BRIAN WILSON and the TRAINS OF HISTORY in Democracy Now

BRIAN WILSON and the TRAINS OF HISTORY.
Brian y los TRENES DE LA HISTORIA

Hugo adan. October 28, 2011
[This is my reaction to the last show of Democracy Now]

The train that Brian Wilson tried to stop in 1987 is now being de-railed by American people and people in the south and all over the world who is joining the current radical movement against crook bankers and war-mongers. There is a huge train of solidarity loaded with nice dreams of post-neoliberal democracy. Americans that are protesting against Wall Street in the US “tiene amores, muchos amores” –many people loves them all over the world, as said by Paloma San Basilio in her song. This is the new train of history, the train that is destined to succeed. Brian Wilson, Scott Olsen and all anti-war veteran soldiers who are now against war and crook bankers belong to this train.

At that time (1987) the train was driven by Reagan, now is being driven by Obama. That train was full excrement, as it is now the train of Drones driven by Obama. Reagan was the one who accused Brian of being a terrorist for trying to stop the sending of arms & ammunition to terrorist mercenaries paid to crush the theology of liberation revolution in Nicaragua and the uprising of similar movement in El Salvador. No either Brian nor Theology of Liberation are terrorists. Reagan and Obama are the terrorists.

Today the movement Theology of liberation (a radical Catholic organization) has triumphed not only in Nicaragua (the country of Hnos. Cardenal and father D’Escoto), but also in El Salvador, and it is of course behind the success of Lula, the 1st proletarian President in Brazil (the country of Fray Betto and Leonardo Boff), in Paraguay, and in Peru (the place where Gustavo Gutierrez, the 1st inspiration of this Theology, was born)

Brian is part of this train now, he is recognized so by the Nicaraguan people, as a real hero. The same will happen to Scott Olsen, a 24-year-old Iraq War veteran whose skull was fractured by a projectile fired by the new administration in power. He will be also considered a hero. They are all in the same huge train that is going faster and faster and the day that both trains collide each other, perhaps starting the day that the by-partisan system financed by crook corporation is debunked by people –it will happens soon here in America- that day, the old train will be totally de-railed and out of history.

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"BLOOD ON THE TRACKS": BRIAN WILLSON’S MEMOIR
Transformation from Vietnam Vet to Radical Pacifist


http://www.democracynow.org/2011/10/28/blood_on_the_tracks_brian_willsons
Extracts. Go to the website above to read the complete article. Haz

Today we spend the hour with a man who put his life on the line twice: once when he served in the Vietnam War and again when he came back. On September 1, 1987, Brian Willson took part in a nonviolent political action outside the Concord Naval Weapons Station in California. He sat down on the train tracks along with two other veterans to try to stop a U.S. government munitions train sending weapons to Central America during the time of the Contra wars. The train didn’t stop. Willson suffered 19 broken bones, a fractured skull and lost both of his legs. "Before, I had spent many months in Nicaragua in the war zones, and I had been to El Salvador talking to guerrillas and talking to human rights workers, understanding the incredible extent of murders that were going on and maimings and displacements, because of fear of being murdered," Willson said. He decided, "I have to at least escalate my own nonviolent occupation, if you will, of the tracks." In retrospect, Willson added, "I regret that I lost my legs, but I don’t regret that I was there. I did what I said I was going to do... Following orders, I discovered, is not what I’m about."
Today, he is traveling the country visiting solidarity protests with Occupy Wall Street, where some of his fellow protesters are also veterans. He’s also been talking about his new memoir, "Blood on the Tracks: The Life and Times of S. Brian Willson." On the West Coast, he completed much of the tour on his handcycle. Now he’s on the East Coast.

I started by asking him exactly what happened on that day in September 1987, when he carrying out this act of peaceful resistance on the train tracks outside Concord Naval Weapons Station in California.

S. BRIAN WILLSON: It was a Tuesday, September 1st, 1987. And, of course, it was planned by me in advance after spending much time in Nicaragua and El Salvador witnessing the carnage of U.S. policy.
AMY GOODMAN: What was happening then there?
S. BRIAN WILLSON: In?
AMY GOODMAN: Nicaragua and El Salvador?

