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Bush's Showdown With Americans

by kavkaz
The breathtaking site of the Anti-War rally in San Francisco left many Americans skeptical about people’s support for Bush administration’s unilateral war on Iraq.
On January 18 a chain of a human mob slowly crawled toward San Francisco Civic Center to deliver one message: «No Blood for Oil». In an outrage people called Bush «Empty Warhead».

An estimated 200,000 people sacrificed one day in their weekend to support the Iraqi people’s self-determination and oppose a possible military hazard in the Middle East.

Similar demonstrations were held in Washington D.C. and worldwide. Commentators said that this was third largest protest the city has ever seen since the Vietnam War and Desert Storm.

Resistance on a scale this large proves that there is no «consensus» for war. «Not in Our Name» was another frequent message on the demonstration landscape.

«Bush’s Preemptive War is American Terrorism», read one sign, «Democracy Not Hypocrisy» read another one.

There was a mob of intellectuals that tried to advice some sanity to Whitehouse war hawks. They placards read: «You cannot Escape Hole by Digging Down» «Give Reason a Chance» «Democracies Should not Provoke Wars» «May Power of Love Overpower the Love of Power».

Another issue the demonstration highlighted was the concern of civil liberties here at home in America. There have been mass detentions of Muslim men since Immigration and Naturalization Service of America (INS) have called special registration of mostly Muslim male population living in United States on nonimmigration visas.

Under INS special registration program, non-immigrant male visa-holders aged 16 and older from mainly Muslim countries are required to appear at INS offices nationwide to be interviewed and fingerprinted. Civil libertarians say the policy singles out visitors from mainly Muslim countries and does little to protect America from the threat of terrorism.

Nevertheless, in California alone more than 1000 law-abiding Muslim men who came forward to register were rounded up and detained without apparent reason. Demonstration in San Francisco also exhibited the detention scene under slogan that read: «Stop Racist Scapegoat Defend Civil Liberties»

If nothing stops possible war, activists are heading to Baghdad to form a human-shield and protect innocent Iraqis.

By Isa Gazievich

Isa Gazievich is independent journalist based in California for Kavkaz-Center

http://www.kavkazcenter.com/eng/article.php?id=861
by Anti-War protestor
The public would be even more skeptical about this War and sending their sons and husbands off to it if they realized the situation in Afghanistan.

According to work done on tracking US and coalition casualities in Afghaninstan through independent and reliable news sources, there are from Oct 2001 to June 2002:

US Military Deaths = 867
US Military Injured = 537

The figure for injured is extrememly likely to be large underestimate, because in any kind of situation where
injuries and death occur, there will generally be 4 or 5 times more injuries than deaths.

See full report at:
http://www2.jihadunspun.net/articles/08212002-Casualty.Report/casualty02.html

by Mike
Those numbers are completely screwed up.

If 50 soldiers were killed on October 21 - five weeks after 9/11 - it would have been plastered ALL over the news and also on this site.

Try again.
by C.Campbell
"support the Iraqi peoples self determination" I read that sentence at least 6 times. And each time it just got more laughable. It is, however, accurate since in the last election Saddam received 100% of the votes with 100% turnout. I wonder if Kim Jong ILL did that well in his election. I guess Saddams political strategist could teach James Carville a thing or two.
by albawaba
02-02-2003, 09:36
Military action against Iraq would start with US-led bombing raids on President Saddam Hussein's palaces and other symbols of his regime, a British Sunday newspaper said. In a bid to convince ordinary Iraqis that the war is not with them but with the Ba’ath regime itself, other initial targets would be Saddam's home town of Tikrit, key ministries, and homes and properties owned by Saddam's family and high-level officials, according to The Observer.

"The war will start with an extremely large bang. You can expect Saddam's home base of Tikrit to get a clobbering," an official told the British paper. The goal of the first air raids would be to "deliver a message to ordinary Iraqis, including the majority of Iraq's armed forces, that we are not at war with them, but with the structures that keep Saddam Hussein in power," the official told the paper.

"The point of the exercise is to avoid fighting in Iraq's cities and persuade Iraqi forces very quickly that there is no point fighting to defend the regime," the official said. Other targets would also include formations of Saddam's elite Republican Guard, the Special Republican Guard and police and intelligence services, the paper added. (Albawaba.com)
by starbuck
289 Million Americans Avoid Peace Rallies

(2003-01-19) -- Police across the nation estimate the crowd that avoided recent anti-war demonstrations at about 289 million. Americans from coast-to-coast voted in absentia against criticizing the Bush administration for Iraq's failure to comply with U.N. resolutions.

Anti-anti-war demonstrators gathered in grocery stores, shopping malls and private homes to proclaim their disagreement with protestors marching in the streets of Washington D.C. and San Francisco.

