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The "Winter Soldier Investigation" was a media event sponsored by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) from January 31, 1971, to February 2, 1971. It was intended to publicize war crimes and atrocities by the United States Armed Forces and their allies in the Vietnam War . The VVAW challenged the morality and conduct of the war by showing the direct relationship between military policies and war crimes in Vietnam . The three-day gathering of 109 veterans and 16 civilians took place in Detroit , Michigan . Discharged servicemen from each branch of the armed forces , as well as civilian contractors, medical personnel and academics, all gave testimony about war crimes they had committed or witnessed during the years 1963–1970.

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121-586: Winter Soldier or Winter Soldiers may refer to: Winter Soldier Investigation , a 1971 inquiry into American war crimes during the Vietnam War Winter Soldier (film) , a 1972 documentary film chronicling the 1971 Winter Soldier Investigation Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan , a 2008 inquiry into American war crimes during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan Winter Soldier (comics) or Bucky Barnes,

242-472: A New York Times book review. Leaders of VVAW feared involvement with Lane would tarnish the credibility of the WSI. A new steering committee was created without Lane, but he was allowed to continue with fundraising events and was available for legal counsel. The new six-member steering committee for WSI was composed of three national office leaders (Al Hubbard, Craig Scott Moore and Mike Oliver) and three members of

363-500: A New York Times story a week later. The local field reporter for the Times , Jerry M. Flint, commented with uninterest, "this stuff happens in all wars." In a February 7, 1971 article he wrote that "much of what they said had been reported or televised before, even from Vietnam. What was different here was the number of veterans present." Several of the VVAW representatives speculated that there

484-485: A 1943 play by Daniel Lewis James Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Winter Soldier . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Winter_Soldier&oldid=1191702695 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

605-491: A 2004 affidavit making similar claims about Kerry, but after being challenged by other participants, admitted that his recollections were flawed. On 1971 archival film footage of the WSI panel, Pitkin criticized the press for its coverage of the war, and detailed what he considered poor training for combat in Vietnam, and low morale he claimed to have witnessed while there. Although he introduced himself by saying, "I'll testify about

726-1062: A December event in Washington, D.C., while the WSI's new organizers continued with the original plan to hold its hearings in Detroit . The Washington, DC, event would be called the National Veterans Inquiry . The Detroit event would be called the Winter Soldier Investigation. Seven of the 142 total participants would provide testimony at both events. The support of antiwar celebrities was considered crucial to generate both money and publicity. A series of benefit productions, Acting in Concert for Peace , were created and featured performances by Jane Fonda, Dick Gregory , Donald Sutherland and Barbara Dane . Two concerts by Crosby and Nash , as well as folk singer Phil Ochs , also raised funds. The WSI also relied on considerable support from

847-586: A Marvel Comics superhero The Winter Soldier (story arc) , 2005 story arc establishing the character Captain America: The Winter Soldier , a 2014 superhero film based on the Marvel Comics characters The Falcon and the Winter Soldier , a 2021 superhero television series based on Marvel Comics characters The Winter Soldier (novel) , a novel by Daniel Mason Winter Soldiers ,

968-497: A Medical Battalion describes incidents where Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) soldiers were treated without anesthetic. He recalls filling a syringe with anesthetic and setting it beside the doctor, only to later find out that it was never used when hearing the patient screaming. The testimony given by the soldiers during the racism panel of the WSI was presented as evidence that the veterans were justified in their disapproval of

1089-667: A Rewilding Earth . In its review of the book, the  Financial Times  noted that "...The influential US thinker...[argues that] humanity is shifting to an age of resilience that could transform our relationship with the natural world and each other...Rifkin sees a future of sweeping economic and social shifts where productivity gives way to regenerativity and gross domestic product to quality of life indicators. Consumerism, corporate conglomerates and globalisation all wither while “eco-stewardship”, high-tech co-operatives and “glocalisation” flourish. The book will undoubtedly prove beguiling for many readers, even as it infuriates others. It

1210-802: A coalition of smart cities and regions toward a Third Industrial Revolution”. Jeremy Rifkin joined Maros Sefcovic , vice president of the European Commission, and Markku Markkula , president of the European Committee of the Regions, in a presentation of the smart city and smart region agenda across the European Union. Jeremy Rifkin is the executive co-producer and star of a feature-length documentary film produced by VICE Media entitled The Third Industrial Revolution: A Radical New Sharing Economy . The film, subtitled in nineteen languages, premiered at

1331-563: A concern of only special interest groups, achieved widespread attention in 1978 with the publication of Jeremy Rifkin and Randy Barber's The North Will Rise Again ." The book helped lay the early groundwork for what later would evolve into the principles of environment, society, and governance (ESG) standards in investments. Rifkin's 1980 book, Entropy: A New World View , discusses how the physical concept of entropy applies to nuclear and solar energy, urban decay , military activity, education, agriculture, health, economics, and politics. It

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1452-576: A controversial subject at this event since the Pentagon had only days before denied that any American troops had crossed the Laotian border and carried out military operations. Five veterans from the 3rd Marine Regiment who had returned from the war were present at the WSI and refuted the claims of the Pentagon. They described their secret operations in Laos and also revealed that they were given meticulous orders to hide

1573-529: A diverse assortment of film, television, and music industry leaders, with the goal of organizing the Hollywood community for a campaign. Shortly thereafter, two Hollywood environmental organizations, Earth Communications Office (ECO) and the Environmental Media Association , were formed. Also in 1989 Rifkin, with a group of environmentalists, attempted to prevent the launch of a NASA rocket that

