Hi. On the REV Yearwood video. I am not surprised that the onlookers didn't rush to his aid, but that the onlookers seemed so passive. As Cindy said, she rushed to the front of the line. I have had many dealings with the police, not my fault, I assure you, and you don't want to encourage them, they are bullies with a gun, don't give them an excuse. So, I guess I am discouraged at the people in line for not vocalizing more, they couldn't approach, they were being moved back by the police as the REV was being surrounded.

So, how can we get by the media blackout. Some great ideas here. How about a local media blackout. If we call the local affiliates, inundate CNN with emails. As soon as the video gets posted their should be organizing to get it played on the majors. It is not enough to be awake and knowledgeable anymore. We must be thoreauly organized. When almost every cop has a kid, or sister, or cousin in the movement, then they will not beat. The REV I am sure will bring this to court and hopefully build more publicity. We must rally around these things and help carry them through. I have the gmail alerts, who knows, in a week or two the video might get played on a major.

Bear with me, I am new to this but I can't help but think a little more organization and concern could go a long way. I also can't stress the importance of bringing more heart into the movement, as Cindy and the REV are prime examples of, they are literally putting their lives on the line, if not from the gov't then from at least all those crazies out there.

Personally I think that we need to bring the spirit of the Yippies to the proceedings. Here is a favorite from Mario Salvo-

"There's a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can't take part, you can't even passively take part, and you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop! And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all!"

I just saw the video of this again from Scorcese's Dylan biopic, "NO Direction Home". Man, he was dragged off by the cops something awful.

"Practice martial arts, not to prepare to fight, but to prepare to stand"

HK

Hi. On the REV Yearwood video. I am not surprised that the onlookers didn't rush to his aid, but that the onlookers seemed so passive. As Cindy said, she rushed to the front of the line. I have had many dealings with the police, not my fault, I assure you, and you don't want to encourage them, they are bullies with a gun, don't give them an excuse. So, I guess I am discouraged at the people in line for not vocalizing more, they couldn't approach, they were being moved back by the police as the REV was being surrounded.

So, how can we get by the media blackout. Some great ideas here. How about a local media blackout. If we call the local affiliates, inundate CNN with emails. As soon as the video gets posted their should be organizing to get it played on the majors. It is not enough to be awake and knowledgeable anymore. We must be thoreauly organized. When almost every cop has a kid, or sister, or cousin in the movement, then they will not beat. The REV I am sure will bring this to court and hopefully build more publicity. We must rally around these things and help carry them through. I have the gmail alerts, who knows, in a week or two the video might get played on a major.

Bear with me, I am new to this but I can't help but think a little more organization and concern. I also can't stress the importance of bringing more heart into the movement, as Cindy and the REV are prime examples of, they are literally putting their lives on the line, if not from the gov't then from at least all those crazies out there.

Personally I think that we need to bring the spirit of the Yippies to the proceedings. Here is a favorite from Mario Salvo-

"There's a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious, makes you so sick at heart, that you can't take part, you can't even passively take part, and you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop! And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all!"

I just saw the video of this again from Scorcese's Dylan biopic, "NO Direction Home". Man, he was dragged off by the cops something awful.

"Practice martial arts, not to prepare to fight, but to prepare to stand"

HK

We are golden we are stardust and we got to get ourselves back to the garden.... a line from Joni Mitchells WOODSTOCK song!!!!Wake up Peace folks it is a time for civil disobediance. Joni has stopped song writing so the new line is: we are million year old carbon.... stop using so much fossil fuel and sing BLOWIN; in the WIND!!!!

Impeachment is a valid tool, as it is the one thing that is denied a presidential pardon. That is why Nixon resigned to avoid it. had he been impeached, he could have been tried, convicted and sent up, with no possibility of pardon. For two articles on the uses of impeachment, see below. http://www.populistamerica.com/clarification_of_the_uses_of_impeachment
http://www.populistamerica.com/impeachment_is_not_about_getting_revenge

The main problem is in getting our alleged representatives to use the tool, or anything else in our Constitution that is beneficial to We the People

So we're just doomed? They got us going and coming. And is back to my martini.

