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| Fifth Column |
| "Human Shield" fined |
| 2003-08-11 |
| Edited for brevity. A retired schoolteacher who went to Iraq to serve as a "human shield" against the U.S. invasion is facing thousands of dollars in U.S. government fines, which she is refusing to pay. The U.S. Department of the Treasury said in a March letter to Faith Fippinger that she broke the law by crossing the Iraqi border before the war. Her travel to Iraq violated U.S. sanctions that prohibited American citizens from engaging in "virtually all direct or indirect commercial, financial or trade transactions with Iraq." Fippinger, who returned home May 4, is being fined at least $10,000, but she has refused to pay. She could face up to 12 years in prison. In her response to the charges, she wrote the government that if it comes to fines or imprisonment, "please be aware that I will not contribute money to the United States government to continue the buildup of its arsenal of weapons." Since she won’t pay, she said, "perhaps the alternative should be considered." Thank God the Clintons are returning their tax cut to make up for the shortfall! That was a close one! The government also has asked Fippinger, 62, to detail her travels to Iraq and any financial transactions she made. In her response, Fippinger wrote that the only money she spent was on food and emergency supplies. And Prozac for the good people of Iraq. Shortly before the U.S. invasion in March, Fippinger was one of several dozen human shields scattered around a refinery in Baghdad. "We are planning to stay here in the refinery if war breaks out," Fippinger said at the time. "We are staying here because we think this war is unjust." Is that refinery right next to the Baby Milk factory? |
| Posted by:Dar |
| #8 Just fine the old hippy; that's good enough. Anything else makes her a martyre. And I HATE martyres. |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2003-8-11 8:06:00 PM |
| #7 Let's see it this way. This woman has tried to prolong Saddam's stay in power. That meant more women raped to make speak their fathers and husbands, more people put in plastic shredders and more child buried alive. She is an accomplice of hideous murders. Jail her? Oh no, I vote for the chair. The pre-WW2 pacifists who gave Hitler time to build hus army, the Hanoi Fondas and the pre "Iraki Freedom" pacifists have blood in their hands. Time to make them face the consequences of their actions. |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-8-11 3:44:09 PM |
#6 I'm Fippinger the bird right now!We are staying here because we think this war is unjust. I guess you weren't guarding the Hussein Family Dissident Strength Shredder™, the mass graves or the children's prison, huh? Too bad one of those "unjust" bombs didn't put you out of our misery. FOAD you sorry excuse for |
| Posted by: Celissa 2003-8-11 3:30:08 PM |
| #5 Sounds like Faith was a peace activist and anti war. Love and understanding may be her guiding light. She may have participated in workshops on how best to promote peace, love, feeding children. She states that the war was "unjust". That should count for something in her defense. She may also be an earth mother. |
| Posted by: Lucky 2003-8-11 1:02:16 PM |
| #4 Jail her ass. |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-8-11 12:54:20 PM |
| #3 well..how 'bout that leverage? "If Fippinger does not pay, the fine may increase, and the money will be drawn from her retirement paycheck, her Social Security check or any of her assets, officials said" |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-11 11:51:07 AM |
| #2 Jail her right now and make sure that the bond is expensive! |
| Posted by: Tom 2003-8-11 11:36:26 AM |
| #1 aaaarrrggghhh. Jail this twit now, take her possessions and sell them to pay the fine. |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-11 10:39:13 AM |