My friend, as a supporter of the anti-war movement, recently received this list of helpful arguments from the band Anti-flag
Here is the list provided by Anti-Flag:
1. The Bush Administration is not interested in the welfare of the Iraqi
people. If they were, they would have supported dropping the economic sanctions that were imposed after the first Gulf War. These sanctions have deprived the Iraqi people adequate food, medicine, and materials necessary to rebuild the country?s infrastructure (roads, water sanitation, etc.) As a result, millions of Iraqis have died from preventable and treatable illnesses, especially children. Economic sanctions have not hurt Saddam Hussein.
2. The Bush Regime does not care about establishing a genuinely democratic
system of government in Iraq. For starters, the Bush regime snubbed its nose at democracy in action when they choose to invade Iraq without a United Nations resolution authorizing them do so, which makes this invasion illegal under international law. Secondly, if the US really cared about establishing a free and democratic society in Iraq it should not have made it possible for a ruthless leader like Saddam Hussein to be in power in the first place, never mind supporting him for many years with US military aid.
3. Quote another Republican President, Theodore Roosevelt, who in 1918
said: "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
4. Iraq had NOTHING to do with 9/11, according to the CIA.
5. Peace is patriotic, too.
6. The Bush Administration was never serious about weapons inspections.
The Bush Administration repeatedly stated that they were going into Iraq no matter what.
7. The Bush Administration is sending American troops into a very
dangerous situation where they could be killed, and where Iraqi civilians may be killed. The evidence that was presented by the US at the UN and to the American people was not new information, was inconclusive at best, and in some instances (such as Colin Powell?s presentation at the UN) was plagiarized from a student dissertation.
8. We want to support our troops by bringing them home, where they will be
safe, just as we want to support the citizens of Iraq by keeping them safe, too.
9. The population of Iraq is almost 50% children who are under 15. No
matter what is going on between our countries they are innocent and do not deserve to be killed, orphaned, or psychologically traumatized.
10. During the last Gulf War, President Bush Sr. encouraged Iraqis who
wanted to get rid of Saddam Hussein to rebel. They did so, and then were not backed up by the US government or coalition forces that were necessary to make their rebellion successful. The rebellion was completely crushed. If America was really serious about wanting the people of Iraq to be free, they could have achieved that goal in 1991.
11. The armbands are meant to symbolize the fact that the Bush
Administration must change its foreign policy to be more creative and peace oriented.
12. As a result of political statements (armbands, t-shirts, etc.) and
activism/protests against war by the peace movement, the US military has had to change their attitude about casualties during wartime. In the first Gulf War, when asked about the number of Iraqi dead, Colin Powell said ?That is not a number I am concerned about.? According to the US State Department the number of Iraqi?s killed was 90,000, compared to 148 US casualties. Since then, actions by peace activists calling attention to the atrocities of war has pressured the US government to take special action to limit as much as possible civilian casualties during US military actions. No loss of life is the only acceptable number, but without the actions of peace activists the numbers would be much higher.
13. The BBC reported that both the CIA and British Intelligence have
recently filed reports stating that Iraq is not a threat to anyone outside of its borders and is not likely to attack another nation unless it is attacked
::sigh::
You figure a band with as many resources could come it with a few better reasons?
Here is the list provided by Anti-Flag:
1. The Bush Administration is not interested in the welfare of the Iraqi
people. If they were, they would have supported dropping the economic sanctions that were imposed after the first Gulf War. These sanctions have deprived the Iraqi people adequate food, medicine, and materials necessary to rebuild the country?s infrastructure (roads, water sanitation, etc.) As a result, millions of Iraqis have died from preventable and treatable illnesses, especially children. Economic sanctions have not hurt Saddam Hussein.
2. The Bush Regime does not care about establishing a genuinely democratic
system of government in Iraq. For starters, the Bush regime snubbed its nose at democracy in action when they choose to invade Iraq without a United Nations resolution authorizing them do so, which makes this invasion illegal under international law. Secondly, if the US really cared about establishing a free and democratic society in Iraq it should not have made it possible for a ruthless leader like Saddam Hussein to be in power in the first place, never mind supporting him for many years with US military aid.
3. Quote another Republican President, Theodore Roosevelt, who in 1918
said: "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
4. Iraq had NOTHING to do with 9/11, according to the CIA.
5. Peace is patriotic, too.
6. The Bush Administration was never serious about weapons inspections.
The Bush Administration repeatedly stated that they were going into Iraq no matter what.
7. The Bush Administration is sending American troops into a very
dangerous situation where they could be killed, and where Iraqi civilians may be killed. The evidence that was presented by the US at the UN and to the American people was not new information, was inconclusive at best, and in some instances (such as Colin Powell?s presentation at the UN) was plagiarized from a student dissertation.
8. We want to support our troops by bringing them home, where they will be
safe, just as we want to support the citizens of Iraq by keeping them safe, too.
9. The population of Iraq is almost 50% children who are under 15. No
matter what is going on between our countries they are innocent and do not deserve to be killed, orphaned, or psychologically traumatized.
10. During the last Gulf War, President Bush Sr. encouraged Iraqis who
wanted to get rid of Saddam Hussein to rebel. They did so, and then were not backed up by the US government or coalition forces that were necessary to make their rebellion successful. The rebellion was completely crushed. If America was really serious about wanting the people of Iraq to be free, they could have achieved that goal in 1991.
11. The armbands are meant to symbolize the fact that the Bush
Administration must change its foreign policy to be more creative and peace oriented.
12. As a result of political statements (armbands, t-shirts, etc.) and
activism/protests against war by the peace movement, the US military has had to change their attitude about casualties during wartime. In the first Gulf War, when asked about the number of Iraqi dead, Colin Powell said ?That is not a number I am concerned about.? According to the US State Department the number of Iraqi?s killed was 90,000, compared to 148 US casualties. Since then, actions by peace activists calling attention to the atrocities of war has pressured the US government to take special action to limit as much as possible civilian casualties during US military actions. No loss of life is the only acceptable number, but without the actions of peace activists the numbers would be much higher.
13. The BBC reported that both the CIA and British Intelligence have
recently filed reports stating that Iraq is not a threat to anyone outside of its borders and is not likely to attack another nation unless it is attacked
::sigh::
You figure a band with as many resources could come it with a few better reasons?
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