Sheehan anger is directed mostly at Democrats these days, so she finally woke up. I was never fooled by Dems, I voted for Nader twice and saw this coming back in 2000. The scummy Democrats voted for this war to begin with, why are we so shocked that they continue to fund it?

Every time I hear corrupt clown Joe Biden say 'we need 67 votes' I want to scream at my radio or TV. Dems could have stopped this war with 40 votes in the senate back when they were in the minority if they wanted to. Something called filibuster. Democrats: war criminals in sheep's clothing.

I AGREE "POWER TO THE PEOPLE"....But when will they pull their heads out of the sand. These people need to be brought up on charges of war crimes instead of Impeachment. I wrote to my senator Feinstein about impeachment of Cheney and she responded that it would disrupt and split the country more. HELLO!!!!. Disrupt and split the country. What kind of talk is that??.

Two new words:

General Betrayus ( Pronounced Betray Us)

And Petraic Victory (You say your winning when you've lost)

I signed your petition, RoundAbout, and I have to agree that marching protest at this point in the struggle which is a long, long one won't change anything but make violent chaos more likely..
As a long time activist, and a Union Man again, I have to give you all some tough love here folks.
First listen to Phil Ochs sing "outside a small circle of friends" and think about what our conditioned human group behavior is and when we face reality, then we can make some progress here.

The first thing we teach in a non violent outcome situation is you don't freakin argue with anyone including Cops...OK?" this is the New World order and we are at war in a fascist scary freakin world so lets start using tactics that don't play into their hands...OK?

For the near future you are all better off voting by writing in yourselves for President in 08 because as a virtual "None of the above" protest vote you will have cast the first stone that matters at the voting booth.....the massive under-votes will get us unity on the Right and Left.

We the people will never give up!
ForUs,

Jim.glover@verizon.net

Here's what protest, peaceful or not, will get us: The National Security and Homeland Security Presidential Directive, signed on May 9, 2007, would place all governmental power in the hands of the President and effectively abolish the checks and balances in the Constitution.
This has long gone beyond being an internal American issue. I know the UN isn't perfect but it's the right idea and it's all we've got. We need to swallow our pride and ask for help.
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/unsanam2

I've been listening to this song a lot lately. It went #1 in the UK when it came out, but of course it's probably "too political" for American listeners. It's about volunteers who joined the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War. The title says it all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jm7ddqkgzFw

Cindy wrote: "not one other person came forward to try and help the Rev."

As several CD commenters mentioned above, this is worth careful consideration. Suppose 20 bystanders did rush in and pull the police off of Rev. Yearwood. What then? Would they have pulled their guns? Would they have used pepper spray? What would the arriving reinforcements have done? There are many very ugly scenarios I see in interfering with an arrest. Yes, the Rev. did not assault the police officer that I could see. Yes, the police in tackling him did commit assault and battery against a non-violent person because he was either black, or a known anti-war leader or both. Yes it is going to court (Rev. Yearwood says) and I hope he wins. But the police were not striking the Yearwood with their batons. They seemed to be restraining him. This is an important distinction. The best thing a bystander did do is to film the event. More cameras would have been even better. But "to try and help the Rev." is a tactic that deserves careful thought and creativity, for the risks are great to all concerned. Help how? By no one actually *physically* interfering but verbally doing so (like Cindy did, to her credit), and by videotaping, the bystanders sprung the Gandhi trap. I like the idea of a chant of some kind. "Police brutality is unconstitutional" comes to mind. But, if bystanders had used tactics that led to escalating violence, public sympathy and legal sympathy would have gone to the police, not Yearwood. As it is, he has a good case and the public will likely be on the progressive side if the lawsuit by Yearwood against the police goes to court and gets publicity.

Today, as usual, the Democratic Party is split in two. One wing is Conservative. And, the other wing is Progressive.

