Thousands Protest Iraq War Across US
SAN FRANCISCO - Thousands of people called for a swift end to the war in Iraq as they marched through downtown on Saturday, chanting and carrying signs that read: “Wall Street Gets Rich, Iraqis and GIs Die” or “Drop Tuition Not Bombs.”
The streets were filled with thousands as labor union members, anti-war activists, clergy and others rallied near City Hall before marching to Dolores Park.
As part of the demonstration, protesters fell on Market Street as part of a “die in” to commemorate the thousands of American soldiers and Iraqi citizens who have died since the conflict began in March 2003.
The protest was the largest in a series of war protests taking place in New York, Los Angeles and other U.S. cities, organizers said.
No official head count was available. Organizers of the event estimated about 30,000 people participated in San Francisco. It appeared that more than 10,000 people attended the march.
“I got the sense that many people were at a demonstration for the first time,” said Sarah Sloan, one of the event’s organizers. “That’s something that’s really changed. People have realized the right thing to do is to take to the streets.”
In the shadow of the National Constitution Center and Independence Hall in Philadelphia, a few hundred protesters ranging from grade school-aged children to senior citizens called on President Bush to end funding for the war and bring troops home.
Marchers who braved severe wet weather during the walk of more than 30 blocks were met by people lining the sidewalks and clutching a long yellow ribbon over the final blocks before Independence Mall. There, the rally opened with songs and prayers by descendants of Lenape Indians.
“Our signs are limp from the rain and the ground is soggy, but out spirits are high,” said Bal Pinguel, of the American Friends Service Committee, one of the national sponsors of the event. “The high price we are paying is the more than 3,800 troops who have been killed in the war in Iraq.”
Vince Robbins, 51, of Mount Holly, N.J., said there needed to be more rallies and more outrage.
“Where’s the outcry? Where’s the horror that almost 4,000 Americans have died in a foreign country that we invaded?” Robbins said. “I’m almost as angry at the American people as I am the president. I think Americans have become apathetic and placid about the whole thing.”
In New York, among the thousands marching down Broadway was a man carrying cardboard peace doves. Some others dressed as prisoners, wearing the bright orange garb of Guantanamo Bay inmates and pushing a person in a cage.
Chicago police said about 5,000 people marched through city streets to protest the war.
Police spokeswoman JoAnn Taylor said three protesters were arrested before the march started. They face charges including resisting arrest, failure to obey a police officer, criminal damage to property and aggravated battery to a police officer.
In Seattle, thousands of marchers were led by a small group of Iraq war veterans.
At Occidental Park, where the protesters rallied after the march, the American Friends Service Committee displayed scores of combat boots, one pair for each U.S. solider killed in Iraq.
Associated Press writer Bob Lentz in Philadelphia contributed to this report.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.
I attended a protest in Buffalo NY organized by Women in Black. There were about a dozen protesters. Very well received with passers by honking in support. It shows that anti war sentiment is deepening.
I was at a protest in Ashland oregon there were about 150 people there, and lots of honking cars. Ashland has only 20000 people, not a bad turnout, imagine how many other little towns are doing the same….of course no news in the main media..
With all due respect, “antiwar sentiment” expressed by the honking of a horn (while say, talking on a cellphone en route to Sunday brunch) could reach 99.9 percnet and it wouldn’t make a damn bit of difference. It is precisely that type of ephemeral, recreational antiwar sentiment that perpetuates the catastrophe–which will continue so long as protestors stay on the sidewalk rather than blocking traffic and/or making some sort of attempt to risk themselves and disrupt daily life. To think that the Women in Black protester complacently felt as though she had done her duty for the day, and that change is on the horizon attests to the powerlessness (and obliviousness)of the powerless.
Good deal, Bush will see the light now. Praise the Lord.
Media sholuld be courted by protesters. Mention of the hundreds of protests everywhere have not made it beyond places like CommonDreams.
Our Orlando protest news will have to wait until participants return to town with their photos.
The disdain of Brush Off Bush doesn’t mean we don’t gall the hell out of him.
Muslims who’ve had their babies, brothers, sisters, parents, and other family members killed by our bombs and bullets need to see us on the streets.
Let’s not criticize each other or allow the infiltrators to dampen the spirit of rebellion.
When the government doesn’t listen to the people, the people have a constitutional right to join together in an insurrection. My Congressmen write me back and tell me why I have to change, why I have to support the Bush Way. They don’t listen to me nor represent me. We need to light the fires of conscience and let them burn brightly. We need more folks to shout out the protest inside the chambers of Congress.
Let’s encourage not denigrate each other. Every honk counts. Every finger raised is merely persons showing off their pride in their single I.Q. point. The obscene gestures are the ones that don’t count.
Only 10,000?? where are the rest of The American People? 3800 (at least, and I believe more than that!) troops dead, one million Iraqis dead, two million external refugees and about two million internally displaced Iraqis. Wouldn’t one think that more than 10,000 bay area people could haul their butts out of their coffee shops and do a bit more than recreational anti-war protesting?
Ho hum. Please pass the pretzels.
When they start marching with rifles in hand, maybe then someone will actually take notice. Until then, … Well, I suppose they should be given a pat on the head for having good intentions, but that’s about all.
