Archive of monthly articles:
January: Judge Jones dismisses the case (January 2012)
Welcome to the thirteenth monthly posting: As those who have followed this website will know, the U.S. has been suing me to collect a $10,000 fine. In 1997 I was unwilling to ask for a U.S. license for a trip I took to bring medicine to Iraqi children. I’ve consistently refused to pay that fine – and did not request a license – to challenge the legality and legitimacy of U.S. policy on Iraq.
On December 28th, the judge issued his ruling: “For the reasons stated herein, the court concludes that the Government did not timely sue Mr. Sacks. The court DISMISSES this case with prejudice and directs the clerk to enter judgment for Mr. Sacks.” That means the fine against me goes away. My Declaration, our Briefs, the Court’s ruling, and two good media summaries are available here.
Read more here.
December: Still Waiting for the Judge …
Welcome to the twelfth monthly posting: As I reported last month, the date of the government trial against me has been vacated and we have to wait for the judge to rule if there will be a trial at all. The U.S. is suing me to collect a $10,000 fine because I was unwilling to ask the U.S. for a license for a 1997 trip I took to bring medicine to Iraqi children. I’ve consistently refused to pay the fine – and did not request a license – to challenge the legality and legitimacy of U.S. policy on Iraq.
On August 9th, the judge issued an Order; in part it says: “[T]he court ORDERS the Government to SHOW CAUSE why the court should not dismiss this action.” We have received the brief the judge ordered the Government to provide and we have replied. After reviewing the briefs – it’s now been almost three months – the judge will decide whether to have a trial or not. As soon as I know his decision I will post more information. You can still follow by adding your address at IraqiKids.org for an update. If you haven’t yet, please look at earlier postings and follow other pages at this website.
As some of you will have noted, I am an enthusiastic follower of the work of the Metta Center (based in Northern California). I personally find their work in understanding and teaching Gandhian nonviolence exceptionally valuable.
Read more here.
November: Still Waiting for the Judge …
Welcome to the eleventh monthly posting: The date of the government trial against me has been vacated and we have to wait for the judge to rule if there will be a trial at all. Real Change’s exceptional associate editor Rosette Royale did a fine follow-up column about the case, discussing my own desire to get to trial. The U.S. is suing me to collect a $10,000 fine because I was unwilling to ask the U.S. for a license for a 1997 trip I took to bring medicine to Iraqi children. I’ve consistently refused to pay the fine – and did not request a license – to challenge the legality and legitimacy of U.S. policy on Iraq.
On August 9th, the judge issued an Order; in part it says: “[T]he court ORDERS the Government to SHOW CAUSE why the court should not dismiss this action.” We have received the brief the judge ordered the Government to provide and we have replied. After reviewing the briefs – it’s now been eight weeks – the judge will decide whether to have a trial or not. As soon as I know his decision I will post more information. You can still follow by adding your address at IraqiKids.org for an update. If you haven’t yet, please look at earlier postings and follow other pages at this website.
This morning I opened up the weekly email from my favorite Israeli journalist and activist Uri Avnery. The peace organization he co-founded, Gush Shalom, posted his most recent article. Here are key excerpts:
Read more here.
October: Still Waiting for the Judge to Rule
At the start of last month’s posting on September 11th I wrote this:
Welcome to the ninth monthly posting: The date of the government trial against me has been vacated – the trial won’t take place on September 19, 2011, and we have to wait for the judge to rule if there will be a trial at all. The U.S. is suing me to collect a $10,000 fine because I was unwilling to ask the U.S. for a license for a 1997 trip I took to bring medicine to Iraqi children. I’ve consistently refused to pay the fine – and did not request a license – to challenge the legitimacy and legality of U.S. policy on Iraq.
On August 9th, the judge issued an Order; in part it says: “[T]he court ORDERS the Government to SHOW CAUSE why the court should not dismiss this action.” We have received the brief the judge ordered the Government to provide and we are replying. After reviewing the briefs – possibly by the end of September – the judge will decide whether to have a trial or not. As soon as I know his decision I will post more information. You can still follow by adding your address at IraqiKids.org for an update. If you haven’t yet, please look at earlier postings and follow other pages at this website.
The Government provided its brief, we provided ours, we’re now waiting.
Read more here.
September: What’s it All Been About
First I want to thank my friends – and others I don’t yet know – who have taken the time to follow this case. I’m sure you realize that the case has been about issues beyond the fine on me. My excellent lawyers certainly do: they have spent many hours of pro bono time on the case, much more than the fine alone could justify. I thank them very much!
This uncertainty about the trial is my chance to reflect on what those other issues are.
Read more here.
August: Weapons of Mass Destruction
We have just passed the 66th anniversary of the United States atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Whenever weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) are mentioned, most people understandably think of atomic weapons. But on the website of a group I’ve been associated with for over 15 years, our opening sentence is this:
“Sanctions are the economic nuclear bomb.”
– Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Laureate, returning from a March 1999 visit to Iraq.
Read more here.
July: the U.S. and September 11th
July will be a one-of-a-kind posting. This site is dedicated to presenting information about the U.S. government and terrorism which is missing from most U.S. media.
