IRAQ VETERANS TO SPEAK OF U.S. WAR CRIMES

"U.S. veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are planning... descend on Washington... to testify about war crimes they committed or personally witnessed... (there's) a lot of misconceptions in the minds of the American public about what the true nature of military occupation looks like... well-publicised incidents of U.S. brutality... are not the isolated incidents perpetrated by "a few bad apples"... (but) are part of... "an increasingly bloody occupation".
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41398

A SPEECH AGAINST A DUMB WAR

"... What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war. What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by... this administration to shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.... I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history. I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of Al Qaeda. I am not opposed to all wars. I’m opposed to dumb wars..."
--Speech by Barack Obama, October 2, 2002 at an anti-war rally in Chicago.
http://www.barackobama.com/2002/10/02/remarks_of_illinois_state_sen.php

AND SOMEONE WHO AGREED WITH THAT

COST OF WARS NOW OVER $3 TRILLION

"... the Bush administration predicted that the war would be self-financing and that rebuilding the nation would cost less than $2 billion... a Nobel laureate now estimates that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are costing America more than $3 trillion... When other factors are added — such as interest on debt, future borrowing for war expenses, the cost of a continued military presence in Iraq and lifetime health-care and counseling for veterans — they think that the wars' costs range from $5 trillion to $7 trillion."
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/staff/kevin_hall/story/28891.html

NEGOTIATING WITH TERRORISTS

"... despite endless insistence by our government that we do not and should not legitimize and reward terrorism through negotiations, Bush nevertheless implicitly negotiates and often capitulates with terrorists on a nearly consistent basis.

Every day in Iraq... our armed forces, defense contractors and our civilian allies in... Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's coalition all negotiate with people who our president calls "terrorists", "extremists", "islamo-fascists" and worse. We also negotiate with countries that... enable militant groups to attack... the US and its allies abroad. We negotiate and are explicitly allied with Pakistan's dictator President Pervez Musharraf, who consistently strikes deals with Pashtun militants (some Taliban, some not)..."

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/JB16Ak03.html

LIGHTS OUT IN IRAQ

"... there is now less electricity than during the sanctions. In some cities, homes get electricity just an hour or two a day. Sometimes, there is no electricity for a week..."
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41217

U.S. FORCING SOME AL-QAEDA OUT OF IRAQ

"Qaeda threat expanding outside Iraq... Al-Qaeda, increasingly tamped down in Iraq, is establishing cells in other countries... Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell told senators... said fewer than 100 al-Qaeda terrorists have moved from Iraq to establish cells elsewhere as the U.S. military clamps down in Iraq..."
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/international/middle_east/view.bg?articleid=1071605&srvc=rss

BAGHDAD DROWNING IN SEWAGE

"Baghdad is drowning in sewage, thirsty for water and largely powerless... a grim assessment of services in the capital five years after the US-led invasion. One of three sewage treatment plants is out of commission, one is working at stuttering capacity while a pipe blockage in the third means sewage is forming a foul lake so large it can be seen as a big black spot on Google Earth..."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080203/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestservices