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Oscar Acceptance Speech for Feature Documentary
Michael Moore (Mar. 23, 2003) Oscar.Com
Whoa. On behalf of our producers Kathleen Glynn and Michael Donovan from Canada, I'd like to thank the Academy for this. I have invited my fellow documentary nominees on the stage with us, and we would like to — they're here in solidarity with me because we like nonfiction. We like nonfiction and we live in fictitious times. We live in the time where we have fictitious election results that elects a fictitious president. We live in a time where we have a man sending us to war for fictitious reasons. Whether it's the fictition of duct tape or fictition of orange alerts we are against this war, Mr. Bush. Shame on you, Mr. Bush, shame on you. And any time you got the Pope and the Dixie Chicks against you, your time is up. Thank you very much.
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Diplomacy Never Got a Chance
Mar Peter-Raoul (Mar. 23, 2003) Pok Journal
It may be too late now for diplomacy, not because it has failed, but because it has not been tried -- and the war has begun.
Most of all, my anguish about this war is a measure of how much I love my son and grandson, and all those, both among our troops and among the people of Iraq, who will suffer and die -- and that I believe perhaps it could have been otherwise.
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Protest Theory: Some Web Lit
Greg Moses (Mar. 23, 2003) NVUSA
Much has been said about the internet facilitating a surprisingly
robust anti-war movement. But the sophistication of internet protest
organization has surely been facilitated by the anti-globalization,
too. And in the USA, our most recent polls indicate that the numbers
of anti-war citizens have been whittled down to numbers that we
may guess are very closely related to politically alert, left educated,
post-materialist, post-globalization democrats who now pause to
reflect what this movement is about. Our focus on crisis cannot
distract us from opportunities to secure a new world order that
transcends Hobbesian dilemmas of war and regime.
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Antiwar protests around the world
Staff & Wire (Mar. 22, 2003) MSNBC
Thousands of angry protesters from around the world marched Saturday against the U.S.-led war in Iraq, in some cases condemning their own governments for supporting the United States. In the United States, a third day of antiwar protests were held in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, St. Paul, Minn., and other cities. There were also protests to show support for U.S. troops, with supporters often by the thousands, waving American flags and chanting “USA!”
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Statement regarding the US attack on Iraq
Bill Fletcher, Jr. (Mar. 22, 2003) Trans Africa Forum
The dangerous agenda of the Bush administration will be stopped only through public outrage and activism. We, people of conscience, must step forward and insist that we will not be a party to aggression; we will not be a party to breaking international law. We want security but we realize that security does not come as a result of empire building and naked aggression. It results from building cooperation between the nations and peoples of this planet. It begins, indeed, with mutual respect, a concept that seems quite alien to the Bush administration.
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I'M PATRIOTIC, I LOVE HIP HOP
AND I SUPPORT THE DIXIE CHICKS
Davey D (Mar. 22, 2003) via portside
The fact that George seems bent on ignoring world opinion has made me feel ashamed. The fact that he's reduced the thousands of people who have come out and spoke out against this impending war to being 'special interest groups' who can be and should be dismissed has made me feel shamed....
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America Wearing Black Hat
Peter Leonard (Mar. 22, 2003) Pok Journal
With our war in Iraq one patriotic phrase has been muted: ''God bless America.'' We don't hear it the way it we did after the World Trade Center bombing or during the war in Afghanistan.
I think that's because, in our heart of hearts, we know God can't bless America when America shoots first.
And there is also nothing in our culture, history or national spirit that says a pre-emptive strike is OK.
Look at any cowboy movie -- America's clearest and most cherished version of how we face down evil. It's simple: We know the bad guy is the bad guy because he always shoots first. The good guy, restrained by justice, won't shoot first. Enlivened by this same justice, it somehow makes him quicker on the draw.
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Reading the war as a soap opera of manifest destiny
Norma Alarcon (Mar. 20, 2003) email
The advisors on all this are brilliant in their perpetration
of obfuscation. The obfuscation that will sell to the white and
pseudo white american public...
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Thank you, President Bush
Paulo Coelho (Mar. 11, 2003) Open Democracy
Thank you for not listening to us and not taking us seriously, but know that we are listening to you and that we will not forget your words.
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The Plan: Were Neo-Conservatives’ 1998 Memos a Blueprint for Iraq War?
Nightline (Mar. 10, 2003) ABC News
Years before George W. Bush entered the White House, and years before the Sept. 11 attacks set the direction of his presidency, a group of influential neo-conservatives hatched a plan to get Saddam Hussein out of power.
