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Thursday, March 18
Cedar Valley Voices: Iowa Communities Must Work Together To Fix Education
by
Dave Bradley
on Thu 18 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CDT
Cedar Valley Voices: Iowa Communities Must Work Together To Fix Education
 by Gerald Reese
The Cedar
Valley Voices project is a citizen response to state Representative
Jeff Kaufmann’s column in the West Branch Times during the
Iowa legislative session.
Is there something really wrong with our educational system, or is it a matter of perception? Or is there something wrong with the way we administer our funding? Do we rely too much on tests to measure achievement, whether it is to pass a grade, or to hire a new teacher? Do we have too much top-heavy administration and too many associations trying to invent the better mousetrap? Do we concentrate too much on the better students and too little on the underachievers? Do we need to overhaul the education system every time we elect a new president?
Right now President Obama is calling for a massive overhaul of the system, and to throw billions of dollars at it, as if this is going to improve test scores. Here in Iowa our Association of School Boards is embroiled in controversy involving alleged misuse of funds, etc. While this association has many benefits, it lacks oversight. It seems like public money is too much temptation for some. We have 361 school districts that have their own set of administrators and staff. In years past, we had county (99) superintendents that worked well for us. Should we go back to this system simply to save money? We could hire, or retain more teachers with the money saved. Maybe in times of economic distress we would not have to layoff teachers, and increase class size.
When economic times are good we go all out for the arts (both preforming and visual) that many students enjoy. These are the classes where students learn who they are in our society, and form a sense of identity. For some, it is a way of making it through another boring day of feeling left out, of losing hope. This past week, students and teachers in Des Moines were protesting cuts in these same classes. And these students are right to expect the same level of educational opportunities as the predecessors. We need to plan ahead to maintain that same level of opportunity, and not overreact to each downward financial condition.
When we cut teachers, and increase class sizes, we are multiplying the number of students in each class that need extra help, and decreasing the amount of time the teacher has to help. Parents may have the means to hire a tutor for their student, which helps that student understand and learn a particular subject. What about those students whose parents or guardians cannot or will not provide the extra tutoring? Not all in our society place the same value on education as the majority. It then falls back onto the community to help those who desperately need help. And it does take the community pulling together to provide a quality education for all of its members.
What it boils down to, is that the better our society is educated, the healthier society is. Do we need national standards of educational goals, of funding our schools? Declining enrollment in our smaller communities exacerbate the problems inherent with funding per student policies. Less funding leads to cuts, and cuts lead to fewer opportunities for students. It can become a vicious cycle that catches our young people in the middle, and our communities at odds as to a viable solution.
Working together, we can, and will come up with answers.
Gerald Reese
Wilton, Iowa
glreese@netwtc.net
Wednesday, March 17
Salute to the Sustainable Ag Women of Iowa!
by
Denise O'Brien
on Wed 17 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CDT
Salute To The Sustainable Ag Women Of Iowa!
 by Denise O'Brien
Given that March is Women’s History Month and that March 8th was International Women’s Day, I thought I would pay tribute to the incredible women of Iowa’s sustainable agriculture community. Over my years of involvement in Iowa agriculture (which now number 34), I have worked with women all over the state. Not all women in the sustainable ag community are farmers.
To honor the women farmers who provide food for their communities in Iowa is a large task. The list is long and goes back a great number of years. There are women out there that have laid the foundation for the sustainable ag work that continues to move forward.
This tribute is in alphabetical order and not an order of “importance.” The list is incomplete because it is limited to the women with whom I have personally worked. I am including the websites to their farms. Most of the women have a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Many of you may know that a CSA is a membership based farm and that members pay a fee to receive a weekly box or basket of fresh produce during the growing season. My CSA is Rolling Acres Farm and we are just getting the season underway. As I looked through the websites the pictures of green growing things has made me hopeful that spring will soon be here.
Some women don’t have websites but I am mentioning their names to honor their work.
Rebecca Bloom, Council Bluffs
Susan Jutz, Solon, zjfarms.com
Laura Krouse, Mount Vernon, abbehills.com
Jan Libbey, Kanawha, ostgardens.com
Alice McGary, Ames, mustardseedfarm.org
Virginia Moser, Vinton
Angela Tedesco, Johnston, turtle-farm.com
The list would not be complete without mentioning other women in Iowa who have played a role both in the state and nationally. Take for instance, Tanya Meyer-Didericksen. Tanya has been a United States Department of Agriculture employee in the state of Iowa who has worked on outreach and diversity through the Natural Resource and Conservation Service. Tanya worked closely with Women, Food and Agriculture Network (WFAN) starting in the 1990s to reach out to women farmland owners.
