This e-mail recently came in from Ira Harritt, the Kansas City Program Director for the American Friends Service Committee:
Now is a crucial time!
Taking a few minutes today to call the President and tell him that more troops in Afghanistan will make us less secure and not bring more stability to Afghanistan can have a lasting impact!
In a recent interview Obama has said “we're not signing up for a permanent occupation.” But he has also expressed concern that, while Al Qaeda is not currently in Afghanistan, “an Afghanistan that has completely fallen apart that can further destabilize Pakistan…, a government that has nuclear weapons - so we've got some significant interest in the region.”
Obama is being pressured to send more troops to Afghanistan by military contractor lobbyists. He needs to hear from concerned citizens who are not profiting from U.S. war making.
Help us send a message to President Obama that we don't want more troops sent to Afghanistan.
We call for:
1. No additional troops to be sent to Afghanistan.
2. A timeline for the withdrawal of US troops and for diplomacy and dialogue with all parties to the conflict without preconditions.
3. The provision of badly needed development aid by civilian-led organizations not the military.
4. Redirect the more than $44 billion spent yearly on war funding to human needs in Afghanistan and at home.
Call the Whitehouse comment line: 202-456-1111 (takes calls from 9am to 5pm Eastern) or email the President at http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact or use Peace Action’s Toll free number: 1-888-310-8637.