About 600 participated here in Denver. The organizers made repeated calls from the podium for folk to participate more in weekly street vigils to get the message out, since the corporate press will not do that job for us. We have the public on our side, but at this time they are not angry enough to participate more in the marches and rallies. The support from people passing by was loud and enthusiastic though.
And, what did you do Dasha?
sorry to say, most americans are only bothered because they haven’t lost the ability to be compassionate, and if they get that far, then their conscience. and as our political leaders so adequately demonstrate, what’s the conscience really?
I participated in protest against the illegal occupation when 300,000+ of us marched through the streets of San Francisco, yet even then that seemed to be a small showing. It is great to see the protest spirit, however, I am with MotherSpeak and Dasha, where we need TENS OF MILLIONS in the street disrupting traffic, commerce, legislation, and other means on WEEKDAYS to really make a statement. Until then, Bush & Co will continue ridiculing us by giving us the finger and changing the channel to watch Fux News.
Sadly, I think the only way we will get more people out in the streets is when things become more economically painful and inconvenient to the point where people become irate enough to actually show up in the streets demanding reform. But from the looks of the situation, everything will have to get much worse to get larger numbers of people to participate in the demonstrations.
Okay, Bush is not listening. Pelosi and Reid are barely paying attention. The media dutifully reports us as colorful clowns.
Who is the audience, who is the target?
We are, We the People. The point of demonstrating is to make a point to each other, to our neighbors, coworkers, friends and enemies alike. It is to show that we are aware and we care.
That in itself is not enough to stop the war, but it is an essential step. Online is a step, in the streets is better, in Congressional offices better still, blocking the entrances and lying down on the tracks is better still. Aiding soldiers who refuse, getting out the message of the Iraqi resistance and the news of what is going on over there, bringing the message to the media and to Congress and directly to the People when the powerful don’t listen… That is what an antiwar movement looks like. Marching in the streets is not enough, but it is essential.
And sorry, but, guns are for assholes.
That’s it Annabelle, dismiss the seriousness of the discussion with the childish “and what did you do?” (which amounts to saying: “if you don’t like things in this country, why don’t you just leave?”). You mistakenly assumed I didn’t take part in one of the demonstrations. The point is doing so brought it home how much more needs to be done, especially given how few of those present shared my sentiments. So: rather than returning with ‘And what did you do Annabelle?”, I’ll ask: how do you want to help me and us do something besides write each other on this website?
@Dasha
I attended the march in Boston and we were not confined to the sidewalk. The march occupied major streets in the downtown section, holding up traffic for a considerable time. I saw at least one motorist losing his patience over the traffic blockage. Also, look at the photo in this article and see that the same occurred in San Francisco as well.
Personally, I think that one of the things that, as you say, perpetuates the catastrophe is people who speak about such public protests as if they are not worth the effort. And yes, there are plenty of other, more productive ways to encourage a change in our government’s foreign policy. For example, you could hire a lobbyist and have him pay the Democratic and Republican parties $50,000,000,000 each in campaign contributions on the condition that they work to end the war. I’m anxious to read about your donations, which will most probably be reported in the news.
If you can’t come up with my suggested $100,000,000,000, maybe you could consider joining us at the next demonstration? Perhaps it’s not as effective as donating $100,000,000,000, but it is not a waste of time.
I believe we are on the verge of critical mass, in that many are ready, or near ready to start hitting the streets. Nothing builds numbers like numbers, and the social conscience is awakening to that. I think that once it starts, you’ll see the physical evidence of a MASSIVE amount of pent-up frustration being unleashed. No, not in physical violence, but in taking part IN MASS.
Supposedly the hard line talabangelicals are loosing their grip in ‘damn near’ free-fall. I hope it will be a cold day in hell before society forgives those ^**&^%$^(^%##$%ards for what they’ve done to this country….and the world.
The U.S. peace activists may make a better point if they would join with the NRA and take to the streets. If we show up on weekdays and disrupt the economic flow of the military industrial govorporation, and we show up with a rifle in each hand, then perhaps the power will take us seriously. The poll numbers do not matter to Bush, to the Republicans or to the Democrats; they all continue to not only fund the occupation of a foreign nation, but they also vote to fund all of the U.S. military bases throughout the world. Let’s use some marketing savvy and join forces w/ the NRA. The next right the Right may choose to eliminate just might be the second amendment, the right to bear arms.
Orez_Eno, no, is it not a waste of time… but time is running out. And, if you are engaging with anti-war groups - as I have, and do, and am losing patience with - you know that we, the people, are our own worst enemies. We fight, and backbite, and undermine, and compete — all very nice appearing but behind that is a fight to the death for personal recognition, personal celebrity, personal gratification. As someone not born in the US I find these unconscious behaviors distressing as so many people here act as if they are, somehow, above the petty bickering that is an intense reality in the “left”, including the “peace” groups. I believe it is called “individualism” here…
We must bite the bullet (ugh, wrong words,eh?) and understand that we are all implicated in the travesties we/American perpetuates around the world and that we are all “human” in the sense of fallible and egocentric… then we may learn the skills of collective and effective action… and humility….
Well said, Motherspeak. Confronting these unconscious hankerings for personal gratification would be a critical preliminary step to take as we begin to intensify the frequency, duration and types of protest activities. Orez-Eno: please read more carefully. The point is protests are worth still more effort. And why engage in the kind of personal attack that seems to model itself after the O’Reily Factor?
