Terrell's response to Sen. Harkin's "Peace" letter (letter follows the response.)

Friends,


Tom Harkin's letter to us, the "Peace Groups of the Des Moines Area"
sent to us yesterday on the fifth anniversary of "shock and awe" and
of the occupation of Iraq is gratefully received. It must be
recognized with appreciation that, as Tom points out, he has been an
ally to us in the senate at some junctures in our struggle to end the
war.


It must be mentioned, though, that Tom Harkin has voted on several
occasions to keep funds going to the very war he decries.


It must be noted, too, that while yesterday was the fifth anniversary
of the beginning of a brutal occupation of Iraq, the war by the United
States against the people of that country has gone unabated in various
forms since the Gulf War of 1991. Tom did not raise objections to the
daily violations of Iraq's airspace and frequent bombings in the "no
fly" zones that the United States unilaterally imposed against the
United Nations resolutions. He did not oppose the sanctions against
Iraq, the harshest siege in history that reached genocidal proportions
during Bill Clinton's administration under the leadership of first
Madeleine Albright, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. who said that the
deaths of 500,000 children under five years old was "worth the price"
to promote US policies in the region, and continued under Ambassador
Bill Richardson when Albright was promoted to Secretary of State with
Tom Harkin's vote of approval.


Tom's appraisal of the horrible cost of this war to Americans, "of
precious lives lost and many thousands of soldiers returning home with
grievous physical and psychological wounds" is eloquently put. Few In
congress have had the courage to recognize as Tom has, the rash of
suicides this war is spawning. Tom Harkin understands what it means to
oppose the war and to "support the troops" more than some of his
colleagues. He knows, too, the costs this war places on the poorest
and most vulnerable Americans as $12 billion a month is wasted on this
war.


But what of the more onerous costs borne by the Iraqis? Does Tom
Harkin not grieve over the sufferings of people who are not American?
At his Palm Sunday Mass this week, Pope Benedict XVI prayed for the
people of Iraq "who for five years have endured the consequences of a
war that has provoked upheaval in its civic and social life." A people
who have never harmed us, who never meant us any harm are being
starved, poisoned, tortured, humiliated, murdered, driven into exile
by our brutal occupation. Tom calls the war in Iraq "dysfunctional."
It is that and more. It is a crime of historic proportions and it is
an evasion of responsibility to blame the weak puppet government we
imposed on the Iraqi people for sectarian violence that plagues that
country.


"Enough is enough," Tom Harkin says and we can only join in his demand.

Most disturbing in his letter to us, though, is the solution that Tom
offers: "The only true way forward in Iraq is to redeploy U.S. forces.
Only this will give the Iraqi leaders the incentive to resolve their
differences and take responsibility for their own future. And by
redeploying our troops to strategic locations elsewhere in the Middle
East, we will be able to pursue a more effective strategy in that
critical part of the world."


"Redeploying our troops to strategic locations elsewhere in the Middle
East" is NOT bringing the troops home at all. It is not a way to peace
but a certain recipe for more war.


Nor do we need "to pursue a more effective strategy in that critical
part of the world," unless that strategy is one of repentance and
reparation for the havoc our country has played on the people and
nations of that region out of our greed and hubris.


We are the problem, not the solution to the problems in that critical
part of the world and without realizing that, it is doubtful that we
can vote our way out of the travail in which our country, Iraq and the
rest of the planet suffers.



Brian Terrell terrellcpm@yahoo.com
Executive Director
Catholic Peace Ministry

------------------------------------



WASHINGTON, DC 20510 1502


March19, 2008

Dear Peace Groups of the Des Moines Area:


I deeply appreciate your efforts to speak out against this war. You
have been steadfast in Iowa and across America in getting the message
out to elected officials and the public that there is no military
solution in Iraq and it is time to bring the troops home.


I have been at the fore front of efforts in Congress to set a
timetable for redeployment ever since it became clear that we were led
into this war under false pretenses. In 2006, I introduced a
resolution in Congress to bring the troops home. Also, I have
supported every piece of legislation since then to bring the troops
home.


So on this fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, we have reached
an extraordinary juncture. The so-called surge has manifestly failed
to achieve its stated objective. which was to facilitate
reconciliation within the Iraqi government. The Iraqi government, time
and again, has failed to take the kinds of actions that will foster
national unity. Meanwhile, we have received a series of objective,
authoritative reports documenting that the Iraqi government, Army, and
police are dysfunctional and riddled with sectarianism and corruption.


In other words, the President's stay the course policy in Iraq has
brought us more of the same. The same violence. The same dysfunction.
The same failure.


All of this has come at a very dear cost, first and foremost in terms
of precious lives lost and many thousands of soldiers returning home
with grievous physical and psychological wounds. Last year, suicides
among active-duty soldiers reached their highest level since the Army
began keeping records 28 years ago. The number of attempted suicides
or self-inflicted injuries in the Army * 2,100 last year has risen six
fold since the Iraq war began.


Mean while, at a cost of $l2 billion a month, the Iraq war is a
tremendous drain on our federal budget. Urgent needs here in the
United States are being systematically neglected. Last month, the
President sent up a budget that insists on endless billions for Iraq
at the same time it calls for deep cuts in programs here at home for
children, seniors on fixed incomes, students, and the working poor.


Let's be clear what these domestic budget cuts are all about. The
President is cutting health care, cutting education, cutting law
enforcement, and so on, to make room for his real priority, which is
keeping the war in Iraq going until he leaves office next year.



Enough is enough. The only true way forward in Iraq is to redeploy
U.S. forces. Only this will give the Iraqi leaders the incentive to
resolve their differences and take responsibility for their own
future. And by redeploying our troops to strategic locations else
where in the Middle East, we will be able to pursue a more effective
strategy in that critical part of the world.


With warm regards,

Tom Harkin
United States Senator