The way you make that choice concrete -- as opposed to
armchair theorizing from afar -- is by mobilizing people to support their brothers and sisters in that other country who are engaged in a similar struggle. US Labor Against the War is planning on sending another labor delegation to Iraq in the near future -- they will visit and bring back stories about regular people, engaged in struggles similar to the struggles of US trade unionists, stories that will actually bring US union people to a better understanding. You can do this and win the support even of people who were formerly supportive of the "war," and that gives you an in to talk about why the whole thing was a bad idea in the first place. I am saying that this has potential in the union movement at least, but it's not hard to imagine analogous strategies and "issue framing" in other settings.
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Yes, this is precisely right.
Contacts must be made with Iraqis, this is critical, decisively breaking the 'armchair theorizing' chain. If you cannot go yourself (true for most of us of course), support those who go on your behalf.
It's critical to correct our favorite assumptions via a feedback loop of real information from the people most affected by the toppling of Hussein's regime and the occupation which has followed. It's critical for the development of intelligent strategies based upon 'ground truth'. And it's critical, as John says, so we'll have stories to tell Americans of goodwill who will not be pleased to learn what their government is doing and promoting in Iraq. These stories will help build a domestic movement in support of democratic activities within Iraq.
A two-pronged approach: support for and direct contact with Iraqi labor and other democratic movements which have the average Iraqi's interest in mind - and the development of domestic pressure groups (perhaps starting with US labor as John suggests) which use Iraqi reports to relentlessly hammer Washington (and the media) with the hard facts.
In my opinion, this is the solid way forward.
DRM