In 1965, Barry McGuire was already fed up with the futility of demonstrations:
“And marches alone can’t bring integration
When human respect is disintegrating”
Most people thought when they cast their votes for Democrats last November that they were voting for a quick end to the occupation, but have had the Blue Dogs, Capitulosi-Crats and Emanuelites and their political consultants dumping their chamberpots on any who have the temerity to question their good intentions.
Of course there isn’t a single political agenda animating all those who oppose the occupation; it’s absurd to think it could be otherwise, and beside the point to chide people for coming at the problem from different angles. The absence of internicine conflicts among opponents of the war wouldn’t impress the War party either.
From marches to CD to direct action, we need it all. February 15th, 2003 didn’t end the war, that’s true. But movements aren’t built by making a statement en masse, then giving up when it doesn’t work. Keep going, keeping pushing, la lucha, sigue, sigue!
What is true though is that people get tired out. Activist burnout is real - so recharge yourself, *don’t get bitter* (I repeat: DO NOT GET BITTER), and carry on when you’re ready. The appearance of new faces is a very good sign - it means that we may be evolving to the point where people can cycle in and out as their bodies, hearts and minds need to, while keeping up the pressure. Keep it up, people!
I went to the march in New York City. The heavy rain could not deter the enthusiasm of the New York Crowd.
As we marched passed by Canal Street ( a mecca for shopping) a group of us began to yelled, “Stop Shopping” and “Join Us” the stunned crowd was pretty horrify. lol
Shout out to friends who came to the NYC march from Fairleigh Dickerson University in N.J.
Channel 1 News (Time-Warner Cable) said there were 40,000 protesters.
The biggest problem with the honking-for-peace drivers, besides the “ephemeral, recreational” (well-said Dasha) is their hypocracy. The car horn and car it is attached to, is literally fueled by Iraqi blood.
Must I remind you that the current, 75% completed, destruction of an entire nation is for the control of oil supplies and prices - so American can keep on driving those cars?
Good start, folks. Someone above mentioned 1964 and the futility of marches - yes, in 1964 the marches were small (but sincere), but they grew slowly but surely over the next ten years. Notice - TEN YEARS. Those big protests from the ’60s you see on TV didn’t start overnight - they started with small groups and got bigger. And 40,000 in NYC sounds like a pretty good crowd to me. In 1964 we would have fainted if 40,000 turned out.
And this isn’t even the start - it’s a continuation of the ones that have already gone before.
The honking by supporters is most encouraging of all - back in the 60’s passing cars usually gave us the finger.
Things have improved. They used to shoot protesters. If we stop protesting, or if we lessen our protesting, the so-called authorities may go back to shooting us. We must increase the numbers, but even a million marching in London didn’t keep Britain out of Iraq. Even when 70% oppose the war, the Decider pushes on with the plan to share our tax money with Halliburton, Boeing and the snakes at Blackwater.
Just like many keep posting and saying that, “Dennis Kucinich doesn’t have a chance in hell of getting elected because….”, allow me to say here that protesting doesn’t have a chance in hell of succeeding.
“We The People”’s voices mean nothing to a deaf government machine bent on fulfilling their own agenda. Citizens of the “Corporate States of America” are dumbed down MUCH more since the Vietnam protests of the 1960’s and 1970’s. You may as well just setle back with a beer in front of reality T.V. or go shopping and let the dominoes fall.
Exactly which candidates for President joined the marches?
Keep on protesting.
The world may not change, but that does not mean you have not affected the world.
As Gandhi said, it may not seem to you at the moment that what you do makes a difference, but that does not absolve you from the duty to do the little you can do.
If it wasn’t for sites like Common Dreams, I would have never heard about these protests. Keep up the good work and take the power back!
When the million marched in London, the decision to go to war had already been arranged/agreed between the U.K. & America. The despair felt amongst myself & fellow marchers when the bombs starting blasting on Bagdad was deeply sickening. The pain in our hearts for what was being “done in our name” was so hard to live with.
It was difficult to fight the “was it worthwhile” feeling & the thought that - did I do this just to make myself “feel better”. But I knew I had to fight against both thought patterns because they could provide me with an excuse for doing nothing.
The current situation in the U.K. is,I beleive, that when “the system” tells America/Israel to go for Iran,the U.K. will not join in. If they do - WE WILL HAVE A BLOODY REVOLUTION!!!!!
Dasha, shame on you for being such a wet blanket (moron?). You have no right to call out the person who spent there day doing something that more americans should have been doing but weren’t. good for you person in buffalo. and dasha, don’t get on a blog and vent your frustrations out on people who feel the same way (generally) as you do about the world. I hope you got “out in the street” and blocked traffic yourself?
I just watched a series of YouTubes that made me sick. Here’s the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSnHudm5Cmk
These are GI’s, teasing kids for water, mocking them, making them chase a truck for blocks to try to get one bottle of clean water. And laughing and giggling the whole time, calling them insulting names, etcetera.
If I were there, I would spit on them. They are not worthy of the uniform or the flag. If that is a fair example of what we are doing, we will just cultivate implacable hate, and we will have earned it.
We need to get out now! I have to assume that these GI’s were not originally that way, it is learned behavior, bullying behavior. They treat these kids as less than human.
