Amazing What Donating Lots of Money to the Obama Campaign Can Get You

This is the email code pink sent out. Yes, it is right about the mood, which is more optimistic. But I also think it is a very clear and sad example of liberals shirking their responsibility to their causes in favor of "influential" "seats at the table". Not a word here about Palestine... Obama has been vigorously defending Israel's right to kill whoever of its neighbors it wants whenever it wants all throughout the campaign, and has done nothing to avert the deaths of 1,300 Palestinians this past month...

Yes, getting rid of Guantanamo and taking rhetorical stands against torture *are* good things... but for the millions of Iraqis and Afghans who can expect at least over a year of continued American occupation, will that really make a difference in most of their lives?

I think it's wrong for antiwar activists to become part of the festivities for an administration that *is* continuing to wage a war, and whose silence just allowed a major escalation of it in Gaza. Getting Obama to "keep his promises" sounds great... until you realize those promises include sending more US troops to Afghanistan, and sending just as much, if not more, money and weapons to Israel.



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January 23, 2009

Dear Friend,



Four years ago, CODEPINK founders spent inauguration night in a miserable jail call, charged with disorderly conduct for unfurling a "Stop the War" banner during the ceremony. This year, instead of handcuffs, we got front row seats--and hugs and kisses from the crowd as we unfurled peace banners, danced the can-can while singing "Yes we can-can end war" and handed out thousands of pink ribbons calling on President Obama to keep his peace promises.

As The Washington Times noted, "You know things have changed in Washington when CODEPINK gets seats up front at the inauguration." You know things have changed when Army Chief of Staff General Casey enthusiastically let us tie a Promises for Peace ribbon on his wrist and pledged to join us in working for peace. You really know things have changed when Obama, on day one, started addressing some key promises--#2 (Shut down Guantanamo ), #3 (Reject the Military Commissions Act) and #4 (Stop Torture). Thanks to everyone who participted in a hunger strike until Inauguration day to make this a reality!

It's a new era indeed, and your activism helped make it so. And thanks to you, CODEPINK just received a thrilling honor from The Nation Magazine--being named the Most Valuable Progressive Organization of the entire Bush-Cheney era!

CODEPINK was never merely a protest group. It was a community of hope, and the election of Barack Obama serves as least to some extent as a realization of that hope. But CODEPINK activists have always leavened their hope with realism. They know that Obama will need prodding. So the Most Valuable Progressives of the Bush era are already putting their mark on what will be the Obama era.

Please help us make that mark by pledging to remind Obama to keep his promises, including an end to the occupation of Iraq and direct talks with Iran, and then invite five friends to join you.

Check out this week's USA Today editorial by Medea Benjamin called 'End the Occupation.' After you read it, be sure to sign our pledge and pass it along!

Thank you for being one of the Most Valuable Progressives of the Bush years. Here's to a brighter four years!

Keeping our promises for peace every day,
Audrey, Dana, Deidra, Desiree, Farida, Gael, Gayle, Janet, Jean, Jodie, Liz, Lori, Lydia, Medea, Nancy, Paris, and Rae

p.s.

* Check out the inspiring photos of the hundreds of CODEPINK women who streamed into DC to join us for this historic inauguration!
* We're also inspired by all the CODEPINK women who gathered in their own communities to celebrate the inauguration and renew their commitment to working for peace!