"Going about my regular Saturday routine is my way of saying I disagree with the radical left-wing agenda of the anti-Bush crowd," said college student Melanie Sampson, who spent the day preparing a term paper for a literature course.

Police reported no unusual problems with the droves that stayed away from the protests.

"It was a normal Saturday in America," said one Sheriff's deputy.

by EIB
I blame all civilians deaths in this upcoming war on the war protesters. If all people of the world were to unite and speak with one voice telling Saddam Hussein he could either step down or the wrath of the world community would fall upon him, he would fold within a month. But as long as there are war protesters out there and those who appease him, he sees that as a sign of weakness and he will refuse to step down. He will continue to hold his iron-fist of power over the Iraqi people.

Do war protesters really want to avoid war? Then they should join the throng of people who are telling Saddam Hussein he must either step down or it will be forced upon him. Once he sees he has no support system, that all the world is poised to make sure he is removed, he will accept terms of exile and a war can be completely avoided.
What?
Please pause a moment.
Are you making any sense?
?
The entire world is beginning
to attempt the overthrow of true
terror.
most of which our tax
money paid for.
Installation & maintenence.
But that's what the CIA is for.

by RL
It makes perfect sense.

Saddam sees war protesters as those who would allow him to stay in power. Should those same war protesters join their voices with those who are telling Saddam that he can either step down on his own or the world community will force him to step down, he will see he has no one who will appease him. With a united world community against him, with no one protesting using force to remove him, he will realize he has no allies of which to turn, and he will accept exile. War can then be avoided. And isn't that the objective of the war protesters, to avoid war?
by Sheepdog
Protesting the war is not support for the
buger in Bagdad.
Without our constant stress towards that
suffering nation (for scanctions, bombings
DU terror) the people may have taken him down
years ago. Nothing empowers a despot more
than external threat to the people.
Unless Bush and Saddam duke it out behind the
woodshed, we're talking about more blood and
tears of innocents.
by Kevin
"Saddam sees war protesters as those who would allow him to stay in power...."

That argument WOULD make sense, if one thought that Bush & Co. really give a damn about who's a dictator and who's not. But for those of us that are convinced that the REAL motivation is oil, (for example, we're not invading North Korea); that Bush WANTS this war for that end, and that even if Saddam did retired, our troops would still go in; your argument makes no sense.
And Protesting does.
by Patriot
It's also a question of who's going to fight this war. So far, everyone who wants it, it seems, wants someone else, or someone else's son to do the fighting and the dying.

If you want this war. If you think it's the right thing to do, why are you still on this site? Why aren't you in uniform? Why aren't YOU fighting?
Why aren't you sending YOUR sons do the fighting and dying ???

The reason is: that you're a bunch of cowardly hypocrites. You beat the drums of war, but YOU don't fight in them. You don't send YOUR sons to fight in them.
You expect other parents, other young men to die in the wars that you believe in.

You are absolutely disgusting.

by 4F
It's not for lack of willingness, trust me.

In Berkeley you call this war. In the Middle East it's also known as "negotiating."
by Patriot
Leave your e-mail; I know someone who works for a congressman, and he can probably "pull strings" and get you in.
by You Anti War Protesters, Here's What You Do!
Just another chicken-sh!t warrior, on the computer. He'll still be there when YOUR son or YOU come home in a body bag.

You Anti War protesters, here's what you do. You go to your local Army recruiters and get a form. You make copies. And then at the protest, after the teach in, after the lecture, when these weasley-faced hypocrites make a case for war, you call them over (in a loud public voice) and have them sign up on the spot.
It tends to stop the other weasles from saying anything. (gee, I wonder why?)
by Vic
Wouldn't stop me from saying anything. I'd rip the form from your hand and fill it out. I'd personally walk it with you over to the recruiting office. But they wouldn't take me. I'm too old.

But the other fellows make a good point. Even if it were for oil and who controls it, which I don't believe, the best way to avoid war would still be to have all people join hands in telling Saddam to step down. As long as he believes there are people who will try and stop those who would remove him from power, he feels like he has allies in his corner. Take that option away, let him know the whole world is united in seeing him gone one way or another, and he would likely accept taking an exile. If this were really about oil, then one way or another it's not going to belong to Saddam soon anyway. So for him to step aside would be the bloodless way of accomplishing something that's going to take place anyway.
by it's not about oil
If it were, they'd just buy it from Saddam. He'd be glad to sell it.

It's not about oil. It's about protecting Israel and encircling Iran. They oil is just icing on the cake.