I think the kids show more dignity than they do, despite their poverty and thirst. The GI’s even joke about how dehydrated they look! Watch these, perhaps you’ll hit the streets next time or hold a vigil on a street corner.
Maybe some of the protests should target the media.
How about protesters outside some of the tv staions with signs about how the media helped lie us into a war.
A BIG part of the problem has been the media and how they have limited the debate
People who get their news on the internet are much more informed than people who get their news from tv
When I’ve been in protest groups everyone has tried to be nice to the media in the hopes that they would carry some of the information out to the public. I would like to see an in your face group that went after Fox news.
Underwhelming but not overwhlemingly underwhelming.
I wish it had been millions protesting this weekend, instead of thousands. But at least it was a rekindling of people action not seen since the pre-war protests of 2002-03. So let’s not put it down so fast.
Like Nader2000, PrestonDigitator and others above say, it isn’t enough, but its a critical first step.
We need to feed this rekindled fire, not throw cold water on it. And sure, as we feed it we need to make it more disruptive; more tactically sophisticated, so it gets right into the personal faces of our government’s business-as-usual, daily duty doers.
Kucinich could help a lot, if he’d take on some leadership right now and try to help foster and solidify and expand the protest energy.
If he did that quick enough, he could even afford to dump his campaign-fatal Democrat label, survive the Primary elections, and move into the General election campaign as a clear strong voice for reform with millions behind him.
All praise to those in the streets today—Yes, an excellent idea for a new anti-war tactic: go after the media demanding that the reportage live up to their people-granted right to use the airwaves; as if they actually should be part of landscape that gives them existence beyond sucking money from its daily blood….In turn that can help increase awareness of the facts in more and more people….
Its time to let people know that Fox is a propaganda tool by the right wing and those of us opposed to Fox won’t shop or buy things from people who advertise on Fox.
If you go into doctor’s office and they have Fox news on…ask them to change the channel.
When I’ve gone into rest stops on the highway, if the tv is set to Fox I won’t buy anything there.
Click the link to watch a short video of the performance by five ladies from Boise Idaho at the Peace Rally in Salt Lake City 27 October. Their rendition of ‘Home on the Range’ will have you humming it for hours.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Szzqa_xTvhM
Staging some sort of action against the media sounds promising: especially if it called specific networks by name and challenged, say, a 24 news network with evidently plenty of time on its hands to “cover” the event; of course, this would require a demonstration lasting more than one day.
Impeach the f: are you aware how closely your line of attack resembles the rantings of the “fucker” himself? You are either with us or you are against us. You either pat a protestor on the back or you join the ranks of the enemy.
Here in Flagstaff, Arizona we had more than 40,000 people protesting, and at least 20,000 of us paraded naked. We shut down the entire city, closed all the freeway entrances, occupied all of the federal buildings, opened all the jails, set the captives free, etc.. The police were helpless in the face of the onslaught. As the entire population of the town is only about 50,000, our march and rally had about 80 to 90 percent of the city show up. I think the only people who didn’t show up were the local media. Complete blackout there. No TV, no radio, no print coverage. Go figure. If the rest of you slackers can’t get it together like us, I think our next move is to secede and join the Bolivarian revolution.
There are some who say do nothing …but yet they say they want things to change? Huh? They say to others… who are actively doing something that marching doesn’t accomplish much …so presumably they feel it’s best to do nothing as if that would accomplish more?
So how does this type of unthinking work? Doing nothing simply permits what you would rather was changed, to go on undisturbed. To listen to them whine, doing SOMETHING like joining a march, doesn’t ‘do anything’! What is their solution then… to have everyone go back to doing nothing? HUH?
You march for yourself. You did SOMETHING to say NO, to what you oppose, while others simply accept it passively. Those who march spoke up while others for all their whining, in fact remained silent.
Did the marches in the sixties do anything? History answers the question yet some insist that marching accomplishes nothing. Too many want instant gratification, as if any one march or something was supposed to magically end this war tomorrow.
Yes it is a process and it takes time and effort. Ever ask who organizes these marches? Someone is DOING and it takes work. Rather than join a march (much less help organize a bigger turnout), some dismissively say marching does nothing, rather than seeing the need for themselves to pitch in and help organize a bigger turnout.
Imagine there was just one person who marched alone. Some would ask “Why would they bother, it won’t change anything!”. That one person did it if only to say “This is me and I say no.” We only have this one life and for those who know right from wrong… passively accepting things that we feel is wrong is burdensome. So they march and say NO. That is all. They want to say NO. If it is only one person who wants in their only life to stand against something they feel is wrong, that person knows that they did something to show it rather than doing nothing. Others did nothing at all and thereby said yes or remained silent in the face of wrong.
But… that one person …walking alone soon has others who also would show they say NO to wrong. Once Cindy Sheehan stood by a roadside alone in her grief. Some said why doesn’t she just go home, it accomplishes nothing. But Cindy couldn’t just go home… that to her was just accepting …and that she couldn’t do. So she stood alone. She did that for her son’s memory… rather than do nothing and merely accept his death passively.
What could a single person accomplish by themselves many kept on asking. Some who asked said she was right and then joined her. Others kept coming to join her.
