A Criminal Escalation of An Unjust War

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"This is a dangerously wrong-headed strategy that will drive America deeper into an unwinnable swamp at a great cost. We cannot escape the reality that there will be no military solution in Iraq."

- Republican Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, reacting to President Bush's speech recommending an additional 20,000 troops be sent to Iraq. (Source: Bloomberg)

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A Criminal Escalation of An Unjust War

When the American people make it clear in the election, and in every public opinion poll, that they want an end to the war in Iraq, he ignores them. When the central recommendation of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group is "new and enhanced diplomatic and political efforts ... that will enable the United States to begin to move its combat forces out of Iraq responsibly," he ignores them. When Republican Senators across the spectrum – from Susan Collins (ME) and Olympia Snowe (ME) to Sam Brownback (KS) and Gordon Smith (OR), and respected foreign policy expert Chuck Hagel (NE) – oppose his plan, he ignores them. (" ... a dangerously wrong-headed strategy that will drive America deeper into an unwinnable swamp," says Hagel.) When the top U.S. military commanders in Iraq question the strategy, he replaces them.

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By sending 20,000 more U.S. troops in support of a Shiite-dominated government, into a conflict that has become a sectarian civil war, he has essentially rejected the idea of a unified Iraqi government. Today, the idea of there even being a government in Iraq is another myth of Bush rhetoric, and for the young servicemen and women who daily die, it is a cruel joke to learn we have no real partners in Iraq. There is no real commitment to "democracy" among Iraq's leaders, a goal that Bush again invoked last night; there is only endless sectarian violence – with the government forces themselves acting simply as part of the tribal warfare. The depraved scene of Saddam Hussein's hanging revealed more a revenge lynching than an act of national justice – and became a brutal metaphor for what Iraq has now become. American lives are now the prime targets of the insurgency, while they are also caught in the cross-fire of a civil war. To send more troops into battle in a senseless "surge" – without any new plan for political resolution between Iraq's intransigent and hateful factions – is morally irresponsible. We've tried this before, and failed. A new surge will simply mean more young Americans in body bags and wheel chairs, more families left without dads, moms, sons, or daughters, and more slaughter of innocent Iraqi civilians. "I don't want to die over there; I don't think it's worth it," said one American serviceman who was interviewed this morning about the president's new plan. He and his new wife had a new baby just five days ago, but now he has been ordered back to Iraq. He named several of his friends who have new wives and babies on the way, who will now also be sent back.

By the classic criteria of a "just war," Iraq was not, and is not, one. Not even close. And at the time of the run-up to the war, a majority of church bodies and their leaders around the world said just that. Pope John Paul II was quite agitated about Iraq, and had he been a younger man, might have actually intervened to prevent the unjust war. Even most evangelical Christians around the globe were against the American war in Iraq, and continue to be – a fact that the U.S. media also missed. There were others, like the American Southern Baptists, who supported their president's war, but on an international scale they were clearly the exceptions.

There is absolutely no way that the American invasion of Iraq could be considered a "last resort" – one of the just war criteria. The inspections officers were working to find and contain any weapons of mass destruction Iraq might have had, and the Bush administration both misrepresented and manipulated the alleged threat from the weapons of mass destruction. The administration lied to start a war. Over time, the brutal Saddam Hussein could have been isolated, undermined, and overthrown (a very worthy goal) from pressures internal and external, and serious proposals were on the table to do just that when Bush went to war. Instead, we bombed the children of Baghdad and then allowed the country to slide into bloody chaos. There was never adequate "authority" to wage this war (another criterion) – the United Nations, NATO, and the vast majority of the world's people and nations were against it. Only Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair thought this was a good idea, and their political legacies will be forever shaped by the worst foreign policy decision either country has made in decades. Iraq also failed the tests of "proportionality" and "discrimination" with all the societal damage it was likely to cause (and has): the horrible number of innocents that have been lost through the tactics of "shock and awe," the resulting insurgency against American occupation, and now the civil war that has turned into ethnic cleansing. There was never an "imminent threat" from Saddam, there was no connection between Iraq and 9/11 (as we were told), and Bush's war in Iraq was not a central front in the international campaign against terrorism, but rather has turned out to be a serious distraction from it (though the war itself has now transformed Iraq into a haven and school for terrorism).

