W hope that you and your family are well. We wish the same for all families and for those who have lost their families, whether by natural or by man-made disaster. We want you to help reduce the toll of the "Bush-made disaster" that is Iraq and Afghanistan.

I am enclosing some notes about the costs of the war. It is appalling to see our country spiral into more and more debt because of Bush's decision to wage pre-emptive war. It is even more appalling to see that Halliburton, Cheney's former company, has been mightily enriched by the war with contracts now totaling 20 times what they were before the wars.

Lies, corruption, torture? What are you doing to reverse these sordid actions of our government?

I ask you to look at the last two weeks of US deaths in Iraq which are attached. The civilian casualty record is unclear because of various difficulties in counting accurately. The death rate is high. How many deaths will be enough to feed the Bush world chaos machine????? Here is the link from which the report came: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2003/iraq/forces/casualties/ .

Sincerely yours, Ellyn Stecker and Peter Smith of Michiana Peace and Justice Coalition.

(Every day I think of my family members and friends who are in the war zones. I hope and pray that I never see their names as one of the killed or wounded or as one who has committed torture and rape in the warp of war.)