Opposing the Iraq War: Heroes of Resistance (AlterNet)

[marmar]

Opposing the Iraq War: Heroes of Resistance

By John Tirman, AlterNet. Posted March 13, 2007.



In the face of severe contempt and intimidation, a sizable number of Americans saw the charade for what it was and rued the oncoming disaster of war.

As we mark the fourth anniversary of Bush's catastrophic war in Iraq, a round of blaming is sure to ensue along with counts of U.S. soldiers killed and wounded, money spent, dreams dashed, and the like.

What we should also do is celebrate the people who opposed the war from the beginning. In the face of severe opprobrium and intimidation, a sizable number of Americans saw the charade for what it was and rued the oncoming disaster. They should be cheered, time and again.

It is easy to forget how brutally coercive the conventional wisdom was in the autumn of 2002 and winter of 2003. Even today, the supporters of the war, especially liberal hawks, insist that "no one" doubted that Saddam had nuclear or biological weapons, or that "no one" could have anticipated the chaos and mayhem to come. This is dead wrong. Many people warned of exactly such consequences. The predictions came from a broad spectrum of Americans, no less, from the old-fashioned conservatives of Papa Bush's circle to New Left veterans.
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1. The members of Congress who voted against the war resolution included 31 senators and 133 representatives. Six of those senators no longer serve, including the late Paul Wellstone. Among the notable Senate leaders who did cast a "nay" were Richard Durbin, Ted Kennedy, Patrick Leahy, and Carl Levin.

In the House, only six Republicans voted with the wise. Among the notables in opposition were Nancy Pelosi, Sherrod Brown (now a senator from Ohio), and Bernie Sanders (now a senator from Vermont).

2. The public intellectuals and activists who took a strong stand: Medea Benjamin, Howard Zinn, Tom Hayden, Jesse Jackson, Noam Chomsky, Leslie Cagan, John Cavannagh, Michael Klare, Scott Ritter, Ben Cohen, Jessica T. Mathews, Tom Andrews, James Carroll, and Jonathan Schell, just to start the list of honorees. Throw in the U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference and nearly every major religious organization to the left of the Christian Right. ........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/49150/