On today’s show we’ll be speaking with one of my personal heroes, Cindy Sheehan. Then we’ll speak with someone who might know a thing or two about our current healthcare system, a registered nurse of 25 years who has also worked for a health insurance company.

CINDY SHEEHAN
Next week, Cindy Sheehan will join other like-minded peace activists to just be there, near the expensive resort on Martha's Vineyard where President Obama will be vacationing the week of August 23-30.  She says "no good social or economic change will come about with the continuation or escalation of the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan."  Cindy is the mother whose oldest son Casey was killed in Iraq. Since then she has been on a crusade to end the wars and to hold George W Bush accountable. She even camped out in front of his Texas ranch demanding that he tell her for what noble cause that he killed her son. Cindy reminds us that we (as a movement) need to continue calling for an immediate end to the occupations even when there is a Democrat in the White House.  After all, as Cindy says "the body bags aren't taking a vacation - and as the US led violence surges in Afghanistan and Pakistan, so [too] are the needless deaths on every side."  

The President Exhibits Crazy Speech Patterns by Cindy Sheehan
As I listened to clips of Obama's speech to the VFW on August 17th, 2009, I was wondering if his speechwriters were on vacation and they just recycled an old Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rice speech.While the so-called left is focused on the health care debacle and is allowing the so-called right to define the debate when it should be: Medicare for all, and all for Medicare; Obama and his neocon foreign policy team are preparing for a decades long, bloody foray in Af-Pak.As Yael T. Abouhalkah, an editorial writer for the Kansas City Star, put it: President Barack Obama did his best imitation of former President George Bush Monday at the VFW national convention in Phoenix. Obama sounded downright hawkish -- and, yes, presidential -- when he addressed the issue of terrorism in front of the veteran-laden crowd…Dick Cheney could not have said it better.This is one of the reasons I am leading protests next week on Martha's Vineyard where President Obama will be vacationing.

The anti-war movement cannot allow itself to be co-opted by the Democratic Party any longer. We cannot allow the War Party and other elites to define the terms of the War Debate.

Obama actually had this to say in his speech in front of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW):We must never forget. This is not a war of choice. This is a war of necessity. Those who attacked America on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans. So this is not only a war worth fighting. This is fundamental to the defense of our people.

He also made a lot of other crazy Bushian statements, but this one has to take the cake and lead the charge for peace!One thing that we must NEVER forget is that the Taliban, and especially the people of Afghanistan (26 members of a WEDDING party, not WAR party, but WEDDING party were bombed and killed yesterday) DID NOT attack us on 9/11. Even if Osama did plan the attacks from someplace in Afghanistan (not likely) this war of choice is not about defending America. Remember: profit is not a consequence of war, it is the reason for war. And how can we as a nation allow the War Party to sacrifice innocent babies for the illusion of safety? Afghanistan is just as much a war of choice as Iraq is, and Obama is choosing to continue it by exploiting the lies. What is fundamental to the defense of our people is a sane foreign policy, not more war crimes brought to the world by the War Criminals in DC.

What is fundamental to our health and prosperity is to bring the troops home from Iraq-Af-Pak and reduce the Pentagon budget so we can afford such basic human rights as health care, housing and education.Besides Afghans and Pakistanis being killed and displaced at a Bushian clip, these days, our troops are increasingly being killed and wounded so the War Profiteers can squeeze more bucks out of violence. More of our families will be harmed while most of the anti-war movement stands down for Obama. This is unconscionable.

I don't care if you love Obama, or hate him, or something in between (he has the lowest approval ratings of any President after 7 months in office), we must loathe his wars and his crazy hate speech directed at our brothers and sisters in war torn regions.Please join us on Martha's Vineyard from August 26th-30th to demonstrate to the world that there are still some people here in America who want peace no matter who's inhabits the Oval Office.

For more information call: Laurie Dobson (207) 604-8988 or Bruce Marshall (802) 767-6079      
For more info or to donate to help with the expenses: www.CindySheehansSoapbox.com 

5:30PM - GRANT MARCUS
As the debate on healthcare rages on with an administration that refuses to utter the words single payer and town hall meetings that are devolving into shout fests with a few freaks brandishing weapons --- one has to ask, has the debate spun out of control? Are the concerns of what the people really want being drowned out?
To discuss the current healthcare crisis and what is being shown on corporate media, we'll be speaking with Grant Marcus. Grant has been a registered nurse for 25 years. He is also director of Nurses for Social Responsibility. On August 12^th Grant went to a Democratic Healthcare Forum at the Thousand Oaks Main Library to share his experiences with insurance companies and why he believes that Medicare for All is the best option. We'll hear what happened....

To contact Grant Marcus write him an email at grantpeacenurse726@gmail.com

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