On July 14, 2007, the 5th Annual Pigstock (the former name of Peacestock) took place. Speakers included:
Elizabeth de la Vega: former Federal Prosecutor, including a stint as Assistant U.S. Attorney in Minneapolis; has written articles published in The Nation, Christian Science Monitor, Salon and Mother Jones; author of United States vs. George Bush, et al, a book which presents in hypothetical form the background and legal case for a grand jury indictment of the Bush Administration on the criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Copies will be on sale at our retreat. Ms. De la Vega will speak on The Case for Impeachment.
Steven Miles, MD: Professor of Medicine and Bioethics, U. of MN; Miles’ new book, Oath Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity and the War on Terror, examines the practice of military medicine in “War On Terror” prisons. Using 60,000 pages of declassified documents, Miles shows how investigations of abuses have been designed to protect the generals in charge. Copies will be on sale at our retreat. The title of Dr. Miles’ talk is: Command Responsibility for the Abuses at Abu Ghraib.
Coleen Rowley: former FBI Agent, celebrated as the whistleblower who exposed the failure of the FBI to properly address information about the 9/11 plots, testified regarding her concerns before the U.S. Senate, gave information to the Dept. of Justice and the Joint Intelligence Committee Inquiry which helped lead to the 9/11 Commission; one of the original protesters of the Bush Administration with Cindy Sheehan in Crawford, Texas; recent Democratic candidate for Congress in the MN 2nd District, losing to incumbent John Kline. Ms. Rowley will speak on Truth, the First Casualty in the “War On Terror”.
Ann Wright: retired Colonel, U.S. Army and State Dept. Diplomat, one of three Diplomatic Corps officials to resign in direct protest of U.S. invasion of Iraq. Since her resignation, she has become a full-time anti-war activist, frequently cited, arrested, and convicted for her outspoken actions. Ann has been an active participant in Veterans for Peace and with the Iraq Veterans Against the War, who will join her in this presentation. She was one of the five judges in the January, 2006, International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration. The title of Ms. Wright’s speech will be, The Role of Dissent in a Modern Democracy.