1694-566: A few weeks after the WSI. "The President should know that we are continuing the effort to discredit VVAW," Colson assured Haldeman. Nixon aides formed the Vietnam Veterans for a Just Peace , according to Colson, as a "counterfoil" to Kerry and the VVAW, and they did everything they could to boost the group. John O'Neill , representing this group, made public appearances denouncing the antiwar veterans and promoting Nixon's Vietnamization policy. According to White House memos, Colson worked behind

1815-757: A higher human price for the war". Studies have shown that black soldiers suffered disproportionately more casualties than white soldiers at the beginning of the war. Black veterans testifying at the WSI intended to show that racism by the U.S. military toward the Vietnamese, as well as toward non-whites within the military, were both extensions of the racism present in American society. Many veterans testified that black soldiers were demeaned by platoon leaders and refusal to comply to orders often led to beatings and starvation, and black soldiers were intentionally endangered by being placed as "point, rearguards, and side-guards". As

1936-519: A key advisor to China's Third Industrial Revolution vision... His new book, The Green New Deal, is essentially an attempt to rouse the United States from its slumber within a collapsing 20th century fossil fuel era." That same year, the European Commission and its president, Ursula von der Leyen , announced the European Green Deal , a plan to make Europe "the first climate neutral continent in

2057-653: A keynote address at the Global Green Summit 2012 on May 10, 2012. The conference was hosted by the Government of the Republic of Korea and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), in association with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea also gave a speech at the conference and embraced

2178-420: A laudatory address by Sigmar Gabriel , the former Foreign Minister , Vice-Chancellor, Economic Minister, and Environmental Minister of Germany. Jeremy Rifkin and TIR Consulting Group, LLC and partners published a $ 16 trillion, twenty-year America 3.0 Resilient Infrastructure plan, prepared for Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and first released by Bloomberg on July 29 in an article entitled "Energy Guru

2299-535: A press conference when Smith was released after two years as a POW, he made statements in support of the VC and against US involvement in Vietnam, and immediately faced court-martial charges for violation of Article 104 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (aiding the enemy). The charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence, and five years later at the WSI, Smith said that he stood by his statements. In addition to

2420-467: A result of the attention brought to the significant disparity between white and black soldiers assigned to, and dying in, combat units, Pentagon officials implemented cutbacks in the number of blacks in combat positions. The fact that this racial inequality was taking place during the height of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States was of great significance. African Americans were not

2541-508: A review of the book in the Huffington Post , Ariana Huffington writes: “Rifkin is that rare breed, one whose disappearance is often and rightly bemoaned: a public intellectual. Rifkin… takes a look at the new scientific discoveries that lead to the conclusion that rather than being naturally aggressive, acquisitive, and self-involved, humans are ‘a fundamentally empathic species’ -- what Rifkin calls Homo empathicus … The Empathic Civilization

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2662-459: A second affidavit now reflecting a different date of discharge from the Army, different people traveling with him to the Winter Soldier event, and different circumstances under which he joined the VVAW. Fritz Efaw, a Chapter Representative of VVAW, stated: "The claims that the WSI hearings contained falsified testimony from men who were not veterans is an old one, and it's definitely false. The testimony

2783-444: A summary of what their testimony would cover. While only 109 veterans gave testimony, over 700 veterans attended the hearing. Excerpts from the testimony transcripts: After giving their brief initial statements, a moderator had each of them elaborate upon their testimony, and then the press and observers were given time to ask questions of the veterans. During the “What are we doing to ourselves?” panel, Dr. Robert J. Lifton spoke of

2904-480: A transition of their business operations into sustainable economies. Rifkin is ranked number 123 in the WorldPost / The Huffington Post 2015 global survey of "The World's Most Influential Voices". He also is listed among the top ten most influential economic thinkers in the survey. Rifkin has lectured before many Fortune 500 companies, and hundreds of governments, civil society organizations, and universities over

3025-428: A variety of environmental, scientific and technology related issues. The Union of Concerned Scientists has cited some of Rifkin's publications as useful references for consumers and The New York Times once stated that "others in the scholarly, religious, and political fields praise Jeremy Rifkin for a willingness to think big, raise controversial questions, and serve as a social and ethical prophet" Rifkin's work

3146-405: Is Beyond Disappointed with Dwindling US Infrastructure Plan". The America 3.0 infrastructure transformation 2022-2042 details a massive investment to scale, deploy, and manage a smart digital zero-emission Third Industrial Revolution infrastructure for a 21st century economy. The plan will create an average of 15 to 22 million net new jobs over the period 2022 to 2042. For every dollar invested, it

3267-699: Is a fascinating book that boldly challenges the conventional view of human nature and seeks to replace that view with a counter-narrative that allows humanity to see itself as an extended family living in a shared and interconnected world.” In 2011, Rifkin published The Third Industrial Revolution; How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World . The book was a New York Times best-seller, and has been translated into 19 languages. By 2014, approximately 500,000 copies were in print in China alone. Rifkin delivered

3388-418: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Winter Soldier Investigation With the exception of Pacifica Radio , the event was not covered extensively outside Detroit. However, several journalists and a film crew recorded the event, and a documentary film titled Winter Soldier was released in 1972. A complete transcript was later entered into

3509-713: Is projected to return $ 2.90 in GDP between 2022 and 2042. The Bloomberg article noted that "For almost two decades the U.S. author and climate activist Jeremy Rifkin has advised governments in Europe and China on how to retool their economies for what he calls a third industrial revolution." Rifkin also provided the economic and environmental commentary in the fifth and final episode of the BBC documentary series A Perfect Planet , starring Sir David Attenborough . In November 2022, Rifkin published  The Age of Resilience: Reimagining Existence on

