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Emmergency unit staff treat an injured man after bombings on the eastern Ukraine town of Chuguiv on February 24, 2022, as Russian armed forces are trying to invade Ukraine from several directions, using rocket systems and helicopters to attack Ukrainian position in the south, the border guard service said. (Photo: Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images)
From Putin in Ukraine to Bush in Iraq, Illegal Invasions Must Be Condemned
Do not accept war as the answer to any dispute.
Feb 24, 2022
"Invasion" read the headlines in our newspapers.
19 years ago in March 2002, it was the US invading Iraq.
Today it's Russia invading Ukraine. The stupidity of it all.
When you heard President Biden today, February 24, 2022, speaking about Russia invading Ukraine, you could've substituted the words US and Iraq.
It's the same stupidity.
Here we are 19 years later and Russia does not care about international outrage of their invasion of Ukraine just as the United States did not care about millions of people all over the world walking, marching, and protesting against the US war on Iraq.
The world is faced with government leaders who still don't care that war does not resolve the issues of concern and are willing to sacrifice the lives of young men and women in their military as well as the lives of young and old men and women and tens of thousands of children in the countries they invade.
These leaders are willing to endure years of "insurgencies" (Afghanistan, Iraq) in the countries they invade. They are willing to see cities destroyed (Fallujah). They are willing to use assassin drones, bunker busters, Mother of all Bombs, hypersonic missiles and crow about how proud they are that these weapons are "selective" and kill very few civilians.
The leaders just don't care and feed off the "successes" of others that commit illegal wars and get away with it.
In Russia protesters against the war are already being arrested and hauled off to jail and threatened with criminal records. On the first day of the invasion of Ukraine, over 1600 Russians have been arrested.
19 years ago men and women protested the U.S. war on Iraq in cities around the United States and were arrested, thrown into jails and warehouses and left for days.
19 years ago I resigned as a US diplomat from the US government in opposition to the US war on Iraq. I imagine there are probably some diplomats in Russia that are considering resignation.
I believed that the Bush administration's rationale of war was to secure alleged weapons of mass destruction was wrong. In the United Nations, countries refused to authorize the U.S. war on Iraq.
I'm sure many of the Russian diplomats recognize that Russian recognition of the provinces of Ukraine as independent regions is opposed by many governments as expressed in United Nations debates.
The citizens of the United States and citizens of Russia don't want war.
However we keep having leaders that seem to think they can get away with war and they do!
What do we as citizens do to stop this war madness?
Be careful of whom we elect as our leader.
Push back against political demonization of other countries.
Voice our outrage in the media, if you can get a platform.
Hit the streets with signs and banners with our concern so leaders and media see visible opposition to war.
Do not accept war as the answer to any dispute.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
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Ann Wright
Ann Wright is a 29 year US Army/Army Reserves veteran who retired as a Colonel and a former US diplomat who resigned in March 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq. She served in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia and Mongolia. In December 2001 she was on the small team that reopened the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. She is the co-author of the book "Dissent: Voices of Conscience."
"Invasion" read the headlines in our newspapers.
19 years ago in March 2002, it was the US invading Iraq.
Today it's Russia invading Ukraine. The stupidity of it all.
When you heard President Biden today, February 24, 2022, speaking about Russia invading Ukraine, you could've substituted the words US and Iraq.
It's the same stupidity.
Here we are 19 years later and Russia does not care about international outrage of their invasion of Ukraine just as the United States did not care about millions of people all over the world walking, marching, and protesting against the US war on Iraq.
The world is faced with government leaders who still don't care that war does not resolve the issues of concern and are willing to sacrifice the lives of young men and women in their military as well as the lives of young and old men and women and tens of thousands of children in the countries they invade.
These leaders are willing to endure years of "insurgencies" (Afghanistan, Iraq) in the countries they invade. They are willing to see cities destroyed (Fallujah). They are willing to use assassin drones, bunker busters, Mother of all Bombs, hypersonic missiles and crow about how proud they are that these weapons are "selective" and kill very few civilians.
