In Their Own Words
The following interviews were conducted at the Digital Media Studio at Lehigh University. They all follow a general arc from enlistment, to training, military service, and discharge.
Michael Donio (1946-) was drafted into the United States Army in 1968, after receiving a bachelor degree in communications from Marshall University in West Virginia. He completed basic training at Fort Dix, New Jersey, enrolled in Officer Candidate School (OCS) in Fort Benning, Georgia, and then attended a Basic Signal Officer’s Course in Fort Gordon, Georgia. Upon graduation, Michael became the Public Information Officer for the 18th Airborne Corps headquarters at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1970, Michael deployed to Vietnam, where he worked as the Information Officer of the Saigon support command, putting out press releases, coordinating public relations with journalists, and publishing a monthly newsletter on the war effort. Michael sees clear connections between the manipulation of information during the Vietnam War and the Iraq War.
Maur Levan (1923-) enlisted in the United States Army Reserves while attending Penn State University. After completing basic training in Fort Eustace, Virginia, he received specialized training in military artillery. In 1945, he was deployed to Okinawa, Japan for the Invasion of Okinawa. While Levan was in Japan, they dropped the nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After the war ended, he returned to the United States and completed his education at Penn State. He worked at Berkleigh Golf Club and is an active member of the Jewish War Veterans.
Dick Brandt (1944-) enlisted in the United States Army. After completing boot camp, Brandt served as a press officer during the Vietnam War in El Paso, Texas. He joined the Reserves and was hired as a Public Relations expert for the Parma School District. After leaving the Reserves, Brandt worked as an executive for the international company AT&T, before fulfilling his lifelong dream of becoming a teacher at Lehigh University.
Evan Reibsome (1982 - ) joined the National Guard as a means of paying for college. At the time of September 11, 2001, Reibsome was an undergraduate at Lock Haven University. He was part of the ISG (Iraq Survey Group) and he was charged with looking for chemical, biological, and the nuclear weapons. Reibsome believes that there is already a draft in place, a poverty draft that targets certain individuals.
Colin Keefe enlisted in the United States Marine Corps prior to September 11th and was honorably discharged in 2003. His unit was charged with taking Gas Operation Separation Plants (GOSPs). Keefe is happy that he joined the Marines and feels he learned a lot and would want the same for his son. On the other hand, Keefe says that the idea of his son being in danger makes him much more appreciative of what his parents went through while he was deployed.
Eugene Jarecki is an author and filmmaker whose work focuses on the military-industrial complex. His works include a film entitled, Why We Fight, from 2005, and a book, The American Way of War: Guided Missiles, Misguided Men and Republic in Peril from 2008.