The group, the Project for the New American Century, or PNAC, was founded in 1997. Among its supporters were three Republican former officials who were sitting out the Democratic presidency of Bill Clinton: Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz....
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Head U.N. weapons inspectors refute Bush-Blair charges against Iraq
Garland Favorito (Mar. 10, 2003) via email
Iraq foreign minister, Mohammed Aldouri, who was allowed 7 minutes to refute details of the near one hour presentation made by Colin Powell on 2/5/3, was allowed another 7 minutes for comments at this meeting. He began: "It seems that the possibility of a war of aggression being launched against Iraq has become imminent regardless of what the security council decides and regardless of international position both official and public." He went on to detail several specific summits in which hundreds of countries have condemned military aggression against Iraq....
Whether you agree or not with the Iraqi foreign minister or any other
foreign minister comments, I think you will agree that the national news
media reporting perspective is a far cry from the direct quotes of the
ministers. Seven minutes of actual comments from a true opposite
perspective is worth more than 7 months of talking heads telling you what
the opposition believes.
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Several Security Council members call for more inspections in Iraq
UN News (Mar. 7, 2003) United Nations
Soledad Alvear Valenzuela, Foreign Minister of Chile, called on Iraq to cooperate more fully, saying that even at this late stage, its attitude was insufficient. But today's reports indicated that a peaceful resolution was still possible through strengthening inspections with clear deadlines and demands, she added.
Angolan Deputy Foreign Minister Georges Chikoti noted that Iraqi cooperation remained relatively insufficient and that progress normally occurred when associated with specific benchmarks and dates. "Such an endeavour appears to be, under the present circumstances, the most suitable way to maintain the Council's unity, to uphold a course that can lead to a peaceful solution of the crisis, and spare the Iraqi people, the region and the world from an armed conflict and its dangerous consequences," he said.
Cameroon's Permanent Representative to the UN, Martin Belinga-Eboutou, said the viability of inspections rested on unconditional Iraqi cooperation but the inspections could not go on indefinitely. Appealing to the Council to unite, he said a credible alternative to war must be sought. The Iraqi authorities must be compelled to comply unconditionally and fully.
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U.S. divided over regime change
Toby Harnden (Mar. 7, 2003) Gulf News
Planning for the aftermath of a war has been entrusted to a new Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance at the Pentagon. It is headed by Lt Gen Jay Garner, a retired officer who led the 1991 humanitarian relief operation in Kurdistan.
The Bush administration envisages Gen Garner taking over day-to-day control of Iraq from Gen Tommy Franks, commander of allied forces in the Gulf, once the country has been invaded and all forces loyal to Saddam have been killed or taken prisoner....
There have also been bitter disputes between civilian and military leaders at the Pentagon over the size of a post-war force. Wolfowitz told congressmen that an estimate by Gen Eric Shineski, the U.S. Army chief, that several hundred thousand American troops would be needed was "wildly off the mark". A figure of 100,000 was much more realistic.
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An Alternative to War for Defeating Saddam Hussein: A Religious Initiative
Jim Wallis, et al (Mar. 6, 2003) Sojourners
It is five minutes before midnight, as Martin Luther King Jr. might have put it. Unless an alternative to war is found, a military conflagration soon will be unleashed. A morally rooted and pragmatically minded initiative, broadly supported by people of faith and people of good will, might help to achieve a historic breakthrough and set a precedent for decisive and effective international action in the many crises we face in the post-September 11 world.
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A Simple Question for Peace: Is Reconciliation Possible?
Greg Moses (Mar. 3, 2003) NVUSA
Time after time lately, our television hosts have asked their guests the final question, is war inevitable? And time after time, guests have replied, yes.
Yet if we shift the final question, I think we can change history.
War is only inevitable if we forget that the end game of peacemaking is reconciliation.
With only weeks, perhaps days, to dissuade the order to war, we must press the final question: is reconciliation possible? And if so, how?
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Iraq links missile action to peace
Bassem Mroue (Mar. 3., 2003) Herald Sun
IRAQ has destroyed six more of its Al Samoud 2 missiles - but says it may suspend the destruction program if the United States indicates it will go to war anyway.
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Counting up to Peace? A Time for Reconciliation
gmoses (Mar. 1, 2003) NVUSA
Now it is time to repay Turkey their favor. It is time for peacemakers to propose the steps that will allow all parties to stand down and save face. It is time for our media to count on the possibilities of peace.