The American people now know that the elections of 2000 were stolen and that a Supreme Court that should have recanted itself validated that theft(4 million electronic votes not counted).

The American people now know that World Trade Center #7 was more than likely demolitioned and that the information was covered up by the 9/11 Commission, which was a Conservative Bi-Partisan Commission which merely eliminated any witnesses and evidence that was contrary to the "Official Version".

The American People have not been informed about "Operation Cyclone", a combined CIA/ISI of Pakistan operation that recruited 100,000 Islamic Militants and sent 43,000 of them to fight an Afghanistan Jihad as the rest were trained in Pakistan to mount an Islamic Jihad. From 1981 to 1992, the United States and Saudi Arabia financed to the tune of 12 billion dollars or more that operation and used Osama Bin Laden to obtain 20 to 25 million dollars a month from other Arab resources. (Of course, the CIA has hacked into Wikipedia and probably other resources to alter data.) The Russians were ousted from Afghanistan in 1989. Training went on at Camp Peary, Virginia, and the training included bomb making.

Robert Kennedy believed that the CIA was involved in the murder of his brother. Robert Kennedy did not trust the FBI to investigate the murder of his brother and was using his own private investigators.

John F. Kennedy was not liked by J.Edgar Hoover(FBI Director). He was also not liked by the CIA and many of its followers. He had decided to withdraw 1,000 of the 16,000 military advisors in Viet Nam. He had expected the CIA to remove and shelter Diem and his brother (rulers of Viet Nam) He was distraught by their assassination. John F Kennedy was soon assassinated and his order to withdraw advisors was changed and we all know what happened after that. 58,000 American soldiers died because the U.S. Government lied about attacks on American ships.

We, the People of the United States, deserve an open and independent investigation of: 9/11, The Invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, The Unchallenged Kidnapping and secuestering of individuals at Guantanamo, The torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, and the deaths of Pat Tillmon and any soldier who has spoken out against our Iraq policy.

If Capitalist Conservatives have participated in "Treasonous Acts" to acquire wealth then who is left to investigate when they, "The Capitalist Conservatives", are in control of the American Government.

The Democratic Party can do nothing unless the American People are willing to turn off their televisions and get active.

Donald Rumsfeld said, "As long as Americans have their baseball games and football games, we can do whatever we want." Oh he admitted in 2002, "The Department of Defense can not account for 2.3 trillion dollars of materials." The GAO added in 2003, "The Department of Defense can not account for another 1 trillion dollars of expenses." Yet, no Americans were appalled at those numbers.

If people are waiting for the American Media to inform them. Sorry, Everyone in the Corporate Media is a "Capitalist Conservative" and they like the money they earn.

Cindy,
You ask why did most just stand around and watch rather than help the Reverend. My response is 'welcome to America kiddo - the land of the lethargic' Besides American Idol is beginning a new season and millions of us are eagerly awaiting to cast real votes for something more meaningful than this farce called the Presidential election.

Seriously though, if you've studied history like I have you'd know that it has always been the 'one or two' brave souls who have done something that radically changes the course of a government and/or country. Unfortunately, those brave leaders were also the first ones killed.

I saw the footage of the Rev. on DemocracyNow yesterday. Not only did he not assault anyone but the cops should be charged with excessive force.

Lobo is right about the conditioning in public schools. My daughter when in high school had a used condom thrown in her face by another female student. I called the principle that same day regarding this. He did nothing. Three days later my daughter is attacked by the same female and two of her friends. My daughter fought back and a friend of her's helped fight too. My daughter and the female were both suspended from school for a week and no credit for the school work for that time. The principle calls me and says he can't condone violence. I told him he failed to act on the problem and furthermore this country was founded with violence.

