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News :: Miscellaneous |
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Citizens Appeal to U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson for Nonviolent Response |
Current rating: 0 |
by Lois Steinberg and Peter Miller
Email: peterm (nospam) shout.net (unverified!)
Phone: 217-344-8820
Address: 218 W. Main St., Urbana, IL 61801 |
20 Sep 2001
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Matt Bisbee (right), who works in the Champaign district office of U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson (IL-15), met with the pictured group, who presented an appeal for a non-violent US response to the September 11 tragedy. Many central Illinois residents are worried that the U.S. government will launch a military attack against an ill-defined target, killing civilians and putting U.S. residents at greater risk of future attack. |
 Matt Bisbee (right), who works in the Champaign district office of U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson (IL-15), met with the pictured group, who presented an appeal for a non-violent US response to the September 11 tragedy. Many central Illinois residents are worried that the U.S. government will launch a military attack against an ill-defined target, killing civilians and putting U.S. residents at greater risk of future attack. |
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Text of appeal |
by Peter Miller
peterm (nospam) shout.net (unverified) |
Current rating: 0
20 Sep 2001
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A Statement from U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson's Constituents
Regarding the Attacks on the U.S.A.
We are U.S. citizens and residents interested in helping our government find the least violent response possible to the attacks of September 11. We offer the following sentiments and observations:
The U.S. government should offer all aid necessary to assist the victims.
The U.S. government should work with other nations to capture those responsible for the attacks. If the planners of the attacks can be found and tried in a fair and just trial, they should be imprisoned. The assets of those who funded this operation should be found and frozen. Retaliatory bombing or other strategies which kill and cause suffering for innocent civilians must be rejected.
Our government should abide by established international law and standards of conduct when operating outside U.S. borders. If suspects are captured outside the U.S., the World Court should be the forum for their trial.
Military strikes against uncertain targets compromise American safety. We fear that our government may enter a military war against an ill-defined enemy. We believe that such attacks, whether "pin pricks" such as the 1998 strikes against Sudan and Afghanistan or full-scale invasion, will not make us more secure. We feel that U.S. attacks will provoke more attacks against the U.S.
Civilian deaths are unacceptable in any U.S. response. The September 11 attackers claimed thousands of civilian lives. A U.S. response that takes more civilian lives places our government in the same category as the attackers.
Muslims and those perceived as "foreigners" must be protected from attack. Our congressional representatives should follow suit with President Bush and issue statements urging the public to be tolerant of those who appear different. The message should be communicated directly to local and state law enforcement leaders.
American freedoms must not be compromised. We should learn from our history. The Palmer Raids of 1920, Japanese internment camps during World War II, the McCarthy Red Scare, and the FBI's Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO) of the 1960s and 1970s all teach us that America is diminished when our government denies Americans their civil liberties. We hope that America will not be scarred by another similar event.
Enhance safety by promoting democracy and helping satisfy human needs. Now is the time to reject the Cold War doctrine articulated by George Kennan in 1948:
"We have about 50% of the world's wealth, but only 6.3% of its population. In this situation we cannot fail to be the object of envy and resentment. Our real task in the coming period is to devise a pattern of relationships which will permit us to maintain this position of disparity...We should cease to talk about vague and...unreal objectives such as human rights, the raising of living standards and democratization...The less we are hampered by idealistic slogans, the better."
Such attitudes put all Americans at risk by fostering rage against our government. Our post-Cold War government must articulate a new doctrine which rejects Kennan's ideas.
Cease efforts to elevate commercial privileges above civil, political, and economic human rights and environmental protection. As an economic superpower, we must take leadership in addressing human needs. Promoting trade agreements and funding financial institutions (such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank) that disregard human need will inevitably put Americans at greater risk to future attack.
To put out a fire, the fuel source must be depleted.
If we want peace, we must have justice.
Please use your office to promote justice and enhance the safety of all Americans. |
