Students for Victory in Iraq depends on you, our members, to actively participate in the ongoing campaign to prevent an unwarranted withdrawal and defeat in Iraq. Together, we collectively take action to achieve our three objectives.
I. Encourage the Administration & Congress to support the mission in Iraq
II. Educate the public about the importance of victory
III. Support members of the military, their families, and those of our allies
Below you will find the latest action items for each of these three objectives.
Sign and Deliver a Petition in Support of the Surge to Your U.S. Representative’s Local Office
During the week of September 10th, US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and Multi-National Force-Iraq Commander General David Petraeus are scheduled to testify in front of committees of the U.S. House and Senate. They will give both bodies their testimony regarding the progress made since the new counterinsurgency strategy was implemented in January as part of the ‘surge’. Following their appearances before Congress, lawmakers are expected to once again bring up withdrawal legislation sometime during the week of September 17th.
On September 17th, and 18th, large numbers of pro-victory veterans and citizens will be in our nation’s capital speaking to elected officials about the necessity of victory and the severe consequences of defeat. We can take part in this push in our own way on college campuses. Here’s what you can do, either through your school’s Students for Victory in Iraq chapter or as an individual student:
Contact pro-victory groups at your school and collect as many signatures as possible from students who support the mission in Iraq
Find the address of your US Representative’s local office by using the search feature at http://www.house.gov/writerep/.
On September 17th, gather together as many pro-victory students as possible and personally deliver your stack of petitions to your US Representative’s local office.
As we work to amplify the voices for victory at congressional offices around the country, we assist pro-victory veterans in their efforts to overcome the forces of defeat in Washington, DC. Together we can make an impact and allow General Petraeus and our troops to continue their successes in Iraq.
Inoculate Yourself Against the Chickenhawk Attack
Defeatists are very fond of trying to shut out their opponents by accusing them of being 'chickenhawks', and implying that anyone who has not served in the military has no right to support the mission in Iraq. This is a very common argument, and is also founded on a completely untrue premise. Almost any vocal supporter of victory is bound to run into the chickenhawk attack at some time, so we have created a simple primer for defusing the situation and turning it to your advantage.
'Who's the Chicken?', available here and in our Virtual Toolbox for download, identifies the fundamental falsehood at the heart of the attack, provides a framework for disproving that falsehood, and a logical way to put the defeatist on the defensive. Every member should check this out and be prepared.
Project Letters From Home
Jim C of ThinkingRight recently started a project called Project Letters from Home which has the goal of providing a letter of support from home to every single member of the 1st Battalion 1st Marine Regiment. Jim has done a good job of publicizing his project around the blogosphere, but as of August 14th he had 840 letters left to collect before meeting his goal.
We need to write to these men and women and spread the word about the project to as many people as we can. Send your letters of appreciation and support to letters@thinking-right.com and be sure to put 'letters from home' in the subject line. After you have sent your letter, please e-mail us at students4victory@gmail.com to let us know! Thanks to all of you for your continued support of our fighting men and women.