VIDEOQUEEN IS RIGHT. If someone hadn't fimed that video, I wouldn't have known that faschism has shown it's true face here!
I have decided to join the group lobbying our Congressman to sign on to Kucinich's H res 333 to impeach Cheney!
It is imperative to do that ASAP, just to get them away from the "button". They have certain protections in office that will be voided by Impeachment, allowing war crimes trials to happen.
Not only that! But maybe people out there in the world will help us if WE show some spine! Funny how we keep blasting the Democrats for not doing it for us! I know our own Congressmaen are pro impeachment have been for a while..........but I think there's an element of self preservation as a stratagey, ( Can they help us if they are politically or literally dead!?) ( Look at Cynthia McKinney!)
There was a hostile financial takeover that happened following the 1987 stock market "CRASH" It served to marginalize a lot of we "preBoomers" financially. We're dangerous, because public schools, taught critical thinking and English grammer back then, ANd because we remember a time when most of the countries commerce was conducted by small individually owned businesses or manufacturers, when big companies were gov. regulated to hold them in their place, when families had the leisure time to sit on the porch and eat an ice ceam cone or drive out to the lake for a nice picnic. They are stealing the Social Security fund while keeeping us on short rations.............. if I wanted to go work with Code Pink in DC, there's no way in the workd I could get that far in my car. NO MONEY! ( I used to do free lance work in DC & Phila, NY, driving blythly back & forth every other week............. Phila. to Miami no problem! Now I have to think twice about doing a 65 mile round trip for supplies. Another IMPORTANT factor.....there is nothing like living through a WAR as a child, to give one a lifelong aversion to war! There were sirens, and fear, and loved ones not returning, meat, dairy & sugar rationing. There was the "over the top" JOY on VE day! I was 6 at the time. Our kids will not have that experience nor will the Iraqi children!
The world changed on Jan 20 1981, not 9/11 01!
Be aware that Ray McGovern ( CIA; who left after 9/11, in protest of what HE saw going on.) was also arrested that day for speaking out in the hearing chamber, to suggest that Betrayus should swear an oath before giving his report. He was hauled off by the Captal Hill Police, and Betrayus did NOT swear to tell the truth the whole truth nothing but! Invalidating ( in my opinion, ) his entire report!

I saw the tape of Rev. Yearwood being arrested. He did NOT "assault" a police officer as they claim! He was merely trying to get away from the six or so police who were ganging up on him for no reason.

So they arrested Cindy for saying "arrest Bush, not Reverand." Unbelievable! What more proof do we need that we no longer have any rights and now live in a fascist police state.

"The Democrats are a bunch of ass kissing chickenshits!" AMEN They're useless.

DENISE

and you know what he'll answer........'insanity'.............

"My second question is why were Dede and I the only activists in that line to rush to Rev's aide? And even if the three dozen or so people weren't activists or friends of Rev, why did they just stand around and watch the spectacle as if they were calmly watching an episode of "Cops" on the Fox Channel?"

Because it is being instilled in our children to not fight even in their own defense from the time they enter school, and sometimes even earlier by well meaning but misguided parents.

School policy is not to determine who started a fight and expel them but to expel both parties regardless of fault. The message that is sent; "I better not fight, even to defend myself, or else I will get expelled. I better not stand up for myself or I will be punished." And if they are taught and learn not to stand up for themselves from that early age how can anyone be surprised that they won't stand up for someone else when they get older. Especially when the people doing the beating are authority figures.

That is why the passengers of only one flight, flight 93, were the only ones to physically rebel against being hijacked by terrorists armed with box cutters with a blade that is less than an inch long. Because everyone is taught not to confront, but to just go along to get along.

Lobo Gris

"Better to die standing than to live your life on your knees".

"Blame falls mainly on the apathetic populace who voted for Bush, and then stood by while his team inflected more damage on our republic, and the world, than any administration in our history."

No, people on the left need to stop blaming the American people. It is smug and self-serving. He was not elected by a majority of the people and got into power after he stole an election, disenfranchised voters, and was appointed by the Supreme Court.

When you slander the American people as being dumb and uncaring, you let the real criminals off the hook.

jdamu2-Add treason to the list of crimes. They all need to get the chair, the needle, the noose, the firing squad, whatever.

