[statecom-discuss] Cindy Sheehan’s Memorial Day Letter

[John Andrews]

Below is pasted the full text of Cindy Sheehan's Memorial Day letter in 
which she resigns from the Democratic Party.  Here anguish is palpable.  
She is groping for an alternative. And so are many Americans.

- John Andrews

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Cindy Sheehan’s Memorial Day Letter (May 26, 2007)

    Dear Democratic Congress,

    Hello, my name is Cindy Sheehan and my son Casey Sheehan was killed 
on April 04, 2004 in Sadr City , Baghdad , Iraq . He was killed when the 
Republicans still were in control of Congress. Naively, I set off on my 
tireless campaign calling on Congress to rescind George’s authority to 
wage his war of terror while asking him “for what noble cause” did Casey 
and thousands of other have to die. Now, with Democrats in control of 
Congress, I have lost my optimistic naiveté and have become cynically 
pessimistic as I see you all caving into as one Daily Kos poster called: 
“Mr. 28%”

    There is absolutely no sane or defensible reason for you to hand 
Bloody King George more money to condemn more of our brave, tired, and 
damaged soldiers and the people of Iraq to more death and carnage. You 
think giving him more money is politically expedient, but it is a moral 
abomination and every second the occupation of Iraq endures, you all 
have more blood on your hands.

    Ms. Pelosi, Speaker of the House, said after George signed the new 
weak as a newborn baby funding authorization bill: “Now, I think the 
president’s policy will begin to unravel.” Begin to unravel? How many 
more of our children will have to be killed and how much more of Iraq 
will have to be demolished before you all think enough unraveling has 
occurred? How many more crimes will BushCo be allowed to commit while 
their poll numbers are crumbling before you all gain the political 
“courage” to hold them accountable. If Iraq hasn’t unraveled in Ms. 
Pelosi’s mind, what will it take? With almost 700,000 Iraqis dead and 
four million refugees (which the US refuses to admit) how could it get 
worse? Well, it is getting worse and it can get much worse thanks to 
your complicity.

    Being cynically pessimistic, it seems to me that this new vote to 
extend the war until the end of September, (and let’s face it, on 
October 1st, you will give him more money after some more theatrics, 
which you think are fooling the anti-war faction of your party) will 
feed right into the presidential primary season and you believe that if 
you just hang on until then, the Democrats will be able to re-take the 
White House. Didn’t you see how “well” that worked for John Kerry in 
2004 when he played the politics of careful fence sitting and pandering? 
The American electorate are getting disgusted with weaklings who blow 
where the wind takes them while frittering away our precious lifeblood 
and borrowing money from our new owners, the Chinese.

    I knew having a Democratic Congress would make no difference in 
grassroots action. That’s why we went to DC when you all were sworn in 
to tell you that we wanted the troops back from Iraq and BushCo held 
accountable while you pushed for ethics reform which is quite a 
hoot…don’t’ you think? We all know that it is affordable for you all to 
play this game of political mayhem because you have no children in 
harm’s way…let me tell you what it is like:

    You watch your reluctant soldier march off to a war that neither you 
nor he agrees with. Once your soldier leaves the country all you can do 
is worry. You lie awake at night staring at the moon wondering if today 
will be the day that you get that dreaded knock on your door. You can’t 
concentrate, you can’t eat, and your entire life becomes consumed with 
apprehension while you are waiting for the other shoe to drop.

    Then, when your worst fears are realized, you begin a life of 
constant pain, regret, and longing. Everyday is hard, but then you come 
up on “special” days…like upcoming Memorial Day. Memorial Day holds 
double pain for me because, not only are we supposed to honor our fallen 
troops, but Casey was born on Memorial Day in 1979. It used to be a day 
of celebration for us and now it is a day of despair. Our needlessly 
killed soldiers of this war and the past conflict in Vietnam have all 
left an unnecessary trail of sorrow and deep holes of absence that will 
never be filled.

    So, Democratic Congress, with the current daily death toll of 3.72 
troops per day, you have condemned 473 more to these early graves. 473 
more lives wasted for your political greed: Thousands of broken hearts 
because of your cowardice and avarice. How can you even go to sleep at 
night or look at yourselves in a mirror? How do you put behind you the 
screaming mothers on both sides of the conflict? How does the agony you 
have created escape you? It will never escape me…I can’t run far enough 
or hide well enough to get away from it.

    By the end of September, we will be about 80 troops short of another 
bloody milestone: 4000, and MoveOn.org will hold nationwide candlelight 
vigils and you all will be busy passing legislation that will snuff the 
lights out of thousands more human beings.

    Congratulations Congress, you have bought yourself a few more months 
of an illegal and immoral bloodbath. And you know you mean to continue 
it indefinitely so “other presidents” can solve the horrid problem 
BushCo forced our world into.

    It used to be George Bush’s war. You could have ended it honorably. 
Now it is yours and you all will descend into calumnious history with 
BushCo.

    The Camp Casey Peace Institute is calling all citizens who are as 
disgusted as we are with you all to join us in Philadelphia on July 4th 
to try and figure a way out of this “two” party system that is bought 
and paid for by the war machine which has a stranglehold on every aspect 
of our lives. As for myself, I am leaving the Democratic Party. You have 
completely failed those who put you in power to change the direction our 
country is heading. We did not elect you to help sink our ship of state 
but to guide it to safe harbor.

    We do not condone our government’s violent meddling in sovereign 
countries and we condemn the continued murderous occupation of Iraq .

    We gave you a chance, you betrayed us.

    Sincerely,
    Cindy Sheehan