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Disposable Surge in discharges includes wounded soldiers. Time for the Military to Solve Its Rape Problem Allowing qualified women into combat is a political triumph. But there’s a more insidious problem for women in the military, a misogynistic tradition older than the nation itself: when men go to war, women get raped. Far Right Vigilante Groups Are Again Recruiting in the US Military: Leaders of One Group Charged with Murder L-R: Isaac Aguigui, Christopher Salmon, Anthony Peden The War Comes Home: TRAUMA & ITS AFTERMATH On October 6, 2012 Citizen Soldier again organized a national conference for service members, veterans, family members, and helping professionals. View highlights from veteran and wives's testimony about the impact of PTSD at our Colorado Springs conference, October 6, 2012. View coverage of our PTSD Conference, held February 4, 2012 in Tacoma, Washington. View TV coverage View testimony, Part I View testimony, Part II View testimony, Part III KBR Ordered to Pay Troops $85 Million in Chromium Case KBR Inc. (KBR), the largest U.S. military contractor, must pay 12 U.S. soldiers $85 million in noneconomic and punitive damages for negligently exposing the troops to toxic chromium dust at a company worksite in Iraq in 2003, a federal court jury in Portland, Oregon, said... Assange, Activist Media Sue US Over Manning Trial Secrecy The upcoming trial of Pfc. Bradley Manning is to be held in secret. A group of journalists and activists, including Julian Assange, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the Department of Defense and the military judge, demanding access to the trial. "We Steal Secrets; The Story of WikiLeaks" opens in NYC and around the country on May 24th Half Boy / Half Man The average age of the military man is 19 years... Iraq War Veteran Catalino Rodriguez Surrenders Iraq War Veteran Suffering from PTSD and Depression Surrenders at the Vietnam Memorial in Washington   Citizen Soldier Director Tod Ensign Speaks Out about How the Military Failed Catalino and Others Like Him U.S. Army suicides spike July was the worst month ever for Army suicides - more than double the previous month's total among active duty soldiers. David Martin speaks with two heartbroken widows whose husbands sought help, but couldn't get it Army suicide widows: Too little, too late DRONES UN investigator decries US use of killer drones A U.N. investigator has called on the Obama administration to justify its policy of assassinating rather than capturing al Qaeda or Taliban suspects America's Secret Empire of Drone Bases: Its Full Extent Revealed for the First Time U.S. military Looks at Ways to Modify the Neurological Activity of Soldiers Making them fiercer warriors? Another Recruit Dies Trying to Meet Weight Requirement Danny Ruff, 22, from Tracy, CA ordered to lose 13 pounds in 16 days S.I. dad says Marine son victim of hate, just like Pvt. Danny Chen "Somebody did this to him, " dad claims. Army Probes Events Behind Soldier Death "Before he died he was harassed, and he was dragged out of the bed and actually beaten," Mr. Gee said. "The Army volunteered that information to the family." Vermilion Mom: Army Recruiters Made Son Diet to Death Wilsey's mother, Lora Bailey, said her son told her he was following recruiters' advice, including self-induced vomiting. UPDATE "Jury Still Out" on Army's Probe of Recruit's Death by Dieting Forum in Va. Beach tries to link veterans to mental help Roughly one in three soldiers returning from war reports psychological problems, the Department of Defense estimates. Veterans' Advocate Calls on V.A. to Research Potential Damage from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in Iraq & Afghan War Veterans Citizen Soldier has written VA Administrator Shinsheki Air Base Expansion Plans Reflect Long-term Investment in Afghanistan Three $100 million air base expansions in southern and northern Afghanistan illustrate Pentagon plans extending well into the future. Combat Veteran PFC Jacob Wade from Cortland, NY, with PTSD Diagnosis Surrenders at Ft. Hood, TX. A Test of Pentagon's New Policy of "Compassion and Caring" for Combat Vets AWOL Fort Hood soldier turns himself in By Chie Saito Citizen Soldier co-sponsors a National Conference on PTSD "The War Comes Home: Soldiers and Veterans in Crisis" Vet panelists confer: John Waltz, Navy Commander Mark Russell (Ret), and former Marine Captain Anu Bhagwati, head, Servicewoman's Defense Network Secrecy a factor in the rise of military suicides The Department of the Army has finally gone public and acknowledged the alarming rate of suicide among its ranks. The Life and Lonely Death of Noah Pierce A small-town soldier returns from Iraq broken. He is not alone. He thinks he is. A Focus on Violence by Returning G.I.’s ...the number of servicemen implicated in violent crimes has raised alarm... AWOL Afghan War Vet Trevor Loope from Ft Drum Surrendered