"My second question is why were Dede and I the only activists in that line to rush to Rev's aide? And even if the three dozen or so people weren't activists or friends of Rev, why did they just stand around and watch the spectacle as if they were calmly watching an episode of "Cops" on the Fox Channel?"

Fear. Cops can have itchy trigger fingers. Rev. Yearwood's very lucky. It could have been even worse.

"but I don't understand how kind people can be enforcers for the fascist animals who are clearly taking our country down a path of destruction that is facilitated by mere "wage slaves" whose main defense is: "we're only doing our jobs."

Again, fear. Fear that they'll lose their homes, not be able to fee their kids, get shot themselves, etc.

I'll admit it. I'm scared of cops. The boys in blue have a lot of bad apples amongst them.

Dichterfreund-Good ideas. Of course, you're likely going down the river if you pull that on a cop.

What a sureal reality we live in. peace is war, wrong is right, and justice is getting ass raped in a dark alley. This is complete and utter madness. It time for revolution my friends. Non violent revolution of values like Dr. King taked about in the 60's. We have to stop consuming. Stop buying their garbage from China and wake up to the reality of how violently we are being mentally and physically phucked by these vultures. We need to become self sustaining within our own communities. Organize and get togther with your neighbors create a viable social system where everyone provides their greatest talents within the community to make it stronger. Kinda like that cartoon the smurfs where everyone works together and expresses their God given talent to the help the community as a whole. Then when the time is right we pull up all of our anchors at once and watch these pitiful cowards run around and scramble to find new slave to run their plantnation. They won't know what hit then, and we will not turn back after that because we will have the egalitarian society we always hoped for. Now start organizing!!!!

The Democrats are a bunch of "ass kissing chickenshits!"

Why Blame Bush?

The unprecedented atrocities by this arrogant zealot and his henchmen, include stolen elections, disastrous war on our environment through manipulation of science, intimidation of congress with unprecedented character assassinations (ie branding a triple amputee Viet Vet for supporting an inquiry into the causes of 9/11), a grossly misguided war, & the list goes on.

Blame falls mainly on the apathetic populace who voted for Bush, and then stood by while his team inflected more damage on our republic, and the world, than any administration in our history.

As long as the NEOCNS in the Whitehouse call the shots for Isrtael with respect to Middle East Policy, and as long as our mainstream media who form the cheerleading propagandists for the state of Israel,our country is doomed to endless war.

Cindy's question about why people were just standing there watching a man get beaten - to the point of hospitalization! - is exactly the right question to ask. Even these supposed activists, then, have become passive voyeurs of spectacles, respectful of brutal cops, brainwashed as much as anyone by US popular culture and by the technologies that are supposed to have so improved our lives. Computers and TVs are good for some things, but they have also made us even more passive creatures. "Virtual" doesn't do anything. Yes, I'm reading this on a computer and sort of communicating with people on it, but much less actual change is accomplished when millions of people sit in front of screens than in the past when people took to the streets and too over buildings. In the 60s and earlier decades, you had people actively, physically preventing such brutally from occurring. Morals trumped all. These days, even people who call themselves activists are so afraid of being labeled "unreasonable" or "violent" that they won't even protect one of their own from getting maimed or killed. If that's the case, imagine how much more hopeless the situation is with that vast mass of the US public who consider themselves apolitical. There is no movement in the US these days. We're already in fascism, it has the potential to be much worse than HItler's Germany, and supposed activists counsel that we should take pictures and videos and send emails instead of physically taking action. Hopeless, just hopeless.

"Freedom isn't free" is a phrase all will nod to.

But, when it comes down to the dollar, how many sign up?

Do your values mean anything to the core of your being, or are you just wimpering?

"Charging fascist, bully-minded police with guns is not a great idea."

No, but there are other tactics which are available.

I like the idea from the vodka commercial -- take pillows. But there's nothing preventing us from becoming more inventive than the cops. Why not carry bags of syrup or glue, or the opposite, oil or some slick substance? or merely powdered sugar or something similar?