The war in Iraq was unjust; to continue it now is criminal. There is no winning in Iraq. This was a war that should have never been fought – or won. It can't be won, and the truth is that there are no good solutions now – that's how unjust wars often turn out. The president says that "failure in Iraq would be a disaster for the United States." But we have already failed in Iraq and it has already become a disaster for Americans, Iraqis, the Middle East, and even for the larger campaign against terrorism. The mistaken war in Iraq can only be mercifully ended, in ways that cause the least damage to everyone involved: the Americans and the Iraqis, the volatile surrounding region, and a world longing for security. It will likely take new international leadership to help fix the mess of Iraq, because U.S. leadership has brought one calamity after another. Unjust wars cause massive human suffering. When will we ever learn?

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BUILDING A MOVEMENT

Sending more American men and women into a sectarian civil war is not a solution to the growing violence. It will simply mean more deaths and injuries to both Americans and Iraqis. It's up to us to make it clear that Americans do NOT want more troops in Iraq!

TONIGHT, in response to Bush's speech, join people across the country who are coming together to tell the president and Congress that Americans do NOT want more troops in Iraq.

With the Win Without War coalition, we invite you to find an event in your community at www.AmericaSaysNo.org.

We also invite you to put a hold on your calendar for March 16, 2007. On this fourth anniversary of the Iraq War, Christians from across the ecumenical spectrum will be converging in Washington, D.C. for a prayerful service, march, and prophetic witness for peace at the White House. Visit www.christianpeacewitness.org for more information.

THIS WEEK IN GOD'S POLITICS

+ See what's new on the blog of Jim Wallis and friends

David Cortright: Soldiers Say 'No' to Escalation in Iraq
Active duty service members are saying no to Bush's proposed escalation of the war in Iraq. On January 16, to commemorate Martin Luther King day, messages are being delivered to Congress from more than 1,000 active duty and Guard and Reserve service members who are opposed to the war in Iraq and have signed the Appeal for Redress. The message of the Appeal is patriotic and respectful in tone but clear it its rejection of the war. It reads: "As a patriotic American proud to serve my nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq. I believe that staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home."

Randy Woodley: Lessons About War From an 11-Year-Old
I picked up my 11-year-old son from school the other day. The conversation was business as usual, until he shared how he was bored in class and wrote a letter to the president of the United States. Flabbergasted, I asked him if he would read it to me. He was against the war and any escalation of troops. He asked for an immediate withdrawal and politely chided President Bush for sending other young people to war when he would not send his own children. Finally, my 11-year-old cautioned the president that he did not want this war, or any war, in his future. Today my son is back to riding a skateboard and watching cartoons, but what he said the other day was important, and caused me to take his words seriously and re-think some basics from his perspective.

Duane Shank: Nice Guys Don't Always Finish Last
In these days of war and more war, of too many athletes who make the news for drug use or arrests, it's nice to have a good news story to celebrate. Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles and Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday by the Baseball Writers' Association. ... And, both are gentlemen loved by their communities off the field. What made them special, in this age of mercenary ballplayers who go wherever the dollars lead them, was that they spent their entire careers with their hometown teams – Ripken for 21 years in Baltimore and Gwynn for 20 years in San Diego. Both were offered more money to change teams during their careers, but both stuck by their teams and their cities.

Ryan Beiler: Dirty Deeds Not Done Dirt Cheap
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Jackie Spycher: Pelosi's Swearing-in and My Fifth Grade Dream
Through their actions and political commitment, my parents taught me that there is little more important than service and civic-mindedness. And so, at the age of ten, I announced I wanted to be a congresswoman when I grew up. I made my intentions known, only to be told by a teacher that I couldn’t do that. I was a girl. Didn’t I want to be a wife and mother? Even as I child, I knew this man’s remarks were wrong, but I dropped my head and said nothing.

Bishop John Chane: 'Intense Mutual Scrutiny' on Trip to Iran
In this time of heightened tensions among the three Abrahamic faiths, it is essential that we reach out to representatives of other religions who are potential partners for peace. Last September, the Very Rev. Sam Lloyd and I invited the Mohammed Khatami, former President of Iran, to speak at Washington National Cathedral. In December, I visited with the former president and other religious and political leaders in Iran as part of a four-member delegation from Washington National Cathedral and the Convocation of American Churches in Europe. Though there are considerable disagreements between our two countries, there are also opportunities to cultivate relationships among people of faith, and it is imperative that we explore them.

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