at Different Drummer December 4: He Left in Search of Mental Health Care View his statement to the Ithaca Common Council, requesting active support as he returns to base and potentially faces criminal charges Network of GI Support Grows: Two New Coffeehouses for Soldiers to Open Coffeehouse/Counselling centers for Soldiers will open near Ft. Lewis, WA and Ft. Hood, TX in the next two weeks. The "Coffee Strong" cafe next to Ft. Lewis will provide educational programs, entertainment and GI rights counselling as well as links to psychological and legal support for Ft. Lewis personnel and their families. Coffee Strong also makes a mean cup of coffee! (Also see GI Coffee House Coming Soon next to Ft. Lewis; Tod Ensign to speak) The "Under the Hood" project, adjacent to Ft. Hood TX will also offer social programs, counselling and legal referral to servicemembers from Ft Hood--the Army's largest base. (Also see Under The Hood: An Anti-War GI Coffeehouse in Texas) These projects aid activists who're seeking to launch similar operations at other military bases during 2009. More info: Tod Ensign, Ft Drum, N Y (212) 679-2250 Seth Manzel, Ft Lewis, WA (253) 228-8912 Alice Embree, Ft Hood, TX (512) 740-4819 Coming to Killeen: A GI coffeehouse in the grand tradition The Oleo Strut Coffeehouse And The G.I. Antiwar Movement THE NEW GULF WAR SYNDROME US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are being exposed to toxic chemicals that pose serious health risks Revealed: Secret plan to keep Iraq under US control Post-War Suicides May Exceed Combat Deaths, U.S. Says Ft Drum Commander Tramples Soldiers' Due Process Rights 10th Mountain Soldier Files for Army Court of Inquiry to Probe Treatment of Wounded; Brian C. was Ordered to Iraq Despite Medical Profile Barring Deployment Different Drummer Cafe Convenes Public Forum on Mental Health Care at Ft Drum: View the Symposium Soldier calls PTSD an "ugly demon" Fort Drum asking civilian employees to deploy to Iraq Brad Gaskins: View Channel 9 Report on Brad Gaskins AWOL Soldier Seeking Treatment Arrested (Associated Press) Sergeant Fled Army, but Not the War in His Head ( New York Times) Thousands of GIs Cope With Brain Damage Former Army medic Eugene Cherry discharged; Army drops AWOL Charges after Cherry argued he received inadequate mental health services Marine's death came after he served in Iraq Told to wait, a Marine dies UPDATE: Spec. Trevor Loope is Free! Army Drops Court Martial Specialist Trevor Loope, 24, of Austin, TX who faced a year in prison and a Bad Conduct discharge at Special Court Martial for AWOL was discharged administratively by order of Ft Drum's Commander, Gen. Michael Oates on Friday, July 10th. Brains scans of symptomatic Gulf War veterans show differences More Soldiers Lose Faith in Iraq War

CITIZEN SOLDIER REPORTS 2013 [download pdf ] BOOKS  An Enfant Terrible Stumbles Upon the Vietnam War By Michael Uhl The Lonely Soldier – The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq. The Passion of Bradley Manning Reviewed by Abdeen Jabara The Untold War: Inside the Hearts, Minds, and Souls of Our Soldiers by Nancy Sherman review by Stephen Smith EDITORIALS Don't Thank Me for My Service Depleted Uranium: Wonder Weapon or Toxic Hazard? LISTEN TO LIVE BROADCAST OF THE WINTER SOLDIER 2008 HEARINGS FREE DOWNLOADS The Military Enlistment Contract and You The Facts; Your Rights THEIR VOICES JOIN THOSE WHO HAVE SPOKEN OUT AGAINST THE WAR IN IRAQ "Somehow profiting from tragedy and horror is tolerated" PAT TILLMAN'S BROTHER BREAKS HIS SILENCE "Let's stop this war before more are killed." Father of Lance Cpl. Edward "Augie" Schroeder II Laments His Son's Senseless Death Pablo Paredes: “…if there's anything I could be guilty of, it is my beliefs. I am guilty of believing this war is illegal. I'm guilty of believing war in all forms is immoral and useless, and I am guilty of believing that as a service member I have a duty to refuse to participate in this war. Captain Ian Fishback: "Despite my efforts, I have been unable to get clear, consistent answers from my leadership about what constitutes lawful and humane treatment of detainees" because it is illegal." Delegation of Californians Appeal for Sanctuary for U.S. War Resisters in Canada Kevin Benderman Convicted: Gets Fifteen Months Vigil Held, Demanding Benderman's Release Army Spc Katherine Jashinski: First Woman in the Military to Publicly Declare Resistance to Participation in the War as she faces immediate deployment to Middle East GI Coffeehouses Antiwar support at Different Drummer Café Vets organize GI coffeehouse outside military base Different Drummer Cafe FT. DRUM SPRING FESTIVAL "Residents seemed eager to embrace the marchers' dual message: bring our soldiers back and provide them with quality health care when they get home." An Antiwar March Through Towns Unused to One By Michelle York, The New York Times North Country Walk to Ft Drum Festival A Success By Tod Ensign