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The certificate is headlined: "Certificate of Ownership — The War in Iraq: You Bought It, You Own It," and goes on to say: "In dubious recognition of your vote to continue funding the War in Iraq, we do hereby bestow upon you this Deed of Ownership." It is dated March 23, 2007, and signed by Military Families Speak Out, Iraq Veterans against the War and Veterans for Peace.

The back of the certificate reads:

Warranty: With your purchase of this war comes a guarantee of:

* The deaths of 3 US troops and countless Iraqi children, women and men every day; * Over 500 wounded US troops each month; * Increased suicides among returning Iraq War Veterans; * Increased destruction of marriages and families of Iraq War Veterans; * Inadequate medical and psychological care for returning troops and Veterans; * Depletion of the National Treasury; * Under-funding of health care, education, social services for people in the US; * Destruction of Iraqi infrastructure; * Decreased credibility for the United States in the world community; * Decreased readiness—short and long-term—of US military. 

"What we have just witnessed is a true failure of leadership," said Nancy Lessin, a co-founder of Military Families Speak Out, whose step-son served with the Marines in Iraq in spring, 2003. "People across this nation voted in November for an end to the war, not for Congress to provide President Bush with the funds to continue it. Our loved ones were first betrayed when they were sent off to fight a war based on lies. The US House of Representatives has betrayed them one again by abandoning them to this unjustifiable war." * http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/25/WAR.TMP Sean Penn, Rep. Lee rally against Iraq war Actor backs troops, not Bush, at Oakland town hall meeting by Carolyn Jones, Cecilia M. Vega Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn was the star attraction at a town hall meeting Saturday in Oakland, where hundreds of people gathered to denounce the war in Iraq and call for an immediate withdrawal of American troops. Neither Penn nor Rep. Barbara Lee, the Oakland Democrat who has opposed the war since before it began four years ago, offered much in the way of specifics for ending the conflict, and they were largely preaching to the choir. The enthusiastic and occasionally boisterous crowd of 800 or so crammed into the Grand Lake Theater wildly cheered as Penn excoriated President Bush. "You and your smarmy pundits -- and the smarmy pundits you have in your pocket -- can take your war and shove it," Penn said. "Let's unite not only in stopping this war, but in holding this administration accountable." The town hall meeting came six days after peace marches were held nationwide to mark the fourth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and one day after the House of Representatives voted 218-212 to withdraw combat troops by Sept. 1, 2008. Penn reiterated a point often made by opponents of the war when he said he supports the troops but opposes the war. "Let's make this crystal clear: We do support our troops, but not the exploitation of them and their families," he said. "The money that's spent on this war would be better spent on building levees in New Orleans and health care in Africa and care for our veterans. Iraq is not our toilet. It's a country of human beings whose lives that were once oppressed by Saddam are now in 'Dante's Inferno.' " Lee was among the California Democrats who voted Friday against the $124 billion war spending measure that Bush has promised to veto. Lee is a member of the Out of Iraq Caucus, which includes Lynn Woolsey of Petaluma and Maxine Waters of Los Angeles. "We can't afford to spend one more dime or lose one more American or Iraqi life on this illegal and unwinnable war," Lee told the crowd. Outside the theater, protesters carried signs reading, "Impeach Bush." Among those who attended the rally were members of Grandmothers Against the War. After the meeting, everyone from grandmothers and students to veterans and mothers pushing strollers marched along Lake Merritt to Oakland City Hall for an afternoon rally at which Lee again spoke. As she took the microphone, the crowd chanted, "Barbara Lee told you so. Bush's war has got to go." "The only thing this government needs is for the people to be silent and then they can do whatever they want," said Joan MacIntyre, a 74-year-old great-grandmother from Oakland. MacIntyre, like many who attended Saturday's events, was no stranger to war protests. She has marched in numerous rallies since the Iraq war started in March 2003 and was arrested Monday during a San Francisco protest. It was her 41st arrest, she boasted proudly. "At least I can hold my head up and say that I tried," she said. At the rally, organized by a coalition of Oakland community groups, folk singers led the crowd in song and a performer rapped about violence in the streets. There were calls for impeachment of the president and for troops to be brought home and pleas for federal dollars to be spent on schools rather than on the war. Rodney Brown, 30, an Oakland substitute teacher, said he would have liked to see more people at the protest. While organizers said between 500 and 700 attended, many remarked that the crowd seemed significantly smaller. Police declined to provide a crowd count. "Money needs to be going to our schools and the communities here instead of funding for this war," Brown said. Hava Ratinsky, a native of Israel who now lives in Oakland, attended the protest with her 6-year-old son, Aviv. She wondered whether, after four years of protesting, people were just too tired of not seeing any change. "There's a war going on, and it's mind-boggling to me that people can continue to live their daily lives and not pay attention," she said. On Saturday evening, more than three dozen anti-war activists, all dressed in black and some beating hand-held drums, marched up to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's home in San Francisco's tony Pacific Heights neighborhood to chastise the Democratic leader for not doing more to halt the war immediately. "Nancy Pelosi, stop compromising your morals. We want our troops home now," said Toby Blome, a protest leader with the group Code Pink: Women for Peace. She hung a black "wreath of death," made of sticks and lace, on the front door. "We're bringing death to Nancy Pelosi's doorstep because she is going to be responsible for all the deaths still to come as a result of the illegal war in Iraq," said Blome, an El Cerrito resident who led the short march that organizers described as a funeral procession.

// posted by Alice @ Sunday, March 25, 2007