Now, in the 21st century, when the common people spend their entire lives submersed in sea of manufactured consent and propaganda masquerading as news, the struggle for information is where the real battle for hearts and minds is being waged.
In Feb. ’03 I met my husband, Mark Roman, standing on the Margaret Chase Smith Bridge in Skowhegan, Maine, protesting the impending attack on Iraq. That night as I held a candle and stood next to a new acquaintance, chatting, we were approached by a young man who had parked his car and gotten out to speak with us. “Why are you all here? I have a cousin over in Afghanistan, and my buddy is shipping out next week. Why would you do this?” he asked. My husband-to-be spoke up: “I’m here because during Vietnam when the Army was trying to draft me, I watched t.v. and realized my government was lying to me. Now I am listening to what my government says about Iraq, and it feels like they are lying again.” He spoke kindly to the young man, and a real dialogue ensued for about fifteen minutes. I started to know the courage of a real man in this culture, one who evaded the draft at the risk of being called a coward.
Daniel Ellsberg’s contribution to the truth about our war on Vietnam was historic, and laid the groundwork for heroes like Pfc. Bradley Manning. Brad’s courage has resulted in more than a year of prison without trial, allegedly for bringing us the truth in the video “Collateral Murder” (corroborated by soldier on the ground Ethan McCord). Brad knew what he was doing — exposing the lies of the U.S. government, and generating a conversation. Just what Dan Ellsberg did for us.