So when you ask does ‘doing something’ ever do ‘anything’ … it’s better to ask yourselves whether or not doing nothing would somehow accomplish more? Cindy refused to nothing even if it was to be just her by herself standing there alone.
What good would it do they asked, just one person? Cindy has accomplished much since then.
So if you feel marching says nothing then shut up because you are remaining silent anyway. That’s the least …you can do.
Say NO…or you say nothing… and saying nothing against wrong let’s it go on undisturbed.
Choose who you are. It is either or. Say NO…or you accept passively and say nothing. Whining doesn’t count… marching does. Those people said no and when they marched they showed it.
Whining doesn’t count.
Well, the real George W. Bush is just waiting for an opportunity to declare martial law, so despite the temptation to haul rifles along, as someone suggested, please do not, but, hey, applause to all for making the numbers impressive, and now, all participants, thus far, need to bring at least one other person to DOUBLE the numbers for the next one. I sadly was not able to make it to the Seattle protest, which quite a few thousand appeared.
Hey, “gwb” from above me, are you serious about Flagstaff? Naked? Setting captives free? Hmmmm, skepticism is in order here.
Correction > Cindy refused to do nothing…
It bore repeating anyway.
Going on anti war marches is total waste of time. The onlt hope is Russia and China, simple as that. And Russia has to stand up, directly or indiretly against this modern day Hitler and his evil regime.
We had a good march in Boston- the biggest i’ve seen since 1990 when we had a memorably huge turnout yelling no to war on Iraq. i do understand how frustrating it can be- i been out there since Vietnam- but that’s no reason to stop. we need to march and yell until everyone in the country joins us.
I missed this march but I’ve been on several and use to protest every week with a group.
Its a good experience to be with others who share your point of view and it is an eyeopener when you see who the people are who are protesting.
Most of the protesters are middle class people and are well dressed.
These are NOT hippies. A few are counter culture but the overwhelming majority are ordinary Americans and look like a cross section of America.
If you see the people protesting and the numbers who are there that gives more evidence of how the media is distorting information.
I wonder why Common Dreams removed the article “Protester Waves Blood-Colored Hands In Rice’s Face” (dated October 24, 2007).
I marched in Ft Lauderdale. We had several hundred people. While I wish it would have been more, not even two years ago our numbers were a handful. Yesterday it was many people’s first protest. We are growing. We are making important personal contacts. Who knows? Maybe someday these contacts will be the resistance to the totalitarian government? Until then, we must at least try to create some pressure toward change. Stop complaining and get out and join us. We can make a difference, we MUST make a difference.
The middle or professional classes are an ally, but waiting for them to assume leadership is a waste of time. They’ve frittered away precious time leading us back into the “democratic” party, instead of using their time and resource to build something new. They can help, but they can’t lead anymore. Their leadership has been a disaster for thirty years now.
Protest no,
demonstration yes - in the street, at the store, at work - staunch verve, human dignity, loving and praying for enemies, creative consciousness…
extending hands beyond afflictions, making those that Bush and Cheney and the Red Brigade have intimidated and disenfranchised from their humanity through fear to feel part of a secured community.
Brian Moore, Socialist candidate for President, participated in the Orlando demonstration on Saturday. www.votebrianmoore.com
I was in the Philadelphia March. The AP article was incorrect regarding the number of marchers. I estimated about 1,500 on the day of the march. The organizers estimated 2,000, and the Philadelphia Police Department estimated 5,000.
I found the march to be inspiring. Many of the elected leader of our country appear to be wearing perpetual grimaces on their faces. By contrast, many of our marchers were smiling.
Our reception by the public Saturday downtown traffic was very positive. The cabbies are definately on our side. The tide is turning against Bushwarld. Even a Hummer took up our cause, honking noisely down market street. I am aware of the obvious inconsistency, which makes their conversion to our viewpoint all the sweeter.
Kip
Kip Leitner
I just read up on Brian Moore. Pretty impressive background.
I suspect that the AP reporter who reported on the Phila event did not understand how it worked. It started out as a human chain 38 blocks long, from the VA Hospital to the Phila Federal Bldg. The march started at the VA Hospital, joined by everyone as it progressed, ending with the rally at Independence Mall. Someone may have seen the people gathered at the end before the march actually got there, and so reported an incorrectly low number.
My local group reported the following:
“Each of the thirty-eight of the blocks of human chain was covered by a different area group, union, or faith community. A yellow tape stretched the length of each block from 12:30PM - 1PM. At 1PM, a march with anti-war veterans started from 38th & Woodland following the route of the chain. With each block, the march grew, at mid-way covering more than three blocks, again according to police reports.”
Fran
i would like to think that there are huge numbers of us expressing ourselves, but after a friend told me there was one bus and two train cars out of detroit and one bus out of ann arbor, i think what our demonstrations amounted to was a faint whisper.
bush was the one who vetoed state children’s health insurance programs as “budget busting” at the rate of $35 billion for the next five years, then two days later requested $196.4 billion for the iraq war.
i rest my case.
One of the comments mentioned the Bolivarian revolution. When I consider Hugo Chavez, I look to his actions as president of his country. While he sounds a bit over the top when he speaks, his ACTIONS are those of a good and great man. Imagine, thinking and acting upon the concept that the resources of his country belong to the people. ALL the people.
