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War was discussed in Rhinebeck by the experts: veterans. It was also the subject of a movie and forum at Upstate Films in the Village of Rhinebeck last week. After watching the film, "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb," movie goers listened to three war veterans speak against the current U.S.-led war in Iraq. President George W. Bush and his administration also were criticized. Vietnam War veterans Jim Murphy and Paul Kelly, along
with World War II veteran Jim Mearns, were the three
The Dutchess Greens and the Dutchess Peace Coalition sponsored the movie viewing and anti-war forum. Approximately 150 citizens were at Upstate Films for a viewing of the 1964 film, which is a whimsical movie about war and the hydrogen bomb. The discussion that followed, however, was anything but whimsical. It was direct and intense by the three veterans. Murphy said Bush lied about reasons to go to war with Iraq. He maintained the president does not understand the dangers of fighting a war because he never served in harm's way. "He doesn't understand the value of a soldier's life," said Murphy. Murphy, a Nyack resident, served in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War in 1966 and again in 1968. After Murphy served, he became a Vietnam War protestor. Murphy said when the Vietnam War ended he and other protestors believed it was the last stupid war the United States would fight, but, he said, they were wrong. Operation Desert Storm followed in 1991, which, Murphy explained, was a precursor to the war in Iraq now. Kelly, a Staatsburg resident, said Bush was kept out of Vietnam because of his father's influence. His father is former president George H.W. Bush. Kelly, who served in the U.S. Navy in Vietnam from 1969-1970, said he thinks the United Nations should get involved in the restructuring of Iraq. According to Kelly, the reason why Bush wanted this war in Iraq was for oil and profit. "America should be using its wealth and power to solve problems, not to continue to live with problems," Kelly said. "This is a war with a profit motive, because of a dependence on oil and petroleum products," Kelly said. "If we put our technology into solving problems, America would be a great country." Kelly said he found Operation Desert Storm extremely upsetting, and a friend, a fellow Vietnam War veteran, committed suicide then because the friend had Vietnam War flashbacks. Mearns, a Poughkeepsie resident, said the United States probably should have entered World War II sooner than it did, but avoided it until it became necessary. "It seems like the pendulum is going the other way now," said Mearns, who served in the Army in the Pacific during World War II. "Instead of avoiding war, we're looking for excuses to go to war." "We got out of Vietnam without winning it," added Mearns. "We should do the same with Iraq. We're losing it now, anyway. People are getting killed day and night." Rhinebeck resident Fred Nagel, a member of the Dutchess Greens and the Dutchess Peace Coalition, said he does not think only voting against Bush in the upcoming November election is going to bring about peace. "The peace movement is going to get us out of Iraq," said Nagel, who served in the military but is not a war veteran. "We all have to work together for peace." The veterans who spoke at the forum agreed that Bush should be voted out of the presidency. "It's going to be the dirtiest election we've ever seen," said Murphy. "I think each one of us can make a difference," Kelly added. "That's what's wrong with America. Millions of people don't vote. I think they're cowards."
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veterans who discussed their unhappiness with the Iraq war
and the Bush administration.