In academia there have been a number of women who have moved the sustainable ag agenda forward. Rural sociologist, Betty Wells was a founder of WFAN in 1997. Kathleen Delate became the first organic specialist in horticulture and commodity agriculture at Iowa State University. Cornelia Flora, another rural sociologist, has been actively involved in rural issues since the 80s farm crisis and has been an amazing supporter of women. Jean Eells has worked between government agencies and academia to bring forward the importance of women as farmland owners.
The non-profit sector has contributed immensely to the strength of Iowa’s sustainable agriculture. If you look at the staff of many community based organizations you will notice a substantial number of women. Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) has at it’s helm, Teresa Opheim. Teresa has been in the sustainable ag community for a long while working on both a state and national level. She is supported by staff that are competent and capable. Women, Food and Agriculture Network (WFAN), with Leigh Adcock as Director, works hard every day to help women connect the dots with farming and conservation practices. Of course, as the founder of WFAN, I am partial to this non-profit. Laura Dowd at Local Foods Connection works tirelessly to bring low income people into the good food movement.
There are many rural community women that spend their days working to advance sustainable agriculture in Iowa. Carol Smith of Perry; Mary Swalla-Holmes, of Madrid; Susan Roberts of Ankeny; Angie Tagtow of Elkhart; Penny Brown of Maxwell; Stacey Brown of Ames; Danielle Wirth and Maggie Howe of Woodward, are names that are constantly lifted up as a resource for navigating the maize of sustainable agriculture in Iowa and in the nation.
I have saved the best for the last. No disrespect to the aforementioned women - if it were not for the work that they do, Iowa sustainable agriculture would not have the credibility and respect it has throughout the world.
Iowa sustainable agriculture has strong roots and with the help of Iowa consumers, can make the food landscape in Iowa change from commodity orientation to food self sufficiency
~ Denise O'Brien lives and
works on her farm in southwest Iowa. O'Brien has been a farm activist
for over thirty years. Her work has taken her all over the world working
on agriculture and women in agriculture issues. Check out her website Rolling Acres
CSA or E-mail Denise O'Brien.
Tuesday, March 16
Health Care Reform Update: Messages to BFIA Readers from Senator Harkin and Representative Braley
by
Alta Price
on Tue 16 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CDT
Health
Care Reform Update: Messages to BFIA Readers from Senator Harkin and Representative Braley
 by Alta Price, M.D.
"Although Braley did not say so, I
heard others at the dinner say that Representative Boswell may not vote
for the bill. Those of you in his district may want to give him a call
and find out what’s up with that! "
Last Saturday, March 13, 2010 I attended the Scott County Democrats’ annual Red, White, and Blue banquet. Guests of honor included Senator Tom Harkin and first district Representative Bruce Braley. I asked each of them for comments on what is happening in health care reform right now to convey to the readers of Blog for Iowa.
Senator Harkin said that a package was being put together that the House will vote on late this week. The Senate will vote before they go on Easter recess. Unfortunately, there will be no public option in the bill, and he knew progressives would be disappointed. Attached to the health care “fix” bill will be a bill to make college more affordable. This bill will save money by cutting payments to the middlemen (banks) for student loans.
Senator Harkin also thanked all of us for our efforts in the state, including our work for Blog for Iowa. We had several exchanges of “thank you for all your efforts” and “no, thank you for everything you are doing” – ending in a draw with neither party willing to accept more of the gratitude.
The message from Representative Braley was a bit less sanguine. For one thing, Representative Braley was less confident that the vote would occur this week. He did say he thought leadership had come up with a way to carry out the vote that would allow them to pass the Senate health care reform bill and the “fix” bill at the same time, which he believed most members of the House would prefer. Unfortunately, Representative Braley was not sure they had enough votes lined up to pass the bill at this point. There is a lack of trust that the Senate will pass the “fix” bill, and the House members don’t think the Senate bill is as good as the bill the House passed. Representative Braley advised us that the status of the legislation will continue to change every day this week.
The message Representative Braley would like to send to BFIA readers is to continue to push hard over the next week (weeks?) to get this passed. Now would be an excellent time to contact your member of Congress and encourage them to finish up this bill.
