City
Council to act on Iraq resolution
Dear Editor:
I would like to alert your readers to the fact that at this Tuesday’s City Council meeting on February 4th a resolution will be presented that “supports UN actions to find and destroy weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and opposes any U.S. military action against Iraq that is not taken in conjunction with the United Nations.” The resolution has been prepared by an ad hoc group of concerned citizens from throughout our community who represent a wide variety of opinion and experience and who come from medical, labor, educational, religious, peace and justice, and other backgrounds.
This resolution is part of a national effort in opposition to current US policy. To date, over 40 cities nationwide have passed such resolutions, including Seattle, Baltimore, and Chicago. As I am sure your readers appreciate, there is a broad body of opinion in this country in favor of the position stated in our resolution. According to the ABC/Washington Post poll taken this week, two-thirds of all Americans are against a war outside UN auspices.
We find the President’s position on Iraq totally unacceptable. Under this policy, the United States for the first time in our history would attack another country that has not attacked us, or one of our allies first, and we would do that while other options remain open and in defiance of most of the world community–all this in the name of preventing extremism.
Please join us at the City Council meeting next Tuesday and tell your alderman
that you are in support of the resolution.
Doug Day
Springfield
The Space is still the
place
Dear Editor,
I wanted to take a moment to thank the Illinois Times for the recent article [“Trading Spaces” January 16] concerning “the Space,” a not-for-profit community center located at 830 S. College. We welcome any opportunity to expand the community’s awareness of the unique opportunities “the Space” presents for organizations and individuals alike. It has been our goal since the center’s inception to provide local organizations with a mailing address, phone number, meeting space, and many of the resources most small groups lack as they try to build their membership and find their identity. It has also been our goal to provide individuals with resources and space to explore their creative energies and give back to their community, as well as a place to gather and discuss issues and ideas. To this end, we are all very proud of our accomplishments thus far and plan to continue in our efforts and expand the resources we are able to offer.
I would also like to thank Jason Perry for his kind comments in his letter to the editor [January 23], and, in his words, take this as an “opportunity to shed some positive light on the undertakings” of all the groups who have been involved to this point, including the “anarchist collective” discussed in your article. Despite the attempts by some to paint their endeavors as controversial, I believe their project is most valuable and support them in their endeavors. We all realized that one building could not satisfy the needs of every organization involved, nor could the space provide every resource desired, most notably that of a living space. I applaud their efforts to establish an intentional community and to carry on some of the activities formerly conducted at “the Space,” and our doors will always be open to them. I don’t believe this detracts from the positive contributions of either establishment. And far from being a divisive development, individuals continue to be involved in both efforts and have had occasion to work jointly in raising funds and support for both locations.
“The Space’ located at 830 S. College continues to reach out to all members of the community. Among the organizations that use our meeting facilities are the Springfield Independent Media Center, the Springfield Greens, UIS Campus Greens, Heartland Peace Center, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, Springfield Community Network, Brother-to-Brother, Springfield Iraq Peace Coalition, Springfield Coalition Against the Death Penalty, National Association of Social Workers, and the Lincoln Scholars Poetry Club. In addition, local artists, musicians, poets, playwrights, thespians, journalists, activists, and zine-crafters have used our resources as well. We have had poetry nights, music events, movie/documentary screenings, and workshops or discussions on a variety of topics, including the Death Penalty, Homelessness, War in Iraq, Worker’s Rights, Police Brutality, Race Relations, Gay/Lesbian Issues, and Media to name a few. And our Sangamon Free State classes have helped connect many people who have skills they would like to share with those who are eager to learn new things.
We hope your readers will take the opportunity to visit us and find out what
opportunities await them. We invite them all to consider ways they can help
us advance our efforts through donations, volunteering, or providing their talents
or expertise. We invite local organizations to contact us about resources we
can offer their groups in organizing or pursuing their agendas. To find out
more, please call us at 528-2457, e-mail us at thespace@springpatch.org, visit
our Web site at www.springpatch.org/thespace, or stop by “the Space” at 830
S. College. Our upcoming events are listed on our Web site and in the calendar
section of the Illinois Times. And our doors are open during our Coffee
House every Friday evening from 6-10 p.m., when we invite you to partake in
free refreshments and to share a poem, song, or discussion topic if you are
so inclined.
Sincerely,
Marc David Sanson
Springfield Community Network
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Left’s double standard
To the editor,
Many “Leftists” are wondering why Bush and the American “Right” have a fixation with Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction, while ignoring North Korea’s WMD. I agree with them, but I can’t help but ask why many of them are fixated with the deaths caused by Israel and not fixated with the deaths caused by North Korea.
Roughly 2,000 Palestinians have died as a result of Israel’s policies, they claim. Yet hundreds of thousands, if not millions, have died as a direct result of North Korea’s policies during this same time period, and they don’t say a word.
Why the double standard?
Todd Ernst
Petersburg
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SWF likes baptisms,
hates personal ads
To the editor:
I loved your article on the baptisms at the Sangamon County Jail [“Prison Uprising,” January 9]. Now, when are you going to do something about those “Personals”?
Dee Snyder
Springfield
This article appears in Jun 5-11, 2003.
