IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM RALPH NADER ON IRAQ
The most recent polls on the Iraq war and occupation show that a majority of Americans want to see the troops brought home within the year. And, a majority believe the war was a mistake. Yet, the war rages on. Lives - American and Iraqi - continue to be lost. We have the power to end the war and bring the troops home. We just need to exercise our power. I'm writing to you today to ask for your support in helping to end the war. Our work is more important than ever.

Donald Rumsfeld is in the process of developing a plan to "re-make" U.S. armed forces. The still secret plan was recently reported on in The Wall Street Journal. It calls for two major areas of growth in the Pentagon: (1) rapid response forces that can respond to insurgencies before they become a threat and (2) expansion of U.S. investment in military technology so that China and Europe do not even consider trying to challenge us militarily. This plan is sure to continue the expansion of the military industrial complex, the depletion of resources for the necessities of the American people and continued military adventurism around the world, as in Iraq whose invasion Bush's own CIA Director Porter Goss testified recently that Iraq has become a training ground for terrorists saying: These jihadists who survive will leave Iraq experienced in and focused on acts of urban terrorism. They represent a potential pool of contacts to build transnational terrorist cells, groups, and networks in Saudi Arabia, Jordan and other countries."

We need to redouble our efforts - not only to end the Iraq quagmire, but to challenge the wastes and diversions of the massive military budget that now absorbs half of the entire federal operating budget! Visit http://DemocracyRising.US and read the article about the legendary Professor Seymour Melman - look at how we are trading investment in U.S. public works (infrastructure) and the needs of our citizens compared to spending money on exorbitant and redundant military hardware.