Although Braley did not say so, I heard others at the dinner say that Representative Boswell may not vote for the bill. Those of you in his district may want to give him a call and find out what’s up with that!
I assume Representative Loebsack will vote for it, but you might want to check in with his office to be sure. Since the “anti’s” are no doubt calling, it is important for us to call and thank our Democratic members of Congress for their support.
I want to thank Tracy for doing such a good job in her post yesterday updating you on the health care bill and the process of getting it passed. Health care reform is vital to the well-being of Iowa’s working men and women and their families. I, too, will be posting smiley faces next Tuesday if we have a bill by then!
Finally, following up on my post from last week, here is some coverage in the Quad-Cities Online of our “Die-in” last Thursday, March 11. (By the way, if you read the ridiculous comments at the end of this story, and realize that those are the people calling the Congressional offices, you can see why it is vital that the saner members of our society also call our members of Congress to let them know we support health care reform!)
Check out this link to the event on YouTube provided by Mary McCann of Iowa Citizen Action Network.
**BFIA ACTION ALERT**
Let’s act on Representative Braley’s request to push for health care reform this week! Click on the links to write our elected officials now and ask them to vote for the health care reform bills before the congress. US Senator Chuck Grassley
US Senator Tom Harkin First District Congressman Bruce Braley Second District Congressman Dave Loebsack Third District Congressman Leonard Boswell Fourth District Congressman Tom Latham Fifth District Congressman Steve KingAlta
Price is a physician practicing Pathology in Davenport, Iowa. One of
the original Deaniacs, she stays involved with Democracy for America,
Iowa, and the Quad Cities. She advocates for quality, affordable health
care for all, primarily as a volunteer with Progressive Action for the
Common Good (Health Care Reform Issue Forum). Watch for Dr. Price's Health Care Reform Update every Tuesday here on Blog for Iowa. E-Mail Alta Price
Monday, March 15
Iowa Progressive Radio: This Week On The Fallon Forum
by
Trish Nelson
on Mon 15 Mar 2010 03:38 PM CDT
Iowa
Progressive Radio: This Week On The Fallon Forum
 Dear Friends,
We’ve got thirteen hours of talk radio to fill this week – mostly issues
and politics, of course. But in honor of St. Patrick, Ed tells true
tales of his time in Ireland, including stories of mythical fairies who
managed to delay for two years a reforestation project on his family’s
farm. Seriously. Ed swears he’s not making this up.
Monday, 1:00 – 4:00 pm
, we talk about politics and the Des Moines
Register’s love affair with Senator Grassley, Jonathan Narcisse’s love
affair with himself, and Iowa
Senate Republicans’ burning love for coal.
Monday, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
, we talk about the recent national workshop
in Ankeny on competition in agriculture. George Naylor, a Greene County
farmer, was one of the there, and he joins us to talk about the issues
addressed – and those not addressed.
Tuesday, 1:00 4:00 pm
, we talk about Iowa floods past,
present and future. What’s up with the alleged mismanagement of funds in
Cedar Rapids’
flood relief efforts? Why is the levy designed to protect the Birdland
neighborhood in Des Moines still unfinished?
And since no discussion of natural disasters would be complete without
religious extremists weighing in, we’ll pose the tongue-in-cheek
rhetorical question: Are these floods a sign that God hates Iowa? For
good measure, we’ll also discuss the recent assertion by the Iowa Family
Policy Council that second-hand smoke is not as serious a health risk
as second-hand homosexuality. Seriously. We’re not making this up
either.
Tuesday, 7:00 – 8:00 pm, David Osterberg with the Iowa Policy
Project joins us to talk about opportunities for wind energy in Iowa.
Wednesday, 1:00 – 4:00 pm
, we talk about immigration
reform, including the latest developments in the ICN raid at Postville. This being St.
Patrick’s Day, and Ed being only a little Irish, Ed will talk about the
discrimination his Irish grandparents faced as immigrants in the 1920s
and ‘30s. We’ll also talk about the challenges immigrants to Iowa face
today.
Wednesday, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
, in a departure from the
usual political and issue focus of The Fallon Forum, Ed shares stories
from his time in Ireland in the 1960s and ‘70s. And he’ll also tell a
few of his favorite Irish
jokes, if Lynn and FCC rules let him.
Thursday 7:00 – 8:00 pm
, Tim Fink with Iowa Interfaith Power and Light
joins us to talk about climate
change.