And if it was about oil, we could still avoid war, simply by burning alcohol we grew ourselves, instead of burning oil.
by well
"'s not about oil. It's about protecting Israel and encircling Iran. They oil is just icing on the cake"

Why does the US care about the region? Why Isnt the US as interested in West Africa, Nepal etc...

Obviously US interest in the region is that oil makes it valuable geopolitically.

The war isnt 100% about getting Iraqi oil, its about the US securing its power in a region it cares about due to its natural resources (ie its about Saudi and Kuwaiti oil as much as its about Iraqi oil).
by Brent Callahan
where were all the AntiWar wimps when Clinton was bombing Begrade? He also killed innocent civilians and hit the Chinese embassy as well. Like Iraq, our aim was to force out a dictator and prevent mass murder.

Admit it "AntiWar " folks, as long as it's your man's war you stay silent. You are all really just Anti-Bush, which is fine but it has clouded your thoughts. You seem perfectly willing to let the Iraquis suffer under Hussein. Why?

If sanctions have caused so much pain for the Iraquis in 12 years, where were you hiding anti-war protestors? Waiting for a Republican President?

In 2000, Gore said Saddam "has got to go," and during his term Clinton (rightly) sent in a few cruise missiles and some bombing sorties. Where were the marches down Market Street then? Is Saddam any less dangerous than when the Dems supported going after him?

And where were the protest when we invaded Haiti? Where was the outcry in '94 when the Rwandans butchered each other? Why was the left so complacent then? Just waiting it out for a Bush administration it seems.

IMHO you all just hate Bush, don't give a damn about the Iraqis, and would easily support this war if only your man was in charge.

Brent

by Brent Callahan
where were all the AntiWar wimps when Clinton was bombing Begrade? He also killed innocent civilians and hit the Chinese embassy as well. Like Iraq, our aim was to force out a dictator and prevent mass murder.

Admit it "AntiWar " folks, as long as it's your man's war you stay silent. You are all really just Anti-Bush, which is fine but it has clouded your thoughts. You seem perfectly willing to let the Iraquis suffer under Hussein. Why?

If sanctions have caused so much pain for the Iraquis in 12 years, where were you hiding anti-war protestors? Waiting for a Republican President?

In 2000, Gore said Saddam "has got to go," and during his term Clinton (rightly) sent in a few cruise missiles and some bombing sorties. Where were the marches down Market Street then? Is Saddam any less dangerous than when the Dems supported going after him?

And where were the protest when we invaded Haiti? Where was the outcry in '94 when the Rwandans butchered each other? Why was the left so complacent then? Just waiting it out for a Bush administration it seems.

IMHO you all just hate Bush, don't give a damn about the Iraqis, and would easily support this war if only your man was in charge.

Brent

by Protest This Immoral War !
If the "peace movement" should have protested all that you say, and didn't, then yes, that's bad.

But that in no way justifies NOT protesting this war. In fact, it argues just the opposite. Let's not repeat the mistakes of the past. We didn't protest in the past, we won't make that mistake again.

Time To Protest This Immoral War !
by hemi
All this "peace movement" is about is cheap opportunistic hatred of any and all things Republican. The "peace movement" wouldn't exist if a lefty democrat was in office right now and this War was immenent. You KNOW that's true. If Bush was about to end all clear-cutting and cut all funding to Israel, you all would be stumped for a moment but would definetely find a way to rally against his "fascist" machinations. So, give us a BREAK. The so called "peace movement" is a misnamed crock of shit. It's merely a thoughtless knee-jerk reaction to an overwhelmingly poular Republican president. And that, and only that, drives you all nuts. You all would sell every Iraqi baby down the river in a second if it would get rid of Bush and get one of your guys in.
by King_Papa
Some time between the 15th and 25th Bush will give the word to go. And this will happen with out UN support and "Phase One" of undeclared WWIII begins.
So get some good seats Buckle up and enjoy one of the bumpiest rides in our worlds history. Because this is going to make ww2 look like live fire manuviers.
by King_Papa
Some time between the 15th and 25th Bush will give the word to go. And this will happen with out UN support and "Phase One" of undeclared WWIII begins.
So get some good seats Buckle up and enjoy one of the bumpiest rides in our worlds history. Because this is going to make ww2 look like live fire manuviers.
by cocoa
I don't know why the U.S. cannot look in our own backyards instead of everybody elses?
We are always looking to "save" all the other countries when ours needs soooo much help. We have poor people living on our streets, sick people staying sick because of no health insurance, so much crime in our country, some of the worst crime in the world is right here in the U.S., also our immigration department is sooo backed up, for whatever reasons they may come up with, that we are over populating with illegal aliens while we keep excepting 55,000 new immigrants from the green card lottery program, every year, and we are to tied up in what everyone else is doing! We have bigger problems than our people want to admit.
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