The leaders just don't care and feed off the "successes" of others that commit illegal wars and get away with it.
In Russia protesters against the war are already being arrested and hauled off to jail and threatened with criminal records. On the first day of the invasion of Ukraine, over 1600 Russians have been arrested.
19 years ago men and women protested the U.S. war on Iraq in cities around the United States and were arrested, thrown into jails and warehouses and left for days.
19 years ago I resigned as a US diplomat from the US government in opposition to the US war on Iraq. I imagine there are probably some diplomats in Russia that are considering resignation.
I believed that the Bush administration's rationale of war was to secure alleged weapons of mass destruction was wrong. In the United Nations, countries refused to authorize the U.S. war on Iraq.
I'm sure many of the Russian diplomats recognize that Russian recognition of the provinces of Ukraine as independent regions is opposed by many governments as expressed in United Nations debates.
The citizens of the United States and citizens of Russia don't want war.
However we keep having leaders that seem to think they can get away with war and they do!
What do we as citizens do to stop this war madness?
Be careful of whom we elect as our leader.
Push back against political demonization of other countries.
Voice our outrage in the media, if you can get a platform.
Hit the streets with signs and banners with our concern so leaders and media see visible opposition to war.
Do not accept war as the answer to any dispute.
From Your Site Articles
Ann Wright
Ann Wright is a 29 year US Army/Army Reserves veteran who retired as a Colonel and a former US diplomat who resigned in March 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq. She served in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia and Mongolia. In December 2001 she was on the small team that reopened the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. She is the co-author of the book "Dissent: Voices of Conscience."
"Invasion" read the headlines in our newspapers.
19 years ago in March 2002, it was the US invading Iraq.
Today it's Russia invading Ukraine. The stupidity of it all.
When you heard President Biden today, February 24, 2022, speaking about Russia invading Ukraine, you could've substituted the words US and Iraq.
It's the same stupidity.
Here we are 19 years later and Russia does not care about international outrage of their invasion of Ukraine just as the United States did not care about millions of people all over the world walking, marching, and protesting against the US war on Iraq.
The world is faced with government leaders who still don't care that war does not resolve the issues of concern and are willing to sacrifice the lives of young men and women in their military as well as the lives of young and old men and women and tens of thousands of children in the countries they invade.
These leaders are willing to endure years of "insurgencies" (Afghanistan, Iraq) in the countries they invade. They are willing to see cities destroyed (Fallujah). They are willing to use assassin drones, bunker busters, Mother of all Bombs, hypersonic missiles and crow about how proud they are that these weapons are "selective" and kill very few civilians.
The leaders just don't care and feed off the "successes" of others that commit illegal wars and get away with it.
In Russia protesters against the war are already being arrested and hauled off to jail and threatened with criminal records. On the first day of the invasion of Ukraine, over 1600 Russians have been arrested.
19 years ago men and women protested the U.S. war on Iraq in cities around the United States and were arrested, thrown into jails and warehouses and left for days.
19 years ago I resigned as a US diplomat from the US government in opposition to the US war on Iraq. I imagine there are probably some diplomats in Russia that are considering resignation.
I believed that the Bush administration's rationale of war was to secure alleged weapons of mass destruction was wrong. In the United Nations, countries refused to authorize the U.S. war on Iraq.
I'm sure many of the Russian diplomats recognize that Russian recognition of the provinces of Ukraine as independent regions is opposed by many governments as expressed in United Nations debates.
The citizens of the United States and citizens of Russia don't want war.
However we keep having leaders that seem to think they can get away with war and they do!
What do we as citizens do to stop this war madness?
Be careful of whom we elect as our leader.
Push back against political demonization of other countries.
Voice our outrage in the media, if you can get a platform.
Hit the streets with signs and banners with our concern so leaders and media see visible opposition to war.
Do not accept war as the answer to any dispute.
From Your Site Articles
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.