So, pour yourself a hot cup of tea, a glass of wine, or on Wednesday a
pint of Guinness and join us for the fusion of politics and civility at
98.3 WOW-FM and on-line at
www.983wowfm.com. Call (515) 312-0983 or (866) 908-TALK to
participate in the conversation, and if you miss the show, you can hear
it as a podcast.
Thanks!
Ed & Lynn Fallon
Labor Update: What's in the Health Care Bill for Iowa Workers?
by
Tracy Kurowski
on Mon 15 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CDT
Labor Update: What's in the Health Care Bill for Iowa Workers?
 by Tracy Kurowski
By this time next week, we could finally have a health care bill on President Obama’s desk.
I stress the word "could" because if we’ve learned anything in the past year, it is that no legislation is a sure thing. Speaker Pelosi, however, feels confident enough in her whip count that she is ready to schedule a vote by Friday or Saturday of this week.
Health care reform’s final passage will be a combination of asking members of the House of Representatives to pass the Senate version of the bill, while simultaneously passing a series of amendments dealing with the bill’s financing, that would then be volleyed back to the Senate to pass through a reconciliation process that only requires a simple majority of fifty-one votes. So long as the Senate is honestly gauging their whip count, by next Monday, rather than posting a blog, I’m just going to post clip art of champagne, balloons, confetti, smiley faces and dancing figures.
And now that we are at the end game, it’s important to resist the temptation to look back at this point and figure out why something like the desire to provide health care access to all of a nation’s citizens should have conjured up so much controversy. At an interfaith forum on health care reform late last year, two of the panelists rightly agreed that the debate we had been having throughout 2009 brought out more heat than light. But whatever compromises are in the final outcome, the significance of having passed a health care overhaul will mean an awful lot for both improving on the bill’s flaws as we move forward, as well as for moving any other legislation over the rest of Obama’s tenure as President.
So let me talk now about the parts of the bill that most affect labor. The forty percent excise tax on benefits in the Senate version stands out as the most egregious flaw of the bill. However, the version going through reconciliation would reduce the effect that will have on working families by eighty percent. The reconciled bill would delay implementation of the tax until 2018. This is only fair since implementing it any earlier would undermine the negotiated agreements currently in place – at the expense to both workers and employers. By delaying implementation until 2018, not only is there an opportunity to re-visit financing of the health care bill, but even if left untouched, the delay gives workers and employers the opportunity to negotiate future contracts based on the impact of such an enormous tax.
The reconciled bill also resets the excise tax threshold at $27,500 for family coverage and $10,200 for individual plans, exempting many working families. The threshold excludes vision and dental benefits and is adjusted higher if age and gender of workforce increases costs. Finally, the threshold will be adjusted if costs outpace projected increases.
Because these modifications reduce revenue from the excise tax from $116 billion to $33 billion over ten years, the reconciled version pays for reform by increasing the Medicare tax on tax payers earning over $200,000 (families over $250,000) per year. It would also for the first time put a Medicare tax on unearned income.
There is no employer mandate to provide coverage, but there will be penalties for employers with greater than fifty full-time employees. For employers in the building trades, the number being negotiated right now is five full-time employees and payroll of $250,000 or more. The penalty for employers not providing health care benefits is increased to $2000 per worker up from $750 in the current Senate version.
For retirees, the bill would get rid of the doughnut hole that hung seniors out to dry when it came to paying for their prescription costs.
The deal with Nebraska is gone (take that Blue-Dog Bill Nelson!) And by some accounts, there’s a chance for a public option to re-emerge.
It improves on federal funding to states to offset costs of Medicaid – currently a heavy burden for states and retains qualification for Medicaid for those up to 133% of poverty level. For moderate – income earners, the subsidy will be increased for individuals and families up to four times poverty level. It also puts a cap on out-of-pocket costs so illness won’t bankrupt families anymore. And for working families who are moderate to higher end wage earners, there are subsidies available so your premium for employer-provided coverage will never be more than 9.8% of income.
The bill permits states to establish a single-payer system for themselves – something people in progressive states may want to start work on at a much-smaller scale – remember women’s enfranchisement only happened after a critical mass of states already allowed women the right to vote.
The fight for comprehensive health care reform has gone on for decades. It’s absolutely senseless to toss out the current version because it fails to please everyone. The last time comprehensive health care reform was attempted was in 1992. If reform fails again, are we willing to wait until 2028 to revisit it? Compounding the current rate of health insurance premium increases – which were anywhere from ten to sixty percent this year – and you‘ll soon realize that doing nothing is not an option, that is unless you’re ok with becoming a third-world nation.
