Saturday, November 21, 2009

From The Honorable Sis. Cynthia McKinney: We Peace Activists Know We're In Trouble When . . .




Mullen: ‘Nuclear Iran’ An Existential Threat To Israel



Posted By Jason Ditz On November 8, 2009 @ 6:46 pm

Speaking today at the National Press Club, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen declared that “it’s very clear to me that a nuclear weapon in Iran is an existential threat to Israel.”

Adm. Mullen has repeatedly met with Israel’s military chief Gen. Ashkenazi, and says foiling Iran’s nuclear program is “the number one priority for Israel.” This has been underscored in recent days as Israel has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran.

But while Admiral Mullen said he still wanted President Obama to continue with diplomacy, he was fully prepared to see the US attack Iran to prevent a nuclear Iran from “undermining the stability” of the Middle East. At the same time, Mullen admitted that attacking Iran itself “would also be incredibly destabilizing.”

Though Western officials have repeatedly issued warnings about Iran’s nuclear program, the IAEA has repeatedly certified that none of Iran’s uranium has been enriched to anywhere near weapons-grade level and that none of it is being diverted to anything but civilian use.

Article printed from News From Antiwar.com: http://news.antiwar.com

URL to article: http://news.antiwar.com/2009/11/08/mullen-nuclear-iran-an-existential-threat-to-israel/

* * * * *
Clearly, with Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Somalia already on fire from U.S. drones; an increase in U.S. military presence in Colombia; U.S. troops still in Iraq; NATO- and UN-condoned occupations; the U.S. shadow looming large in the Honduras coup; and saber-rattling like this against Iran, peace is nowhere near at hand--despite the Nobel Peace Prize Committee's findings and the hopes for change of the American people. That's why I signed this letter to President Obama, drafted by Laurie Dobson who can be reached at lauriegdobson@yahoo.com. Contact her if you want to sign it, too. Here's Laurie's letter:

OPEN LETTER FROM THE PEACE MOVEMENT TO PRESIDENT OBAMA ON HIS UPCOMING DECISION REGARDING THE AFGHAN WAR

Dear Mr. President:

According to press reports, you intend to decide between November 7 and November 11 whether or not to send tens of thousands of American soldiers to Afghanistan. We are writing in advance of that decision to add our voice to those of Sen. Feingold, many House Democrats, and of a clear majority of Americans in urging you not to escalate this war, but rather to announce an immediate cease-fire followed by a withdrawal of all US troops in the fastest way consistent with the safety of our forces. We urge you to end the policy of using Predator drones to assassinate Pakistani civilians on the territory of their own country, in defiance of all concepts of international law. We also call upon you to cease all covert CIA and Pentagon operations in Afghanistan,
Pakistan, and Iran.

No vital American interest is at stake in Afghanistan. Former Marine and State Department official Matthew Hoh is right: the US and NATO forces in Afghanistan have come to be viewed as invaders and occupiers, and the resistance they encounter has nothing to do with international terrorism. This war is futile, and now doomed to failure. There is no military solution to the problems that beset Afghanistan. Afghanistan and the rest of this tragically war-torn region need a Marshall Plan of peaceful economic development, through which some of the 15 million unemployed workers in our own country could find productive jobs. We have no confidence in the advice being given to you by military leaders like Gen. McChrystal, who has been implicated in torture in Iraq.

We supported your candidacy because we viewed you as the best chance for ending the wars of the Bush era. We applauded your rejection of the rhetoric of fear and division that was the stock in trade of Bush and Cheney. We are alarmed by the way that rhetoric has crept into your public pronouncements since your August address in Phoenix. Your decision on Afghanistan will represent the decisive turning point of your presidency. If you turn away from war, you will provide a profile in courage that will solidify your support and open up a new perspective for progressive reforms in our country. You will honor the spirit of John F. Kennedy, who was searching for an exit strategy from the Vietnam war. If you opt for a wider war, the resulting heavy casualties will destroy confidence in your leadership among your own most devoted advocates. Hundreds of billions of dollars will be poured down a rat hole, and will no longer be available for any reform and renovation of American society, which will increasingly fall behind the economic strength of other countries. Your domestic agenda will be halted, in the same way your predecessor Lyndon B. Johnson was crippled by the Vietnam war. Escalation of the Afghan war, in short, would be an act of political suicide for you, and of national suicide for our country.

We are keenly aware of the difficulties and animosities you face, and we have long done everything possible to give your administration the benefit of the doubt, even in the face of repeated disappointments. But we now approach the moment of truth: will you be a great progressive president, or will you prove too weak to turn away from the bankrupt policies institutionalized and entrenched under Bush and Cheney. Therefore, we want you to know our attitude before you decide on the proposed Afghan escalation. If you choose to escalate, we will oppose this policy with all the energy we possess. We will act to mobilize the largest possible anti-war demonstration in Washington DC and other cities before the end of 2009, and continuously thereafter. We will support anti-war candidates of any party in the 2010 elections. If you are still waging the Afghan war in 2011, we will be forced to seriously consider backing an explicitly anti-war primary candidate to challenge you during the Democratic primaries.

We therefore respectfully urge you to act in the spirit of your 2008 campaign – the spirit of hope and change, neither of which can survive the continuation or expansion of the hopeless Afghan war.

Cynthia McKinney, DIGNITY

* * * *
My sister, Cindy Sheehan, is planning a camp in DC similar to Camp Casey. Here's what Cindy has in the works:

"We will begin to set Camp up on March 13th-14th on the Ellipse and this will be the staging area and camping area for people coming to DC to take part in the Action.

We will have a contest to have a name for the Camp. Send your suggestions to me at: CindysSoapbox@gmail.com.

There are many tent cities springing up around the country and we believe that our suffering should not be hidden from those that caused it so we will set up right under their criminal noses.

Come to our Camp for food, basic shelter and lots of warm community.

We are including social services, entertainment and education pieces in our Camp life.
HOW TO SIGN UP/GET MORE INFO

The website with online sign-ups could be online as soon as tomorrow evening.
WHEN WILL WE BEGIN?

I had originally intended to begin Peace of the Action when we had 5000 people committed to joining us, but now we will begin on March 23rd no matter how many have signed up, to partner with the ANSWER Coalition's March 20th anti-war march (7th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq) and World Can't Wait's events on Friday, March 19th. We truly believe that this is going to be such an amazing and energizing action that if we build it you will come."

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And finally, we have the route for our cross-country "bike ride for peace" all worked out. You can click here to study the map: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=106454352652415594542.00047596dcee9c0ed3f74&z=4.

You can click here to check out our schedule for riding:
http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=l9jftjjgmq72fknhmm6vui2m5s%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FLos_Angeles&gsessionid=KepLf43gH_h-pvxEa7n9Yw

Let me hear from those of you who are interested in riding all or part of the way with us!


--
http://www.livestream.com/dignity
http://dignity.ning.com/
http://www.twitter.com/dignityaction
http://www.myspace.com/dignityaction
http://www.myspace.com/runcynthiarun
http://www.twitter.com/cynthiamckinney
http://www.facebook.com/CynthiaMcKinney



*MORE INFORMATION*

The Honorable Cynthia McKinney

http://www.runcynthiarun.org

http://www.allthingscynthiamckinney.com

http://www.mckinney2008.com

Green Party Of The United States

http://www.gp.org

Posted by tha artivist at 5:25 AM

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