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Carl,<br>
<br>
Can't you see we're busy with these Deck Chairs?<br>
<br>
We can't be bothered by your distracting notions of some damn icebergs.<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
On 07/11/13 10:07, Robert Naiman wrote:
<blockquote
cite="mid:CALMNhNTE8QWnQyEdjHnmrjytKGV1+WEhPuLXy7dNm55Zn91=Yw@mail.gmail.com"
type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">I don't want you to stay quiet about U.S. imperialism.
I want you to stop interfering in my efforts to get people to take
action.
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra"><br>
<br>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Jul 10, 2013 at 8:54 PM, Carl G.
Estabrook <span dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:galliher@illinois.edu" target="_blank">galliher@illinois.edu</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote"
style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div style="word-wrap: break-word;">As I said, such a call to Rep.
Davis' office might be worthwhile. (You might remind him that he
replaced a representative who regularly voted against any more money
for war in the Greater Middle East, and suggest that he do the same.)<br>
<div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>But it is surely at least inaccurate to speak of "U.S. efforts
to secure a negotiated nuclear agreement." As you well know, there is
already such an agreement - the Non-Proliferation Treaty - which Iran
observes, while US clients are not signatories. US efforts are directed
to destroying the Iranian economy because the oil flow from Iran is not
under US control. And the US for years has successfully blocked "a
negotiated nuclear agreement" that would establish a nuclear-free zone
in the Mideast. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Obama's own position on the matter was set out when he ran for
the Senate from Illinois, and he's never changed it: "…the United
States should not rule out military strikes to destroy nuclear
production sites in Iran, Obama said … ‘having a radical Muslim
theocracy in possession of nuclear weapons is worse [than] us launching
some missile strikes into Iran…’ he said."</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>In these circumstances, accepting the administration's
propaganda about what it's doing vis-a-vis Iran would seem to me
inappropriate at best. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Regards, Carl </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>PS - I don't quite understand your comment about a "personal
FBI agent" - you can't mean what it seems to mean - but I do know that
there are a number of people (including some comrades in the local
antiwar movement) who don't think I've managed to stay quiet, and wish
I would...</div>
<div>
<div class="h5">
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>On Jul 10, 2013, at 7:57 PM, Robert Naiman <<a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org"
target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a>> wrote:</div>
<br>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div dir="ltr">Is it a choice? Am I stopping anyone from standing
anyone from standing on their soapbox and denouncing the Empire?
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Would it be so horrible if a few people took 15 seconds to
call Rep. Davis to ask him to sign a letter for diplomacy with Iran?</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>How is it that you manage to stay quiet for weeks, until I
try to speak? </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>It's like I have my own personal FBI agent.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra"><br>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Jul 10, 2013 at 7:23 PM, Carl G.
Estabrook <span dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:galliher@illinois.edu" target="_blank">galliher@illinois.edu</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote"
style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div style="word-wrap: break-word;">But even if most members of
Congress are "worse that the Obama administration on this issue,"
that's hardly a reason to accept Obama's lies. "You don't stick a knife
in a man's back nine inches and then pull it out six inches and say
you're making progress."
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Or to carry out the 1939 analogy, a letter then to the
members of the Reichstag that said, "I urge you to stop yammering on
about the Polish threat to Germany" would not have got many signatures
- but to say anything else would have been at best inaccurate. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>It would seem better to tell Americans about the
administration's propaganda about Iran than to accept it and suggest
moderation. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>--CGE</div>
<div><br>
<div>
<div>
<div>On Jul 10, 2013, at 4:24 PM, Robert Naiman <<a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org"
target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a>> wrote:</div>
<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">Most Members of Congress are worse than the
Obama Administration on this issue, thanks to AIPAC and friends. A
Congressional letter that said, "I urge you to stop yammering on about
Iran's nuclear program because it doesn't threaten the United States"
would get zero signers, not even Barbara Lee would sign that.
