Dear Will Quince MP,
My name is George Harold Millman, and I'm an actor, student, blogger and political activist based in Colchester.
As you no doubt are aware, tomorrow (or from your point of view, probably today, given the time that I am writing this) is the vote on Syrian air strikes. I don't know exactly what your views on this matter are, but I would like to ask that you vote against the strikes, for the following reasons. I feel that for want of a better term, we have an 'all guns blazing' (or in this case, all planes bombing') approach when it comes to managing international relations in the Middle East. This approach has not been helpful in the past. I was only nine when the Iraq war started, and I vividly recall being taken to demonstrations calling for peace, and my parents explaining to me, in age-appropriate terms, the consequences were the war to go ahead. I'm now in my early twenties and as I have matured, I have been able to see the damage that the decisions taken by Blair and Bush twelve years ago has caused. The poverty and devastation suffered by civilians in Iraq has become even more grave than it was in the days of Saddam Hussein. I can see very little that has actually been achieved out there, and it would appear that these decisions were made more to prove that the Western world is doing something than because anyone actually thought it would help matters. I feel that the same can be said with regards to Afghanistan and Libya, and I am deeply concerned that Syria will be next on the list.
I cannot see what bombing Syria will achieve. What I can see is the levels of devastation it will cause. We are frequently told that we need to close our borders to immigrants; I personally disagree with this notion, but regardless of anyone's opinion on the matter, bombing Syria will only make matters worse. Civilians there will continue to flee for their lives to countries such as the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe - France has already closed its borders (unsurprising, given recent circumstances, but I still consider it a major blow as I think that this is what ISIS hoped to achieve). Any air strikes in Syria will not help to bring about democracy, and would undermine the UK's position as a diplomat helping to bring about a stronger political settlement. I highly doubt that it will cause any harm to ISIS, because I actually believe that ISIS expects us to bomb Syria, thereby justifying its own twisted agenda against the West. I do not think that it would put the UK into a position where we are less likely to be victims of terrorist attacks; in actual fact, most terrorist attacks have come from individuals who come from the country in which they take place. The instigators of 7/7, for example, were from Leeds. The BBC reports that the main perpetrators in Paris came from either France or Belgium. Prior to 9/11, terrorist attacks were not even considered to be synonymous with the Islamic State.
My political stance is that I will not join any political party as I wish all of my views to remain independent and not swayed by the views of the majority. I will not deny that in recent years I have found it very difficult to find any sympathy with the Conservative Party generally. However, I realise that it does contain some very good eggs - I am hopeful that you will prove to be one of them. This is not about party politics, this is about standing up against those misguided people at the top and voting the right way. I understand that David Cameron is already facing disagreement from around 20% of the Conservative Party - I implore you to be a part of that. At the vote, please take heed of what I have said, stand up and vote against bombing Syria. I will be extremely appreciative if you do.
Thanks for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
George Harold Millman
