The Case Against an Invasion of Iraq


Photo courtesy of the Colorado Campaign for Middle East Peace
Click on the photo for a short explanation of the scene.

The proposed “preemptive” war with Iraq has kindled protest by thousands of people.In millions more, there is profound doubt, fear, or anger -- for good reason. We hope you will take all that and actively oppose the war!

The catalogue of protest is as varied as we are.  But whatever you do, we hope you will take an extra step beyond the comfort zone.  This is to be a war like no other in our history – a war not just on Iraq but on the democratic identity and future of the United States.  Just how far it goes, how many lives and freedoms it destroys, will depend on the vigor of our protest.  Our action is itself our own freedom and dignity, whether we see an immediate political effect or not.  With that action, we nurture the ideals that in turn sustain us.  Then we find solidarity not just with dear friends around us but also with those who carried the torch of justice down through the ages to us, and with those who will stand firm for freedom when we are gone. 

Greg Mello

Check out the following links for more great pictures of recent peace actions:

California Bay Area Peace Rally - Courtesy of KRON4
Voice 4 Change - Picture of the Day Collection

                Want to get involved?  Here are some local New Mexico organizations*

Action Coalition of Taos, New Mexico
Chuck Pergler
Los Alamos, NM
mailto:pergler@att.net

Committee to Stop the War Machine
PO Box 4591
Albuquerque, NM 87196
Email: Bob Anderson mailto:anderson@swcp.com or

Georgia Bennett mailto:bennettgeo@aol.com
New Mexico Progressive 

New Mexico Solidarity Network
144 Harvard Avenue, SE
Albuquerque, NM
(505) 265-4799                                                                                                          

San Juan County Peace Coalition
Farmington, NM

Santa Fe Community Action Network
mailto:cards@newmexico.com

Veterans for Peace - Albuquerque
Sally-Alice & Don Thompson
1519 Anderson Place SE
Albuquerque, NM 87108
Phone: (505) 268-5073
Email: sally-aliceanddon@juno.com

 Veterans for Peace - Santa Fe
Ken Mayers
7 Avenida Vista Grande
Santa Fe, NM 87508
Phone: (505) 466-6954
Email: info@vfp-santafe.org

 
Los Alamos Study Group
2901 Summit Place NE
Albuquerque, NM 87106-2028
mailto:gmello@lasg.org                                                                                                                                    

 
* If you do not see your group listed here and would like to have it listed, please call us at (505) 265-1200.

Overviews

Congressional Research Service finds “preemptive” war unprecedented in U.S. history, Richard F. Grimmett, National Defense Specialist. Click here to download html document.

“Officers Say U.S. Aided Iraq in War Despite Use of Gas,” Patrick E. Tyler, New York Times, August 17, 2002.
This article documents that dozens of U.S. military advisors, working in a special Baghdad office, helped Saddam Hussein with detailed battle planning and assessment during the Iran-Iraq war, including periods when poison gas was being used regularly and extensively. Click here to download html document.

 “The Case Against War on Iraq,” Howard Zinn, Boston Globe, August 19.

“The Iraq Crisis and International Law,” A Nuclear Age Peace Foundation Reader, Edited by Richard Falk and David Krieger, January 2003. Adobe Acrobat pdf document, 499kb, click here to download.

 “Why Another War?” A Backgrounder on the Iraq Crisis, 2^nd ed, Sarah Graham-Brown and Chris Toensing.   

 “U.S. Had Key Role in Iraq Buildup - Trade in Chemical Arms Allowed Despite Their Use on Iranians, Kurds,” Michael Dobbs, Washington Post, December 30, 2002.

This detailed article is very interesting because it documents, among other revelations, that the first Bush Administration allowed sales of chemical weapons and/or chemical weapon precursors to Iraq in December 1988, after the Halabjah massacre of March 1988.  Also, it may not be widely known that Rumsfeld’s 1983 overture to Saddam Hussein occurred when it was well known to the Reagan Administration that Hussein was using chemical weapons “on an almost daily basis.” Click here to download html document


“Top ten reasons why the U.S. should not invade Iraq”

Courtesy of Global Exchange.  For a complete explanation of the following, please access the full webpage at Global Exchange:

1. There is no justification for going to war.
2. Iraq does not pose a clear and present danger.
3. When it comes to invading Iraq, the U.S. has few allies.
4. An attack on Iraq would make us less safe.
5. A costly invasion would take resources away from much needed priorities at home.
6. Invading Iraq would be extremely difficult -- and without a clear victory.
7. A war would kill thousands of people.
8. We should not wage a war for oil.
9. Other options besides war are available.
10. Opposition to the war is growing.
    
    

For more reasons not to invade Iraq, see the web pages of these organizations

Dallas Peace Center
Foreign Policy in Focus                                
Global Exchange

Useful links with lots more information and analyses

Action Coalition of Taos, New Mexico
American_Friends_Service Committee
Cities_for_Peace
Coalition_for_World_Peace
Code_Pink-Women’s_Preemptive_Strike_for_Peace
Colorado_Campaign_for_Middle_East_Peace
Committee_to_Stop_the_War_Machine
Common_Dreams
Democracy Now
Education_for_Peace_in_Iraq_Center
FAIR,_Fairness_&_Accuracy_In_Reporting
FCNL,_Friends_Committee_on_National_Legislation
Fellowship_of_Reconciliation
Foreign_Policy_in_Focus
Global_Exchange
Grandmothers_for_Peace_International
Institute_for_Policy_Studies
Interfaith_Communities_United_for_Justice_and_Peace
Lawyers_Committee_on_Nuclear_Policy
MERIP,_Middle_East_Research_and_Information_Project
MoveOn.org
National_Network_to_End_the_War_Against_Iraq
New_Mexico_Progressive
Norbert’s_Bookmarks_for_a_Better_World
Nuclear_Age_Peace_Foundation_-_Waging_Peace
Pax_Christi_USA
Peace,_No_War
Princeton_Peace_Network
The Coaltion for Peace Action
truthout
Rocky_Mountain_Peace_and_Justice_Center
San Juan County Peace Coalition
United_for_Peace
Veterans for Peace
Voice 4 Change
Western States Legal Foundation
Znet

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