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="gmail_extra">
<div class="gmail_quote">
<div>On Wed, Jul 10, 2013 at 3:50 PM, Carl G. Estabrook <span
dir="ltr"><<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:galliher@illinois.edu" target="_blank">galliher@illinois.edu</a>></span>
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote"
style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0px 0px 0px 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div style="word-wrap: break-word;">
<div>Maybe this would be worthwhile, Bob, but the problem
is that it accepts the Obama administration's consciously false
description of the issue.
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div>Wouldn't it be something like urging the German
government in the summer of 1939 "to pursue the potential opportunity
presented by Poland's recent presidential election by reinvigorating
German efforts to secure a negotiated agreement to end the threat from
Poland"?
<div>
<div><br>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>--CGE</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><br>
<div>
<div>
<div>On Jul 10, 2013, at 3:01 PM, Robert Naiman <<a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org"
target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a>> wrote:</div>
<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div><br>
</div>
Dear fellow Champaign-Urbana area lovers of peace,
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Once in a blue moon, there's a good opportunity to
push Congress in a good direction on diplomacy with Iran. Most of the
time, it's like that scene from the Matrix where Morpheus shows Neo
what the world really looks like. But every once in a while, there's an
opening.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Right now, there's an opening, because of three
things.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>One, Iran just had a presidential election. To the
surprise of many, the candidate who won, Rouhani, was the candidate
saying, hey, let's try to get along better with the West. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Two: there's a bipartisan letter in Congress to
President Obama saying, hey! We noticed that Iran just had a
presidential election. We noticed that the guy who was saying, hey,
let's try to get along better with the West, was the guy who won. So,
like, why don't we try to test things with the new guy with diplomacy
before jacking up the confrontation again? <br clear="all">
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Three: this letter is being supported by groups in
DC that have been pushing for diplomacy with Iran, including the
Friends Committee on National Legislation, the National Iranian
American Council, and J Street. And also CREDO.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Finally, as is often the case with these things,
there is a special effort to try to get Republicans to sign the letter,
because only 15% of the current signers are Republicans. And that means
that Rep. Davis is special, because in the set of Republicans, he's a
plausible target. Voted for McGovern's recent amendment on Afghanistan
withdrawal, for example. </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>So here's my request: <br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>1. Please call Rep. Davis' office in DC at <a
moz-do-not-send="true" href="tel:%28202%29%20225-2371"
value="+12022252371" target="_blank">(202) 225-2371</a>, ask to talk
to Kaitlyn Hastings, who's the Foreign Policy LA. Probably you will get
transferred to voicemail. Fine. Leave a message with your name and
address, asking that Rep. Davis sign the Price/Dent letter calling for
President Obama "to pursue the potential opportunity presented by
Iran's recent presidential election by reinvigorating U.S. efforts to
secure a negotiated nuclear agreement."</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<div>2. Please send me a note letting me know that you've
called. I'm trying to get folks in DC to push on Davis, and I want to
be able to say, X people in the district have called.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
<div>3. Please forward this note to other folks you know
who might call. If you know folks in the district outside of
Champaign-Urbana who might call, (e.g. Decatur, Bloomington,
Springfield) forwarding this note to them would be especially helpful.</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Thanks!<br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>P.S. The text of the letter is here:</div>
<div><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://fcnl.org/issues/iran/diplomacy_with_iran_letter/"
target="_blank">http://fcnl.org/issues/iran/diplomacy_with_iran_letter/</a><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
Robert Naiman<br>
Policy Director<br>
Just Foreign Policy<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/" target="_blank">www.justforeignpolicy.org</a><br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org" target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a><br>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
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<br clear="all">
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
Robert Naiman<br>
Policy Director<br>
Just Foreign Policy<br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="http://www.justforeignpolicy.org"
target="_blank">www.justforeignpolicy.org</a><br>
<a moz-do-not-send="true" href="mailto:naiman@justforeignpolicy.org"
target="_blank">naiman@justforeignpolicy.org</a><br>
</div>
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