, billed as a SoldiersT Thanksgiving
Benefit Dinner, drew over 100 people, most of them
GITs, to feast on turkey with all the trimmings, ham,
candied yams, and a variety of salads and desserts. The
coffeehouse added free coffee, cider and soft drinks
for the meal. After dinner, musicians got together in a
jam session to end the evening.
Libby Hamm, one of the people who worked on
planning and preparing the dinner, said, oThe real pur-
pose of lhanksgiving is giving. ThatTs why we're all
here: to share what we have with our brothers and sis-
ters -- to really give to each other.�
For those who worked on setting up the dinner,
there were some good and some bad experiences. Some
of those asked to donate did so gladly, with such com-
ments as, oThis is really a fine idea: why hasnTt anyone
in Fayetteville ever done this before?� (Could it pos-
sibly have: anything to do with a general attitude of
contempt toward GITs, except when theyTre spending
money?) Others turned us away as ohippies� and
opeace queers� (which shows where some peopleTs
heads are at with regard to sex/war.
For GITs, it was an Opportunity to eat a great meal
without having to dress up and stare at a bunch ot ot-
ficers. Instead, you could have your turkey and FTA
too. As one GI put it, oI felt a lot more comfortable
eating ~ThanksgivingT dinner at Haymarket Square than
I could have in the mess hall.�
Bob Brown is in the stockade for having
to much fun in the Army. HeTs in jail for
doing cartwheels in the Company street,
for being too friendly with majors and
first sergeants, and for some strange wea-
son, not thinking the war in Vietnam is
fun -
"JANE FONDA
(Continued from Page 1)
Real violence is rats biting children, bigoted cops
harassing blacks, and the government staging morning
massacres of Panthers.
Jane Fonda talked of many things with the GITs .
of Fort Bragg, and left with people having a few more
questions and maybe a few more answers about
whatTs happening to themselves and this country.
Jane Fonda also left people knowing that they had
just met a very committed woman. A woman who
had seen much in life, and what she had seen had
make her stop and do some thinking - some very
serious thinking.
Jane Fonda cares very much about people and the
lives they are forced to live. She has made the de-
cision to take it upon herself to try to go out and
work for people - a very big decision - a very big
person.
answer period during which Jane answered questions
from the audience on everything from the Black Pan-
ther Party to the ways women are oppressed in this
society.
She told of the ~Winter Soldier InvestigationsT that
soldiers and Vietnam veterans are calling for to inves-
tigate war crimes while the war is still in progress.
Jane asked everyone to listen for it and help make
people realize what~s going on over there.
When asked about the Panther Party, Jane said she
supports it because the Panthers are trying to deve-
lop a government representative of the people and
build a country where people arenTt exploited and
donTt have to live in fear of the government.
Many people are afraid of the Black Panthers be-
cause of the press write-ups which back the govern-
mentTs efforts to destroy the Panthers.
If people would look at the situation objectively
they would see that the Panthers are not lying when
they state that they have taken up arms in self-de-
fense;
Polluted Mother Goose?
" E@OLOGY PAPERS#2.
Hush-a-bye, Birdy,
On the tree top,
When the wind blows,
Your breathing will stop.
When the wind dies,
Your feathers will fall,
And down will come Birdy,
Springtime and all.
J
J
The big oil slick.
m9 es
me ? quic 3
Jump over
rv
al
Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water;
Jack came down with hepatitis,
And Jill carne down soon after.
Little Bo Peep has lost her sheep
And doesn+ know where to find them:
They ate some grass
Flavored with gas
Which Seriously undermined ther.
Mistress Mary, quite contrary,
How does your enaqrowP sm
With Pard Sadie and Miller cans
And coke bottles all in a row.
sage 10
oYun DONE GOOD, BOY..
cf RNY OF THEM IS STILL ALWe,
WE'LL HANG 'Em."
(ee
Now) DON'T WORRY,
ndependent
Guardian #
Guaranteed & |
notto 4
blow
your
mind!
ThatTs not the function of a revolutionary newspaper. What the
weekly Guardian does do is provide the news, fact, analysis and
opinion that will help you to understand peopleTs struggles and the
movements for fundamental change in the U.S. and throughout
the world. Of course our bias shows. We think it should. But not
at the expense of accuracy or candor. Any typical issue might
contain the latest news about Indochina by
Wilfred Burchett, an analysis
of a major strike, a report on
the antiwar and student move-
ments, coverage of womenTs
liberation (not womenTs
olib�), the black liberation
struggle, a roundup of Asian,
African and Latin American
revolutionary actions, film and
book reviews, etc. Find out
why the Guardian is AmericaTs
largest-circulation radical
weekly at half-price, $5, with
this ad (or $1 for a 10 week
trial). |
GUARDIAN, 32 W. 22nd St.
New York, N.Y. 10010
Enclosed is:
aah $5 for a one-year sub.
(Add $2 for Canada)
es. $1 for a 10-week trial.
ARTICLE 138: IN DEFENCE OF YOUR RIGHTS
Bob Rivken entered the Army as a
draftee He caught hell in basic, got
harassed about not buying a savings bond
in AIT, and served as an EM both at Ft.
Polk and Korea.
