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Degrees of Difference: From 1971's Winter Soldier Investigation to 2008's Winter Soldier Iraq & Afghanistan

By Bill Perry

I was a Paratrooper Combat Veteran in Vietnam, from Dec '67 through Aug '68, including the Tet offensive which raged from January through June of 1968. At the 1971 Winter Soldier Investigation (WSI), I related some of my personal experiences witnessing the assassination of civilians, the illegal use of chemical warfare, and other inevitable excesses caused by our Governments' policy. Since I attended the 2008 Winter Soldier Investigation Iraq and Afganistan (WSII&A), I have been asked about my perspective on the two Winter Soldier Investigations, and what may have changed in 37 years.

The causes of both wars are similar, fear and oil. During the Vietnam era, communism was supposed to be the big fear. Commies were going to destroy our homes and our way of life. If we did't stop them in Vietnam, all the world's countries would fall like dominoes. Now, it's terrorists. The Administration uses Al-Qaeda as an excuse for war in the Middle East as well as the shredding of the US Constitution, imprisonment without charges, and torture. Everyone is familiar with petroleum in Iraq and the oil companies' desire to control it. But, Vietnam? As early as 1951, the US government was mapping potential oil fields on and off the coasts of Indochina. Today, Vietnam is pumping crude, 25% of which is sold to the US.

When it comes to racism and war, the WSII&A testimony made clear that nothing has changed. Reducing battlefield enemies to being less than human makes it so much easier to kill them. This well documented practice is as true today as it always was. The US military has sensitivity training, but it is aimed at limiting racism in the ranks, a not very successful effort.

WSII&A spotlighted sexism, sexual harassment, and rape - it's never about sex, it's always about power. WSI didn't cover this area; not because the problem didn't exist, but because there was a smaller proportion of women in fewer different jobs in the military back then.

Health issues for vets and GI's were covered at both events. Acute and chronic illness as well as mental and emotional health were discussed.

At WSI, we were fortunate to have testimony from Dr. Robert Jay Lifton, Dr. Hy Shatan and Dr.Jon Bjornson. They spearheaded the study of Vietnam Syndrome, now recognized as Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. A decade later, their empirical studies and intense lobbying resulted in worldwide acceptance of PTSD. At age 75, Dr. Bjornson is a driving force behind Philadelphia VVAW, and Delaware Valley Veterans For America. Today, vets and GI's still struggle to have PTSD recognized and treated.

Agent Orange poisoning, from the herbicide sprayed extensively over Vietnam, was a major issue at WSI. Vets continue to die from this plague and VVAW still co-sponsors the Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign. Most of us old timers will be long dead before the DoD settles up for its modern poison, depleted uranium, widely used in ammunition in the Gulf War as well as Iraq and Afganistan.

The Winter Soldier 37 year bridge began with the Legacy of GI Resistance, spanned 10 topics of extreme importance, and closed with the Future of GI Resistance.

Those of us who testified at WSI had virtually no peer pressure. Few of us went to 'Nam in whole unit PCS's. Most went as individual replacements to whichever units took the highest losses in the previous week. Our RVN Tours? Just "one and done." We came home. We had campus and 'hood ties that brought us together.

IVAW members who participated in WSII&A, often had State and regional National Guard and Reserve ties to specific communities. It's a lot easier to have your hometown local yahoos slap you on the back, and call you a hero, than it is to stand up to the inhumanity of this war, yet, IVAW members do exactly that. They don't take the easy way out.

IVAW networks, with MySpace, FaceBook, 42 IVAW Chapters, and ivaw.org, telling their stories on internet sites that reach round the world, to all 731 US Military bases. Active Duty, everywhere, will have access to the courageous stands, in defense of our Constitution, that IVAW members take, because that Oath, to "Protect and Defend our Constitution, against all enemies, Foreign and Domestic" NEVER expires.

The IVAW Veterans are afraid of NOTHING. Fearless is what your Logan Laituri's, Augie Aguayo's, Hart Viges', Camilo Mejia's and hundreds of other CO's who have already completed one tour, are. They've seen the real deal. They've said "hell no, I won't go back." Fearlessness is what IVAW members display, when they stand up to the sad sack caricatures who wave the flag, and protest anything sponsored by IVAW. We had 3 or 4 of them, standing in the slush, in February, '71, across from our WSI hearings.

Fearless is what Active Duty Sgt. Selena Coppa says, at Ft. Hood, and every other military venue: "I love the Army...but I can't be quiet anymore. One of the major things they teach us in the Army is values. Honor, Integrity, Courage." This Active Duty Sgt., and many others, empower GI's everywhere to question authority, and refuse illegal orders, as per the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and Nuremberg Accords.

In these dangerous times, we need these Soldiers and Marines to stand up, and fight back from within the Occupations.

IVAW's strategy is to mobilize the Military Community to withdraw its support for the Occupation of Iraq. IVAW is the Vanguard of the Movement of Veterans and GI's who are working to bring home our troops, and take care of them when they get home. I'm incredibly proud of them.

A Sea of Tombstones, at Philly's Liberty Bell, memorializes the 3,860 KIA of our War in Iraq. The Cost of War Display takes up nearly 3 acres on Federal land between the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, & the Constitution Center, attracting 10's of Thousands of visitors, from around our Nation, and the world.