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The Consequences of
Our Surrender to Fear,
and
The Audacity of Hope
This administration has abused our trust and betrayed our troops.
As Ted Kulongoski, the governor of Oregon said recently:
"I just have a great frustration as to why we're having a difficulty
addressing this issue in a very straight-forward conversation with the
American people," he said. "And I think that conversation starts with,
what is America's national interest in continuing in Iraq?" "The
nation's interest surely cannot be about weapons of mass destruction or
regime change or bringing democracy into the Middle East. Ultimately...
it's about oil."
George Bush is not the real
issue. And
Operation
Iraqi
Liberation
is
not about democracy.
It is time to ask serious
questions. Should we be spending hundreds of billions, perhaps
trillions of dollars... to install large, long-term military
installations in Iraq? Can we continue to ignore the hundreds of
thousands of lives which have been lost, or the millions of innocent
bystanders who have been disenfranchised, disinherited, or
displaced?
Why have we allowed transnational economic cartels
to hijack our
democracy and use our troops as mercenaries? Are our national
interests best served by this surrender? Is
there anything we can do to change this fatal and feckless course?
Frankly, the unprincipled invasion, occupation, and exploitation of Iraq
was a deliberate, calculated extension of military control over
oil. The transnational economic cartels which put George Bush in
the presidency, are right now negotiating a division of the spoils of
this war of choice. These corporate players, after using US troops as
mercenaries to enforce no-bid, cost-plus contracts on Iraq... are right
now being handed the largest portion of the oil revenue of Iraq in
exchange for the crumbs they throw at the puppet government they
installed. It is time to pay attention.
It is time for straight talk about this ill-advised invasion and
wrong-headed occupation. The amoral and unprincipled exploitation
of Iraq dishonors our troops, our
people, and our nation. With calculated arrogance, these
fear-mongers and pretenders have cultivated hate and delivered despair.
Too many of our people have abandoned hope, lost faith, and forsaken
their dreams. But it is too early to surrender our freedom
and forfeit our liberty.
Together we can seek justice and rebuild our American
dreams.
We must remember who we are, and dare to have the courage of our
convictions.
Perhaps
Langston Hughes said it best, when he reminded us:
"Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a
broken-winged bird that cannot fly."
James
Baldwin told us fifty years ago, that:
“The intangible dreams of people can have a tangible effect on the
world.”
These visionaries are on
the mark. We need not surrender to endless war or acquiesce in
corporate dictates. There is no way to hide the failures of this
administration. Now is the
time for us to move. Our choices, however limited, are clear.
Hillary has money and celebrity, but lots of baggage. Al Gore has
mostly baggage. Kucinich has ideas and vision, but no chance to
win. John Edwards has the credentials and integrity to provide
an excellent Vice President for the next administration.
Barack Obama has that unique combination of intelligence and charisma
which catapulted Bill Clinton into the presidency. This man,
however imperfect, has provided us with a vehicle for our hopes and
dreams. Now is
no time for
caution. We must dare to dream, face facts, and do the right
thing.
A loss in 2008 is not acceptable.
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George Bernard Shaw: Some men see things as they are and say, "Why?" I dream of things that never were and say, "Why not?" (frequently attributed to Robert F. (Bobby) Kennedy)
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