The following is an archived copy of a message sent to a Discussion List run by the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
Views expressed in this archived message are those of the author, not of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
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Dear List (and specifically Mark Parkinson), I very much appreciated Abi's comments regarding the openness of the list to different perspectives. I'd like to make some of my own comments regarding Mark's most recent post: > My understanding is that this is a list for those who wish to 'join' > the campaign against sanctions on Iraq. That makes it much more than > just a generalised debating forum about Iraq. There are plenty of > these around if one wants the 'sport'. Let me be clear - I do not currently belong to "the campaign" against sanctions in Iraq; I have never been part of any campaign against sanctions. I joined this list with the express purpose of better understanding the anti-sanctions point of view, while (at the same time) occasionally taking the opportunity to "weigh in" on the current situation. If that is "sport", well, then I guess I'm guilty. I don't consider it that, however -- I consider this list an important forum of discussion. > We also need to be alert to attempts to undermine the anti-sanctions > movement. We have a huge uphill job as it is. This may be unfair on > Sama and the IPO but I would tend to be sceptical about the > funding/support for this new group and the amount of airtime it's > been getting here in the UK. I also wonder why they subscribe to this list. Mark, why did you pull your punch? If you are going to insinuate that Sama and IPO are neoconservative/White House/Whitehall/CIA/MI-6 (pick your flavour) puppets and that they're subscribed to the list in order to (a) throw a wrench into "the movement's" work, and/or (b) report back to their government 'masters' on what list participants write, then at least have the courage to come out and say it plainly. I assume IPO members subscribe to the list for the same reasons I do -- self-education and the chance to dialogue/debate/argue with/convince others. I thank the list for providing a forum for many different perspectives, including my own, Mark's and Sama's. Cheers, Brian Auten University of Reading, UK _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk