Merrimack Valley People for Peace Serving the communities of the Merrimack Valley

  Letters to the Editor:

COMING EVENTS
   Weekly Vigils
   Recent Events
     20 Year History

NEWS/INFORMATION
Links to Resources
Radio

ACTION
Contact Government
Submit News or Events
VOTE! Register to vote
Defend the Environment

ABOUT MVPP
Contact MVPP
Join/Renew!
Why we still vigil
Letters to Editors
Officers
Newsletter (in pdf)

HOME

    Letters our members have written to newspapers are the individuals'   
    observations, and not reviewed by MVPP. We print them here (the papers
    sometimes don't print them), to reflect our members' diverse opinions. ______________

(This is my letter to Nikki Tsongas (submitted via her web site)) 12/16/2011:

Dear Rep. Tsongas,

I am extremely dissapointed by your recent vote in favor of the Defense
Authorization Act containing the provision that virtually repeals 4th
Amendsment protections of American Citizens. This provision allows
for indefinite military detention with no access to legal counsel
(i.e., "dissapearing") with no charge on citizens, even when arrested in
American soil. All it takes is the mere assertion that a person is a
terrorist or terrorism support -- no proof required.

Funding our military is a necessary evil, but it should not be at the
expense of our civil liberties.

When you took office, you swore to uphold the Constitution of the
United States. This provision violates that oath.

Sincerely,
Michael Bleiweiss
Methuen, MA

Published December 28, 2011

The terrorists are succeeding in getting us to take away our freedom.
How? The US Congress has overwhelmingly voted for a provision
in the Defense Authorization Bill that effectively repeals our rights
to due process under the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments.
It allows the government to arrest American citizens on American soil
and to detain them indefinitely, without trial or access to a lawyer
for the mere assertion of belonging to or aiding a terrorist organization.
Think you are safe because you are not a terrorist? It could also be
used against anyone who is deemed as a threat to the current power
structure.

Published 5 January 2012:

I must disagree with Len Rosen's assertion that the worst thing that could
happen to our country in 2012 is the reelection of President Obama. The
election of any of the Republican candidates would be far worse. At least
Obama makes a token effort to protect and help working Americans.
With a Republican, would see the open and unabashed sell out of the
middle class by giving our country away to the big corporations, banks,
Wall Street, and super wealthy at the expense of health care, good-paying
jobs, and the social safety net.

____________________________________________________________________

Older letters can be found in newsletters. Letters about the Israel/Palestine wall.

___________________________________________________

Merrimack Valley People for Peace meets monthly, on the fourth Tuesday,
at 7:30 pm, at North Parish Church, North Andover.
(NOT DECEMBER)

Contact Merrimack Valley People for Peace       (978) 685-1389
            P.O. Box 573
            North Andover, MA 01845

Send material to post on the website to brian@quirk.ws