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Todd E. Dennis's Page
Profile Information
- Hometown:
- Madison, WI
- Type of Sevice
- Navy
- About Me:
- Todd E. Dennis
Branch of service: United States Navy (USN)
Unit: USS Santa Fe (SSN-763)
Rank: MMN2(SS)
Home: Mondovi, Wisconsin
Served in: Great Lakes, IL (Bootcamp, July 1997-Oct 1997) Orlando, FL (Nuclear Power "A" School for Machinist's Mates and Nuclear Power School, Oct 1997-Oct 1998) Ballston Spa, NY (Nuclear Power Training Unit, Oct 1998-May 1999) New London, CT (Nuclear Power Training Unit Emergency Welder School, May 1999-July 1999) Pearl Harbor, HI (USS Santa Fe (SSN-763), Aug 1999-June 2003)
I was born in Eau Claire, WI in 1979. I joined the Navy via the delayed entry program while a senior in high school, getting permission from my parents as I was only 17. I went to boot camp at the end of July 1997.
Following boot camp, I went through the Nuclear Power schools pipeline. While there I had to wait for a month and a half between A and Nuclear Power school as my security paperwork to get Secret clearance was lost somewhere and had to be filled out again. This included calls to Senators and my Representative about waiting until I was supposed to start the school until telling me I had to redo the paperwork. Surprisingly the matter was resolved quickly.
After schooling I was then attached to USS Santa Fe (SSN-763) in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii late in 1999. Upon arriving in Hawaii, the boat was in the middle of a Western Pacific Deployment(West-Pac) so I got to wait again. During this deployment the boat was rushed to the Gulf region and was within minutes of launching Tomahawks into Afghanistan on an Al-Qaeda camp, I was told after meeting the boat. It took a little over a month before I finally got to fly to Bahrain to meet the boat and I got a free passport out of the deal, so I got to enjoy the wonderful Hawaii weather during that time.
While aboard her, I went to Bahrain; Singapore; Okinawa, Japan; Guam; Subic Bay, Philippines; Sasebo, Japan; Yokuska, Japan; Chinhae, South Korea; Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territories; San Diego, California; Ketchikan, Alaska; and Victoria, British Columbia. I also attended HPAC, gage calibration, firefighting, and leadership school for PO2's during the summer of 2001. The leadership school being interrupted by 9-11-2001. The boat had just gotten back from West-Pac and we almost went back to the Gulf but of course Bush took over a month before attacking a Afghanistan.
The main things I saw that shaped my current beliefs was the disparity of quality of life between the U.S. and other countries (discussed some in my interview below, mainly what I saw in the Philippines). I was also definitely shaped by the belligerently racist views of my shipmates on and after September 11. In addition to what I saw, I started to read a lot of nonfiction during the West-Pac of 2001 and continued to read a lot while underway later on. While I can write what my beliefs are, they are constantly evolving based on my experiences so a snapshot of a certain point in my life would be better. To learn more about some of my beliefs listen to a radio interview I did on
Northern Spirit Radio in the middle of May 2006. In the course of my reading I learned that the bus we took from the base in Singapore to the Yishun MRT station was surveiled by Al Qaeda and there were plans to attack around the time I was there. This is in Inside Al Qaeda.
Upon leaving the Navy I went to school at UW-Eau Claire for Physics as part of their Dual-Degree Program. While there I helped to form a Veterans for Peace group which is in the process of becoming an official chapter. I am currently 28 and going to UW-Madison for the Mechanical Engineering B.S. I am active in the Veterans for Peace group here as a board member and helped form an IVAW chapter here in Madison and serve as the Secretary. I am also in the Campus Antiwar Network of UW-Madison.
- Your Personal Website:
- http://ted.gnn.tv
- Your Peace Organization
- http://www.ivaw.org/chapter/madison
About
Links
Antiwar Radio
The Itch in Joe Lieberman’s Gitmo Finger
Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut may be the most destructive politician in the United States. Combining the worst ideas of the right, the left, and the religious, he essentially seeks to punitively tax the world in order to bomb it for the sake of Israel. Despite Lieberman’s “dual” loyalty — in quotes because I suspect [...]I Have the Answer
NPR (All Things Considered) is devoting an entire hour of programming today to the war in Afghanistan. The show was prefaced with a comment something like “We don’t have all the answers.” Well, I have the answer: Get out! Get out now before one more Afghan dies, before one more U.S. soldier dies, before one [...]German DM Mentions the War… in Afghanistan
An outrageous thing has happened today in Germany: the Defense Minister has used the word “war” to describe the, uh, war in Afghanistan. As Justin Raimondo might say: Germans are shocked — shocked! You see, these people burdened by national collective memories of WWII thought they were sending peacekeepers to Afghanistan — sure, sure, armed [...]Jesse James Calls for Ban on Robbing Trains
CNN headline: Karzai calls for unity, end to corruption in Afghanistan It is astounding to see the western media treat Karzai like a legitimate winner and someone who has any credibility to fight corruption. This is akin to how the Soviet media treated the election “victories” of Stalin’s puppets in East Europe. At least we now have [...]America’s Next Top Nazi
If this isn’t the craziest thing you read today, then you must be scrubbing graffiti off the walls of a padded cell: While the sixth season of the fashion reality show “Project Runway” is fast-approaching its climax, it’s become a running joke in my house that the show’s host, German supermodel Heidi Klum, would have made [...]TRUTHOUT NEWS FEED
Gay Rights Go Global
London - A new bill before the Ugandan parliament proposes the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality” and “serial offenders.” A sentence of life imprisonment will be imposed for touching a person with homosexual intent. Membership in gay organizations, advocacy of gay human rights and the provision of condoms or safer sex advice to gay people will result in seven years jail for “promoting” homosexuality. Failing to report violators to the police within 24 hours would incur three years behind bars.