Veteran 66-68
I’m with Abuelito: “We need to march and yell until everyone in the country joins us.”
The crowd was small here in Tucson, maybe 500, though I could be way off. Most were “nicely determined”. I was one of the few that was “nicely LOUD”. The majority of people in passing cars were honking, yelling support and waving peace fingers. A few fingers here and there went the other way. I was pleased to see the smiling, positive support passing by. The few that disagreed looked very grumpy and bitter. There seems to be some kind of an unspoken current of knowing that things will turn around somehow, probably because most of us know it has to or we will all fall prey to the, well, what can I say, the satanic insanity that wishes to gorge on us all. Peace out brothers and sisters, we will prevail!
Oh, and I want to add, let’s do it again, real soon!
Dasha .. I’m confused by your posts here … your first post indicates to me that you are someone who did not participate and feels it is useless … Bashing the “woman in black” for feeling like she accomplished something … guess what …she did!! What a load of bush manure you are spreading here… And FYI … horns honking have always been an acceptable form of solidarity …. are you new to protest marches or what ???
You argue in another post that you supposedly did march … but where ?? Anyone who has ever marched knows that something has been accomplished and will never sit at home again … Your bashing of activists marching is totally unwarrented … What’s the story?? Sounds like you’re trying to do a little d & c …
I marched in Los Angeles … and it was a great high … as always …
Sooner or later we will be rid of this gestapo administration, but probably without much action from you …
This article is from the associated press .. a bush puppet group … not a friend of the people… In the photo of the San Francisco march alone there are at least twenty thousand people marching … not 10,000
And speaking of protests, We The People also showed where we stand on the issue of torture:
“Lionsgate’s “Saw IV” got the blood flowing a bit in the recently lifeless domestic box office, opening at No. 1 with an estimated $32.1 million during the pre-Halloween weekend.”
Yup - we love it!
I’m joining this a little late, but..
I think it is interesting that so much energy is spent between us all ‘debating’ approaches, rather than embracing the diversity. Diversity is applicable to many things, including approaches or means or necessities or methods of protest/change/advancement of any sort.
Yes, the ‘more’ we do, the better. It is critical that we all do more.
But it does build, grow, as do all things. Be peaceful, stand on the sidewalk, block the street, shut down business, make a fuss, do it politely, whatever, don’t be polite, assert your 2nd amendment right, be yourself. As we do this, and see others do what they feel, we will all do more and more and more.
I have yet to hear of a human being who transformed from a true monster into a truly enlightened guru overnight, have any of you?
We can’t stop bickering, can we, because all the protests and demonstrations (I was at the big one in DC, pre-invasion, traveling 2000 miles)haven’t really accomplished much, despite everyone’s insistence that they have, or haven’t, as the case may be. It’s a great high, some say, it’s pointless, say others, and BugsBunny says it’s heroically effective because doing nothing is basically the very worst response, even when doing all one can (Cindy Sheehan) hasn’t stopped anything Bush/Cheney have wanted to do. They just keep right on truckin’ and bombin’.
Guns in the streets will only bring out the big guns and we’ll get nowhere. Congress and the MSM are the enemy as much as Bush and his circle of warmongers. Nobody really knows what to do that will stop an insane meaningless war (except for controlling the oil and all the profits flowing therefrom) that’s gone on 4 years, 7 months, but we all have our furious opinions and take ferocious stands.
Still the killing proceeds, whether we honk, march, carry banners and signs and all join together in fear and loathing of the bastards who work tirelessly to bring on the Apocalypse. It would appear their evil is far stronger than all our well-intended actions or inactions.
Outside of Kucinich, Feingold and a handful of others in Washington, we have no representation on this matter. A handful can’t overcome the complicity and docility of the vast majority, echoed by the same pro-war media. We clamor, argue, get frustrated or elated, beat back bitterness though we wake up bitter the next morning, and still we don’t really know what to do.
I await my flogging from BugsBunny, et al.
One of the people who was potesting in a weekly vigil was a man retired from the military who had neen a medical doctor. This was before there was wide spred support for protesters and as people drove past him I once heard one person shout, “Get a job.”
Another perosn who was protesting every week was a man who had adult children who were in the military stationed in Italy and he was in a divinity school preparing for the ministry. News media cars drove past us once in a while and the people inside would grimace. As far as I know there was no news story about those weekly protests.
When I’ve gone on marches in NYC and in Washington I like to talk with other protesters and they are so well informed its like talking with graduate students specializing in political science. I think they know more and are more intelligent than the people in the main stream news who are reporting on the protests.
The news media has failed to show what these protesters are like and some people still think of the 1960’s when many protesters were young college students. These protesters are people who have lived productive lives and are turning against policies they consider immoral. Many are members of churches and are taking a stand based upon religious principles.
The owners of the main stream media are choosing as reporters people who are intellectually shallow and who will not do investigative reporting imo.
The number one way to protest the war is stop burning so much oil in your personal lives (direct or indirect consumption). Use your bike.
Heres an example, Do you know who this person is?
“She received a Masters degree in Public Health from Columbia University and a Masters degree in Economics from the New School for Social Research.”
“She worked for ten years as an economist and nutritionist in Latin America and Africa for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the World Health Organization, the Swedish International Development Agency, and the Institute for Food and Development Policy. She spent four years in Cuba, and has authored three books on the country.”
