Dear Supporters and Friends of Veterans for Common Sense:
Since the founding of Veterans for Common Sense (VCS) in September 2002, our nation has seen a dramatic change in foreign policy. In response, VCS has been a passionate and active voice of reason injecting common sense questions about our country’s new direction. And once again as the hawks beat their drums towards Iran and Syria we are asking for your help.
VCS needs your contribution today to continue our efforts to restore integrity to our foreign policy with sound ideals based on democracy, freedom, and our Constitution. http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/partner.cfm
Just as many of you, we were shocked and awed by the levels of deceit and fear-mongering coming from Washington. The current Administration, in cooperation with some major media corporations, lied to the American public about Iraq. They used forged documents and unsubstantiated politically motivated intelligence to try and “prove” that Iraq posed an immediate threat. They attacked the patriotism of those of us who questioned them. Many people were successfully manipulated with fear and false statements.
Now we see the cycle starting over again. Recent reports regarding the Administration’s deal with an anti-Iranian terrorist group and the call for covert action to effect regime change just proves that their hunger for war has not been satisfied. We anticipate the same kinds of lies and manipulation to be used once again.
But we veterans refuse to deceived and intimidated into inaction. We will not remain silent while our brothers and sisters are sent off to impose the will of an Administration whose policies fly in the face of the values we hold dear.
As our troops transitioned beyond a military victory executed with great skill and bravery on the battlefield to the political quagmire engulfing them as an occupying force, Veterans for Common Sense made the commitment to increase our efforts to present an alternative vision of how America should interact with the world.
The Administration might have its agenda of aggression and domination but Veterans for Common Sense has other ideas. We have laid out a simple framework for our organization to follow based on promoting the American values of cooperation, respect and engagement that has served us well for so many years.
VCS will continue to raise legitimate questions about US domestic and foreign policy in an era of increased militarism, war and development and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in order to:
-Make war a policy of last resort and -Ensure that the United States is engaged in a positive manner in the global community
To accomplish these goals we will continue to speak-out and educate on the issues and policies that stand in our way. With your help we will build on our success and reputation as a mainstream Veterans voice for Common Sense and return to the ideas of the America that we served. Please consider a tax-deductible donation today to Veterans for Common Sense as a show of support for our cause. Go to the “Donate” section of our web site at http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/
Thank you for your support.
Members of the Board Veterans for Common Sense
As you consider a donation please reflect on our many accomplishments and plans.
Veterans for Common Sense Key Accomplishments
– Between September 2002 and March 2003 VCS leaders were interviewed nearly one hundred times. Major media interviews included FOX News, MSNBC, CNN, Time Magazine, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the San Francisco Chronicle, and National Public Radio. High-visibility interviews were conducted by Connie Chung, Phil Donahue, Democracy Now, NPR News, On-Point Radio and a large number of other radio stations around the country.
– VCS, working with other organizations, successfully convinced 23 U.S. Representatives to change their mind about another Gulf War. The Representatives originally voted for the war resolution, and they subsequently changed their position in a letter to the President before the invasion of Iraq.
– On May 9, 2003 VCS co-sponsored an Ad in the New York Times showing what “Support the Troops” really means. http://emailimages.ctsg.com/blsp/winwithoutwar/troopsadfinal.pdf
– VCS is a vital member of the national Win Without War coalition and is affiliated with United for Peace and Justice and Move On. http://www.winwithoutwarus.org/html/coalition.html
– Our “Deeds Not Words” campaign was the catalyst for a national outcry against the Bush administration budget cuts to Veterans benefits. As of the date of this letter a bi-partisan agreement was reached to roll back those cuts.
– VCS helped organize and sponsor Operation Dire Distress, a peaceful gathering of hundreds of veterans in Washington DC the weekend of March 22-24. In additional to a tremendously well received symposium on war related issues which was carried live on national television from American University, this event brought together thousands of Veterans to express their opposition with both a march through the streets of our capital and a congressional lobbying day.
– The Veterans for Common Sense web site has become a valuable resource for news and debate and recently re-launched with an updated look and improved features. http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/
– VCS will soon begin work on the creation of a Speaker’s Bureau, which will be a valuable mechanism to get our voice heard around the country.
– VCS placed dozens of editorials in a variety of forums, both on-line and in-print. We’ve also assisted on background with dozens more editorials and news articles.
– The VCS statement and subsequent letter to the President provided an expression of true patriotic voices in opposition to the war in Iraq.
– VCS will soon hire our first paid staff member and create a more permanent presence in Washington, DC.
Please Help Veterans for Common Sense continue this vital work as we seek to inject the element of Common Sense into debates over war and national security. http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/donations.asp