Tracy
Kurowski has been active in the labor movement
for ten years, first as a member of AFSCME 3506, when she taught adult
education classes at the City Colleges of Chicago. She moved to the
Quad Cities in 2007 where she worked as political coordinator with the
Quad City Federation of Labor, and as a caseworker for Congressman
Bruce Braley from 2007 - 2009.
Tracy Kurowski writes a labor update every
Monday on Blog for Iowa
Sunday, March 14
Progressives are Gathering Across Iowa
by
paul deaton
on Sun 14 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CDT
Progressives are Gathering Across Iowa
 by Paul Deaton
"It’s how we share information and live our lives. Neither the topic of politics nor the corporate media came up once that night."
A group of locals were sitting around a table in our town last week, talking about the future of Iowa. We discussed the way the school board made investments in people and the teacher layoffs in Des Moines. We talked about the consolidation of public health services, repairing the roads in our subdivision and the foolish way some of the federal stimulus money is being spent. We covered the potential for another flood and the safety of our children. It was another winter night on the cusp of spring and our conversation was similar to many taking place across the state.
It’s who we are as Iowans, gathering together, hoping for a quorum and working on what needs doing in society. Gatherings like these are as old as our democracy and the lifeblood of the progressive movement, even if everyone at the table did not consider themselves to be “progressive.” It’s how we share information and live our lives. Neither the topic of politics nor the corporate media came up once that night.
As the local political world enters its season of conventions, we know they will not be like they were in 2008. Each election cycle has its own dynamics. There was a contested primary during the conventions in 2008, and each delegate seat was filled, all the way to the district convention. It won’t be that way this year as party regulars gather to do business in numbers that seem diminished in comparison.
The thing about our movement is that our strength has never been in the number of party regulars, especially at the county and precinct level where our organization matters most. Our strength is in the gatherings of people in our communities like the one I described. It is not about a single meeting, but of countless meetings through a lifetime that build relationships, respect, animosities and hopefully friendships. We don’t always vote the same way during elections, and certainly, we don’t always agree. However, our relationships are strong and our commitment to our community vital.
There are those who believe they can capture, for their political purposes, the anger we feel about Washington’s delayed passage of health care reform and other priorities. They are mistaken. They make assertions that are unfounded and say things that make us cringe. These tactics may garner some votes this election cycle, but the impact will not endure. Partly because we remember how harsh our lives could be when the conservatives were in power. It is partly because we have invested much of ourselves in making progress as a society. We will persevere and eventually prevail, regardless of the outcome of the 2010 election. It is not about winning an election, it is about our future and we are all in.
~Paul
Deaton is a native Iowan living in rural Johnson County and weekend
editor of Blog for Iowa. He is also a member of Iowa Physicians for
Social Responsibility and Veterans for Peace. E-mail Paul Deaton
Saturday, March 13
HF2399: Iowa's Stifling of Innovation
by
paul deaton
on Sat 13 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CST
HF2399: Iowa's Stifling of Innovation
 by Paul Deaton
"These
assertions and arguments are bought and sold by MidAmerican Energy and
the electric utilities, reflecting their power to persuade."
The nuclear power study bill, HF2399, sped through the Iowa legislature at breakneck speed, passing the Iowa House on March 2 with a vote of 91-7 and passing the Iowa Senate on March 9 with a vote of 37-13. It is “an act requiring (among other things) certain rate regulated public utilities to undertake analyses of and preparation for the possible construction of low carbon emitting nuclear generating facilities in this state.” There were no amendments to the house bill in the senate, so the measure will be heading to the Governor Culver’s desk soon. While Culver has an option to veto the bill, MidAmerican Energy wrote the bill language and was a financial supporter of the Culver-Judge campaign, so he is expected to sign HF2399 into law. The majority rules and powerful interests persuade in politics. I am okay with that because in the end, what choice do we have?
What is disappointing is not that the bill passed or that the legislature sees nuclear power as a viable part of Iowa’s energy future. Where the legislators fell short is in their vision about Iowa’s future. This bill is not only about electricity generation.