3630-551: Is rarely different for a writer who has spent decades warning of the need to address environmental problems that the human species caused and is still struggling to fix.” According to The European Energy Review , "Perhaps no other author or thinker has had more influence on the EU's ambitious climate and energy policy than Jeremy Rifkin. In the United States, he has testified before numerous congressional committees and has had success in litigation to ensure responsible government policies on

3751-404: Is the author of 23 books about the influence of scientific and technological changes on the economy, the workforce, society, and the environment. His most recent books include The Age of Resilience (2022), The Green New Deal (2019), The Zero Marginal Cost Society (2014), The Third Industrial Revolution (2011), The Empathic Civilization (2010), and The European Dream (2004). Rifkin

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3872-677: Is the principal architect of the "Third Industrial Revolution" long-term economic sustainability plan to address the triple challenge of the global economic crisis, energy security, and climate change. The Third Industrial Revolution (TIR) was formally endorsed by the European Parliament in 2007. The Huffington Post reported from Beijing in October 2015 that "Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has not only read Jeremy Rifkin's book, The Third Industrial Revolution , but taken it to heart", he and his colleagues having incorporated ideas from this book into

3993-404: Is the role of Congress, not this court, to broaden or narrow the reach of patent laws" and further suggested that "the composition [the genetically engineered micro-organism] sought to be patented uniquely implicates matters of public concern". On May 16, 1984, Federal District Judge John J. Sirica issued a ruling halting an experiment that would have involved the "first deliberate release into

4114-456: The Detroit News tried to discredit the hearings on the very first day of testimony by questioning the authenticity of the 109 testifying veterans. Discharge papers were examined; military records were checked against DoD records; after all their digging, it was claimed that not one fraudulent veteran was found. The Detroit Free Press reported daily of participants who had been confirmed by

4235-467: The 2004 presidential campaign in which former VVAW spokesman and Navy veteran John Kerry was a candidate, the WSI was again in the news. Steve Pitkin, who participated at the investigation in 1971, now claimed just weeks before the presidential election at an anti-Kerry political rally that he was not originally planning to testify at the WSI, but was pressured by Kerry and others into testifying about rape, brutality, atrocities and racism. Pitkin also signed

4356-560: The Bicentennial years." In 1973, Rifkin organized a mass protest against oil companies at the commemoration of the 200th Anniversary of the Boston Tea Party at Boston Harbor. Thousands joined the protest, as activists dumped empty oil barrels into Boston Harbor. The protest came in the wake of the increase in gasoline prices in the fall of 1973, following the OPEC oil embargo. Later, this

4477-787: The Congressional Record by Senator Mark Hatfield , and discussed in the Fulbright Hearings in April and May 1971, convened by Senator J. William Fulbright , chair of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations . Prompted by numerous investigations into war crimes such as the Russell Tribunal , National Veterans Inquiry and Citizens Commission of Inquiry (CCI), the Vietnam Veterans Against

4598-595: The Detroit Free Press , St. Louis Post-Dispatch and The Boston Globe , which were successful in turning up testimonies from other veterans that they had crossed into Laos throughout a 16-month period extending through all of 1971, well past the enactment of the Cooper–Church Amendment forbidding such actions and which had come into effect in January 1971. On March 27, 1974, Senator Harold Hughes informed

4719-774: The European Central Bank hosted a conference on the theme “Into the Future: Europe’s Digital Integrated Market”. Rifkin delivered a keynote address on transforming the European Union into a smart third industrial revolution paradigm. On February 7, 2017, the European Commission and the European Committee of the Regions hosted a conference in Brussels on the theme “Investing in Europe: building

4840-656: The Italy-USA Foundation in 2012. He currently works out of an office in Bethesda, Maryland , a suburb of Washington, D.C. In April 2014, Rifkin published The Zero Marginal Cost Society: The Internet of Things, the Collaborative Commons, and the Eclipse of Capitalism . Fortune called the book, "admirable in its scope... a heartening narrative of what our economic future may hold for the generations to come." The book

4961-711: The Tribeca Film Festival in 2017, and has been live on YouTube since 2018. As of May 2023, the film had been viewed 8 million times. In September 2019, Rifkin published The Green New Deal: Why the Fossil Fuel Civilization will Collapse by 2028, and the Bold Economic Plan to Save Life on Earth . In its review of the book, Forbes noted that "[Jeremy Rifkin] is a principal architect of the European Union’s long-term economic vision, Smart Europe, and

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5082-484: The United Auto Workers , Emil Mazey and Michigan Secretary of State Richard Austin also helped raise funds for the event. The purpose of the Winter Soldier Investigation was to show that American policies in Vietnam had led to war crimes. In the words of one participant veteran, Donald Dzagulones, "We gathered not to sensationalize our service but to decry the travesty that was Lt. William Calley 's trial for

5203-461: The grand Duchy of Luxembourg to oversee the development of regional master plans to transform each governing jurisdiction into a zero emission Third Industrial Revolution infrastructure and economy. Citizens assemblies were established in each region to work alongside TIR Consulting Group's team to conceptualize and enact far-reaching initiatives to address climate change and "green" their respective economies and societies. On January 31, 2017,

5324-617: The 1980s . The book and subsequent activist engagement by the authors with the American Labor Union movement, the financial community, and civil society organizations helped spawn the era of socially responsible investment of public and union pension funds in America. An article on socially responsible investment in the New York University Review of Law and Social Change noted that "the idea of socially responsible investing, long

