Mort Brussel of Urbana with an open letter to Senator Obama

My name is Mort Brussel. I am a concerned citizen. I am belong to AWARE, a non-partisan citizen anti-war anti-racism group. This is an open letter to Senator Obama:

Dear Senator:

It is clear that the United States is in a quagmire in Iraq.

There are growing calls for the United States to withdraw from Iraq coming from all parts of the political spectrum. I urge you to add your voice to this chorus.

Please do whatever you can to make the United States withdraw its forces and bases from Iraq!

There are those who argue that the United States has a moral obligation to rebuild Iraq. I agree, but that does not require keeping troops and bases in Iraq, thereby maintaining our grip there. The only moral and reasonable recourse is for the President to withdraw all U.S. troops as quickly as possible.

Some argue that withdrawal from Iraq may lead to disaster: Civil war may break out; an extremist Islamic government may take over; outside countries may intervene; the country may be partitioned. But all these possibilities have been engendered by the depredations of the U.S. troops in Iraq and by the U.S. control of Iraqi life. There can be no true democracy in Iraq under an American boot. We have to let the Iraqi people find their own way.

On the other hand, pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq will leave American forces less vulnerable to attacks by the armed resistance, will diminish the casualties among Iraqis and the destruction of their society, will probably diminish terrorism. and will bolster the American standing in the world, especially if the United States truly helps Iraq reconstitute itself by giving ample reconstruction aid as reparations for our aggression there.

The United States must withdraw its troops from Iraq despite its obvious, if denied, original motivations, which were to secure a strategic base to control this oil rich region.

Please make this a top priority. You were elected by many who had faith in your good judgment to stop the war in Iraq. Act with others to do so.