When a Parent Is Away at War
In honor of Veterans Day.
Veterans Day is a time to honor those who have served our country. For clinicians at Children’s Hospital Boston, it’s also a time to think about the children whose parents are away from home, serving their country. What does having a parent at war mean for a child? We talked to Children’s psychiatrist Stuart Goldman, MD, about how to help a child cope with this stressful time.
What impact does having a parent away at war have on a child?
Ivy League Liberal Elitism Will Make Sarah Palin President - How Only Union Organizing Can Prevent It
Conservatives win many votes saying that liberals are elitist. I am here to tell you that the liberal movement is indeed very elitist. Its organization's staffs are composed mainly of Ivy leaguers whose life experiences are dramatically different than the 70 percent of Americans that never graduate from college. Very few of them have any actual experience living with or knowing working-class people. As a graduate of Bucknell, I still feel out of a place and most glaringly underdressed when I get in a room with the Ivy Leaguers running our movement.
Listening to Veterans
Wartime is a highly emotional time for everyone caught up in the fighting. These emotions remain high long after the battles. Among the most emotional of times for war veterans is Veterans Day. After the parades and solemn speeches, war's often angry turmoil and hidden injuries still haunt many veterans and their families.
Supporting our troops requires more than welcoming them home, but also listening and responding to their concerns. A big concern for many soldiers and their families is how to handle the transition back to civilian life. A big concern for many older veterans and their loved ones is how to handle the emotional distress of flashbacks set off by current events.
A Morally Bankrupt Military: When Soldiers and Their Families Become Expendable
The military operates through indoctrination. Soldiers are programmed to develop a mindset that resists any acknowledgment of injury and sickness, be it physical or psychological. As a consequence, tens of thousands of soldiers continue to serve, even being deployed to combat zones like Iraq and/or Afghanistan, despite persistent injuries. According to military records, over 43,000 troops classified as "nondeployable for medical reasons" have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan nevertheless.
DEMOCRACY NOW NEWS FEED
Democracy Now! 2009-11-11 Wednesday
Headlines for November 11, 2009; Study: Over 2,200 US Veterans Died in 2008 Due to Lack of Health Insurance; Sexual Assaults, Inadequate Healthcare Among Spate of Issues Facing Women Servicemembers ; Parents of Iraq Veteran Receive Mistaken Notice from US Gov't, Not Condolence Letter They Await from ObamaDemocracy Now! 2009-11-10 Tuesday
Headlines for November 10, 2009; Watchdog: New York State Regulation of Natural Gas Wells Has Been "Woefully Insufficient for Decades."; Filmmaker Philippe Diaz on "The End of Poverty?"; Hoodwinked: Former Economic Hit Man John Perkins Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded -- and How to Remake ThemDemocracy Now! 2009-11-09 Monday
Headlines for November 09, 2009; House Passes Landmark Healthcare Bill with Amendment Backed by Anti-Abortion Lawmakers; When the War Comes Home: Iraq Veteran at Fort Hood Speaks Out About Last Week's Mass Shooting; Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya: Talks Are Off with Coup Government After Deal CollapsesDemocracy Now! 2009-11-06 Friday
Headlines for November 06, 2009; In Worst-Ever Shooting of Its Kind, 13 Dead, 30 Wounded at Ft. Hood Military Base; Suspect Had Reportedly Complained of Anti-Muslim Bias; Breaking with Former Employer, Actor and Self-Described Insurance Industry "Spokesjerk" Andy Cobb Calls for Public Healthcare ; Actor, Playwright Anna Deavere Smith Weaves Multiple Stories of Healthcare Struggles into New Solo Performance "Let Me Down Easy"© 2009 Created by Gordon Soderberg on Ning. Create Your Own Social Network
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The survey by the American Research Group found that 45 percent support the US House of Representatives beginning impeachment proceedings against Bush, with 46 percent opposed, and a 54-40 split in favor when it comes to Cheney.
The study by the private New Hampshire-based ARG canvassed 1,100 Americans by telephone July 3-5 and had an error margin of plus or minus three percentage points. The findings are available on ARG's Internet site.
The White House declined to comment on the poll, the latest bad news for a president who has seen his public opinion standings dragged to record lows by the unpopular war in Iraq.
The US Constitution says presidents and vice presidents can be impeached -- that is, formally charged by the House -- for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors" by a simple majority vote.
Conviction by the Senate, which requires a two-thirds majority, means removal from office.
Just two US presidents have been impeached: Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998 and acquitted in 1999; Andrew Johnson was impeached and acquitted in 1868. Disgraced president Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 when a House impeachment vote appeared likely.
In late April, left-wing Representative Dennis Kucinich, a long-shot Democratic presidential hopeful, introduced a resolution calling for Cheney's impeachment. To date, the measure has nine listed co-sponsors and a 10th set to sign on when the House returns to work next week.
But Democratic leaders appear unlikely to pursue such a course.