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PDF: Building Democracy in Iraq
Yash Ghai, Mark Lattimer, & Yahia Said (Jan., 2003) minorityrights
The Interviewees all generally agreed that if there were an international peace-keeping or administrative presence in Iraq during a transition phase, it would be preferable if it was a neutral UN force. It is important to note that this is a separate question from the identity of, or mandate for, international belligerants in any war with Iraq, although the two are obviously connected, as van der Stoel points out: 'The USA will be less inclined to share influence if only very few contries, perhaps only Britain, really contribute to the second war against Iraq.' This caution has also been voiced by Chris Patten, the EU Commissioner for External Relations, who has drawn attention to the fact that UN involvement will make it much easier to get reconstruction aid from the EU, the world's larges development donor. He said on 13 January: 'I would find it much more difficult to get the approval of member states and the European Parliament if the military intervention that had occastioned the need for development aid did not have a UN mandate.' [pp. 11-12]
Donald Horowitz and Asrna Jahangir both seriously question whether the feeling of 'liberation' experienced by many in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban regime would be replicated in Iraq after an international armed intervention. Gudmundur Alfredsson and Max van der Stoel both stress the difficulty that a fledgling Iraqi government would have in accepting what was seen as a foreign imposition. And Yash Ghai, in the last section in this report, emphasizes that the constitution-making process is as integral a part of building democracy as the constitutional design itself. This would suggest that the optimum role of the international community in the process of democratization should be supportive rather than directive. [p. 15]
A functioning state apparatus, a middle class and a civil society are among the most crucial initial conditions for successful transition. Iraq had varying forms of all the above when Saddam Hussein reached the peak of his political power in 1979. In the wake of his demise, the regime will leave a legacy of devastation in all three areas. [p. 17]
One issue which is seldom discussed in this context is the process of regime change itself. The assumption behind most documents, including the DPWG report and the 'Guding Principles for US Post-Conflict Policy in Iraq' developed by an independent working group co-sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations andthe James Baker Institute (CFR/JBI), is that it will be precipitated by US military action. Other plans envision an internally driven regime change via a combination of military and civilian rebellion. One could envisage other scenarios, such as a palace coup or a gradual implosion of the regime, all of which would have profound repercussions on the groups and individuals who will end up in charge of the process of transition and on the content of the process. An internally-driven democratic regime change supported by the majority of the population will bode better for the future of Iraq than regime implosion or a foreign invasion. [p. 21]
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Turkish Parliament Rejects Motion to Open Bases to U.S. Troops
Philip P. Pan (Mar. 1, 2003) Washington Post
In a stunning setback for the United States that could require the Bush administration to rewrite its war plans, the Turkish parliament rejected by three votes tonight a motion that would have allowed U.S. troops to use Turkish bases to open a northern front against Iraq.
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War with Iraq, its aftermath could be quite costly
Rick Montgomery (Mar. 1, 2003) The Kansas City Star
Best-case scenarios examined by public and private groups set the entire multiyear cost of conquering and remaking Iraq at roughly $125 billion -- portions of which could end up paid by other countries, said Steve Kosiak of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
And the worst-case scenario?
"A collage of potential unfavorable outcomes," as Yale University economist William D. Nordhaus puts it, might be: a drawn-out conflict, sabotaged oil fields, regional uprisings in the war's aftermath, and a bitter disruption in crude-oil prices.
Factor in the blows that a military quagmire might deliver to the overall U.S. economy, and "the outer limits of costs would be around $1.9 trillion"
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Nation appears to be headed for a tough financial ride
David Broder (Mar. 1, 2003) Contra Costa Times
But this year is not routine in terms of the belt-tightening needed in Washington to accommodate the president's big increases in military and homeland-defense spending and still stay within his overall target of a 4 percent increase in discretionary spending.
And when you factor in what is happening in states and cities, it becomes clear that hard choices are being made about programs that directly affect people's lives.
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Letter of Resignation, to: Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
U.S. Diplomat John Brady Kiesling (Feb. 27, 2003) NYTimes via Truthout
The policies we are now asked to advance are incompatible not only with American values but also with American interests. Our fervent pursuit of war with Iraq is driving us to squander the international legitimacy that has been America’s most potent weapon of both offense and defense since the days of Woodrow Wilson. We have begun to dismantle the largest and most effective web of international relationships the world has ever known. Our current course will bring instability and danger, not security.
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Exclusive: The Defector’s Secrets
John Barry (Mar. 3, 2003) Newsweek
Hussein Kamel, the highest-ranking Iraqi official ever to defect from Saddam Hussein’s inner circle, told CIA and British intelligence officers and U.N. inspectors in the summer of 1995 that after the gulf war, Iraq destroyed all its chemical and biological weapons stocks and the missiles to deliver them.
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