The War in Iraq: 5 Years Later

For a free world, without war, without violence.

Women against war.

A sample of all those women fighters who make their voices heard throughout the world. In Barcelona, were proud their poster carrying his motto, their cries of hope. And it showed with pride to the many photographers that were pursuing.

Crisuka has contributed a photo to this story.

Here's the response to Herr Bush's comments from the ANSWER Coalition, and I am in full agreement with them about these war criminals:

"President Bush says the war on Iraq was "worth it," in spite of the "loss of
life and treasure." So speaks a man who has unflinchingly destroyed human life
and caused suffering on a massive and criminal scale.

Iraq was "at peace" when Bush ordered a war of aggression aimed at toppling a
sovereign government. One out of every three Iraqis is now either killed,
wounded, or a refugee.

To Bush it is "worth it" to have caused over 1.3 million Iraqis to die as a
result of the war (a figure from the Oxford Research Bureau, whose most recent
study excluded two of Iraq's most violent provinces). The number of Iraqis
wounded has been conservatively estimated to be double that number. 

To Bush it is "worth it" to have forced 2.5 million Iraqis to flee their own
country and live in refugee camps in Syria or Jordan. Two million have been made
internal refugees as a result of war and ethnic cleansing. All Iraqis today live
in fear.

To Bush it is worth it to have plunged the lives and status of Iraqi women to
its lowest base.

To Bush, the neoconservatives and the military high command, it is "worth it"
to have sent nearly 4,000 US soldiers and marines to their graves and to condemn
tens of thousands more to live with devastating and debilitating wounds and
injuries.

Iraq posed no threat to the people of the United States when it was brutally
invaded.

This was a war to dominate not only Iraq, but a strategic and oil-rich
region.

Bush arrogantly assumed powers that did not belong to him or any other
president. Conducting an unprovoked war of aggression against a sovereign
country is a violation of international and U.S. law. It is a criminal act, and
those who have committed this crime should be held accountable.

Presidents Kennedy and Johnson said the war in Vietnam was "worth it," in
spite of the loss of "life" and "treasure." The Iraq war, like the war in
Vietnam, can only be understood as "worth it," if the priority is to seek
domination, conquest, and empire.

All around the world today, people are in the streets accusing Bush of
committing war crimes, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace. In the
recent years, the ANSWER Coalition has helped organize millions of people who
have engaged in protest in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York
City, Chicago, and other cities around the United States.

While Bush is personally responsible for the criminal war in Iraq, we
recognize that the Democratic Party in Congress has rubber-stamped the war and
occupation, and continues lethal funding. The Democratic Party leadership is
equally committed to the domination of the oil-rich region known as the Middle
East, and in creating proxy puppet governments to safeguard U.S. corporate and
banking interests in the region.

We reject every excuse and pretext to maintain the illegal occupation of
Iraq. The people of Iraq must have self-determination, which is nothing but a
farce when a country is occupied by more than 200,000 soldiers and marines, and
highly-armed mercenaries working for the Pentagon. All U.S. military forces
should leave Iraq immediately, and without condition, so that Iraq can retake
its position as a free, independent, and sovereign nation. Iraq should be paid
reparations by the invaders and occupiers.

History will remember George W. Bush and Dick Cheney as two of the great
criminals, who attempted to impose their will through military means at the
start of the 21st century."

Here's another gem.  A little video that all Canadians and Americans should watch.

AWESOME PICTURES from demonstartions around the globe!

Paul Rieckhoff has a great comment over at the HuffPost, on how little media attention is being paid to the fifth anniversary of the Iraq War:[q
url="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-rieckhoff/five-years-of-the-war-in-_b_92317.html"]This
week marks the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq, but you wouldn't
know it from what you see on TV.

With all the scandal-mongering coverage of the Democratic primary,
the media's been too busy to spend much time talking about the two wars
we're still fighting. In fact, just 3% of the news in February was dedicated to the war.
That's down from 15% of news coverage last July. For the men and women
risking their lives overseas, that's a slap in the face.