5445-921: The American heartland, and the "blue-collar" social status of most of the residents. The steering committee set up a collective in a house on the industrial east side of Detroit with the help of Catholic antiwar activists; and five clergymen of different denominations, including the director of missions for the Detroit Metropolitan Council of Churches, offered housing for the witnesses. The program consisted primarily of testimony, with 109 Vietnam veterans to appear on panels arranged by unit so they could corroborate each other's reports. Grouping these veterans by unit would also help to establish that events and practices to which they testified were unit-wide policy, and not just random and rare occurrences. Several civilian experts who had been to Vietnam were also to speak during this event. Arrangements had been made to include

5566-455: The CCI split from the project. The following month, after caustic reviews of Lane's book by authors and a Vietnam expert, VVAW would also distance itself from Lane just one month before the event. Lane had recently published a book, Conversations with Americans , in which Lane relied on unverified interviews with thirty three servicemen, four of whom were later exposed as unreliable by Neil Sheehan in

5687-588: The Criminal Investigation Command ( CID ) and later reported by the Village Voice following declassification, the Army found the allegations made by 46 veterans at the hearings to merit further inquiry. As of March 1972, the CID reported successfully locating 36 of the people who had testified, 31 of whom submitted to interviews. One WSI participant, Jamie Henry, had reported the massacre he described at

5808-531: The Detroit community. Dean Robb and Ernie Goodman solicited donations from their fellow local attorneys and several clergymen arranged housing for the witnesses. In the words of the Director of Missions for the Detroit Metropolitan Council of Churches, Dr. John B Forsyth, "It is important that the public realize that American atrocities in Vietnam are an every day [ sic ] occurrence." The Secretary-Treasurer for

5929-532: The DoD as veterans. As noted in VVAW records, each veteran's authenticity and testimony were also checked shortly after the hearings by Nixon's " plumbers ." Charles Colson was assigned the task. In a confidential "Plan to Counteract Viet Nam Veterans Against the War," Colson wrote, "The men that participated in the pseudo-atrocity hearings in Detroit will be checked to ascertain if they are genuine combat veterans." At one point,

6050-635: The Greenhouse World , its "afterword" was written by Georgescu-Roegen. In 1980, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of granting a patent on the first genetically engineered life form with 5 justices favoring the patent and 4 justices opposed. Jeremy Rifkin's office - The People's Business Commission - provided an amicus curiae brief in support of the US Patent and Trademark Office, arguing that extending patents to genetically-engineered organisms

6171-656: The My Lai Massacre. The U.S. had established the principle of culpability with the Nuremberg trials of the Nazis. Following those principles, we held that if Calley were responsible, so were his superiors up the chain of command – even to the president. The causes of My Lai and the brutality of the Vietnam War were rooted in the policies of our government as executed by our military commanders." The name "Winter Soldier Investigation"

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6292-457: The My Lai were not isolated and rare occurrences, but were instead the frequent and predictable result of official American war policy. The groundwork for what would become the Winter Soldier Investigation was laid by Jeremy Rifkin , Tod Ensign , Michael Uhl and Bob Johnson of CCI. In search of first-hand information on war crimes, they contacted the Vietnam Veterans Against the War and gained

6413-462: The NIS said they did not attend the WSI hearing in Detroit or had never been to Detroit, and many refused to be interviewed. However, government officials have no record of the report and no other historian has seen it. Lewy later said that he could not recall if he had actually seen the alleged report or simply been told of its contents. More than 30 years after the Winter Soldier Investigation, during

6534-540: The Nixon team suggested in a memo about VVAW, "Several of their regional coordinators are former Kennedy supporters." VVAW was also targeted by the FBI for observation as a possible dissident organization. The Nixon administration also attempted to rally pro-war veterans to counter VVAW. "What happened to the president's request that we take steps to mobilize veterans?" demanded White House Chief of Staff H. R. Haldeman to Colson just

6655-619: The People's Bicentennial Commission staged a rally on the Capitol Mall as an alternative to the other Bicentennial celebrations. https://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0067/1563322.pdf In 1977, with Ted Howard , he founded the Foundation on Economic Trends (FOET), which is active in both national and international public policy issues related to the environment, the economy, and climate change. FOET examines new trends and their effects on

6776-500: The Redistribution of Power on Earth in 2002. That same year, Mr. Rifkin, who at the time served as an advisor to Romano Prodi , then President of the European Commission , developed a strategic white paper committing the European Union to a multi-billion Euro research and development plan that would transform the EU into a green hydrogen economic paradigm. Mr. Rifkin joined Prodi at a European Union conference in October 2002 to announce "a coordinated long-term plan for Europe to make

6897-431: The Senate Foreign Relations Committee during their hearings on the Vietnam war, and made reference to evidence brought forth by veterans at the WSI. He covered some of the actions of Americans in Vietnam, saying “We rationalized destroying villages in order to save them…We learned the meaning of free fire zones, shooting anything that moves, and we watched while America placed a cheapness on the lives of Orientals. We watched

7018-469: The Senate that several witnesses had testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee about U.S. combat forces entering Laos and Cambodia after they were forbidden to do so. Department of Defense white papers revealed thirteen platoon-sized operations in Laos between January 1971 and April 1972. Immediately following the WSI, Senator George McGovern and Representative John Conyers announced that they were calling for congressional investigations based on

7139-413: The Third Industrial Revolution to advance a green economy . In December 2012, Bloomberg Businessweek reported that the newly-elected premier of China, Li Keqiang is a fan of Rifkin and had "told his state scholars to pay close attention" to Rifkin's book, The Third Industrial Revolution: How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World . Rifkin received the America Award of

