••chillingly prophetic••

"Expect a small war or two in order to keep military appropriations flowing. There will also be tax relief for the very rich......The military -- Cheney, Powel, et al.-- will be calling the tune, and the whole nation will be on constant alert, for, James Baker has already warned us, Terrorism is everywhere on the march".

••if a Dove cries in the Senate, will anybody hear it?••

"To contemplate war is to think about the most horrible of
human experiences. On this February day, as this nation
stands at the brink of battle, every American on some level
must be contemplating the horrors of war.

Yet, this Chamber is, for the most part, silent - ominously, dreadfully
silent. There is no debate, no discussion, no attempt to lay out for the
nation the pros and cons of this particular war. There is nothing.

We stand passively mute in the United States Senate, paralyzed by our
own uncertainty, seemingly stunned by the sheer turmoil of events.
Only on the editorial pages of our newspapers is there much substantive
discussion of the prudence or imprudence of engaging in this particular war.

And this is no small conflagration we contemplate. This is no simple
attempt to defang a villain. No. This coming battle, if it materializes,
represents a turning point in U.S. foreign policy and possibly a turning
point in the recent history of the world."
~ Senator Robert Byrd (D - W. Virginia) | Feb. 12, 2003