Letters to the Editor 2010-2011 |
| Teaneck, letters to the editor, Sept. 16 Thursday, September 16, 2010 Last updated: Thursday September 16, 2010, 1:23 AM Teaneck Suburbanite March for jobs, justice and peace To the editor, This is an important time in history. The American people are finally recognizing that there is a direct relationship between the serious economic problems and the spending on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. These wars have cost taxpayers over $1 trillion – robbing our communities of desperately needed resources. On Oct. 2, join local activists in Washington, D.C. as we march with One Nation Working Together – a coalition of civil rights, labor, immigrant rights, environmental and other organizations. We are marching for jobs and sustainable economic recovery, redirecting money to fund our communities and bring the troops home, justice, civil rights and a renewable energy future. One Nation is an historic coming together of movements for peace and justice, including the NAACP, Veterans for Peace, United States Student Association, SEIU and others. Find out more at www.onenationworkingtogether.org. Buses will be available from Bergen County. To reserve a seat, call Nancy at 201-836- 2123 or e-mail nancynygard1@verizon.net. Seating is limited. Paula Rogovin MFSO, Bergen County Estina Baker NAACP, Bergen County |
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| Edgewater: Letters March 19 Friday, March 19, 2010 Edgewater View Troops still need support back home to the editor: Remember all the yellow ribbons on all the cars? Support the troops. Recruiters promised travel opportunities – yeah, to Iraq and Afghanistan. The government promised jobs would be there when troops came back - instead, unemployment. Shame on Congress for sending our loved ones to wars based on lies. Shame on Congress for abusing our troops with repeated deployments and for failing many of our vets who need health and mental health care and jobs. What a disgrace to let our veterans down like this. The US taxpayers have spent nearly $969 billion on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan! (www.costofwar.com ) We will spend $1million/year for each troop in Afghanistan this year. Congress must end these wars NOW. Since there are so few jobs out here, Congress should use the funds instead for a massive jobs creation program like that of the Civilian Conservation Corp or the Works Progress Administration. Also, we must provide health and mental health care for our veterans and their families. Readers, if you had a yellow Support the Troops ribbon on your car or window, it's time for you to speak up and truly show that you support the troops. We urge readers to participate in five days of actions to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The highlight of these protests will be a Speak Out – Sing Out called: Lift Your Voices Against the Wars on Iraq and Afghanistan! An evening of poetry and song on the 7th anniversary of the war on Iraq. March 19 at 7 p.m. at St. Anastasia Church in Teaneck. There will be an open mic for poets and musicians. See www.mfsobergencounty.org/local_events for details. Peace NOW. Paula Rogovin Military Families Speak Out, Bergen County Teaneck |
| Fort Lee: Letters Feb. 12 Friday, February 12, 2010 Last updated: Friday February 12, 2010, 12:55 PM Fort Lee Suburbanite To the Editor: As of Feb. 7, 984 U.S. troops have been killed in Afghanistan. Fourteen of them are from New Jersey. Nearly 10,000 troops have been wounded, 80 of whom are from New Jersey. In the next week or two, the Department of Defense will announce the 1,000th death. Thousands of Afghan civilians have been killed. The day after the announcement of the death of the 1,000th member of the U.S. armed forces: picket the local office of our Congressional representative (4:30 to 6 p.m.), Congressman Rothman, (25 Main St., Hackensack). Make signs and bring boots representing the deaths of 14 troops from New Jersey and shoes and sneakers representing the thousands of civilians killed in Afghanistan. These demonstrations and actions are sponsored by: Military Families Speak Out, Bergen County Chapter www.mfsobergencounty.org, Veterans for Peace, Chapter 21 NJ www.vetsforpeace21.blogspot.com, NJ Peace Action www.njpeaceaction.org. Paula Rogovin Military Families Speak Out, Bergen County |
| Teaneck, letters, Dec. 16 Thursday, December 16, 2010 Last updated: Thursday December 16, 2010, 1:22 AM Teaneck Suburbanite Teaneck Stand up for peace to the Editor, Some people were skeptical when members of the peace movement talked about oil and gas pipelines as a fundamental, unspoken reason for the war on Afghanistan. Last year, a forum about the issue of oil and gas pipelines in Afghanistan was held. We even arranged a briefing last year for our Congressman who said he was unaware of this issue. President Bush said at first that the war was about Osama Bin Laden. Then he said it was about building a democracy in Afghanistan. Then it was about helping the women. Get them there so they don't get us here. Destroy Al Qaeda. Destroy the Taliban. An article in the Dec. 12 New York Times, said, "A plan to build a regional natural gas pipeline across war-ravaged southern Afghanistan, long thought to be impractical given the dismal security there, moved a step closer to becoming a reality on Saturday...Oil companies proposed the pipeline in 1995, but dropped it off their agenda after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan the following year. The plan was revived after the United States-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001..." Yes, we in the anti-war movement, have long said that the war on Iraq was about securing oil, and a major reason for the war on Afghanistan is about oil and gas pipelines. Well over 5,000 U.S. troops and over 1 million Afghan and Iraqi civilians have died needlessly in these two wars. Hundreds of thousands have been wounded, millions have been displaced, and the infrastructure of two countries destroyed. According to National Priorities Project (www.nationalpriorities.org), more than $1 trillion has been spent on these two wars since 2001 - money we desperately need here at home for education, housing, jobs, health care, social services. I urge readers to call or write to their legislators to tell them to bring all troops and contractors home now and bring all war dollars home, too. I urge readers to come to the Peace vigil every Wednesday, at the Armory (Liberty Road and Teaneck Road) from 4:30 to 6 p.m. We especially need people to join the lantern-light vigil, even for just 1/2 hour, during these cold, winter months. Paula Rogovin Teaneck Military Families Speak Out |
| Teaneck: Letters May 12 Thursday, May 12, 2011 TEANECK SUBURBANITE Let’s address reality To the Editor, Do you know a veteran from World War II, the wars on Vietnam, Korea, Iraq or Afghanistan? Perhaps your family has lived with their silence or trauma from their war experiences. Recently, the Teaneck Peace Vigil marked the tragic death of 6,012 U.S. Service Members and more than 1 million civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan. We mourn their death. We know that many of our troops and civilians have suffered injuries, poisoning from US weapons with radioactive depleted uranium (DU), and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). While there is so often the call from those who take us to war, "Support the troops," we rarely hear politicians eager to address the long-lasting suffering from those wars. It is society’s responsibility to address this suffering. If death, injury, or war trauma have been an issue in your family, extended family, or among your friends, if you work with people who have been impacted by war trauma, or if you are concerned about this issue, we want to encourage you to come to see the 2011 Oscar nominated film, Poster Girl, on Wednesday, June 1, at the Puffin Cultural Forum at 20 Puffin Way. Poster Girl, is the story of Robynn Murray, an all-American high-school cheerleader turned "poster girl" for women in combat, distinguished by having her photo on Army Magazine’s cover. Home from Iraq, her tough-as-nails exterior began to crack, leaving Robynn struggling with the debilitating effects of PTSD. This short documentary by filmmaker, Sarah Nesson, follows Iraq war veteran Robynn on an emotionally raw journey to overcome nightmarish bouts of post-traumatic stress using art, poetry and activism. There will be a discussion with Robynn and Sarah after the film showing. The June 1 film showing is co-sponsored by the Teaneck Peace Vigil, Military Families Speak Out, Bergen County, Veterans For Peace, Chapter 21 NJ, the Leonia Peace Vigil Group, Haiti Solidarity Network of the North East (HSNNE), Bergen Grassroots, and other area organizations. Peace NOW Paula Rogovin Teaneck |