7260-437: The U.S. falsification of body counts, in fact the glorification of body counts…We fought using weapons against those people which I do not believe this country would dream of using were we fighting in the European theater or let us say a non-third-world people theater, and so we watched while men charged up hills because a general said that hill has to be taken, and after losing one platoon or two platoons they marched away to leave

7381-425: The United States in violation of the Geneva Convention and international laws of war. Senator Hatfield made several recommendations. He asked that a transcript of the Winter Soldier Investigation be read into the Congressional record and made available to the public. Hatfield also asked congress to hold hearings discussing the use of military force in Vietnam and their relation to international agreements ratified by

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7502-435: The United States legislature. He sent the testimony to the Department of Defense, the Department of State asked Marine Commandant, Leonard F. Chapman, Jr. , to investigate the allegations. He recommended consideration be given to forming a special commission that would look into these issues and provide a forum to determine the moral consequences of American involvement in Vietnam. On April 22, 1971, John Kerry testified before

7623-457: The University of Pennsylvania's General Alumni Association's Award of Merit 1967. Rifkin was an active member of the peace movement . He attended the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University (MA, International Affairs, 1968) where he continued anti-war activities. Later he joined Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA). In 1970, Rifkin founded the People's Bicentennial Commission to provide "revolutionary alternatives for

7744-416: The Vietnam veteran organizers and Jeremy Rifkin had become adamant that WSI disassociate itself from Mark Lane. CCI staffers criticized Lane as being arrogant and sensationalistic, and said the book he was writing had "shoddy reporting in it." The CCI leaders refused to work with Lane further and gave the VVAW leaders a "Lane or us" ultimatum. VVAW did not want to lose the monetary support of Lane and Fonda, so

7865-435: The War wanted to have a large scale public hearing. With the courts martial for the My Lai Massacre making front page news, and the recent disclosure by members of the Central Intelligence Agency 's Phoenix Program of its record of human rights violations in Vietnam , the VVAW was determined to expose a broad pattern of war crimes in Vietnam. The Winter Soldier Investigation (WSI) was intended to prove that massacres like

7986-452: The Winter Soldier Investigation took several steps to ensure the validity of the participants. Each veteran's authenticity was checked before the hearings by the investigation event organizers, and subsequently by reporters and United States Department of Defense (DoD) officials. In addition, they also gave specific details about their units and the locations where the events had occurred. Those who wanted to testify were carefully screened by

8107-455: The beating of civilians and enemy personnel, destruction of villages, indiscriminate use of artillery, the general racism and the attitude of the American GI toward the Vietnamese," his actual testimony contained no such statements. Upon hearing of these claims by Pitkin, another WSI participant named Scott Camil filed his own affidavit refuting Pitkin's statements. Pitkin has subsequently admitted his recollections were flawed, and has re-issued

8228-416: The best economics book of the year. In its review of the book, BusinessWeek noted that "Rifkin makes a compelling case for [the European] vision, which he says is usurping the American Dream as a global ideal … a fascinating study of the differences between the American and European psyches." In 2009 Rifkin published The Empathic Civilization: The Race to Global Consciousness in a World in Crisis . In

8349-417: The biological sciences includes advocacy of animal rights and animal protection around the world. Rifkin's book, The Age of Access , published in 2000, was the first to introduce the concept that society is beginning to move from ownership of property in markets, to access to services in networks, giving rise to the sharing economy . According to the Journal of Consumer Research, "the phenomenon of access

8470-503: The book, the journal Nature observed that "Rifkin does his best work in drawing attention to the growing inventory of real and potential dangers and the ethical conundrums raised by genetic technologies... At a time when scientific institutions are struggling with the public understanding of science, there is much they can learn from Rifkin's success as a public communicator of scientific and technological trends." In The Biotech Century , Rifkin argues that 'Genetic engineering represents

8591-411: The bullshitters so that we can't get set up, because we're going to come under attack. We're going to do this right." All veterans participating in Winter Soldier were required to bring their discharge papers (DD-214s) and IDs. The identifying military affiliation of each veteran testifying, including in almost all cases, the dates of service, appears on the roster for each panel that was included with

8712-600: The core of the country's thirteenth Five-Year Plan . According to EurActiv, "Jeremy Rifkin is an American economist and author whose best-selling Third Industrial Revolution arguably provided the blueprint for Germany's transition to a low-carbon economy , and China's strategic acceptance of climate policy." Rifkin has taught at the Wharton School executive education program at the University of Pennsylvania since 1995, where he instructs CEOs and senior management on making

8833-565: The core of the country's thirteenth Five-Year Plan announced in Beijing on October 29th." The Huffington Post went on to say that "this blueprint for China's future signals the most momentous shift in direction since the death of Mao and the advent of Deng Xiaoping's reform and opening up in 1978." In 2016, TIR Consulting Group, LLC and Rifkin, its president, were commissioned by both the Metropolitan Region of Rotterdam - The Hague (MRDH) and

8954-467: The environment before "giving the testing a green light". The journal Science recorded that the ruling "stunned most observers". In his ruling, Judge Sirica said that Rifkin and his legal counsel "had made a satisfactory showing that they are likely to succeed" in their lawsuit. In the meantime, Science reported that Judge Sirica told NIH "not to approve any more experiments by academic researchers involving release of modified organisms". The court ruling

9075-691: The environment of organisms altered by gene splicing". The court suit was brought by Jeremy Rifkin, the President of the Washington DC–based Foundation on Economic Trends. The plaintiff argued that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) had violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to undergo an assessment of the potential risks and consequences of releasing the genetically engineered organism into

