A Call for a Peaceful Solution to the Conflict with Iraq: A Victory Without War

We, the citizens of Bar Harbor, love this great country and feel we must do what is necessary to defend the nation. With such feelings in mind, we view that demonstrating resistance to this rush to war is the most patriotic stance we can take at this time and the best way to support our troops.

A United States war against Iraq could have a significant impact on the citizens of Bar Harbor in terms of the loss of life and disability among our members of the armed forces and will kill many innocent Iraqi civilians, who have already suffered under Saddam Hussein's rule and United Nations sanctions.

A war with Iraq would divert billions of dollars away from federal-funded social programs, money that could go a long way toward meeting our state and local educational and health needs.

A war with Iraq could further destabilize the Middle East, leading to a wider, regional war and increased support for Al Qaeda and other groups dedicated to terrorism, thus making the citizens of Bar Harbor and the rest of the United States less secure.

Therefore, the citizens of Bar Harbor urge the United States government to work with and through the United Nations through peaceful means to obtain compliance by Iraq with United Nations Security Council resolutions concerning Iraq's disarmament of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and to support the work of the international weapons inspectors in Iraq for that purpose.

We oppose a preemptive unilateral war against Iraq.