It's a good day to tell the Senate, "No More War!"

Contact your Senator via email HERE.

Tomorrow, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is set to vote on an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The vote is somewhat symbolic, as it’s just a committee vote, and the full Senate and House will not vote on any AUMF before the new Congress convenes in January, meaning they would need to start from scratch on this issue. However, the vote could be an indicator of the depth of support, at least in this important committee, for yet another endless war in the Middle East. The Obama Administration wants at least a three year authorization (stretching beyond the end of the president’s term in office), with no geographic limitations, and no prohibition on deploying U.S. ground troops. Sure looks like a slippery slope to another endless war. I need you to call your senators today, especially those on the Foreign Relations Committee.  Check the committee roster here Regardless of whether you have a senator on the committee, it’s a good day to tell the Senate, “No More War!” Thanks to our colleagues at the Friends Committee on National Legislation, you can call toll-free at 877-429-0678. Today is International Human Rights Day, and we at Peace Action certainly believe peace is a fundamental human right. Please call your senators today, toll free at 877-429-0678, on behalf of peace and stopping yet another endless war. Yours in Peace, Kevin Martin Executive Director Peace Action P.S. -  For years Peace Action has advocated the repeal of both war authorizations for Afghanistan and Iraq, passed well over a decade ago. While we opposed both authorizations at the time, many who supported them now agree that they are outdated and far too broad and should be repealed (we agree). The Obama administration has been leaning on both authorizations for its military intervention in Iraq and Syria, though now it wants Congress to pass a new AUMF. We oppose a new AUMF as Peace Action thinks not enough energy has been spent on a political solution to the Syrian civil war and on starving ISIS of resources (oil, antiquities and sex trade revenue, weapons and foreign fighters). Please call your senators today, toll-free at 877-429-0678, and thank you for all your support as we observe this season of peace.

Take Action: Tell the Senate, “No More War!” Call toll-free at 877-429-0678. CONNECT TO US:  Find us on Facebook  Follow us on Twitter  Read our blog  Contact us

Call Congress: End Endless War

Dear John-Michael, In the wake of the election, we knew pressures would mount to escalate the war in Iraq and Syria. We had no idea that within a few days of the election, the White House would double down on the war, ordering twice the number of troops on the ground and requesting over $5 billion more dollars. Call Congress toll-free today and tell them: War is not working and is ineffective in addressing the threat of ISIS. 877-429-0678. The President has asked for a debate and vote on an Authorization for the Use of Military Force. Instead of another endless war, Members of Congress should stand up in support of alternatives to bombing This week, Peace Action and over 20 national groups have joined together to jam the Capitol Hill switchboard with calls urging Congressional action  for immediate steps toward political solutions to the crisis in Iraq and Syria. Call Congress toll-free today, 877-429-0678, to argue for alternatives to endless war, and for a sustainable, effective response to ISIS. The U.S. can take immediate action to: • Tighten loopholes in existing sanctions to help cut off ISIS’s funding streams; • Condition U.S. support for the Iraqi government on success in stopping sectarian violence; • Support renewed diplomacy, including local ceasefires, to end the Syrian civil war; • Stop channeling weapons into the war (U.S. weapons have ended up in the hands of ISIS); • Support civil society efforts to build peace and reconciliation at the community level. Call Congress NOW, 877-429-0678, to put an end to endless war! In the coming weeks, we will call on you to join the vocal opposition to the war, and to help educate your family, friends and Congressional representatives that war is not the answer to the threat of ISIS. Please download these fact sheets and share them with others.  Write Letters to the Editor. Track the costs of the war here: at http://bit.ly/ISIScounter Power to the peaceful, Judith LeBlanc Field Director Peace Action P.S. - Also, if you’re on Twitter or Facebook, support the Thunderclap promoting this national week of action on Iraq and Syria. If you sign on, Thunderclap will send a message on your behalf to all your Facebook friends and Twitter followers on Thursday, November 13 at noon EST. Join here: https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/18954-congress-end-endless-war Using Twitter? Use the following hash tags: #EndEndlessWar #ISIS #WarisNotWorking

Take Action: Call Congress toll-free today, 877-429-0678, to argue for alternatives to endless war, and for a sustainable, effective response to ISIS. CONNECT TO US:  Find us on Facebook  Follow us on Twitter  Read our blog  Contact us

Related:

Weapons of War Vs. Words of Peace

The Covert Origins of ISIS

Stop Selling Death

Moving from conflict to conflict in the Middle East, trying to keep up with the politics and players involved, the unrelenting violence, the rising death toll and refugee crisis, is as difficult as it is depressing. 

There is one common thread however – from Gaza to Syria to Iraq to Egypt to Libya to Afghanistan -- U.S. military intervention and an ever-ready supply of U.S weapons pouring into the region make matters worse.