Senator Behn of Boone County typified the vapidity of the bill’s supporters. Behn said, “Iowa needs coal. Iowa needs nuclear. HF2399 is one of the best bills we will run this session.” Senator Hartsuch of Scott County asserted that the proposed Yucca Mountain, Nevada site would be a "workable solution" for nuclear waste disposal. Senator Feenstra of Sioux County said that “we shouldn’t bury our head in the sand, we need baseload energy,” asserting that Iowa should work with President Obama, increasing the baseload of electricity generated from nuclear power. These assertions and arguments are bought and sold by MidAmerican Energy and the electric utilities, reflecting their power to persuade. Proponents of the bill had the votes, and were not listening to the arguments of progressives like Senators Bolkcom and Hogg when they argued for a different and better view of Iowa’s future. The majority damned Senator Hogg’s amendments with faint praise.
It is easy to understand why young Iowans are leaving the state in droves. We can see the lack of innovation when our elected officials support a de facto tax to fund a study that offers no long term solutions to Iowa’s problems. We can see the lack of creativity when a majority of legislators fund a study that will create few jobs in Iowa and walk away from the potential of creating new jobs related to meeting the demand for electricity. The majority that supported HF2399 is divided along ideological lines, not party lines.
Why would young people stake their future on a state where the prevailing attitude is one of stifling what is best about being young? The failure of this legislature to foster innovation and creativity in addressing Iowa’s challenges is one more reason for people to seek better opportunities elsewhere. It is one more example of the harshness of living in the post-Reagan era.
~Paul
Deaton is a native Iowan living in rural Johnson County and weekend
editor of Blog for Iowa. He is also a member of Iowa Physicians for
Social Responsibility and Veterans for Peace. E-mail Paul Deaton**BFIA ACTION ALERT**
Call and ask Governor Culver to stop the legislature from stifling creativity and innovation in Iowa by vetoing HF 2399. His phone # is 515-281-5211.
Friday, March 12
An Iowa Veteran Still Fighting to End Iraq War
by
Ed Flaherty
on Fri 12 Mar 2010 05:00 AM CST
An
Iowa Veteran Still Fighting to End Iraq War
 Iraq War, Seven Years
by Ed Flaherty
Seven years ago on March 19, 2003, the US launched its war in Iraq. Now, seven years later as we launch into the eighth year of the war, the US has 96,000 troops in Iraq and is spending about $8 billion per month on the war effort there. This ignominious anniversary provides an opportunity for us citizens to reflect on the past, present, and future of "our" war. (It has been fought in our name. We own it).
We must not forget that this war was based on lies – WMDs that did not exist, Saddam Hussein’s ties to al-Qaeda which did not exist, intelligence from Chalabi and Curveball. We must not forget the noble sacrifice of 4,384 members of the US Armed Services who have died. We cannot ignore our continuing obligation to tens of thousands of wounded US veterans, and of hundreds of thousands of them returning with PTSD and traumatic brain injury.
We cannot ignore the fact that over 100,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed since the beginning of the war. The incidence of PTSD in the youth of Iraq is immense, but swept under the rug. Two million Iraqis have become refugees in other countries, and another two million are displaced within Iraq. The US has spent (borrowing from China, et al), $750 billion on this war, and that does not include interest on the war debt nor the decades of health expenditures needed for our veterans.
So, as we observe the beginning of the eighth year, have no illusions as to whether this has been a "good" war. More immediately, it is necessary to press for an end to this war. President Obama promised on Feb 27, 2009 that all US "combat" troops would be home by August 31st, 2010. And, the agreement signed by Iraq and the US in the latter days of the Bush administration mandates that all US troops be out of Iraq by December 31st, 2011, with no US military bases to be kept in Iraq. That agreement also specifies that Iraq can hold a referendum on an earlier date for total US withdrawal, with the US agreeing to obey its result. General Odierno has suggested that we may have tens of thousands of troops in Iraq after December 31st, 2011.
We cannot undo the tragedy of the Iraq war. We can and must do the following:
1) keep all pressure possible on President Obama and the US Government to not backslide on the commitments to exit Iraq;
2) recognize that the history of the Iraq war is being rewritten, but only if we allow it;
3) let’s do something productive with the savings from ending of the Iraq war -like, at least let’s not invest it in another war.
**ACTION ALERT**
Make your voice heard on March 19th, and throughout the year. Join a vigil in Iowa City at the Pentacrest
March 19th from 7AM to 8 AM or from 7PM to 8 PM. In Cedar Rapids, meet at First Ave & First St NE from 4:30 to 5:30, also on March 19th.
Ed
Flaherty
is a member of Veterans for Peace and Johnson County Democrats
Central Committee and other suspect groups. Ed is a retired banker.
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