When physical force can't be met with physical force, the means of defeating security forces have to be more creative; and they are far too familiar with the tactics developed in the 1930s and the 1960s. . .

As much as I hate the war and what we are doing over there to both our own troops and the Iraqis I think people (at least those who agree with 911 Truth movement) should focus their energies more on 911. This is the crime that will put them away. They have beaten us over the head with 911 to start wars, they have beaten us over the head with 911 to grab unprecidented presidential power, they have beaten us over the head with 911 to margenalize any voice of opposition, they have beaten us over the head with 911 to shred the constitution until it realy is "Just a god damn piece of paper".

THIS is the club that we must turn upon our psychopathic leaders. They have infused it with their own dark power through endless repetition and zeal. What better weapon to use against them than their own. Any martial artist can tell you that using someone elses strength against them is the best way to defeat them.

I hate hearing of any incidence of police brutality and I hope that Rev will keep his chin up and heal soon. Heard your speach on YouTube Rev, Sounded great!

As to the issue of violent civil disobedience I simply do not believe it would do any good except to play straight into the hands of Americas internal enemies. Can't you hear them on Fox right now? "See, protestors are violent terrorist Osama lover's. Congress will be voting on Tuesday to authorize Patriot Acts 3&4."

I think that education is the key. Protest is realy a rather inefficient way to educate people in my opinion.

I've never been to a protest in my life because of this and because I don't realy trust myself to NOT fight back if abused or if I were to find myself standing next to some senior citizen who has just been knocked out by a tear gas canister. A prison cell doesn't make a very good free speach zone and assulting a police officer can put you out of the game for a loooong time.

I've recently joined 911truthseattle.org in distibuting informational documentaries. On 09/11/07 we handed out over 900 DVDs at the Pike Place Market with only a dozen or so people. So I've chosen the info war as my personal battleground. Even if you believe the official story of 911 and just oppose the war I believe this is a great approach and highly recommmend it.

When the curtain is completely pulled down the great Oz won't seem so scary anymore. That's when the police WILL arrest the president instead of the Rev.

Cindy, I sure hope you make it to the Congress, but I doubt it. It appears to me as if you don't know your own people. Most of them are like the zombies that were watching the Reverend being mauled, devoid of any feeling, sensibility, and courage.

You urge people to "… put unbearable pressure on Congress…" which surprises me as if you believe they are people's representatives. How do you expect people to vote for you when even you still have not given up believing in the corrupt system?

Rev. Yearwood, may you win in court. I hope you countersue for assault and battery and win that too. Ms. Sheehan, I hope you win too in your bid in the Bay Area and become one more true progressive in Congress. We need you there as much as we need Rep. Pelosi getting some new job outside of Congress.

The words I look forward to are: "George W. Bush, we've going to shave your ankles now."

It pisses me off that nobody in the alternative media seems to have posted that YouTube footage. I had sent it to some of them (including this website) and nobody covered it. I could be wrong. Someone may have picked it up, but it hardly got around.

The alternative media needs to post things that the MSM won't show anymore. If they fail, I don't know how people are going to know about it.

LivyPollio Said:
"Who was the reverend giving an interview to? A TV crew or a print journalist? Where were they when he was being beaten? And where are their pictures or words? You can't tell me they dashed off before any of this happened."

Here's the video footage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiradcejA6o

Not impeachment for BushCo. Arrest. And put on trial for war crimes.

Impeachment is a slap on the wrist.

You Guys are right. What mechanism exists in enforceable law that will provide for Bush/Cheney, and their gang of anti-American thugs, to be arrested and held for public trial?

Keep going, Cindy! It ain't over until the murdering scum are all in prison forever.

Here's an idea for a strategy. The group standing in line should have "voluntarily surrendered" to the police. Mob them, in essence, with your hands over your head while chanting, "I surrender, please don't beat me. I surrender, I was in line too. I surrender, please don't beat me. I surrender, I was in line too."

