So I know, I know. I had a little fun in my last piece where I cast Dubya as "The Emperor"

Actually, I personally have a different perspective on the war in Iraq which I'd like to share--mostly because i get tired of hearing the same old shit where people only blame "the Bush administration" for what's going on. The war is complex. There are many reasons and many antecedents.

The past three administrations have all been aggressive in Iraq to different degrees. Most people are familiar with Bush Senior and the First Gulf War. Most of us are unaware of Clinton's aggression since it happened during the beginning of the Lewinsky scandal and the media didn't give it much coverage. Clinton's bombings took place in 1998 after he signed the Iraqi Liberation Act calling for Saddam Hussein to be removed from power (Clinton signed this act on Halloween / Samhain of that year)

Also, Congressional representatives voted to grant Dubya the power the invade Iraq. Even if Dubya is largely responsible, many of our
leaders share in that responsibality to some degree which is why they tend to attack Dubya instead of stepping forward to accept
partial responsability. Our culture seems to prefer scapegoats and dualistic good guys/bad guys mentalities. (Just try to present a more
nuanced approach, and liberals and radicals usually respond with something like "Why are you defending Dubya?" or "Why are you trying
to let Dubya off the hook?")

Lots of reasons for the war too. The war isn't just about oil or rich Republicans making more money. The war is also about violence being
acceptable in our culture as a means of conflict resolution--which is the dominant view in our mass media ("In America when a man puts
something in another man, it had better be a bullet." Bill Maher)

The war is also the result of a corporate system where major candidates from BOTH parties receive contributions in exchange for not cutting the 'defense' budget.

The war benefits more than just elites. The ruling class is shrewd enough to profit off a war which benefits the average, everyday American. The deficit caused by the war translates into money in the paychecks of hundreds of thousands of Americans who work for
corporations with defense contracts. Gas is ridiculously cheap in America and cars are everywhere. And millions of people keep putting our green energie$ into paying federal income taxes and buying into the oil economy thus insuring that elites are laughing their way to the bank.

What's really needed to end the war is massive civil disobedince.

I'm not talking about people marching in the street with "Blame Dubya" signs.

I'm talking about war tax resistance (refusing to pay the percentage of your income tax that goes towards military spending)

And people opting out of the oil economy.

And people supporting and encouraging each other to make difficult changes like growing our own organic food instead of buying products shipped in from thousands of miles away.

And learning how to let go of blame and get the message out there that the war is, in part, the result of our everyday choices instead of pretending that we don't benefit from the war.

We need to find more ways of being FOR peace instead of being "anti-war."

thee origynal sinnerjee


* To the Tune of "This Land is Your Land" by Woody Guthrie

CHORUS This war is my war. This war is our war.
Put gas in my car. Food brought in from afar.
Paid my income taxes. Buyin' lotsa plastic.
This war is made for you and me!

'Cause I want cheap gas to put in my car
So I can afford to drive to gatherings.
By flyin' in airplanes, we support corp'rate oil.
This war is made for you and me!

This war is my war. This war is our war.
Put gas in my car. Food brought in from afar.
Paid my income taxes. Buyin' lotsa plastic.
This war is made for you and me!

Where's my food come from? Was it grown locally?
Most food is shipped in planes, trains and semi trucks.
Do I eat organic? Or petro-chemicals?
This war is made for you and me!

This war is my war. This war is our war.
Put gas in my car. Food brought in from afar.
Paid my income taxes. Buyin' lotsa plastic.
This war is made for you and me!

In the past I paid my fed'ral income taxes.
But from now it's war tax resistance!
You can learn more online. If we give them money,
Then this war is PAID by you and me!

This war is my war. This war is our war.
Put gas in my car. Food brought in from afar.
Paid my income taxes. Buyin' lotsa plastic.
This war is made for you and me!

It's more than just oil. Violence has been ingrained.
And building guns and bombs creates a lot of jobs.
We need to remake our whole society.
Together we can work for peace!

This war is our war--Study war no more!
Alternative fuels. Locally grown food.
War tax resistance. Practice non-violence.
Together we can work for peace!