Above quotes from wikipedia.
So this is a well educated person who has worked in some international positions ..right? and news media should give her credentials and listen to her opinion?
This is Medea Benjamin from Code Pink and the only tool she has to gain media attention is by dressing in pink and making jokes. This buffoonery is not Benjamin’s fault. She is doing what she needs to do to break through the media shut down.
There are some very intelligent people who can not get on tv to give their views because the media is owned by people who are in the status quo. They do not want dissent to grow.
Go after the media and protest their lack of reporting.
Paul Krugman quotes:
“To what extent is news coverage biased by the corporate interest of the parents?” And that’s hard to pin down in any direct way, but one of the interesting things that you notice right now is the remarkable reluctance of some of the networks to follow what the viewer ship numbers seem to be saying.”
“I mean, look at Olbermann’s show versus anything else at MSNBC, for example. Why aren’t there more programs like that? ”
“Why is CNN still trying to be Fox Lite, when you clearly can’t outfox Fox and there clearly seems to be a bigger market opportunity on the other side? And you really do start to think that — there probably aren’t, at networks other than Fox, there probably aren’t memos saying here is how we are going to slant the news today - at Fox there are, everyday. But there’s probably this general sort of pressure to go for the views that won’t upset the CEO of the firm that controls the network that has a lot of business interests that are best served by one side or the other… so yes, this is a problem.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rory-oconnor/the-media-conscience-of-a_b_68864.html
……………………
Imo many people think the media is on our side. They are not. The media is as much a part of the problem as the Democrats and the people in power in Washington DC are responsible for the mess we have in our government.
After all I think Common Dreams was begun by people who were concerned about the lack of information being given to the American public about world issues from the progressive point of view.
There is a noticeable difference between US and Canadian tv news. They ask the tough questions and have a real debate on their tv. And they do not allow people to speak over one another. I can alsways tell who the Republican is. They rudely talk over the other person. Thats not allowed on Canadian news shows.
re nader2000
(quote)
“…and sorry, but guns are for assholes.”
then only “assholes” will have guns. is that the kind of world you really want?
dwyerj1 @ 12:59 pm:
“Media should be courted by protesters…. The disdain of Brush Off Bush doesn’t mean we don’t gall the hell out of him.
“Muslims who’ve had their babies, brothers, sisters, parents, and other family members killed by our bombs and bullets need to see us on the streets.
“Let’s not criticize each other or allow the infiltrators to dampen the spirit of rebellion.
“Let’s encourage, not denigrate each other. Every honk counts. Every finger raised is merely persons showing off their pride in their single I.Q. point. The obscene gestures are the ones that don’t count.”
~Well said!
Plaudits also due to: Nader2000, OREZ_ENO / Restive, Grandma, Colleen, Whateveryousay, and many others.
Yes, marches succeed on many levels: If you are just a kid -or in fact anyone! - who’s never been on a march, but feel that government is tragically amiss, then seeing a crowd of fellow citizens marching to a tune that resonates with you, sparks off the sense that:
1. You are not alone.
2. The IS something you can do.
3. Demonstrating publicly is a LEAD-IN to further action.
4. Whilst on a demo newbies often pick up leaflets, get ideas, hear new things, and have a chance to take their protest further, –and so on…
So, all-in-all, marches are a good inception, and, even though the authorities may not act immediately (!) upon the stated wishes of the marchers, at least they know then that the whole darned populace is NOT asleep, as they, (the maniacs in power) go about their dark lunacy. They are made aware that SOME people at least are watching them like hawks…
(or do I mean doves?)
Also, in any *public* protest, the activists are signalling to the as-yet-undecided types, -their fellow citizens (like bystanders and ’shoppers’) that there are a whole bunch of people who DO feel strongly about insane warfare, - even if those ’shoppers’ themselves haven’t yet fully woken up.
Protesting, marching, and activism of all varieties SEEDS IDEAS and is *never* a waste of time, -coz each drop of protest is helping to change human consciousness *somewhere*, and *THAT* is at the very root of what we are all about here.
___________________________
And yes, ~ denigrating the activist efforts of others, (-be that large or small effort) is very much playing into the bloodied hands of the fools and murderers in power…
Let’s not do that stuff?
UNITY amongst us lot is not an ‘optional extra’, -it is integral to our success, so wherever possible we ought to try to put aside our niggling differences and *respect and applaud* the work of our fellow progressives, ~ this then spurs them on to bigger and better things!
xx
(from a life-long activist)
I am really surprised that for the last 8 years this administration has gotten away with lie after lie regarding Iraq and it’s bloody operations and the American public sits quietly. Where are the REAL protesters from the 60’s? Are they all just worn out and in nursing homes? Where are the young people who should be outraged that 4,000 young men & women have died and 10,000 maimed or wounded because of Bush’s lies. It’s all about oil and keeping Iran in check - OIL. How many barrel’s of oil is a disillusioned young American worth?????????
The demonstrations didn’t ammount to anything, just like they didn’t ammount to anything back in 67′, and 68′ etc. The war their continued for several more years, even expanded into other countries, and hundreds of thousands more were killed.
You would have been much more useful actually blocking streets, disrupting the economy, and protesting during the week.
what’s next for the antiwar movement? take the poll on the October 27th website.
http://www.oct27.org/what-next
thus far “mass civil disobedience in one or more large cities” is the highest vote-getter.