Let's stop fanning the flames of war.  Sign Peace Action's petition to restrict and limit U.S. weapons sales

U.S. weapons provided to the Iraqi Army are now in the hands of extremists who are close to tearing the country apart.  The success of the extremist offensive has led them to declare themselves the Islamic State, stretching into Syria where they have been fighting to overthrow the Assad government alongside other rebels being vetted by the U.S. to see who is worthy of receiving yet more U.S. weapons transfers, just what the region doesn’t need.

The U.S. leads the world in weapons sales. That includes the sale of weapons to undemocratic regimes and nations on the U.S. State Department's list of human rights abusers. Tell Congress and the President it's time to stop selling weapons to dictators and governments that turn U.S. weapons on civilian populations.

We need a new foreign policy, one that reflects America's values and goodwill, one that relies more on patient diplomacy and humanitarian assistance and far less on weapons and war.

Humbly for Peace,

Kevin Martin
Executive Director
Peace Action

P.S. - Now, faced with war raging in the Middle East, a region awash in U.S. weapons, it is time again to push Congress and the Obama administration to end the practice of arming dictators and human rights abusers.

Take Action:

Stop the weapons sales to dictators and human rights abusers.

CONNECT TO US:

Find us on Facebook

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Read our blog

Contact us

Tell President Obama and Congress--​Jobs Not Wars

http://www.peace-action.org
12/11/2012

On Election Day, we sent a message. Protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. End the wars and reinvest in our communities.
 

The wars and tax breaks for the rich and corporations got us into this mess. Move the money from wars and weapons to fund jobs and human services and make the rich pay their fair share of taxes.

Sign the Jobs not Wars Petition.

One of the best ways to reduce the deficit is to put people back to work. It’s time to invest in our people and our communities to create stable jobs at living wages, rehabilitate our nation’s infrastructure and programs that serve the needs of people and communities, and develop a sustainable economy that protects the planet for future generations.

We want the war in Afghanistan to end and substantial cuts to be made to runaway Pentagon spending. 
 
Sign the Jobs not Wars Petition.

Over 80 organizations are gathering signatures to remind Congress and the Obama administration we need to fundamentally change Federal budget priorities from wars and ever more deadly weapons to jobs and meeting the needs of our communities.

We will present the Jobs Not Wars Petition to Congress & President Obama around the time of the Inauguration. 
 
Forward this email. Ask your friends and family to join you in signing the Jobs Not Wars Petition. Post this link http://bit.ly/jobs-not-wars-PA on your Facebook page and Tweet it to your social network. There is strength in numbers.

Don’t let our elected officials forget what we voted for. Time to change federal spending priorities from the “military industrial complex” to reinvest in our communities.

 

Humbly for Peace,

Kevin Martin
Executive Director
Peace Action

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Already Signed the AE911Truth 9/11 Family Petition to Obama? Please Also Write an Email to the White House

We agree with Colin Powell

We agree with retired General Colin Powell. There is no rational reason why we can’t deal with the deficit if we cut the Pentagon budget, saying “I don’t think the defense budget should be made sacrosanct,”

On CNN’s State of the Union Powell noted that when he was the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Dick Cheney was the Secretary of Defense, they presided over a 25% cut in the Pentagon budget.

Write your Senators and Representative today and tell them to cut the Pentagon budget to save the economy.

Then, please, send this message to your friends.

The Lame Duck session of Congress could decide the future of the economy. While some Congressional leaders fear the so-called ‘fiscal cliff’, Peace Action, and our allies in Congress, are demanding a fiscal showdown.

Will we get on the road to creating jobs while protecting Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security? Or will the ‘austerity’ proponents protect the Pentagon and the 1% and force the rest of society to pay the cost for an economic meltdown caused by runaway military spending, two wars, Wall Street and the banks?
Write your Congressional Representative and tell them: Corporations and the super rich must pay their fair share, end the war and occupation of Afghanistan and the reckless, unnecessary military spending in order to fund jobs. Hands off Social Security, Medicare and other human services.

Colin Powell has affirmed what we’ve been saying all along. Now it’s time for Congress to act. But, in fact, only our staunchest allies are raising the call. That’s why it’s so important you act!

We need an economy that is not dependant on wars and useless weapons and, instead, supports prosperous communities. The future belongs to cutting edge technologies that meet our energy needs without exacerbating global warming. The demand for quality health care, housing and transportation as well as basic needs like adequate supplies of food and clean water is growing.

Every dime spent on research and development of new nuclear weapons or the next generation of fighter jets weakens America’s position in a global economy. The US spends as much on war and weapons as the rest of the world combined.

Tell your Senators and Representative we can no longer afford these twisted priorities.           

Humbly for Peace,
Judith LeBlanc
Field Director
Peace Action

P.S. - Read the fantastic op-ed that Mike Helbick of Peace Action Wisconsin wrote for the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal responding to the lay-offs of military production workers just days before the elections. Then write your Senators and Representative and tell them cut military spending, not Social Security and Medicare!