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« The return of spam poetry | Main | Departure from the c.w. » Thursday, October 26, 2006Dissension in the ranksA Washington D.C.-based group of active-duty members of the military has set up a no-frills Web site called An Appeal for Redress. Soldiers who "sign" the appeal agree to send the following message to their Congressmen and Senators: As a patriotic American proud to serve the nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq . Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home. Meanwhile, a brother of former NFL star Pat Tillman, who was killed during service in Afghanistan, has spoken out forcefully against the war in in Iraq in an essay posted online at the lefty Web site Truthdig.com. Kevin Tillman, the author, was in the same Army unit as Pat Tillman. Both of these news items indicate the way the Internet has posed a challenge to military leadership in their customary efforts to limit dissent and activism among the troops. The Internet provides an outlet that is very difficult to monitor and that can reach a potentially unlimited audience. It can be much more powerful than passing around dissident fliers on a base, which is forbidden in some cases within the military. The Kevin Tillman essay has given rise to over 1,800 reader comments on the site, which were selected from an even larger total. Posted by Evan Hughes at 08:24 AM
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