Response to Ben
I received an email today from Ben Cohen. It is obviously a form letter as I do not know him. I know of him, but I do not know him. And he obviously does not know me or he wouldn't have sent me this email.
Hi, I'm Ben Cohen, Co-Founder of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. You may only think of me as that smiling face on the side of a pint of ice cream, but today I am writing about something far more serious. Like millions of Americans, I am worried that our government is rushing us off to a war in Iraq that we don't need to fight. That is why I created a way for everyone in America to send free faxes to the President and their Representatives in Congress urging them to support the United Nations Inspectors and not a rush to war.It's fast, free, and easy. Just go to this link and fill out a short form. We'll find your Representatives, add your name and address to a pre-written fax (so they know it's from someone in their district), and send it off for free.
United Nations inspectors have returned to Iraq to hunt down and destroy weapons of mass destruction. This is a triumph for the UN, the rule of law - even for President Bush who pushed so hard for this. So why does he seem hell-bent on making sure that no matter what happens it will lead to war?
Please go to this web site to send the President and your Representatives in Congress a fax urging them to help the UN Inspectors win this conflict without war. And then forward this email to all your friends asking them to send their free faxes.
Dear Ben,
I can understand why the people you are trying to reach may need your help to identify their representatives. But if they cannot even identify their representatives, why do you trust their judgment on international decisions? Perhaps you hope these people may also believe you when you talk about a "rush to war." Iraq has defying the UN for 12 years now, and a response in 2003 is a rush?
As James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal has stated, it is already too late to "rush" to war.
- "Hussein will be given 'a last chance to comply before he gets clobbered,' The New York Times on Monday quoted an unidentified U.S. official as saying."--CNN.com, Jan. 27, 1998
- "Annan Admits Iraq Trip Could Be Last Chance for Peace"--CNN.com, Feb. 18, 1998
- "Clinton: Iraq Has Abused Its Last Chance"--CNN.com, Dec. 16, 1998
- "The Rush to War"--headline, The Nation, Aug. 7, 2002
- "Secretary of State Colin L. Powell . . . and his advisers have decided that they should focus international discussion on how Iraq would be governed after Mr. Hussein--not only in an effort to assure a democracy but as a way to outflank administration hawks and slow the rush to war."--New York Times, Aug. 16, 2002
- "Christian Leaders Urge U.S. to 'Stop Rush to War' With Iraq"--headline, United Methodist Church press release, Aug. 30, 2002
- "A Reckless Rush to War"--headline, editorial, The American Prospect, Sept. 25, 2002
- "We have not been told why . . . we must rush to war rather than pursuing other options."--Rep. Barbara Lee (D., Calif.), Sept. 30, 2002
- "We are rushing into war without fully discussing why."--Sen. Robert Byrd (D., W.Va.), Oct. 3, 2002
- "The White House suggested Wednesday that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein has missed his 'last chance' to disarm."--CNN.com, Dec. 18, 2002
- "Future European Union members endorsed a joint declaration Tuesday warning Saddam Hussein he has one last chance to disarm."--Associated Press, Feb. 18, 2003
Why do you think the Iraqi people should continue to suffer? Don't you realize they are brutally beaten and tortured? The Globe and Mail does. I do. While you enjoy your millions, that you earned while our military men were protecting our safety, Saddam was poisoning his people. I'm glad you did well in our protected environment, but don't Iraqis deserve to be safe too? Don't you realize that Resolution 1441 gave Saddam 60 days to comply and he has not?
Thank you for your letter, but the price of complicity in keeping Saddam in power is higher than I want to pay. I have copied my respresentatives to remind them of my position. Thank you for motivating me to write them yet again.
Sincerely
Admiral Quixote
Greetings