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Ten Reasons Why Conservatives Should Oppose War with Iran?
"Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means."- President Ronald Reagan
One ... Conservatives believe that war is a "last option" that should only be initiated when there is a direct and imminent threat to the United States. Iran does not currently pose such a threat.
"In short, deliberate entry into war commonly brings on consequences disagreeable even to the seeming victors. Prudent statesmen long have known that armed conflict, for a- involved, ought to be the last desperate resort, to be entered upon only when a- means of diplomacy, conciliation, and compromise have been exhausted." - Russell Kirk
"The defense policy of the United States is based on a simple premise: the United States does not start fights. We wi- never be an a"ressor." - Ronald Reagan
Two ... Conservatives believe that diplomacy is the first essential step in managing international crises. The United States has not been engaged in serious bilateral negotiations directly with Iran.
"To jawjaw is better than to warwar." - Winston Churchill
"A soundly conservative foreign policy in the age which is dawning should be neither 'interventionist' nor 'isolationist'; it should be prudent. Its object should not be to secure the triumph everywhere of America's name and manners, under the slogan of 'democratic capitalism,' but instead the preservation of the true national interest, and acceptance of the diversity of economic and political institutions throughout the world." - Russell Kirk
Three ... Conservatives believe in small government and individual liberties. War with Iran will inevitably lead to an increase in the size of federal bureaucracies, most particularly the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the intelligence services and will lead to calls for greater government intrusion in the lives of all Americans.
"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it wi- be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy... Of a- the enemies to public liberty, war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare." -James Madison
"In 1969, when I came out of prison as an exconvict, I had more freedom under parolee supervision than there's available to an average citizen in American right now...God almighty, what have we done to each other?" - Merle Haggard
Four ... Conservatives believe that government should be fiscally responsible. An Iran war would be financed by borrowing even more money than we've already borrowed "primarily from China and Japan to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, worsening an already untenable burden on future generations.
"Unless the Bush Administration abruptly reverses its fiscal and military course, I su"est, the Republican Party must lose its former good repute for -ugality, and become the party of profligate expenditure, 'butter and guns.' And public opinion would not long abide that. Nor would America's world influence and America's remaining prosperity." - Russell Kirk
Five ... Conservatives believe that the life of every American is precious. War with Iran would kill more citizen soldiers and sailors and would make the thousands of Americans serving in neighboring Iraq vulnerable.
"Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the wi- and moral courage of -ee men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have." - Ronald Reagan
Six ... Conservatives believe in a strong domestic economy, enabling every American to live a decent life. The direct costs of the war coupled with the energy shock from an attack on Iran would have a devastating effect on the cost of living of every American family.
"Our country is now geared to an arms economy bred in an artificia-y induced psychosis of war hysteria and an incessant propaganda of fear." - Douglas MacArthur.
Seven ... Conservatives believe that terrorism is a serious problem and the government must take steps to guarantee that there be no repeat of 9/11. Attacking Iran would unleash terrorism against America and its allies, including most likely new attacks inside the United States.
"Battling terrorism must go beyond discovering and disrupting it before it happens and deterring it with retaliation. We need to remove the motivation for it by extricating the United States from ethnic, religious, and historical quarrels that are not ours and which we cannot resolve with any finality." - Pat Buchanan
Eight ... Conservatives believe in a strong dollar as a pillar of the national economy. The dollar is currently at its weakest level ever. Another war in the Middle East would provoke a run on dollars and would weaken it further, perhaps fatally.
"The moral and constitutional obligations of our representatives in Washington are to protect our liberty, not coddle the world, precipitating nowin wars, while bringing bankruptcy and economic turmoil to our people." - Ron Paul
Nine ... Conservatives believe that the United States is respected and well? liked around the world when it behaves fairly and peacefully towards all nations, as our first president George Washington recommended in his Farewell Address. Another pre-emptive war would increase the dislike and even hatred of Americans currently felt by people around the world. It would make many countries dangerous destinations for U.S. visitors and inhospitable to American business.
"We must find a President who wi- order a foreign policy of enlightened selfinterest supported by a defense system of superior weapons strong enough to deter the most reckless a"ressor. Such a foreign policy will make it clear to all the nations of this world that we have no desire to expand our territory or to impose our type of government or our way of life on any other people." -Barry Goldwater
Ten ... Conservatives understand that foreign and defense policy should ultimately benefit the United States and its people. An attack on Iran would not solve outstanding di$erences between Washington, would not eliminate Tehran's nuclear program, and would only impel Iranians to accelerate their quest for a nuclear weapon, turning a country that is an international pariah into a genuine threat.
