STOP WAR AGAINST IRAQ:
SPEAK OUT AND ACT NOW
Dear Friends,
If you care about peace, now is the time to act.
The Bush administration is pushing ahead with plans for a preemptive war
against Iraq, a war that
would be immoral, illegal and would create a new cadre of terrorists
bent on striking out at the US.
It is a war that will slaughter Iraqi civilians and kill young
Americans.
It is a war that will drain our treasury and keep us from providing
better education, shelter and health
care for our people.
It is a war that is almost universally opposed by US allies and
countries in the Middle East.
It is a war in which no one will win and everyone will lose.
It looks as though the Congress is prepared to go meekly along in
supporting this mad rush to war.
Congress is on a fast-track to consider war resolutions by next Friday
(September 27th).
The only force that can stop Congress and the administration is the
strong, clear voices of the
American people speaking out for peace.
This is the time to make your voice heard and your presence felt if you
care about a peaceful future.
I urge you to call or email your representatives in Congress now. If
you oppose committing our
nation to war, let them know.
David Krieger
President, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
To Contact your representative:
Call the Congressional Switchboard at 202-225-3121
or
for your Senators' contact information see:
http://www.senate.gov/contacting/index.cfm
for your Representatives' contact information see:
http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.html
Statement by Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)
Press Conference Opposing Military Action in Iraq
September 19, 2002 10:00 AM Cannon Terrace
Thank you, Rep. Kucinich for inviting me to speak today. I do not
believe that our world, our
children, the people of the Middle East or the citizens of Israel will
be safer by going to war against
Iraq. I believe that going to war against Iraq would be a mistake. The
cost would be heavy in lives
lost, dollars wasted and it would squander the goodwill of our allies.
The serious question is when will the human race work towards peace,
rather than war. As citizens of
the most educated and financially well-off country in history, when will
we decide to put our strength
and our energy and our creativity behind peace rather than destruction.
It is true that Saddam Hussein is a dictator he is a menace and the
world would be better off without
him. But, the world will also be better off if the United States works
within the scope of international
institutions instead of launching an unprovoked first-strike against
Iraq. Americas greatest asset is
our moral authority, not our military power. Attacking a sovereign
country unprovoked forfeits that
authority completely.
A war with Iraq will cost between $100-250 billion. Just think what we
could do with that amount of
money if we decided to invest in humanity rather than military hardware.
With $150 billion we could help developing countries in Africa by
forgiving half of the continents
debt, $112 billion would repair or rebuild all the public schools in the
United States, and for only $12
million we could de-mine and replant the breadbasket of Afghanistan to
help that nation recover from
more than 20 years of continuous war.
We owe it to our children to exercise the full range of diplomatic
options in Iraq, so we can prevent a
war that will cost thousands of lives, and give a boost to our real
enemies the terrorists who planned
September 11.
War represents a failure of national policy. It is a last resort.
Americas strength is our commitment
to moral action and a government based on the rule of law. That law
must never be silent, and our
moral sensibilities must never be intimidated by fear.
Sincerely,
David Krieger
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