9196-452: The environment, the economy, culture, and society, and it engages in litigation, public education, coalition building, and grassroots organizing activities to advance their goals. Rifkin became one of the first major critics of the nascent biotechnology industry with the 1977 publication of his book, Who Should Play God? In 1978, Jeremy Rifkin and Randy Barber co-authored the book The North Will Rise Again: Pensions, Politics, and Power in

9317-406: The fact that the crimes threaten it, not reds, and not redcoats but the crimes which we are committing that threaten it, that we have to speak out." The collecting of testimony from veterans had begun under the auspice of the CCI the previous year, and it took almost two months of on-site planning in Detroit to organize the conference. Detroit was proposed by Fonda because of its central location in

9438-520: The fact that they were American including, but not limited to, the removal of identification from uniforms and switching to Russian arms that were typically used by the PAVN. They were also ordered to deny all knowledge of involvement of American troops in Laos. A Marine Corps spokesman persisted in issuing a statement at the WSI saying, "no platoons or any large number of Marines ever crossed the border." This quickly prompted investigations by American media such as

9559-531: The first night—three minutes that were "mostly irrelevant to the subject", according to VVAW. The Detroit Free Press printed several stories about the event, including comments from the military. This included confirmation by the Pentagon that WSI participants investigated by reporters were indeed Vietnam veterans. The Pentagon's denials of large scale U.S. activity in Laos was reported as well, until reporters learned from several marines not involved with WSI that operations in Laos had been conducted. The words of

9680-517: The goal of encouraging a 50% reduction in the consumption of beef, arguing that methane emissions from cattle has a warming effect 23 times greater than carbon dioxide. His 1995 book, The End of Work , is credited by some with helping shape the current global debate on automation , technology displacement, corporate downsizing , and the future of jobs. Reporting on the growing controversy over automation and technology displacement in 2011, The Economist pointed out that Rifkin drew attention to

9801-493: The growing list of chapters (Art Flesch, Tim Butz, and William F. Crandell). Organizers hoped Lane would keep a low profile during the event, and he did, as he spent his time flying around the country defending his book. Ultimately, the WSI was an event produced by veterans only, without the need of "so-called experts" such as Lane and Fonda. After the organizers of the national hearings separated into two groups, they each developed their own events. The CCI advanced its plans for

9922-500: The hearings to the Army, which investigated and subsequently confirmed his story. However, the details of the investigation were not made public until 2006, when the Los Angeles Times published the declassified information. Months before the WSI event, the organizers anticipated heavy scrutiny and attacks on their credibility, and they prepared for it. Although military documentation was provided, some media organizations such as

10043-478: The high for the reoccupation by the North Vietnamese because we watched pride allow the most unimportant of battles to be blown into extravaganzas, because we couldn't lose, and we couldn't retreat, and because it didn't matter how many American bodies were lost to prove that point.” Mainstream media all but ignored the Winter Soldier Investigation. The East Coast papers refused to cover the hearings, other than

10164-616: The meat (en)counter.” That same year, Rifkin and the Foundation on Economic Trends launched the Pure Food Campaign to demand government labeling of all genetically engineered foods. The campaign was spearheaded by more than 1,500 of the nation’s leading chefs. In 1993, Rifkin launched the Beyond Beef Campaign, a coalition of six environmental groups including Greenpeace , Rainforest Action Network , and Public Citizen , with

10285-439: The officers of VVAW, and care was taken to verify the service records and testimony of the veterans. After the severe criticism of the accuracy of Mark Lane's book about atrocities a month before the event, the organizers of the Winter Soldier Investigation made the credibility of the participants a top priority. As noted by one VVAW leader, "The lesson is that we'd better do our work right. We'd better talk to these vets and weed out

10406-405: The only ones subject to discrimination during the war. The American military portrayed Asians as "sub-human" as a means of providing justification for killing children and civilians. This notion was also projected into medical treatment of soldiers and POWs. Non-white patients were reported to have been operated on without anesthetic on several occasions. There is a specific case where the driver for

10527-404: The other side would set out almost immediately to discredit them." The U.S. participation in the Vietnam War was the source of much deeply divided sentiment among Americans. The Winter Soldier Investigation produced a conglomerate of testimony resulting in the implication and indictment of American leadership in criminal conduct, and thereby further drove a wedge between proponents and opponents of

10648-611: The participants have been permanently recorded in the Congressional Record. Portions of the testimony, as well as some photos of the event, appear in a book produced by the Vietnam Veterans Against the War and John Kerry entitled The New Soldier . Jeremy Rifkin Jeremy Rifkin (born January 26, 1945) is an American economic and social theorist , writer, public speaker, political advisor , and activist. Rifkin

10769-508: The particular case of Sgt. George E. Smith, he claims "I usually had more food than I could eat," although he would often grow ill from intolerance. Smith admitted fearing for his life when he heard Hanoi Radio broadcasts saying VC soldiers were being executed in Saigon and the VC was promising to execute Americans in retaliation. Shortly afterward, two American prisoners held in the same camp with Smith are believed to have been executed in reprisal. At

10890-463: The past thirty five years. Rifkin was born in Denver, Colorado , to Vivette Ravel Rifkin and Milton Rifkin, a plastic-bag manufacturer. He grew up on the southwest side of Chicago . He was president of the graduating class of 1967 at the University of Pennsylvania , where he received a bachelor of science degree in economics at the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce. Rifkin was also the recipient of

