Pinon Canyon "Covenant"

Covenant is example of Department of the Army following their scripted design to takeover southeast Colorado

KIM, Colorado (December 29, 2010)

The Pinon Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition (PCEOC), is opposed to the 'Community Covenant' agreement scheduled to be signed on February 8th, 2011, in Trinidad. This 'Covenant' is offered by a military contractor through the Department of the Army. PCEOC maintains that the first step towards improving relations with SE Colorado communities is not signing a covenant, but rescinding the waiver on expansion by the DoD.

Lon Robertson, PCEOC President stated, "First of all, we recognize the positive motives of those who are planning to sign the covenant. We agree with their intention to express support for the troops. But we have grave concerns about the appropriateness of this particular expression of that support."

The PCEOC Board of Directors has further determined it will not to be a signatory to the Army-initiated and funded covenant and has instead passed a resolution (attached) in support of the young men and women who are making extreme sacrifices and suffering unimaginable hardships during and after their military service.

A covenant is a unique and ancient document; it is a solemn promise with Biblical origins. Fort Carson Commanding General, Maj. Gen. David G. Perkins has called the covenant a "sacred document ... built upon faith." PCEOC holds that a resolution of support would be a more appropriate form for a secular body to use.

The 'Community Covenant' is being initiated by the Army yet wording of the document has been penned by a private military contracting firm, Whelden Associates, Florida.

The Army is also following the script for takeover of southeast Colorado as stated in one of the documents another opposition group acquired last year through the Freedom Of Information Act. One of the 'Strategic Decisive Points' made in the Army 'Pinon Vision' document designed to guide the takeover of southeast Colorado states: "County and Municipal Government.... the vital intermediate level of government must be won over in support of our expansion plan. Carefully prepared briefing teams must be ready to visit these officials to generate support....."

"If they are serious about improving relations they need to remove the waiver (the DoD gave the Army in 2006 to go forward with expansion plans). Otherwise it's just more lies," said RC Patterson, PCEOC Director.

Army officials seemed to link the signing of the covenant with potential financial rewards to the Trinidad Community. Colonel Robert F. McLaughlin identified a specific dollar amount saying that each Army maneuver can generate as much as $90,000 into the area economy. But we know that 'local benefit' promise is as empty now as it was in the 80's.

The PCEOC Board of Directors encourages other organizations and government agencies that want to show support of our troops to refrain from simply signing on to the Army's "covenant", and to pass their own resolutions instead.

"Our hearts go out to the men and women who serve in the military and their families, and we find it completely inappropriate that their service should ever be used as an instrument of economic development," said Robertson.

PCEOC is a non-partisan organization united in its opposition to any expansion of PCMS. No funding, no expansion.

For more information, please see www.pinoncanyon.com.