"America does not need to go abroad in search of monsters to destroy." - John Quincy Adams.
"We occupy no countries and we have built no wa-s to lock our people in. Our commitment to self determination, -eedom, and peace is the very soul of America. That commitment is as strong today as it ever was." - James Madison
The American Conservative Defense Alliance
"ACDA believes that the essence of a conservative foreign policy should be what George W. Bush claimed during his first campaign for president. He declared that the U.S. should have a more "humble" foreign policy and asserted, "I'm not so sure the role of the United States is to go around the world and say, 'This is the way it's got to be.'"Unfortunately, things have gone radically of course during President Bush's tenure. There is an urgent need to counter the idea now predominant within the American conservative movement that a traditional foreign and defense policy consists of unilateral pre-emptive and preventive war.
ACDA believes that the foreign and defense policies of the United States should be based on our nation's founding principles. Such an approach should be determined by whether or not they are needed to defend the U.S. not on the need to defend other nation or by attempting to establish uniquely American&styled democracy in other countries.
While we are committed to maintaining and expanding strong economic and cultural ties to other nations, the use of U.S. military force should be reserved for the defense of the United States and only used as a last resort when all other diplomatic e$orts have failed.
The American Conservative Defense Alliance advocates:
*Supporting a strong, cost&e$ective, and Constitutional national defense strategy the purpose of which is to secure the lives, liberty, and property of the American people.
*Creating, strengthening, and maintaining military forces capable of defeating any enemy that attacks the United States.
*Ensuring that America's soldiers, airmen, marines, sailors, coast guard, and reserve component forces are the best equipped, trained, and led military forces in the world.
*Promoting a foreign policy of strategic independence, thereby avoiding foreign conflicts unless there is a verifiable and imminent threat to the United States. If the U.S. does engage in military action, there must be clear standards for victory and exit. Absent exceptional circumstances, when a vital national interest is at stake, America should neither underwrite regimes nor engage in nation building.
*Providing to the world examples of how to maintain a free and prosperous society based on the rule of Constitutional law, individual liberty, and the rights of private property.
The American Conservative Defense Alliance seeks the financial support of individuals, corporations, and foundations who appreciate our mission and activities, and who will partner with ACDA in accomplishing our goal of international peace and prosperity inspired by American policies of trust, respect, and leadership among the nations of the world.
"ACDA is a new and activist voice in Washington bringing together conservatives and libertarians opposed to the big government conservatives and imperialist neocons who took over the Republican Party." - Jon Basil Utley, Associate Publisher, American Conservativ? magazine
ACDA DIRECTORS ... Michael D. Ostrolenk, Founder and President. A public policy consultant who works on health, education, privacy, foreign policy, and national security issues, Mr. Ostrolenk is the co-founder of the Liberty Coalition, focusing on protecting civil liberties and promoting national security. * Samah Norquist, Secretary. Ms. Norquist served as Public A$airs Specialist at the Bureau of Legislative and Public A$airs at USAID and Cultural A$airs Assistant at the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan. She is currently a Washington D.C.&based public relations consultant. * Philip M. Giraldi, Ph.D., Francis Walsingham Fe-ow. A former CIA counter&terrorism specialist and military intelligence o'cer, Mr. Giraldi is a columnist for American Conservativ& magazine. * Doug Bandow, J.D., Robert A. Ta' Fe-ow. The Bastiat Scholar in Free Enterprise at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Mr. Bandow served as a Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan. He writes a weekly column for the website AntiWar.Com. * Larry Madison, Military and Veterans A(airs Analyst. A member of the Guard and Reserve components of the Air Force and Army for more than 30 years, Mr. Madison is currently is legislative director for a national veterans service organization. * Peter B. Gemma, Treasurer. A columnist with Middle American News, Mr. Gemma has written for such publications as USA Today, the Washington Examiner, Human Events, and Military History magazine. His anthology, "Shots Fired: Sam Francis on America's Culture War," was published in 2006.
The American Conservative Defense Alliance, Inc.
1920 L Street, NW Suite 200
Washington D.C. 20036
301-717-0599
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