Since President Obama took office, the war in Afghanistan has claimed the lives of over 1500 US troops, according to Just Foreign Policy’s US Deaths in Afghanistan: Obama vs. Bush counter, which draws on data provided by iCasualties. By comparison, 575 US troops died during President Bush’s two terms. The rise in troop deaths during…
In early December 1914, Pope Benedict XV called for a “Christmas Truce” in the First World War. Leaders on all sides were forced to respond to the Pope’s call. No formal truce was agreed, but across the trenches of the Western Front many soldiers on all sides observed the Christmas truce the Pope had called…
Yesterday, an overwhelming majority (62-33) of US Senators—including every Senator who caucuses with the Democrats save two—voted in favor of a measure that calls upon President Obama to continue withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan at a steady pace, as he promised in his address to the nation in June 2011. The “sense of the Senate”,…
On Monday, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters that the Obama administration would come to a decision within the next few weeks about the magnitude of the US “enduring presence” in Afghanistan. Panetta said that the White House was currently reviewing several recommendations for troop levels from General John Allen, commander of the International Security…
Congressional offices will be paying special attention to phone calls coming in this week on the Defense Appropriations bill, so call your Representative today! Here’s what you do: Call the Congressional switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Representative’s office. Tell the person who picks up or your Rep’s voice mailbox, “Hello,…
Below is the text of a sign-on letter being circulated by Reps. Barbara Lee and Walter Jones calling on President Obama to expedite US military withdrawal from Afghanistan. *** Sign on to Letter to President Obama: Expedite Withdrawal from Afghanistan From: The Honorable Barbara Lee Date: 5/2/2012 Dear Colleague, The American people have overwhelmingly come…
Afghans showing that they are not altogether pleased with a recent Koran burning incident at a US base in Afghanistan. It appears that public embarrassments are becoming a monthly occasion for the US occupation in Afghanistan. In January, a video was released on the internet depicting four US soldiers urinating on the corpses of three…
Just yesterday, Santorum announced the suspension of his presidential campaign, leaving Mitt Romney the presumptive Republican candidate for president. The Obama campaign has moved quickly, announcing today it’s on (no, really, they said this) by releasing a factsheet on Facebook about their likely opponent, entitled, “Five Things You Need to Know About Mitt Romney.” The…
This week, peace groups around the country are calling Congress with the message: end the Afghanistan war now! Call your Representative at 877-429-0678 and tell him or her to support and co-sponsor H. 780, which would limit funding for the war to funds that are necessary for a safe and orderly withdrawal. Check the link…
On Wednesday night, the Senate adopted by voice vote an amendment introduced by Oregon Democrat Jeff Merkley calling on President Obama to speed up U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan. This was a watershed event towards ending the war. The previous high water mark of Senators calling for expedited withdrawal was 27; the previous high water…