To President Obama,

Do not bomb Syria.  Trust us, we citizens know all the "facts" and all the "selling points" that you and Secretary of State Kerry are pushing on us.  I am not saying you are lying - like some previous presidents who took us to war.  I am saying no to war.  No to being the enforcer of morals in the world.  No to punishing Syria for stepping over the "red line" you defined a few weeks ago.  No.  No argument you trot out will do the slightest to change my mind nor that of perhaps most Americans.  We voted you in to avoid war.  

You just went live on national TV to assure us no decision has been made.  I do not believe you.  You want to bomb and are only trying to convince the American people to go along with you.  This one citizen does not.  And I have just written to you via the White House website.  Do not bomb Syria.  

Are Syrian missels in the air toward the United States?  No, they do not even exist. Are they attacking Israel?  No, and Israel is very nervous that if we bomb Syria then Israel will be atttacked - by Syria or a friend of Syria.   Mr. Obama, for the past few days you have increased the panic in your message to us.  You have told us how many people have been killed.  How you have proof.  On and on.  And I say, so use diplomacy and peaceful means.  Gather the support of others.  Now you assure us that we will put "no boots on the ground."  Sorry, but you miss the point. Americans do not want you to bomb Syria.  Yes, Syria and Assad may "get away with it" in this instance.  

So you drew a line in the sand - and you feel you cannot back off.  Well, stop drawing lines in the sand.  Stop defining red lines.  Hello.  Now is the time for you to eat it.  Time for you to be embarrassed.  Time for you to learn a lesson.  It is not time for you to show you wear pants or know better than the American people.

I am keenly aware that my voice is miniscule.   I'm talking into the wind.  But I must speak out.  It seems so absurd for me, as an American with the right to free speech, to remain quiet when I feel strongly. I hope others also speak out. 

The lesson of history is that you can start a war with any careful limited plan, but as soon as it is started, you loose all control of what happens after that.  Bombing Syria will start a war.  Do not bomb Syria.

As an aside - regarding Kerry.  He is a joke.  He is violating all that he believed as a Viet Nam veteran.   The Syrian rebels asked the USA for gas masks weeks ago and we - Kerry and Obama - refused to give any to them.  Kerry is beating the drums of war.  How terribly sad.  The man is no longer the Kerry of old.