Actually, I really believe the fire suppression argument is bona fide. There was an article in the Statesman Journal the other day about a prediction this could be one of the worst fire seasons on records and Oregon is missing a significant chunk of available firefighters aka National Guard troops.

And there is a local terrorist tie-in. Desperate logging interests start forest fires so they can later do "salvage" logging. We need our militia at home to combat these terrorists who hate our freedom to preserve healthy forests.

True that the "POTENTIAL" fire season could be a disastrous one for the state. However, the real question is: Has Congress or the POTUS formally federalized the National Guard under a decree(POTUS) or an act(Congress)?

If so, the Governor cannot order the NG troops home with any reason. The Governor is the Commander-In-Chief of the State NG, only if there is not a Congress or POTUS has made an order of a nation emergency. If there has been an order, then Oregon NG units that are selected for active duty are under the total control of the Department of Defense for a predetermined timeframe; this why the first batch of Oregon NG units are coming home.

We can thank several Democrats during and after WWI for the command structure and the weakening of the state’s Governors control of the NG units thru out the country; this list includes Presidents Wilson and FDR, and Oregon’s future Governor General Martin. Several acts of Congress from mid 1910’s thru the mid 1930’s gave more to total control over the National Guard units in times of national emergency from the state governments to the federal government.

Gavin,

GOTV for the General election in 2006; could be a critical reason.

Pat,

I was practicing the kind of scurrilous damnation by innuendo that is common in anti-terror work these days, although I did not mean to be taken seriously. If I had, I would have included USFS employees and firefighters among the suspected terrorists. There is quite a bit of discussion about suspected ties between arson and salvage logging, though few arsonists, logging company execs or otherwise, have been caught.

http://www.fire-ecology.org/research/post_rider_salvage.htm http://www.mecgrassroots.org/NEWSL/ISS22/22.11SalvageLoggingLaw.html http://www.hcn.org/servlets/hcn.Article?article_id=2747 http://www.theharbinger.org/xvii/990119/milligan.html http://www.registerguard.com/news/2003/07/23/a1.letitburn.0723.html http://www.biodiversityassociates.org/bhnf/alerts/a5feb01.html http://eatthestate.org/08-01/NaturePolitics.htm http://www.endangeredforests.org/take_action/umpqua.htm http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/84123_arson24.shtml

Military Families Speak Out and Veterans for peace chapter 72 have tried to introduce a resolution to this effect. We had a rally on the steps of the Capital on March 1st to do just that. It reads:

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Resolution Calling for the Withdrawal of Oregon’s National Guard Troops from Iraq and Afghanistan:

Whereas, all conditions underlying PL 107-243 (10/16/02) authorizing military action against Iraq either have been proven false and all U.S. troops who are serving or have served in Iraq were sent to war for reasons that have been proven false;

Whereas, the Governor and State Legislature of Oregon have a particular responsibility to the members of the Oregon National Guard, their families and to the community that they serve;

Whereas, the Oregon National Guard was created for the protection of the citizens of Oregon from natural disasters or threats of violence within the state boundaries, as well as to protect the sovereignty of US borders;

Whereas, Oregon’s National Guard troops have been called up in unprecedented numbers, at the highest per capita level of any state, to serve on active duty in both Iraq and Afghanistan;

Whereas, absent the deployment of U.S. forces to Iraq, there would be no need for the use of National Guard troops in Afghanistan;

Whereas, Oregon National Guard troops have been poorly equipped and have received only rudimentary training for service in these wars, and are therefore suffering casualties at rates considerably higher than those of regular Army troops;

Whereas, Oregon’s National Guard troops are being subjected to unfair and involuntary extensions of duty well beyond the terms of their enlistment contracts, and their families, employers and communities have had to bear the hardship of accommodating the prolonged absence of the Guard members;

Whereas, the National Guard at home in Oregon has been decimated by the mobilization of our troops for these foreign wars, and whereas, a disproportionate number of National Guard members, in civilian life, serve as police officers, firefighters, EMT personnel, prison guards, etc., their absence has left our own communities vulnerable and ill-prepared for any natural disaster or terrorist attack within our own state borders;

Whereas, fewer and fewer Oregonians are willing to enlist in the National Guard because of the inappropriate use and unfair treatment of Guard troops by the US Defense Department and Army, leaving the likelihood that Oregon could be left unprotected for years to come;

Therefore be it Resolved: That the Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon calls upon the Governor to exercise his power as Commander of the Oregon National Guard to immediately bring, or cause to be brought home, all Oregon National Guard troops presently serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, or in training for those wars.

Presented by: Michele Duford and Eric Blickenstaff on behalf of Military Families Speak Out and Gold Star Families for Peace

Dear Michelle/Eric/BOHICA?/VFP72: I don't know about the rest of the BluOR crowd, but I would surely like to know what resulted from your March 1st event. Obviously, no bill introduced...but did you get any support (moral or otherwise) from our besieged legislators? Any abuse?? Please enlighten us further (and thanks for doing this)! PS I've been disappointed by the general lack of Iraq postings on this website lately, even around the 2nd anniversary of the invasion...my fear is that progs are falling into the general lethargy/complacency of the media & country, buying into the "election success" and abandoning the effort to get US troops out. This posting was heartening to see/read.

Andrew, We had some legislators come out and speak in support of our efforts but no one was going to introduce the resolution for fear of not "supporting the troops." I agree that there seems to be a weariness to fighting against the war. Not as many people came out for the protest march on the 19th as there was last year. The media is not helping either. They seem to be more interested in less important issues. To me it is the overriding issue of the day, everything hinges on ending the war. We had a memorial service and display on the 20th called "Arlington NW" where we put up 1,500 cardboard tombstones on the south park blocks and had a reading of the names of the dead. Barely a blip on the media radar screen. For pictures of the display go here and here We will continue our struggle.

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