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http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/today/editor/ed3.htm The Nation (Pakistan) October 9, 2002 Editorial US anti-war rallies -In the circumstances the only hope that President Bush may retreat from the brink of declaring war against Iraq is if domestic public opinion forces him to weigh his political future, especially with off-year polls in a month. That is where the anti-war protest in the US are an extremely important development, which might provide the world the last hope of a rational, rather than revengeful, end to this artificially contrived crisis. One of the arguments that the Bush administration puts forward to convince US Congressmen to back a resolution sanctioning military action against Iraq, is that it will signal to the UN and all nations that "America speaks with one voice." But apparently America doesn't. On Sunday, thousands of demonstrators marched in some seven major US cities across that sprawling land, urging the Bush Administration not to enter into a senseless war. The New York rally, with a crowd estimated at 50,000, included US war veterans carrying placards advising Bush against invading countries and bombing civilians in "our name". New Yorkers are not alone in making a "pledge of resistance" to Bush's dangerous war mongering. San Francisco, Denver, Colorado, Anchorage, Alaska and Los Angeles witnessed similar protests against what placards termed "an immoral war". The demonstrations come as President Bush is actively campaigning, to project the Saddam regime as a nuclear war waiting to happen and Saddam as a murderous dictator who must be eliminated in the interest of the Iraqi people and world peace. Both the Bush PR drive and the peace rallies are competing to put pressure on the US Congress, expected to vote on the issue anytime, and the US Senate which votes next week. The large protest rallies could mean that President Bush's task may not be easy even in the Republican-dominated Congress and it would certainly be difficult in the Democrat-run Senate. However, sheer bullying can work in the UN, where most key players, except for Russia and France, are falling in line with the Bush-designed Resolution. Britain is again in its usual more-loyal-than-the-King role with Foreign Secretary Jack Straw doing a whirlwind tour of the Middle East and France to lobby for Washington's argument. In the circumstances the only hope that President Bush may retreat from the brink of declaring war against Iraq is if domestic public opinion forces him to weigh his political future, especially with off-year polls in a month. That is where the anti-war protest in the US are an extremely important development, which might provide the world the last hope of a rational, rather than revengeful, end to this artificially contrived crisis. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Faith Hill - Exclusive Performances, Videos & More http://faith.yahoo.com --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bacIlu Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
