top this war from happening. Thousands of innocent people in Iraq and an unknown number of U.S. GIs will die unless we can stop Bush's war plans. It is urgent that the anti-war movement not be lulled into a false sense of optimism because Iraq and the U.N. are cooperating. The Bush Administration is determined to wage war and occupy Iraq. The extent to which the world is voicing cautious optimism about a peaceful solution, is also the extent to which the Bush foreign policy team is racing to dash all hope for such an outcome.

Opposition to this drive towards war on Iraq is growing in the United States and globally. January 18th will include demonstrations in a growing number of countries around the world in solidarity with the National March on Washington to Stop the War On Iraq, and its sister action in San Francisco.

We want to express our gratitude to all those of you who have contributed. Without your continuing support we could not carry out this important work. If you have not had a chance to make a contribution, we urge you to consider doing what you can. You can make an online tax deductible donation today at http://www.votenowar.org/donate.html .

We are happy to announce that the People's Anti-War Referendum, which was initiated on October 26, 2002, has become a global campaign. We have heard from people in countries around the world wanting to cast their votes in solidarity with those in the U.S. who are fighting to stop the Bush administration from waging a war of aggression that endangers the entire planet.

People from around the world have told us that they are heartened by the mass opposition that is being manifested by the people of the United States to stop the war on Iraq and to demand that the U.S. government abide by the will of the people -- just as we are all inspired by the anti-war demonstrations we have seen taking place in cities around the world. You will see when you go to the VoteNoWar site ( http://www.VoteNoWar.org )that it now contains an international referendum against Bush's war drive, with translations in Danish, German, English, Spanish, French and Portuguese -- and more languages are being added. You can view the international referendum at http://www.VoteNoWar.org/en/ .

Defiant in the face of worldwide opposition, the Bush Administration has now laid out its plans to be the initiators of nuclear war. "Preemptive Strikes are Part of US Strategic Doctrine," read the headline of the front page of the Washington Post of December 11, 2002. A classified version of the new Bush Doctrine "breaks with the fifty years of counter-proliferation efforts" by planning for the use of nuclear weapons against countries that not only have not attacked the US but that do not themselves possess nuclear capability.

Dr. Martin Luther King said that "The greatest purveyor of violence on the planet is my own government." That statement is as true today as it was during the Vietnam War. We will honor Dr. King's legacy by marching on January 18 against a war on Iraq and Bush's plans to terrorize the world.

We also join with people all over the world who mourn the loss of Phillip Berrigan who devoted his life to courageous opposition to militarism and war. Phil Berrigan put his body on the line in the struggle to end the war in Vietnam and to call attention to the inherently evil nature of weapons of mass destruction produced by and for the US Military Industrial Complex. In addition to honoring Dr. King, we intend to make the January 18 march a living tribute to Phil Berrigan's life and legacy.

On Saturday, January 18, tens of thousands will travel by bus, van and car caravan from all over the East Coast, South and Midwest to be in Washington DC for the National March against war on Iraq. It is really amazing that such a significant mobilization of people is taking place with busses and car caravans coming to D.C. from far away states including Colorado, Minnesota, Texas, Kansas, Maine, Florida and others. We encourage people to bring banners and puppets, to find as many creative methods to dramatize our demands in opposition to a war of aggression and in support of a reorganization of society's priorities that would put people's needs ahead of the Pentagon and the war profiteers in Corporate America.

--Transportation to Washington, D.C. For information about busses and transportation being organizied nationwide and from your community, visit http://www.internationalanswer.org/campaigns/j18/j18contacts.html#transp

. --Tell Your International Friends

That the People's Anti-War Referendum now has an international version and is accessible in multiple languages.

--Add the VoteNoWar Button to Your Web Site

It only takes one line of code and one minute of time to add a link to the Peoples' Anti-War Referendum to your site. Instructions and the one line of code are available at http://www.votenowar.org/add_link.html .

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