In court you could claim you were only surrendering to police peacefully since you were guilty of standing in line too. It would be an interesting case.

Charging fascist, bully-minded police with guns is not a great idea. Peacefully overwhelming them with your hands over your head for the same thing they were arresting Lennox for would have been a clever way of making more of a spectalce of the situation and drawing attention to the tactics of the police.

Personally though, I think the lone black man on the ground with 8 police officers on top of him makes a powerful statement. I hope Lennox sues them and wins.

Aggressive civil disobedience is definitely a great way to oppose this kind of oppression, but there's nothing wrong with video to back it up.
Who was the reverend giving an interview to? A TV crew or a print journalist? Where were they when he was being beaten? And where are their pictures or words? You can't tell me they dashed off before any of this happened.
This is another question Cindy and the rest of us should keep in mind. What is wrong with our free press?
I personally don't like them, but those little mobile cell phone/video cameras can work to our advantage in these situations.

jdamu2, I agree that impeachment wouldn't have the capability of punishing (assuming conviction) for the larger issues of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes; it would just remove Bush (or any other elected officer) immediately from office. Afterwards, however, criminal proceedings could then be initiated through various channels, including the International Criminal Court (if the national judicial system did not act).

The ICC is an independent, permanent court that tries persons accused of the most serious crimes of international concern. The ICC is based on a treaty, joined by 104 countries, but not including the United States.
It is a court of last resort. It will not act if a case is investigated or prosecuted by a national judicial system unless the national proceedings are not genuine, for example if formal proceedings were undertaken solely to shield a person from criminal responsibility. In addition, the ICC only tries those accused of the gravest crimes.

Impeachment would be the logical and most judicial method. Afterwards, other venues could step in to charge and try (assuming impeachment resulted in conviction, and assuming through discovery that at least one of the criteria for referral to the ICC were met).

to the video queen: gather evidence and present it to whom? the neocons own the congress the white house the courts the police. didnt you see what happened in Asheville? the cops came and beat the victim instead of the perp because the victim was anti bush. your fear of getting yourself beat is exactly the lack of committment that has this country screwed. this entire debacle has two solutions. 1. a gandhi like peaceful non cooperation. ain't gonna happen cuz there ain't no leaders or a willingness to follow. 2. a new american revolution to take back the country. however it gets carried out. thats it. have you noticed how the talk of impeachment has vanished? thats because the senate just as it was when the house of reps were looking for a senator to protest the 2000 election has been ordered to stand down. everyone else on here has a firm understanding of just how benign the dems in the house and senate are. and this thing has bled down to local law enforcement. right here in a new jersey suburb i watched police harass an 80 year old guy visiting from maine because his van had anti bush stickers on it. he was in a drop off zone but the cop insisted he was illegally parked and harassed the shit out of him. so get it straight cindys definitely got it right!

Words cannot describe how I feel about Cindy and her courage to continuously fight for justice and peace. As my mother in the movement, I am so happy that she stood up for me while I was being beaten in the halls of Congress. It was an amazing experience as a former U.S. Officer, to be beaten and lying in the halls of Congress, while another Officer was lying to Congress. And, I was the one who got arrested!

But thank you all, who have stood up for me in the past, and with me now as I continue to battle the US Capitol Police in court! We push on....Power to the People!

I hope to see all of you in the streets of DC on Saturday or sometime soon in the near future.

For future generations

Rev Yearwood

I still don't understand some members of the anti-war movement's fascinaion with impeaching George Bush. After the impeachment of Bill Clinton for getting a blow job in the Oval Office (the Oval Oriface?)the act of impeachment certainly doesn't seem to fit Bush's crime of illegal and unnecessary war. Since the day of the invasion, in what 2003 now (?) I've always believed and advocated that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and Rice be publicly held accountable in front of a war crimes tribunal for crimes against humanity. What is the difference between Hitler masquerading Polish speaking German soldiers as Poles, having them attack a German border station and using that as a pretext for invading Poland, and Bush declaring Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction and using that as a pretext for invading Iraq? Impeachment doesn't do the crime justice and would not necessarily guarantee another US president wouldn't do the same. If Charles Taylor, former president of Liberia is in jail facing war crimes trials, Bush and Co. should join him.

