[sparkscoffee] Re: Before war
- From: "" <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (Redacted sender "Sblumen123@xxxxxxx" for DMARC)
- To: sparkscoffee@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 11:46:03 -0400
Everyone
No comment
Stanley
In a message dated 9/11/2014 9:20:09 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
moveon-help@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
What question do you want answered before moving forward with military
action in Iraq or Syria?
_Ask Your Question_
(http://civ.moveon.org/iraqbigquestions.html?id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=1)
Watch: Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut
delivered some powerful remarks on the Senate floor today about not rushing
into action and the need to get this choice right. _Click here._
(http://civ.moveon.org/iraqbigquestions.html?id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=2)
Dear
MoveOn member,
In a major address to the nation last night, President Obama announced
that the U.S. will escalate its military campaign against ISIS (also known as
ISIL or the Islamic State). His plan seeks to "degrade" and ultimately
"destroy" ISIS in a sustained air campaign that would include dropping more
bombs on Iraq as well as possibly beginning strikes inside Syria.1
Let's all be really clear: President Obama is, in essence, proposing that
we launch a new U.S. war in the Middle East. The White House has indicated
that this strategy could take upward of three years to execute—meaning
Obama would be handing the next president a new war after he brought Bush's
Iraq war to a close.2 Roughly 1,600 U.S. troops and advisers have already been
deployed to the region in recent weeks.3 Senior members of Congress are
currently drafting legislation to authorize arming Syrian rebels.4
It was especially sobering to wake up to this news on September 11—an
anniversary of so much pain and tragedy.
It's vital that we slow down and engage in a real, full-throated debate—
including discussion of all the alternatives we have for confronting ISIS—
rather than rushing headlong into another open-ended war in the Middle East.
There are tough questions we should be grappling with to avoid making the
same mistakes again—questions like:
How is the U.S. prioritizing alternatives to military force, such as
halting the flow of weapons to the region that end up in ISIS's hands and
cutting off ISIS's financing so it can't keep waging war?
How might the use of U.S. military force undermine those alternative
strategies?
What's the U.S.'s exit strategy? What does "defeating" ISIS look like? How
will we know when to stop?
What are the potential unintended consequences?
We haven't heard these questions asked or answered by the president or
Congress, and yet they must be deliberated. Using facts. In the open. With
opportunities for all Americans to weigh in.
We know the costs are simply too high to get this wrong. We know it's up
to us to ask these questions, and we know it's up to us to demand sound
answers.
_Will you submit a question you want answered by Congress, the president,
and our military leaders before we launch into another open-ended war in
the Middle East?_
(http://civ.moveon.org/iraqbigquestions.html?id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=3)
We'll begin by sharing MoveOn members' questions with Congress, the
president, and the media.
But we won't stop there, because few if any decisions a country makes are
as consequential as the decision to go to war. Again, we need a full, open,
fact-based national discussion. If September 11 and the tragic decade that
followed should've taught us anything—it's that we as a public must demand
answers to hard questions before launching into war.
Thanks for all you do.
–Anna, Brian, Jo, Maria, and the rest of the team
P.S. In case you missed it, _here's a link to the transcript_
(http://www.moveon.org/r/?r=300748&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=4) of
President Obama's
remarks.
Sources:
1. "Statement by the President on ISL," The White House, September 10,
2014
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=300724&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=5
2. "Destroying ISIS May Take Years, U.S. Officials Say," The New York
Times, September 7, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=300723&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=6
3. "We Already Have Boots on the Ground in Iraq," The Huffington Post,
September 11, 2014
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=300745&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=7
4. "Obama Urgently Wants Congress to Vote on Arming Syrian Rebels," The
Wire, September 10, 2014
(http://www.moveon.org/r?r=300746&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=8)
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=300746&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex&t=9
Want to support our work? MoveOn Civic Action is entirely funded by our 8
million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And
our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. _Chip in
here._
(https://civic.moveon.org/donatec4/creditcard.html?t=90&cpn_id=457&id=101206-23912619-y3fHIex)
____________________________________
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