"Bush lies, lies, lies, and the US news media complies." PPRC Friday Rally Targets the Propaganda War on US Citizens

Event: PPRC Rally and March for Peace
Date: Friday, August 1st, 2003
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Place: Pioneer Courthouse Square

The Portland Peaceful Response Coalition Friday 5:00 p.m. rally at Pioneer Courthouse Square turns to the topic of propaganda and war. "In the first press conference since the war, George Bush renewed his commitment to lying about the war," said Will Seaman of the PPRC, "and the representatives of the US news were only too happy to continue to give him a free ride."

PPRC organizers cited Bush's consistent lying about links between the former Iraqi regime and al-Qa'ida and his continued support for Condoleezza Rice in connection with the now discredited claims of Iraqi uranium purchases. "But we cannot overlook the role of a compliant news media in support of the fraud committed by Bush against the American people," said Seaman. "The New York Times describes the claim about uranium purchases as 'based on questionable intelligence,'1 but that's like saying that ENRON's energy trading schemes were based on questionable ethics." Seaman said that the uranium purchasing documents were exposed as a worthless fraud months before their use by Bush to sell the Iraq war to the American people. "Real journalists have the courage to call this kind of behavior by its real name: lying," said Seaman. "And the cost of that lying is thousands of innocent Iraqis massacred in Bush's war, a country with a shattered infrastructure on the brink of chaos, and dozens of US soldiers dying in an occupation they do not want to be a part of."

Like many other local peace and justice organizations, the PPRC is beginning work to help mobilize a large protest of Bush during his visit to Portland on August 21st. "This man represents the very worst, most corrupt elements of our wounded democracy," said Seaman, "and it is surely the patriotic duty of every American citizen who cares about the future of the country to raise their voice in protest." PPRC spokespersons said that they expect a very wide diversity of individuals and organizations to be represented at the protests later this month. "From environmentalists to immigrant rights advocates, from groups fighting to protect our constitutional rights to trade unions, we will be coming together to oppose Bush," said Seaman.

1. "Bush Denies Claim He Oversold Case for War", by Richard W. Stevenson, New York Times, July 31, 2003.

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