Iran

I just sent the following to several newspapers, my Senators and Representatives in Congress:

Lately there have been increasing indications that we are close to an armed confrontation with Iran.

It may, at this point, be futile to express opposition to going forward with such a conflict. Nevertheless, I will do what I can. I'm writing to ask that you do the same.

Here are three reasons to oppose an armed attack on Iran:

1) Unreliable Intelligence

We now know that much of the intel during the runup to the invasion of Iraq has been discredited. Claims that Iraq possessed WMDs and UAVs, among many other claims, were not borne out. The Bush administration's track record in this area suggests strong skepticism is essential.

2) Incompetence

Even if Iran is indeed as dangerous as the Bush administration claims, their dismal record of conflict management in Iraq and Afghanistan makes it clear it would be smarter to conduct such a confrontation under new leadership.

3) Blowback

One certain thing about war is that it will generate unintended consequences. We can reasonably expect some form of retaliation in response to an attack on Iran. Supporters of an attack will have these consequences on their conscience.

As a private citizen, there are a limited number of potentially effective measures I can take to oppose an attack on Iran.

You, as a congressman, are better positioned to influence events as they develop.

When all is said and done, that's what will matter most - did I do all I could to stop this foolishness?

The decision is yours. I urge you to act.