Colonel (ret.) Ann Wright visited Olympia yesterday for a series of presentations on Iraq, on official wrongdoing within government, and on her new book, which is published by Koa Books. Dissent, Voices of Conscience: Government Insiders Speak Out Against the War in Iraq is co-authored by Ms. Wright and Susan Dixon. It chronicles the stories of about 25 government and military whistle-blowers who have come forward to expose corruption and wrongdoing in their respective professional settings.

Colonel Wright was a career diplomat with the US State Department. When the US Government, under the dictate of the Bush Administration, launched an invasion in Iraq she resigned her post (along with two other US diplomats.) I saw and listened to Ms. Wright give a presentation (on her experience vís a vís her professional career and Iraq) at South Puget Sound Community College. Her visit was sponsored by Washington Peace Action and BRICK (the SPSCC student group Building Revolution by Increasing Community Knowledge).

From press release:

Olympia, WA - To commemorate the fifth anniversary of the bombing of Baghdad, Veterans for Peace Chapter 109 will host a rally in downtown Olympia to demonstrate the community's frustration with the ongoing war, occupation and U.S. casualties, which are nearing 4,000. "Each new death of a soldier or civilian was some mother's child." - Dennis W. Mills, PhD - U.S. Army 1966-69.

Members of the community will gather from 10:30 am to 12:00 noon on Saturday March 22nd, from the 4th Avenue Bridge in Olympia down to Percival Landing, bearing signs and stories to share. Supported by Operation Democracy Olympia, Thurston County Progressive Network, and many other individuals, businesses and organizations, this family-friendly event will prove to be compelling.

[via email]

The Longshore Caucus (like a Convention) adjourned today, Friday Feb. 8 but not before passing an antiwar resolution to shutdown all U.S. West Coast ports with a stop work meeting on May 1, 2008 for 8 hours to protest the Democrats' and Republicans' continuing to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The resolution from Local 10 encountered vigorous debate. In the end the overwhelming consensus to take dock action to stop the war prevailed. As the President of Local 34 Richard Cavalli stated this resolution follows ILWU Local 10 and 34's successful Labor Conference to Stop the War held in San Francisco Oct. 20, 2007, as reported in the ILWU's newspaper, The Dispatcher.

A question has been raised about bringing up this decision to the local Olympia ILWU chapter.