In January, February, and March, I wrote about the U.S. bombing of Iraq’s civilian infrastructure and the effort to use economic sanctions to coerce the overthrow of Saddam Hussein: an act of terrorism leading to the deaths of 100,000s of Iraqi children.
Read more here.
June: Nonviolence & Rob McKenna
In April I wrote about the blockade of Gaza – maintained by Israel with the (perhaps now ending) cooperation of Egypt on its border with Gaza. It is a blockade unilaterally imposed, done without any imprimatur of international legality. I quote Israeli officials’ candid remarks about the blockade: It is collective punishment (dangerous to the life of Gaza civilians) to punish them and to undermine the government of Hamas – evidence that the Gaza blockade is an act of international terrorism per our U.S. legal definition.
In May I wrote about Attorney General Rob McKenna of Washington State co-signing a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Rob McKenna signed it, “to convey [his] strong support for the State of Israel’s actions in Gaza [during 'Operation Cast Lead' (winter '09-'09)].” It was an ill-informed letter which said, among other things, that “[t]o Israel’s credit … [it allowed] the entrance of humanitarian aid into Gaza.”
Read more here.
May: Gaza and our State Attorney General
In April I wrote about the blockade of Gaza – maintained by Israel with the cooperation (so far) of Egypt, on its border with Gaza. It is a blockade unilaterally imposed, done without any imprimatur of international legality. In last month’s posting I quote Israeli officials’ candid remarks about the reason for the blockade: It is collective punishment against civilians in Gaza, to punish them and to undermine the government of Hamas.
Last month I presented the evidence and the conclusion that it is an act of terrorism. This month also deals with Gaza, but from a “local perspective.”
Read more here.
April: On Israel’s policy towards Gaza
In January I wrote about U.S. policy towards Iraq from 1991 to 2003. From the public record it is quite easy to show what U.S. policy was: By bombing Iraq’s civilian infrastructure and re-imposing economic sanctions, the U.S. knowingly created and maintained conditions “dangerous to human life” – especially the lives of vulnerable young Iraqi children. Top administration officials then stated the reason: The UN economic sanctions would continue until “Saddam Hussein was overthrown.” The major cost of this failed, criminal policy was hundreds of thousands of extra Iraqi children’s deaths. According to our U.S. legal code, this was international terrorism.
The U.S. policy of collective punishment against the entire Iraqi civilian population to force the overthrow of their government has been a disaster. What is surprising – or perhaps not – is that Israel would then pursue the same policy towards the civilian population of Gaza to undermine and overthrow the elected government of Gaza.
Read more here.
March: On What Nonviolence Can Teach Us
In January I wrote about U.S. policy towards Iraq from 1991 to 2003. From the public record it is not difficult to show that bombing Iraq’s civilian infrastructure and re-imposing economic sanctions – to overthrow Saddam Hussein at the cost of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children’s lives – constitutes international terrorism according to the U.S. legal definition of that crime.
In February I wrote about how the U.S. courts and the mass media responded to this policy: The courts ruled that even if the U.S. government pursues a policy which knowingly kills 500,000 Iraqi children – as long as Congress passes the necessary laws and the Executive executes those laws as written – it is legal. And if it can’t be made legal – as with genocide – Congress then legislated that no one has any legal rights in the matter.
Read more here.
February: U.S. Courts and the Mass Media
After reading the January posting it is natural to ask the question, What can we do?
To think wisely about that I suggest we need to ask an earlier question: How is it possible that the U.S. could create conditions in Iraq which knowingly led to the deaths of thousands of Iraqi children – maintain those conditions for twelve years until 500,000 children had died – and publicly state that this will continue until the government of Iraq is overthrown – all without any major public outcry?
We are at the 50th anniversary of President Eisenhower’s famous farewell address to the nation, where he warned us of the undue influence of the military-industrial complex. In an earlier draft, he apparently included “congressional” as part of that complex … and with good reason. Without doubt, Congress, the military, and its allied industries all share some responsibility for this happening.
Read more here.
January: My story of the fine & law suit
I have images in my mind which tell a lot about the 12 years of U.S./UN sanctions on Iraq.
Early one morning in Baghdad I was walking along the Tigris River when I smelled a terrible odor: raw sewage was pouring from a large pipe directly into the river. I knew it would become the drinking water of people downstream. Many people would become sick.
The second image comes from the diarrhea clinic in Basra, the large city downstream of Baghad. The clinic was filled with mothers holding their infant and very young children. …
Read more here.
Judge Jones dismisses the case (January 2012)
Welcome to the thirteenth monthly posting: As those who have followed this website will know, the U.S. has been suing me to collect a $10,000 fine. In 1997 I was unwilling to ask for a U.S. license for a trip I took to bring medicine to Iraqi children. I’ve consistently refused to pay that fine – and did not request a license – to challenge the legality and legitimacy of U.S. policy on Iraq.
On December 28th, the judge issued his ruling: “For the reasons stated herein, the court concludes that the Government did not timely sue Mr. Sacks. The court DISMISSES this case with prejudice and directs the clerk to enter judgment for Mr. Sacks.” That means the fine against me goes away. My Declaration, our Briefs, the Court’s ruling, and two good media summaries are available here.