A Helena anti-war group wants public debate on the merits of the war in Iraq.

The newly formed Helenans Support for Troops and Military Withdrawal will sponsor an April 25 forum, hoping to lift what member Paul Edwards said was a "muting" of the debate. The group is a collection of veterans, peace activists and other concerned citizens.

"We personally feel that the war and occupation has no moral and ethical basis -- if it ever had," Edwards said. "We're not trying to create an anti-war (statement). We're interested in creating public dialogue."

The group wants the Helena City Commission to pass a resolution supporting the troops and asking for withdrawal from Iraq.

The two-page resolution -- which asserts an "illegal presence" of U.S. forces, cites waning public support for the war, and asks for an "orderly and rapid withdrawal" -- could be revised based on public input. Other U.S. cities passed similar measures, they said.

It's most important to separate the "war from the warriors," said Diane Carlson Evans, a Vietnam War nurse and organizer of efforts to install the Vietnam War Women's Memorial in Washington, D.C. The group feels the policymakers are the ones who have led the nation astray.

Unlike the cool response soldiers received after that war, today's soldiers "feel the nation is behind them," Evans said. But money for veterans' benefits and aid to returning soldiers is more important than displaying a magnetic yellow ribbon, she said.

The war has had a local human and economic cost, said member Gabe Furshong, a Helena Peace Seeker.

Ten Montanans have been killed, and dozens more have been injured. Helenans have borne an economic cost estimated at $14.8 million, according to an analysis of Congressional war appropriations and IRS tax reveues by the National Priorities Project, a non-partisan, non-profit budget research group.

"The fact that this has not been discussed widely is, I believe, an egregious oversight," Furshong said.

Meanwhile, funding for veterans' benefits won't keep pace with inflation. It amounts to a $10 billion cut over five years, Furshong said, when the opposite should happen.

City commissioners could consider the resolution in May, which organizers said would send a message to the governor, the Legislature, Montana's Congressional contingent and President George W. Bush.

"Politics are local and (the war) is affecting Helenans," Evans said.

Mayor Jim Smith said the issue could get on the city's agenda at a commissioners' suggestion, much like an anti-Patriot Act resolution narrowly passed in December, 2004. Smith said he became aware of the withdrawal measure Thursday.

Some members of Helenans Support for Troops and Military Withdrawal were also part of a group that proposed the anti-Patriot Act resolution. Edwards, chairman of the county Democrats, also recently launched another "Buy Back the Dams" initiative effort.

He said the withdrawal measure isn't a partisan shot.

"This is a national issue and the war is a monster...in our house," Edwards said.

The group plans more outreach to military families to gauge their feelings.

But a top member of Montana's American Legion organization said the troops don't need to look over their shoulder at what's happening back home.

The troops know why they're overseas, and early withdrawal is not an option, said adjutant Gary White.

"I don't think it's helpful," White said Thursday. "On the other hand, it's important to have discourse."

The session will be held at Carroll College and will be co-hosted by Students for a Just Society. Mediators will be on hand to make sure everybody is heard in a respectful manner, organizers said.

Reporter Jason Mohr can be reached at 447-4075 or jason.mohr@helenair.com.