First, funding for the Iraq war must stop immediately. Second, the president and vice president must be arrested, indicted, and put on trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The list is long of war criminals in this government, but start with these two. Only then will any semblance of healing begin.

"es, the Democrats will symbolically squawk about Bush's new idiotic plan to keep the war going until my grandchildren are old enough to be deployed to "Amer-Iraq" but they will dutifully lick his hand like abused dogs, roll over, and fund the continued insanity: the Dems remind me of Pomeranians hiding under the sofa, shaking, but barking like crazy while Rethugs steal our treasure blind."

Pomeranians will occasionally bite, Pelosicrats won't.

"I tried to ascertain what was wrong and what the Rev had done that necessitated a beating like that and one of the Capitol Hill cops snidely said, "I don't know, I guess he fell.""

Those who think that Gandhian tactics will somehow shame American cops should ponder these & similar comments; and ponder also that Gandhian tactics never stopped a national government from launching or sustaining wars & occupations.

TO THE DEMS

I have been meaning to write something like this for awhile because of your feckless responses and kowtowing to a president who is out to destroy this country. Why? Because you are cynical and political to an extreme. It is either that or you want to have all the stuff that is on the books now plus a war that you think will help you and without the blame. This is neither humanistic or morally defendable. Petraeus got what he deserves and cutting off funds for this war is the way to go because when it comes to priorities for this occupation it is contractors first and troops last. You can see this from any facts that you look at. So who cares for the troops? Some of you have been doing a lot of talking but nobody has thrown a rock at this glass house of an administration. Leave it to the people thru MoveOn.Org to do the heavy lifting for what you are supposed to be doing. You will not get my vote because you are no better than the repubs. Is there any difference in dictators, if one is a dem. or a repub? The way that you are acting you just want the whole pie for yourselves and forget the people again. I'm 71 and cant help but wonder what of the younger people? Because of your feckless nature it is a bleak future for them. Tony

I respectfully disagree. I admire Sheehan but disagree with her call to rally peaceful citizens to "combat" well numbered, well armed and willing brutalizers known as the police and security. Trying to "rescue" someone from being pulverized by 6 cops is a great way to get beaten yourself and arrested and tried for assualting officers, or worse.

I recommend instead that civil disobediance incorporate photographic evidence, audio evidence, and video evidence. These recording devices are small, cheap and plentiful. Post your audios, videos, and photos on all free sharing resources you know of.

Post your media evidence online for everyone to see. It will be shared by more people and has a greater impact than a written description or typed news story.

If one can't carry these items inside an event then ask friends to stand in line with you who will not be going inside to take them back to the car.

If you're going to be capturing media at events on a regular basis, then consider investing in a hidden camera set up.

Nerissa

The best words that I soooo look forward to are: "George W. Bush, how do you plead?"

Please join the self-organizing group of Sheehan campaign supporters: http://www.sheehanforcongress.us

This incident MUST be taken to court and be more widely publicised. Physical assault of a prominent grassroots political figure, for engaging in a constitutional right, by uniformed police in the halls of congress is a key historical turning point of our times. There is video evidence (linked above), there are several witness including Sheenan. The slim resources of law and media might be all we have left, and this is as good a point of leverage as one could hope for. Alternative media will follow a legal case, and sympathisers in mainstream media will then a have an excuse to run the story. Olbermann springs to mind. Key snippets of the video (and all video-news is snippets) will look a lot more dramatic than the full reel, and in the fact-sifted context of a legal case will have a real impact on the average Amercian, who is presently only very dimly aware that their country aint' what it used to be.

Nothing, I guess and then we get Hillary. Four more years of war from these bitches.

What the hell can we do to get rid of Pelosi?