11011-555: The political cause of renewably generated hydrogen. In the U.S., Rifkin was instrumental in founding the Green Hydrogen Coalition, consisting of 13 environmental and political organizations (including Greenpeace and MoveOn.org ) committed to building a renewable hydrogen-based economy . His 2004 book, The European Dream , was an international bestseller and winner of the 2005 Corine International Book Prize in Germany for

11132-495: The psychological impact the events in Vietnam had on returning soldiers. He pointed out how rampant disapproval was for the war and highlighted how that affected returning veteran: So the returning veteran, who has a psychological need, as he returns from any war, to make his difficult transition into civilian life by in some way giving significance to what he did in his war, has no such opportunity, because he can't, in any way, inwardly approve of what he has done in this war. Nor can

11253-535: The rest of society find sources of pride for him or acceptance or necessity about this war. Both the veteran and the larger society see him the taint of this filthy, unnecessary, immoral war. Two of the discussion panels conducted with veterans during the Winter Soldier Investigations centered on racism in the American military. These panels addressed one source of resentment towards the Vietnam War by black soldiers, as "African Americans and Latinos paid

11374-501: The scenes to get a Kerry-O'Neill debate on nationwide television. "Let's destroy this young demagogue before he becomes another Ralph Nader," he wrote, referring to Kerry. Seven years after the hearings, writer Guenter Lewy claimed in his book, America in Vietnam , that allegations against Marines were investigated by the Naval Investigative Service . Lewy wrote that the report stated that some veterans contacted by

11495-421: The specific names of others involved in war crimes. The goal of these hearings was not to indict individual soldiers, but instead to expose the frequency of criminal behavior and its relationship to U.S. war policy. Critics have claimed that participants were frauds; that they were told to not cooperate with later investigators; that their testimonies were inaccurate or completely fabricated. The organizers of

11616-539: The support of VVAW co-founder Jan Crumb. During the summer of 1970, the CCI were approached by Al Hubbard who had become a full-time organizer with VVAW. Hubbard suggested that CCI combine their efforts with Jane Fonda , Rev. Dick Fernandez of Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam (CALCAV), Mark Lane , and Donald Duncan (who had previously testified at the Russell Tribunal in Denmark ). An initial steering committee

11737-403: The testimony in the Congressional Record. A later search of the service records of at least 2 of the participants found that they could not have been in the claimed location on the relevant date. The organizers had two primary concerns when considering the testimony they would use. They wanted testimony that would not allow the scapegoating of individuals when they were attempting to show what

11858-713: The testimony of several expatriated Vietnamese students residing in Canada, but they were denied visas to the United States by the Canadian government. Organizers also investigated the legal implications of veterans publicly admitting to criminal acts which they had witnessed or participated in. With legal advice from the Center for Constitutional Rights , the organizers were assured that the armed forces could not charge or try veterans for crimes committed while they were on active duty. The veterans giving testimony were also instructed not to reveal

11979-456: The testimony panels, the veterans also held open discussions on related subjects such as "What We Are Doing to Vietnam", "What We Are Doing to Ourselves", violations of international law, Prisoners of War, racism in the military, and also press censorship. Dr. Bert Pfeiffer of the University of Montana presented the first public testimony about the potential toxicity and health effects of the chemical Agent Orange . A special panel of psychiatrists

12100-442: The testimony. This announcement was received with skepticism by the veterans, but VVAW representatives agreed to meet with McGovern and Conyers. On Monday, April 5, 1971, Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon addressed the WSI allegation made in Detroit that war crimes were the result of military policy and racism was widespread in the armed forces. Hatfield noted that some of these allegations, specifically of war crimes, would place

12221-407: The transition from fossil-fuel dependency to become the first " hydrogen economy " superpower of the 21st century". President Prodi remarked that the EU hydrogen R&D initiative would be as significant for the future of Europe as the space program was for the U.S. in the 1960s and 1970s. After the publication of The Hydrogen Economy (2002), Rifkin worked both in the U.S. and Europe to advance

12342-400: The trend back in 1996 with the publication of his book, The End of Work . Then The Economist asked "what happens... when machines are smart enough to become workers? In other words, when capital becomes labor." The Economist noted that "this is what Jeremy Rifkin, a social critic, was driving at in his book, "The End of Work," published in 1996... Mr. Rifkin argued prophetically that society

12463-518: The ultimate tool.' 'With genetic technology we assume control over the hereditary blueprints of life itself. Can any reasonable person believe for a moment that such unprecedented power is without substantial risk?' Some of the changes he highlights are: replication partially replacing reproduction; and 'Genetically customized and mass-produced animal clones could be used as chemical factories to secrete—in their blood and milk—large volumes of inexpensive chemicals and drugs for human use.' Rifkin's work in

12584-448: The use of chemical agents, indiscriminate bombing and free-fire zones as well as more specific and unusual war crime incidents, including rape, torture and desecration of the dead. The testifying veterans were usually grouped by branch of military service and geographic location of service. Before launching into their detailed testimony, each gave a brief statement of personal information including rank, division, unit, length of service and

12705-516: The war, on the grounds that basic principles such as civil rights were not being upheld during the war. African Americans and Latinos expressed increasingly greater disapproval of the war than whites during its later stages. The previously secret two-week U.S. penetration into Laos in February 1969, which was part of Operation Dewey Canyon (primarily taking place in South Vietnam at the time), became

12826-700: The war. See Opening statement excerpt in Wikiquote The three days of testimony was presented by unit: Other veterans testified to the treatment they received when held captive as POWs by the Vietcong (VC). In contrast to accounts of mistreatment described by prisoners of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) in the north, the former prisoners speaking at the WSI said they were never physically abused, except for some rough handling during their capture. The VC provided enough food and medical attention to sustain them, and in

