[Peace] Fwd: CIA: War will make us less safe, not more

[Jay Mittenthal]

>Date: 10 Oct 2002 14:42:33 -0000
>From: "Eli Pariser, MoveOn.org" <moveon-help at list.moveon.org>
>To: "Jay Mittenthal" <mitten at life.uiuc.edu>
>Subject: CIA: War will make us less safe, not more
>X-MailScanner: Found to be clean
>
>Dear MoveOn Member,
>
>Yesterday, the Central Intelligence Agency released a letter that turns 
>President Bush's argument for war on its head. In it, a senior 
>intelligence official said that the likelihood of an attack by Saddam 
>using weapons of mass destruction in the "foreseeable future" is low. But 
>he went on to say that if Saddam was attacked, the likelihood of him using 
>chemical or biological weapons or providing them to terrorist 
>organizations was "pretty high."
>
>In other words, a war against Iraq would likely create exactly the 
>disaster that President Bush claims it will prevent. It may be the only 
>circumstance under which Saddam Hussein would use whatever chemical or 
>biological weapons are at his disposal against the United States. (There 
>still isn't any solid evidence that Saddam has any weapons of mass 
>destruction.)
>
>The CIA letter makes it clear that a war on Iraq will make our country and 
>the world less safe, not more safe. Since the debate in the Senate could 
>end any day now, please call your Senator right now:
>
>Senator Richard J. Durbin
>Local Phone: 217-492-4062
>DC Phone: 202-224-2152
>
>Senator Peter G. Fitzgerald
>Local Phone: 217-492-5089
>DC Phone: 202-224-2854
>
>Make sure the staffer you speak to knows that you're a constituent. Then 
>tell him or her that in light of the new CIA testimony, you hope the 
>Senator will vote against authorizing a war on Iraq. Feel free to explain 
>why you're worried about the effects of a war on our security.
>
>Once you've made your call, please let us know by filling out the form below:
>
>Name:
>Email:
>Did you get through? --- YES NO
>How many calls did you make? --- 1 2 3 4
>
>(If the form doesn't work, go to 
><http://www.moveon.org/callmade_iraq.html?id=801-1253932-%2FjTS9wUpeRrfZ5GVLIA0kg>http://www.moveon.org/callmade_iraq.html?id=801-1253932-%2FjTS9wUpeRrfZ5GVLIA0kg 
>.)
>
>Our calls are having an impact. On the floor of the Senate, Senator 
>Barbara Boxer said that "I believe every president has an obligation to 
>lay out a path for peace before taking the country to war. In my view, I 
>haven't seen this president do that yet. And in the view of my 
>constituents, thousands of whom are calling me, it's unbelievable, every 
>two days we get 1,000 calls or emails, they're saying they feel the 
>president is itching to go to war."
>
>By calling today, we'll keep this tremendous pressure on our Senators to 
>do the right thing.
>
>Sincerely,
>--Eli Pariser
>   International Campaigns Director
>   MoveOn.org
>   Thursday, October 10, 2002
>
>P.S. Here's the language directly from the CIA document:
>
>"Senator Levin: . . . If (Saddam) didn't feel threatened, did not feel 
>threatened, is it likely that he would initiate an attack using a weapon 
>of mass destruction?
>
>Senior Intelligence Witness: . . . My judgment would be that the 
>probability of him initiating an attack - let me put a time frame on it - 
>in the foreseeable future, given the conditions we understand now, the 
>likelihood I think would be low.
>
>Senator Levin: Now if he did initiate an attack you've . . . indicated he 
>would probably attempt clandestine attacks against us . . . But what about 
>his use of weapons of mass destruction? If we initiate an attack and he 
>thought he was in extremis or otherwise, what's the likelihood in response 
>to our attack that he would use chemical or biological weapons?
>
>Senior Intelligence Witness: Pretty high, in my view."
>
>The letter is available in its entirety at:
><http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/09/international/09TTEX.html>http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/09/international/09TTEX.html 
>
>
>
>----------
>
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