Labor councilor Soorley, also an opponent of Australia's involvement in East Timor, today accused the Federal Government of blindly supporting America in its warmongering.

"The bellicose language of the Federal Government and their unquestioning support for US government policy in relation to Iraq is totally unacceptable," Cr Soorley said.

"War with Iraq without the involvement and sanction of the UN must not be tolerated."

On his website, Cr Soorley urged Australians to send a petition to Prime Minister John Howard, calling on him not to send Australian troops to fight a war in Iraq without the go-ahead from the United Nations.
A spokeswoman for Cr Soorley said the Lord Mayor had funded the website himself and no ratepayers' funds had been used.

"He just feels passionately about the issue," the spokeswoman said.

Mr Howard said today he did not want to send Australian troops overseas again, but would not rule out doing so if Iraq continued its hardline stance against weapons inspections.

George W Bush is intent on finishing what his father George Bush Senior could not - that is to remove Saddam Hussein from office in Iraq. He is willing to run roughshod over International Law, morality and common sense to do it.

Look out world, there is a new sheriff-judge-jury and executioner in town, and he's willing to shoot off his own foot and yours to get whatever he wants.

Every peace loving person the world should take note of the war-mongering stance taken by the self-anointed leader of the free world. He's determined that he will be the only person that needs to be convinced in order to send American young men and women to kill and be killed by the men and women of Iraq.