S. BRIAN WILLSON: Well, of course, President Reagan was—had his war on—war of terror and what he called the terrorists in revolutionary Nicaragua, that was—had overthrown Somoza, and the revolutionary process in El Salvador, trying to oust a very repressive, feudalistic government. And so, he was—Reagan declared there was a Soviet beachhead being formed in Latin America, which of course we all know is absurd, just another excuse for putting down self-determination processes in other countries.

So we knew the weapons were coming from the Concord, California, Naval Weapons Station, 25 miles east of San Francisco, and we decided to go there, after many efforts of trying to get Congress to stop the funding—this whole process of petitioning Congress, which is now pretty much an oligarchic institution representing corporations. We decided we would directly try to obstruct the flow of munitions that move on trucks and trains at Concord to the ships in Sacramento River. And so, it’s a three-mile track from the bunkers to the ship. It crosses a public right-of-way, highway. This is where we were vigiling. We had been vigiling for three months. Many arrests had taken place. I had only been a jail support person. And I decided on September 1st, 1987, which was an anniversary of the Veterans Fast for Life the year before on the steps of the Capitol, that two vets and I would do a 40-day water-only fast between the rails to obstruct, at least temporarily, the movement of the train.

So, I had watched these trains move all summer, with flatbed cars full of crates of white phosphorus rockets, 500-pound bombs, mortars, millions of rounds of ammunition. And it was just getting to the point where I said, I have to at least escalate my own nonviolent occupation, if you will, of the tracks. And we told the base what we were doing, why we were doing it, when we were going to do it, and asked for a meeting with the commander, and he refused.

So, at 10 of 12:00 on September 1st, we, the two other veterans and I, took our position on the rails, starting our 40-day water-only fast, knowing we would probably spend much of that in jail. There was a big sign next to our vigil that said, "Penalty for blocking federal munitions trains is a year in prison and a $5,000 fine." So we knew what the consequences were. I actually—and the first train was coming just before noon, first train that day. And the next thing I know, I woke up in a hospital, four days later.

I have no memory of what happened. Of course, I had 40 friends there who were witnessing it. The other two veterans just barely got out of the way. The train was speeding. The FBI, in looking at the one video, said the train was accelerating to more than three times its five-mile-an-hour speed limit at the point of impact. We found out later that the train crew that day had been ordered not to stop the train, which was an unprecedented—basically an illegal order. Why? Because they said I was going to hijack the train, which of course—there were 350 armed Marines to protect the base. There was usually local police present when we were present on the tracks. I had never envisioned it being a dangerous action.

And then, while I was in the hospital, an FBI agent was fired. And after almost 22 years, he was fired for refusing to investigate me and three other veterans as domestic terrorist suspects. So this was all shocking to me, just shocking that I, this all-American kid that grew up in upstate New York, even though I kind of shifted after Vietnam to being a dissenter, or my father would just say a marginal person—I just never imagined this happening. Of course, this government will do anything. We know that. But I would imagine it doing it to people in other countries, but not to me in this country. So it was a very interesting experience.

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MORE NEWS:
Mr.DRONE-OBAMA KILLS 44 PEOPLE ABROAD IN ONE SINGLE DAY



US KILLS 44 PEOPLE IN 3 COUNTRIES
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29532.htm

44 people have been killed in separate US assassination drone strikes in Somalia, Pakistan's northwestern tribal region bordering Afghanistan and Yemen in a single day.

By MP/JR

October 27, 2011 "Press TV" -- On Thursday, 13 people were killed and several others were injured when the US military launched an attack using a remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicle on the outskirts of Bilis Qooqaani town, which is located 448 kilometers (278 miles) southwest of the Somali capital Mogadishu.

The US also launched drone strikes on the outskirts of Afmadow city, situated in the middle of the Juba region and 620 kilometers (385 miles) south of Mogadishu, on Thursday. At least 25 people were killed in the aerial attack.

In addition, six people were killed in a non-UN-sanctioned US drone attack on Pakistan's South Waziristan tribal region near the border with Afghanistan.

SOURCE: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29532.htm


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CHECK ALSO THE VIDEO "THE ILLUSION OF CHOICE"

You Have No Choice
Global Insurrection Against Banker Occupation - GIABO

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29533.htm

Video

Posted October 27, 2011

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