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New Hampshire peace groups are joining forces today for a march and rally in downtown Manchester to demand an end to the Iraq war. Among the rally speakers will be Granite State Marine veteran Joe Turcotte, who was an artilleryman in the initial “shock and awe” campaign. He says the reasons that led to the war have been discredited, and now he questions the leaders who sent him to Iraq.
"It’s very painful to know that your life was thrown on the line, your unit had killed thousands of Iraqi soldiers, and there probably wasn’t a reason for it."
Turcotte says his doubts began when he returned from Iraq to find the causes for war called into question.
"It felt like we were used, like I was lied to. There wasn’t WMD and Saddam had nothing to do with 911. Well, why were we there if those were the only reasons they gave before?"
Turcotte says he believes more veterans are questioning the war and supporting their comrades’ rights to protest. He says supporting the troops really means ending the war and getting wounded warriors all the medical and psychological care they need.
