The Dumb War | ||
August 8, 2014 Dear Activist, After he called years of US military involvement in Iraq “the dumb war,” today President Obama authorized airstrikes on ISIS in Iraq. Our heads are spinning: we’re bombing Iraq –– again. Tell the President now: Humanitarian aid, yes! Bombing, NO!!!! Why does our President want to take sides and get involved in a civil war? The US is not the target of ISIS, but if we become involved, we will be. President Obama’s concerns about the Iraqi humanitarian crisis and the safety of US personnelcan be solved without dropping bombs. Helping the besieged civilians in Iraq should be an orchestrated international effort, not carried out just by the US--the country that unleashed the sectarian turmoil in the first place. And if American personnel in Irbil or elsewhere in Iraq are in harm’s way, they should be immediately evacuated to a safe location. Further US involvement will only make the situation worse. Learn more about the situation in Iraq in this Democracy Now segment with Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies. As she points out, it's up to the Shi’ite Iraqi government ––not the US government–– to create a broad-based coalition that shows it is inclusive of the Sunni population, instead of alienating them and driving them to support ISIS. This is the way wars are started. It’s a slippery slope where humanitarian missions are the cloak for military intervention. We can be a part of the solution this time, not the problem, but that won’t happen with bombs. We’ve been there, done that, and it didn’t work. The American people are sick of war and the Iraqi people have suffered enough from our military aggression. Tell President Obama: Bombing is not humanitarian aid! Don’t drag us into another war in Iraq! With hope for peace in Iraq, Alli, Anastasia, Ben, Holly, Jodie, Janet, Medea, Nada, Nancy, Sophia, and Tighe |
