So, what are you going to do?

You cannot avoid it any longer. You cannot pretend it did not happen. You cannot wish it away. It's real.

The President of the United States lied to start a war.

Under our system of laws, only Congress has the authority to send our troops off to war. The 30 days granted to the President under the War Powers Act were long exhausted from the ongoing bombing raids in Iraq when Congress did pass a bill authorizing military intervention in Iraq shortly after 9-11. However, that bill authorized military force only under certain conditions. One of those conditions was that President Bush had to prove that Saddam Hussein was in violation of UN Resolution 1441 calling for the removal of all weapons of mass destruction.

So, prior to launching the invasion of Iraq, Bush stated to the Congress and to the world that he did have proof that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. Not only did Bush make that claim, but so did Colin Powell. So did Tony Blair. And citing the authority previously granted to him by the Congress, Bush waged war on Iraq. And Iraq fell. Easily.

Too easily.

Unlike Desert Storm 1, there was no sky filled with fireworks-bright anti-aircraft fire to oppose the bombers over Baghdad. Iraq turned out not only to not be a threat to anyone else, it turned out not to be able to mount a serious defense against invasion.

Contrary to the assurances of Bush and Blair, there were no chemical or biological weapons used to defend Iraq even as it gasped its last breath as an independent sovereign nation. The only nuclear weapons used were the depleted uranium weapons showered all over Iraq by the invaders. Just as no weapons of mass destruction were found by the United Nations prior to the invasion, and no weapons of mass destruction were deployed during the invasion, no weapons of mass destruction have been discovered since the invasion. Every site claimed to harbor weapons of mass destruction turned out upon closer inspection to be harmless. Every piece of equipment loudly ballyhooed each morning as proof of Saddam's perfidy was inevitably proven benign by nightfall. Even the trailers, proclaimed to be mobile biological weapons labs (even though devoid of both germs, and the special handling equipment needed for such work) turned out to be industrial tools.  No weapons of mass destruction. No remains of weapons of mass destruction. Nothing. Saddam was not in defiance of UN Resolution 1441. Even the UN weapons team agrees on this. And if Iraq was not in defiance of UN Resolution 1441, then the Congressional authorization for military action in Iraq was not in effect. Bush did not have legal authority to invade. Bush misappropriated the US military, without congressional approval, for an illegal war. A criminal war.

I imagine that all those poor fools who stood besides Bush have to be feeling pretty stupid right now. Bush used them, just like Stalin used his "useful idiots", to serve his personal agenda. Fools and cowards; that is how history will remember those who fell for Bush's lies.

Of course, Bush had help with the lie. Cheney helped pressure the CIA to go along with the lie. Colin Powell spoke the lie to the United Nations, backed up by a 12 year-old stolen student thesis and outdated photographs, punctuated for drama with a glass vial of (we hope) talcum powder. Blair helped the lie. Clear Channel not only helped with the lie, it paid for the parties for the above-mentioned useful idiots. O'Reilly helped the lie. So did Rush. So did Savage. So did a lot of other people.  You know who you are.

The people of the United States were lied to in order to start a war. It doesn't matter what may be found or planted in Iraq from now on, the unquestionable fact is that at the time that Bush and Blair claimed to have proof of Iraq's WMDs, they did not. They had stolen student papers, outdated photos, talcum powder, and a lot of wishful thinking. They lied. Nothing can change that. Not only did they lie, but they did so intentionally and with premeditation. Cheney pressured the CIA to alter their report to support the claim of WMDs. Blair sent British Intelligence's report back for revisions at least once and possibly as many as six times.

So, what are you going to do?

Are you going to live in a nation governed by lies? Will you spend the rest of your life knowing your mind is being controlled by those who control what you know, who lie, conceal, spin, twist, and disinform so that you will come to the conclusions the liars want you to come to? Mind control isn't some science fiction machine, it is simply controlling the brain by controlling what it knows or believes. By lying.

Is a war necessary? How can you know that it is if you live under a government that lies?

Is the death of a politician really a suicide, or a "lone assassin"? How can you know that it is if you live under a government that lies?

Is the amendment that authorizes the income tax properly ratified? How can you know that it is if you live under a government that lies?

Are elections fair and honest? How can you know that they are if you live under a government that lies?

Are living conditions really better here than anywhere else on Earth? How can you know that they are if you live under a government that lies?

Were Arabs really behind 9-11? How can you know that they were if you live under a government that lies?

And you do. You do live under a government that lies to you. Bush just proved it.

So, what are you going to do?

We stand at a crossroads. The head-of-state of the most powerful nation on Earth has been caught justifying a war of conquest with fraud and deception. We, as the people of that nation, have a moral duty to remove that head-of-state, and indeed all who helped in that lie. We have a duty to leave a better government to our children than that which was left to us, and the very first thing we must do is remove government officials who would lie to us, and to our children, especially to send them off to die in wars.

The Constitution of the United States does not explicitly authorize the government to lie to the people. Check it yourself; it is not in there. And the Tenth Amendment prohibits the government from assuming that authority. Therefore, under the Constitution, every politician who lies acts unconstitutionally and illegally. When the lie becomes institutional, when the government leadership as a whole lies to the people, then the government itself is unconstitutional and illegal. A government that lies to the people breaks faith with the people. A government that lies to the people loses the moral right to rule.

Therefore, the Congress also stands at a crossroad. It cannot legitimize the lies of Bush without delegitimizing itself. Congress cannot pretend to trust a lying President and keep the trust of the voters and taxpayers. Congress cannot acquit the liars without incriminating themselves. But Congress are habitual liars themselves and often admire the skill with which other officials can lie to the people and be believed. They will need "encouragement" to do the right thing.

I know that you are all discouraged because the war in Iraq happened despite the huge peace demonstrations you all put together. But you need to take a deep breath and get ready to rock again. Those demonstrations you all did laid the foundation for what must be done now. Those demonstrations showed the rest of America and the world that there has always been doubt of the legitimacy of this war. No longer can the mainstream media pretend that opposition to the war and to Bush's lies comes from only a tiny minority, too small to matter. And the recent election results in other countries that saw pro-war candidates soundly defeated have sent a message to Capitol Hill that being pro-war is a serious liability going into 2004's election season. Vote-rigging can change a slim percentage but it cannot reverse a landslide.

So here is the call to phone, to keyboards, to FAX, and yes, to protest signs. Next week are the start of hearings into the lies about Iraqi WMDs. YOU need to let your congressmen know in no uncertain terms that they either get rid of the liars, or get a new job. Focus on the congressmen up for re-election in 2004 and let them know that how they deal with the liar in the White House will be the sole deciding factor in whether you will vote for them next election. Remind them of the pronounced anti-war trend sweeping elections world-wide.

Rest assured that the warhawks have their phone banks running full tilt boogie to try and get Dubya off of the hook. If you do not phone, FAX, or visit, Congress will abrogate its duty and write the liars who lied to start a war a get-out-of-jail free card.

It's up to you. History will judge our nation on what actions you take or do not take in the coming week.

Congressional contact info is at www.congress.org.