I LIVE AND/OR WORK IN SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO AND I OPPOSE ANY PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE ON IRAN. AN ATTACK IS LIKELY TO HAVE DISASTROUS EFFECTS ON THE PEOPLE OF IRAN AND DIRE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE U.S. AND FOR STABILITY IN THE MIDEAST. I SUPPORT THE FOLLOWING SANTA FE CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION CALLING FOR NO ATTACK ON IRAN.

A RESOLUTION CALLING FOR THE CITY COUNCIL OF SANTA FE, NMTO PETITION THE PRESIDENT AND CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES TO SAY NO TO WAR WITH IRAN, NO TO ANY PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE ON IRAN AND NO TO US WEAPONS USED IN AN ATTACK ON IRAN.

WHEREAS, the citizens of Santa Fe and their local elected officials have the constitutional right to petition the federal government on matters of grave concern to our community; and

WHEREAS, Santa Fe is the City of Holy Faith, whose residents hold high the sanctity of human life; and

WHEREAS, war is not a humane nor effective means of resolving international conflicts; it dehumanizes all people; it causes destruction and waste on an unprecedented scale; it creates ecological devastation that takes decades if not centuries to correct; and

WHEREAS, the citizens of Santa Fe fear that the United States is coming ever closer to starting or being drawn into a war with Iran; and

WHEREAS, the purported justification for attacking Iran is their possible future development of a nuclear weapon; and

WHEREAS, US intelligence officials have recently declared there is no evidence that Iran has made the decision to build a nuclear weapon; and that even if it does it is perhaps years away from being able to do so; and

WHEREAS, Iran has repeated stated that it is open to negotiations; and open to diplomatic opportunities; and

WHEREAS, the people and country of Iran have at no time posed any threat to the United States (in fact Iran is surrounded by more than 40 US bases); and

WHEREAS, Iran has called for a Middle East free of nuclear weapons and has signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty, and Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has declared the possession or use of nuclear weapons by any country to be a moral abomination; and

WHEREAS, General Martin Dempsey (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff), has acknowledged that Iran is rational player and should be treated as such, and many high ranking State Department and high ranking Pentagon officials took out an ad in the Washington Post (6 March 2012) declaring Iran not to a nuclear threat; and

WHEREAS, the present circumstances are alarmingly similar to the false claims of threats of WMDs and nuclear threats that were put forth to induce the public to support the US attack on Iraq; and

WHEREAS, an attack on Iran threatens to bring the US into another disastrous war in the Middle East just as we extricate US troops from the deadly and costly Iraq and Afghanistan wars; and

WHEREAS, an attack on Iran is likely to kill thousands of innocent Iranian civilians with the threat of radioactive fallout and on hundreds of thousands near the point of attack, and is likely to lead to retaliation endangering thousands more around the world; and

WHEREAS, Gen. Mathis, Commander of all American forces in the Middle East, told aides that an Israeli first strike would be likely to have dire consequences across the region and for United States forces there. (NYT 3/20/12)

WHEREAS, the US will be held responsible for any attack on Iran, top US military officials have told Congress that an Israeli attack is premature and would be imprudent and destabilizing and not achieve Israeli objectives; and any pre-emptive attack on Iran violates international law and commitments under the U.N. Charter; and

WHEREAS, in June 2011, the United States Conference of Mayors adopted a resolution stating: The United States Conference of Mayors calls on the President and U.S. Congress to end the wars as soon as strategically possible and bring these war dollars home to meet vital human needs, promote job creation, rebuild our infrastructure, aid municipal and state governments, and develop a new economy based upon renewable. Sustainable energy and reduce the federal debt. And

WHEREAS, according to the nonpartisan National Priorities Project the cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars has been over $186,000,000 for the City of Santa Fe along; and

WHEREAS, any conflict with Iran is likely to incur far greater costs and divert more precious national resources away from critical human needs in Santa Fe; and

WHEREAS, we need our tax dollars at home to rebuild and preserve our communities, our land, air, water, our schools, our healthcare system, our infrastructure, and not to engage in another unnecessary, deadly, and costly war; and

WHEREAS, the surest road to peace and non-proliferation is to negotiate with all parties in good faith and without military or diplomatic threat and to encourage those currently with nuclear weapons (in the Middle East only Israel) to abandon their arsenals; and

WHEREAS, this resolution is supported by the following Santa Fe organizations: Another Jewish Voice Santa Fe, Veterans for Peace, Occupy Santa Fe, Code Pink, Women in Black, Social Justice Committee of the Unitarian Church, Youth Allies, etc. (we are in the process of gathering other supporters)

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF SANTA FE, that the governing body, on behalf of the citizens of Santa Fe, petition the President and the Congress of the United States to say NO to war with Iran, and that it use diplomacy and not threats in negotiations with Iran. Further, that the US will NOT allow US planes, weaponry, intelligence or technology to be used in a pre-emptive attack on Iran.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution is forwarded immediately to the President of the United States and to all members of the New Mexico Congressional Delegation.