10-26-06, 9:04 am
Dear UFPJ member groups,
You've probably have heard the warnings of Seymour Hirsh and Daniel Ellsberg. You may have read in The Nation that a strike force, led by the nuclear aircraft carrier U.S.S. Eisenhower, has been deployed to the Persian Gulf off the coast of Iran. Some experts claim that this is a normal deployment, but others believe that it is an intentional 'show of force,' if not an active provocation or an attempt to create a pretext for war, like the Tonkin Gulf incident in Vietnam.
We have now learned that U.S. minesweepers have been ordered to follow the U.S.S. Eisenhower. This is an even more ominous signal of preparation for military action, since such ships would not normally accompany a strike force on routine deployments.
The national steering committee of UFPJ is actively discussing what can be done to prevent an attack on Iran, as are many of our member groups,. We cannot and will not stop our work to end the disastrous U.S. occupation of Iraq, where casualties are rising dramatically with each passing day, and we are not suggesting that anyone stops efforts to use the last few weeks of this election season to push our antiwar message. At the same time, we cannot ignore the signals that an increasingly desperate Bush administration might launch a military strike against Iran.
Here’s how you can help: A petition has been created by UFPJ member group Peace Action, one that rejects any U.S. military action against Iran and demands direct negotiations. Working with other groups within UFPJ, Peace Action will deliver these petitions to Congress at the earliest feasible date - and your signatures are needed to do that effectively!
Please go to and sign the 'No War with Iran!' petition today! This petition is directed to Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and copies will go to Chairs of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Committee on International Relations.
We also want to make sure you know that another member group of UFPJ, After Downing Street Coalition, also has a petition – – that is directed to Bush and Cheney.
Help spread the word about these efforts: circulate this memo, or your own version, to the members of your group; contact other groups in your area; raise the issue in your other ongoing work.
We'll do our best to keep you informed about developments related to Iran and ideas for action in the coming weeks and months. The first step is to show the largest possible response we can to Congress and policy makers in Washington, letting them know in no uncertain terms that we will not tolerate another war in the Middle East. Sign the petitions today, and pass them on to your friends and colleagues.
peace, Leslie Cagan National Coordinator UFPJ P.S. - If you're not convinced that the Bush administration would actually do such a crazy thing, you might want to check out the following two articles:
'Why Bush Will Nuke Iran' by Paul Craig Roberts, a Reagan administration official and former Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal editorial page, who argues that the Bush administration will decide to use tactical nukes in Iran because they are still committed to military hegemony in the region, but have no more troops to use. (baltimorechronicle.com)
'Does Bush Think War with Iran is Preordained?' by Chris Hedges, former Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times, which explores the belief of many in Bush’s inner circle that they are on a divine mission to reshape the world, and that Iran is the inevitable next step. (www.alternet.org)
These are not loose cannons or conspiracy theorists. We are taking their warnings very seriously, and hope you will too.
From
--Leslie Cagan is the National Coordinator of United for Peace and Justice (UFPJ).
