INFORM THE PUBLIC - WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR

President Bush recently vetoed H.R. 2082, a bill that would have banned torture by requiring all elements of the U.S. intelligence community to abide by the restrictions in the Army Field Manual while conducting interrogations.  H.R. 2082 was passed by a majority of both houses of Congress, and without the President's veto, it would have become law.

Please write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper expressing your disappointment that the President chose to veto this important anti-torture legislation, and stating that by vetoing H.R. 2082, the President has defied not only the will of both houses of Congress, but also of the American people.

Letters should be short and direct.  If at all possible, they should refer to an article that was recently printed in your newspaper.  You should call or email the editorial department of your newspaper to ask about the best way to submit your letter and about any guidelines they might have for writing letters.  Many newspapers may have word limits or deadlines for responding to articles.  Do not submit your letter to more than one newspaper at a time.

A sample letter is provided below.  Please re-write it in order to make it relevant to your newspaper and your community. 

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Dear Editor:

As a resident of _(town name)_, a member of _(name of a congregation or other faith community)_ and a long-time reader of the _(paper name)_, I am writing to express my opposition to the use of torture, and my disappointment that President Bush choose to veto H.R. 2082 - a bill that was passed by a majority of both houses of Congress that would have prohibited waterboarding, mock executions, induced hypothermia, and other forms of torture.

As a person of faith, I believe that torture is morally wrong and that our nation must act in accordance with its values by rejecting the use of torture.  It is not just our wealth or our power that has made our country great, but rather the moral values that our country has held to since its founding.  We did not abandon our values when our country was small, weak, or threatened, and we should not abandon them today when we are the most powerful nation on Earth.

Unfortunately, President Bush passed up an opportunity to return our country to a moral path that has helped make it great when he vetoed H.R. 2082.  In doing so he ignored not only the will of the U.S. Congress, but also that of the American people.

Sincerely,
(Name)
(Address)
(City, State, Zip Code)
(Daytime Phone Number)