Tell Obama to say NO to more troops and money in Afghanistan

Tell Obama to Say NO to more troops and money in Afghanistan

Dear President Obama

We are writing to implore you to say NO to sending more troops or money into Afghanistan and to bring home our soldiers already serving in two foreign wars. While we recognize the importance of keeping America safe from outside threats, we do not believe that this justifies the occupation of Afghanistan and we believe that by investing in our intelligence agencies we could systematically eradicate actual national security threats.

Even without the additional troops and resources you are considering, the war in Afghanistan is an unsustainable war on several fronts:

• Financially - Already your administration has authorized a $680 billion military authorization bill for the fiscal year 2010, which is even higher than under President Bush. This will continue to push our national deficit higher than our current deficit of $1.4 trillion. This money would be better spent at home. We simply cannot afford any more war.

• Death Toll - The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have already claimed the lives of over 4,300 American service men and women and wounded 32,000 others. Over 655,000 civilians have been killed due to our occupation. In August, American forces experienced the most deadly month in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001 . To justify the potential of ever-higher death tolls, a troop increase should only be made if we can think of no smart, creative alternatives.

• Public Support - The opposition to the Afghanistan war is at an all time high. 57% of Americans are opposed to the war, up by 11% since April, of which 75% are democrats and 57% are independents. The ambassador to Afghanistan and other members of the State Department disagree with a troop increase. The people of America that elected you to the Presidency disagree with the war. By increasing our commitment in Afghanistan you are disregarding your responsibility to your own constituents.

We must assess what it means to “win” the war in Afghanistan. General Patreaus recently said “the mission is to ensure that Afghanistan does not again become a sanctuary for Al Qaeda and other transnational extremists,” in effect “to deny them safe havens in which they can plan and train for such attacks.” This mission can be accomplished without an occupying force of American soldiers. By reassessing our strategy in Afghanistan we can accomplish our objectives AND be more financially responsible and decrease American and civilian deaths. Taking this road will also lead to the continued support of those that elected you to the Presidency.

President Obama, we are begging you, make the right decision, and do NOT send more troops or money into this unwinnable war.
Sincerely,

The Undersigned

[Your name]