"But wait a minute!"
Isn’t it unpatriotic and harmful to our troops to protest the war?
Many soldiers and top brass oppose the war. All evidence to date shows that the war was launched on false premises and outright lies (leaked memos from the British government now prove that the Bush administration "fixed" intelligence and was committed to war shortly after 9/11.) As Iraq War veteran, Marine Sean Huze has said, “Sending us in harm's way for a lie amounts to a betrayal.” Opposing the architects and leaders of this war and demanding an end to the Illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq is the patriotic right of every concerned citizen.
Hasn’t this war made us safer against the threat of terrorism?
Even the CIA has concluded that the Iraq war is strengthening existing terrorist networks and creating ranks of new recruits. This stunning admission is in a report released in January 2005 by the National Intelligence Council, the CIA’s think-tank. Commenting on the report, David Low, CIA national intelligence officer for transnational threats stated that the Iraq War has provided terrorists with "a training ground, a recruitment ground, [and] the opportunity for enhancing technical skills." (as reported in the L.A Times and Washington Post). In June 2005 the CIA admitted that "Iraq may prove to be an even more effective training ground for...extremists than Afghanistan was in Al Qaeda's early days, because it provides a new laboratory for militants to hone their skills in urban combat." (NYT, June 23. 2005)
The war was wrong, but won’t withdrawal now lead to complete chaos?
There's no clear answer as to what will happen when the US withdraws, but the presence of the US military has increased violence and chaos in Iraq. US firepower is responsible for most of the 15,000-100,000 Iraqi civilians killed since the invasion, and it is the US military that has carried out illegal detentions and torture of Iraqis as seen at Abu Ghraib. Even before the torture scandal broke, 82% of Iraqis polled by the US occupation authority disapproved of the US occupation of Iraq. (Washington Post, May 2004) The US should withdraw its troops, involve the international community, and pay reparations for losses of life and property. In June 2005 a resolution to withdraw US troops from Iraq was introduced In the US House of RepresentatIves by two Democrats and two RepublIcans as calls for withdrawal continue to grow.
Okay, so what should the US do to stop terrorism?
Stop military aggression. Pay reparations to rebuild Iraq. Join international bodies such as the International Criminal Court. Stop supporting dictatorships such as in Egypt and Pakistan. Stop uncritical support of Israel. Work to reduce all nuclear weaponry--even our own. Stop torture and illegal detentions. Invest our foreign and domestic spending in health care, job creation, building infrastructure, cultural exchange, and education instead of arms trading and war.
I’m still not sure
I trust your information. Where can I find out more and make up my own mind?
Check out the following web sites and decide for yourself:
www.commondreams.org (collection of news articles and essays)
optruth.org (web site of veterans from the war)
www.mfso.org (military families who disagree with the war)
www.ivaw.net (Iraq veterans against the war)
www.occupationwatch.org (Baghdad based web site on the occupation)
www.downingstreetmemo.com (Read the British Intelligence reports yourself)
Contact your Illinois senators and local representative and let them know what you think:
Senator Richard Durbin, Phone: (202) 224-2152; Senator Barack Obama, Phone: (202) 224-2854;
and Rep. Timothy V. Johnson, Phone: (202) 225-2371
We are AWARE (Anti-War Anti-Racism Effort). We hold public meetings every Sunday at 5:00 pm in Urbana and demonstrate the first Saturday of every month, 2-4 pm at Main & Neil St. in Champaign.