And
it's skewing Americans' perceptions of the war. Over 80% of Americans
are aware that Oprah Winfrey endorsed Senator Obama, yet only 28% know
how many American troops have died in Iraq. That's less than one in
three Americans. For any readers who aren't sure, the casualty number
is about to hit 4,000. You can see the names and faces of these brave men and women here.

Most Americans will say that it's the very least we can do is take
the time to honor their sacrifice. But how can we, as Americans, claim
to be honoring their sacrifice if the average American can't even
measure it?

We can do better.

I know it's an election year, and that the economy is in trouble. I
know that it's easier to endlessly replay the latest gaffe from a
candidate than to take your camera outside the Green Zone. But news of
the ongoing wars shouldn't fall by the wayside.

You can help remind them. Please take a minute now to sign an open letter and demand the major networks increase their coverage of the Iraq war.[/q]

Taken by the Military Recruitment Center in Hollywood.

Pacha Mama Photography has contributed a photo to this story.

Anti-War Protests in DC 3/19/2007

nonoboy has contributed a photo to this story.

A prescient quote from conservative Pat Buchanan before this insane war began:

"With our MacArthur Regency in Baghdad, Pax Americana will reach
apogee. But then the tide recedes, for the one endeavour at which
Islamic people excel is expelling imperial powers by terror or
guerrilla war.

They drove the Brits out of Palestine and Aden,
the French out of Algeria, the Russians out of Afghanistan, the
Americans out of Somalia and Beirut, the Israelis out of Lebanon. We
have started up the road to empire and over the next hill we will meet
those who went before. The only lesson we learn from history is that we
do not learn from history."

Go to this article in The Independent for an excellent commentary by Robert Fisk 

I was a little way away when this guy was apparently grabbed. On my way over (he was on the ground by the time I got there) I'd already overheard about 6 different accounts of what happened.

Whatever it was, he was taken away and put on the 'taken away and put on a bus' bus.

Rev Dan Catt has contributed a photo to this story.

Wednesday, March 19, Noon - Hartford, CT: Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice, a statewide interfaith network of religious leaders and people of faith in Connecticut, marked this 5th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq by bearing witness to the horrifying costs of war (human, economic, and moral) and to the complicity of silence (by individuals, institutions and corporations). A brief interfaith prayer service on the steps of Center Church (featuring AFSC’s “Cost of War” banners and boots representing CT’s soldiers who have died) were followed by a procession to the Federal Building, stopping in front of United Technologies headquarters along the way.


Kristen Channel has contributed a photo to this story.

We got to the basecamp at McPherson Square around 10:30 am. We kind of stumbled around trying to figure out where the events were taking place. They had a general handout, but maps would have been useful -- even if they just had one big map at basecamp.

In the end, we just listened for the police car sirens and followed them to the action.

There was a lot of good energy in the crowds and everything I saw was peaceful and respectful. Didn't see any pro-war counter demonstrations at the events I attended -- with the exception of three people yelling how we were anti-American and that protesting did "not support the troops."

kathy.doucette has contributed a photo to this story.

Peace Rally: The Empire Has No Clothes, in Eugene, Oregon. 5th Anniversary of the Iraq War.

jump4joy has contributed a photo to this story.

The weekend after Shock and Awe, in Burlington, Vermont, thousands of people turned up to speak out against the U.S. invasion of Iraq, including Madeleine Kunin and Bernard Sanders. I do not know who rested this banner next to the statue of Brevet Major General William Wells, a Vermont Civil War hero, in Battery Park, but my guess is that the juxtaposition was intentional. I'd like to think that the Path to World Peace is Friendship. If every citizen of Earth had friends across the globe, perhaps the governments would be unable to find soldiers willing to kill in their names.

paulinacha has contributed a photo to this story.

My wife, Maddie and I led the organizing locally of this demonstration against the war in Pasadena. We worked with Moveon.org and with Pasadena Democracy for America to pull it off. We had 120 plus neighbors at our rally! We got press coverage from both the Pasadena Star News and the Los Angeles NBC affiliate - channel 4 KNBC!

pbriggsiam has contributed a photo to this story.

publik16 has contributed a photo to this story.