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Though US bombs aren't falling on Syria yet, there's a very real
chance they will if Congress votes to "authorize" it. Congress
reconvenes next week, Sep. 9th, so it's critical to speak up now and
say NO!<br>
<br>
Probably most fruitful: telephone calls to the offices of our US
Representative and Senators:<br>
217-403-4690 Rep Rodney Davis (R-IL-13)<br>
202-224-2152 Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL)<br>
202-224-2854 Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL)<br>
<br>
Points to make? You could draw on the Friends Committee for
National Legislation:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://fcnl.org/issues/middle_east/take_action_syria/">http://fcnl.org/issues/middle_east/take_action_syria/</a><br>
<br>
or this MoveOn.org petition from Robert Naiman of <a
href="http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/">Just Foreign Policy</a>:<br>
<a
href="http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/congress-vote-no-on-the">http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/congress-vote-no-on-the</a>
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It's a historic victory that President Obama has agreed to seek
congressional authorization for the use of military force in
Syria. But despite the President's promise that he only intends to
conduct "limited strikes," the AUMF (Authorization for Use of
Military Force) he sent to the Hill is a blank check for war. <br>
<br>
It isn't geographically limited to Syria--this president or a
future president could use it to strike Iran. It doesn't prohibit
the use of U.S. ground troops. It isn't limited in duration. If
this AUMF passes, it is likely to remain; the Iraq AUMF has never
been repealed. If you oppose a U.S. military strike on Syria, sign
the petition. And even if you support only limited strikes, sign
the petition, because the Syria AUMF isn't a mandate for limited
strikes--it's a blank check for war. </blockquote>
<br>
<br>
Or, from this <a
href="http://icjpe.org/petitions/Hands-Off-Syria-No-Military-Action%21">petition</a>
from the North Shore Coalition for Justice, Peace and the
Environment (they're holding a demonstration on Wednesday at Rep.
Jan Schakowski's office in Chicago):<br>
<br>
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<strong>Do not authorize any use of American military force in
Syria. </strong><br>
With civilians being butchered and refugees suffering immensely,
it is horrifying to watch the brutal civil war in Syria unfold. <strong>U.S.
military intervention is far more likely to make matters worse,
not better.</strong> The U.S. should not bomb Syria.</blockquote>
And - it may be important to also tell Congress what you think the
US *should* do, and not just what we shouldn't. For example:<br>
<br>
Support humanitarian efforts for refugees, support regional peace
negotiations as proposed by Russia, support an arms embargo against
all sides in the Syrian civil war. We should also sign the Chemical
Weapons Convention, and undertake to destroy our own stockpiles of
chemical weapons.<br>
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