12947-519: The world" by 2050. The European Commission presented a spectrum of proposals, projects, and initiatives under the rubric of "Leading The Third Industrial Revolution", signaling a fundamental transformation of the European economy and society. Rifkin was a recipient of the 13th annual German Sustainability Award in December 2020 for his work on addressing climate change. The award was presented to Mr. Rifkin in

13068-403: Was an "official censorship blackout," and they would express this theory later in their newsletter. A few articles that were sympathetic to the veterans appeared in lesser-known publications, and Pacifica Radio , known for its left-wing perspective, gave the event considerable coverage. The CBS television crew that showed up were impressed, but only three minutes made it to the nightly news on

13189-447: Was being done in Vietnam was due to policy, not decisions by individual GIs. They also wanted the testimony to be accurate, and double and sometimes triple confirmed by others in the same units. Specific sets of questions were drafted by experienced combat vets to help verify that participants were not fabricating their stories or faking their knowledge, and that only the strongest testimony was used. According to Army reports compiled by

13310-549: Was called "A comprehensive worldview" and "an appropriate successor to... Silent Spring , The Closing Circle , The Limits to Growth , and Small Is Beautiful " by the Minneapolis Tribune . Rifkin's work was heavily influenced by the ideas expressed by Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen in his 1971 book The Entropy Law and the Economic Process . In Rifkin's 1989 revised edition of Entropy:... , entitled Entropy: Into

13431-657: Was called a "Boston Oil Party" by the press. On April 17–18 the group camped out at Concord Bridge, Massachusetts to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Minute Men's 1775 fight with the British which marked the beginning of our independence and according to White House documents, attempted to disrupt an appearance by President Gerald R. Ford where he was to lay a wreath at the Minute Man Statue. https://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0067/7580533.pdf On July 4, 1976,

13552-446: Was convened, many of whom had served in Vietnam, to discuss the impact of the war on American society. Midway through the hearings, the organizers insisted that no one make statements on behalf of the Vietnam veterans except for vets. It was presumed by reporters that this was to separate the participation of veterans from that of people like Mark Lane. Testimony given during the three-day event covered both broad policy concerns, such as

13673-527: Was credited with beginning the process of regulating the release of genetically engineered organisms into the environment in the United States and around the world. In 1989, Rifkin brought together climate scientists and environmental activists from 35 nations in Washington, D.C., for the first meeting of the Global Greenhouse Network. In the same year, Rifkin did a series of Hollywood lectures on global warming and related environmental issues for

13794-425: Was entering a new phase, one in which fewer and fewer workers would be needed to produce all the goods and services consumed. 'In the years ahead,' he wrote, 'more sophisticated software technologies are going to bring civilization ever closer to a near-workerless world. The process has already begun." His 1998 book, The Biotech Century , addresses issues accompanying the new era of genetic commerce. In its review of

13915-801: Was expected to lift the Galileo space probe , claiming it carried a "very high risk" of explosion and "spraying deadly plutonium " over the territory of the USA. The lawsuit was eventually rejected, and the Galileo mission succeeded. In 1992, Rifkin published the book Beyond Beef . In its review, the Washington Post praised the book for its "fresh thinking and well-reasoned arguments...[and for] combining reliable research with logical conclusions", noting that "[Rifkin] offers enough economic, medical, environmental, and ethical arguments to persuade any open minded person to pass by

14036-479: Was first documented in the popular business press by Rifkin (2000), who primarily examines the business-to-business sector and argues that we are living in an age of access in which property regimes have changed to access regimes characterized by short-term limited use of assets controlled by networks of suppliers." Rifkin published the book The Hydrogen Economy: The Creation of the Worldwide Energy Web and

14157-437: Was formed, consisting of Duncan, Ensign, Fonda, Lane, Hubbard, Rifkin and Fernandez, and continued to organize the WSI through September, 1970. Among the growing collective of organizers, differences of opinion and direction arose concerning the planned public event. VVAW leaders felt it should be an all-veteran event, to maintain its credibility. Less than three months into planning for the Winter Soldier Investigation, most of

14278-438: Was not covered by US patent law. Speaking on behalf of the majority opinion, Chief Justice Warren Burger referred to the petitioners' briefs as "the gruesome parade of horribles" and argued that "the relevant distinction was not between living and inanimate things, but between products of nature, whether living or not, and human-made inventions". Speaking for the minority opinion, Justice William Brennan argued that "it

14399-691: Was proposed by Mark Lane, and was derived as a contrast to what Thomas Paine described as a "summer soldier" in his first American Crisis paper, written in December 1776. When future Senator and Secretary of State John Kerry , then a decorated Lieutenant in the Naval Reserve (Inactive), later spoke before a Senate Committee , he explained, "We who have come here to Washington have come here because we feel we have to be winter soldiers now. We could come back to this country; we could be quiet; we could hold our silence; we could not tell what went on in Vietnam, but we feel because of what threatens this country,

14520-402: Was startling even at the time it took place: startling to the general public, startling to the military and the Nixon administration and startling to those who participated because each of them knew a piece of the story, but the hearings brought a great many of them together for the first time and provided a venue in which they could be heard for the first time. It's hardly surprising that those on

14641-637: Was translated into fifteen languages. Rifkin was awarded an honorary doctorate from Hasselt University in Belgium in the spring of 2015. Rifkin also received an honorary doctorate from the University of Liege in Belgium in the Fall of 2015. In November 2015, the Huffington Post reported from Beijing that "Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has not only read Jeremy Rifkin's book, The Third Industrial Revolution, and taken it to heart. He and his colleagues have also made it

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