He was different only because he was
a lawyer, a graduate of Yale Law School
who refused a four year hitch as a JAG
Captain to serve two years as an enlist-
ed man advising and defending other GITs
in a Legal Assistance Office.
When he ETSed, however, he didnTt
go home and forget the Army...he wrote
a book, GI Rights and Army Justice: The
DrafteeTs Guide to Military Life and Law,
an invaluable guide for GITS both new and
old. The book is oriented for the draftee
and follows him from the induction cen-
ter to ETS, advising on everything from
reenlistment interviews to Article 15Ts.
GI Rights and Army Justice, though,
goes much further. Besides giving legal
advice on everything from court-martials
to getting out for good, it explores the
meaning of the military in American so-
ciety today.
Rivken explores oThe Military Mind�
commenting about the authoritarian nat-
ure of militaristTs psychological makeup
that allows them to be fanatically anti-
Communist and at the same time willing
to accept the alternate totalitarian tyr-
anny of the military itself.
Says Rivken, oAnd yet if there should
ever be a ~Communist takeoverT (or a Fas-
cist takeover, for that matter) in the US,
it is likely that they would become the
systemTs bureaucratic functionaries and
that you would join the democratic guer-
rilla resistance.�
RivkenTs perceptive analogies also ex-
RivkenTs perceptive analogies also ex-
fend to the dilemma of the black lifer
versus the black draftee, to the bureau-
cratic hassle of applying for conscientious
objector discharge, and to an exploration
of the brainwashing techniques of basic
and AIT.
The book is easy to understand, legally
sound, and cautious. Rivken had the help
of Melvin Wulf and Marvin Karpatkin of
the American Civil Liberties Union in
New York on legal matters and footnotesT
legal precedents and cases heavily.
The cautious warnings of legal uncer-
tainty and extra-legal harassment certain
to accompany testing those uncertainties
will perhaps be most criticized by active
GI's.
The book also fails to describe a ohow-
to� approach of opposition-it describes
the legal aspects, and leaves it to the ind-
ividual to plot his course of action. From
this weakness arises the bookTs strongest
section, its description of little-known
Article 138 of the Uniform Code of Mil-
itary Justice.
Article 138, part of a law passed by
Congress and not an AR, allows any sol-
dier considering himself wronged by any
commanding officer to submit a comp-
laint in any format to any officer for re-
dress. Article 138 further requires that
the complaint be examined and ultimately
forwarded all the way to the Secretary of
the Army in Washington.
Such a powerful procedure that makes
it impossible for an IG or other officers to
cover up a complaint is so strong that
Department of the Army is said to be
preparing a new Army Regulation to try
to surround Article 138 with administra-
tive technicalities to limit its strength.
The bookTs other main weakness is
its failure to explore thé political nature
of the military itself. How many officers
lobby in Congress, secure large contracts
for friendly defense contractors, mani-
pulate through� vast public relations bud-
gets the minds of people all over the
country, and insulate themselves from
Congressional or other outside criticism
is almost totally ignored. But the book
really isnTt a political attack on the Army.
It is a guide to life and law and that is
what gives it great value for the average
Gl.
Discrimination
(Continued from Page 1)
more disguised running into excuses such as ~just ren-
tedT or for couples or civilians or ~people who will be
living in the area a certain length of time.
By rights, the white landlady should have felt the
full weight of the law on her back.
**The civil rights acts of the 1960's clearly prohibit
~racial discrimination.
**AR 600-18 gives a post CO authority to put off-
limits any place which arbitrarily discriminate against
servicemen. This means that the housing aliowance
will be withheld from any GI occupying such a
dwelling.
**AR 600-4 details how to file a complaint with the
Department of Housing and Urban Development to
bring legal sanctions against offenders (HUD form 903
which is available from the Housing Office.)
Three weeks ago Lt. Cooper filed a complaint sta-
ting that even as an officer, he could find no respon-
sible mitary officer or agency to follow up hi
complaint. He has gotten no written reply to his let-
ter to date.
In conferences with Major Jones, the Housing of
ficer and Mr. Edge, the Equal Employment Oppor
tunity official, Lt. Cooper learned that no complain
about racial discrimination in housing has ever ben«
filed at Fort Bragg. .
Even worse, no office has yet taken steps to hel}
black GITs fight housing discrimination by investi
gating cases of discrimination and by filing suits a
gainst racist landlords.
Lt. Cooper observed that this was hardiy su
prising: none of the officials charged with handlin,
these cases are blacks; with few exceptions they ar
white southemers. ,
IN MEMORY OF FRED HAMPTON, ASSASSINATED DECEMBER 4, 1969
Fred Hampton, a black man
was slain in his bed
on a cold morning.
That was a death day for you, America.
Never could it have been colder
than at 5 a.m. that morning in Chicago
when your armed police,
understanding all too well
the meaning of Fred Hampton,
aimed their pistols at his head.
Your bullets didn't stop Joe Hill
. or Malcolm X
or women still unnamed,
Martyrs whose lives you never taught us we should celebrate.
All that blood we remember
it flows in us forever
We have the time
the tears
the blood
anything it takes to win.
TF tame fk
|
~ UNITED STATES 6§é
.
ee dl dial "S
ia
Jieejis"§