Thank you UN-common-dreams & BugsBBunny III!
I am a participant and an organizer and I cannot thank you enough for your support! I thank every single person who showed up on the street somewhere on Saturday to say no to the insanity of endless war!
I do believe the biggest problem is lack of press coverage and try as we might we don’t get more than a passing glance from the national media. If the press treated the story of thousands in the street as something important, then the American people might be tempted to join us.
Will our protests make a difference? I don’t know, but I know I must do something.
At the rally and march in Jonesborough, Tennessee, we were heckled by counter-protesters who accused us of aiding the enemy. Their group of about 30 to our 400 received an equal, if not greater, amount of press in the local paper on Sunday. (http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/Detail.php?Cat=HOMEPAGE&ID=60543) This is truly frustrating, but what else can we do? Should we pack up and go home because we are not being heard or should we keep plugging and by our persistent presence in the streets inspire others to join us?
To all who joined us Saturday, THANK YOU! To all who thought about it but didn’t, please join us next time so we can double our numbers!
Peace - give it a chance!
Angela
I was outraged at the lack of coverage by the media, both TV and print. There was virtually no coverage in Boston by the Globe or the free paper The Metro. Although the free publication “NOW” did have a nice article with picture of the rally in San Francisco depicting 30,000 people marching against the war. The Globe, a left leaning paper, gave no voice to the people who participated in the Boston Rally, where 10s of thousands attended, and traffic an hour from Boston Commons all the way to Copley Square’s Trinity Church and back down Boylston Street all the way back to the Boston Commons — unbroken with people marching against the War. It was the largest rally in Boston against Imperialism and Colonization since Vietnam. It was a moment to be proud to be part of that. But New England Cable News network aired a 15 second spot with only a closeup shot of one question by a reporter to a veteran of the Iraq War, in which they asked one question — I guess to kind of show their (fake) support of the troops. I wrote letters to all the media in Boston — I am outraged. But they will not silence us forever. Our movement will continue to build until they can no longer ignore our demands. (A side note: by the way, I was talking about the event on the commuter rail this morning, and young people — YOUNG PEOPLE! told me to shut up, and others clapped in support of them — they wanted to talk about the Red Sox. Does that give you an idea of the apathy and sheer stupidity that affects this nation???
Here is my letter to NECN.
I attended the peace/out of Iraq rally from noon to 3PM on Saturday. It was huge. There were tens of thousands of people who participated in the event. The masses filled Boston Common. From 2pm to 3pm traffic was shut down from the Commons at Park Drive, down Stuart Street to Trinity Church in Copley Square and all the way down Boylston Street back to the Boston Commons. The marchers wound around through the streets for the entire route without a break in people. There were many speakers, including renowned historian Howard Zinn, and Code Pink with Medea Benjamin. It was a huge turnout, probably the largest since the protests of the Vietnam War in protest of the wars in the Middle East at this time. Yet, NECN devoted less than 30 seconds coverage, where they did a close-up shot interview that aired one question to an Out-Of-Iraq or Veteran Against the War. That close up shot did not depict the turnout whatsoever. NECN only mentioned that the rally was held in 11 cities in the U.S. But there were a dozen other rallies in smaller cities, as well as in Rome, Italy and Canada. Most of the people participating/attending the event discussed the media — that it would be downplayed as much as possible. NECN did not deviate from this expectation. NECN’s lack of adequate coverage of this event is a prime example of what media consolidation into the hands of the few is doing. With the FCC pushing for further consolidation, the people of our communities voices are being shut out by big media — corporate media, some of which are making a “killing” on the war in Iraq — both literally and figuratively. I am appalled by the kind of news corporate media gives to the people. But New England Cable Network covers New England, and there were people from all six states that participated in that event and NECN did not represent those people. Perhaps NECN does not deserve the support of the tens of thousands of people who attended, and I’m sure many scores more who support the message who could not attend. What would it do to NECN ratings if there were a grassroots effort to boycott NECN becuase it does not represent our views? You are no doubt aware that 70% of the American public no longer supports the wars in the Middle East. Perhaps NECN ought to think about that. A boycott of big media might be an excellent idea since big media does not represent the voice of America.
Nancy Hatfield
Chelmsford, MA
I also participated in the anti-war protest here in Boston, and shared many of the observations, concerns, and frustrations that others posted here about the need to engage a far greater number of average Americans in this fight to be effective.
I am frustrated that while the danger of far greater foreign wars and domestic oppression is very close that the vast majority of good honest Americans are not yet really engaged in our fight, and are not yet enraged in our common cause with sufficient commitment to have a real and compelling impact on our country.
Yes, the majority goes on shopping, goes on driving, goes on believing that standard political promises and standard media blather will have any effect on what is being done to us and to the innocent people throughout the world that our government is killing in our names.
However, I am convinced that there is indeed a common rallying point that can draw in and actually engage the vast majority of good, average Americans in our fight, and I am also convinced that right here in these posting and personal opinions there already exists all of the information and individual knowledge necessary to bring us all together in a common, necessary, urgent and essential fight to end the war and end all of the other domestic oppressions and economic tyranny that we together see, understand, and palpably ‘feel’ in our endangered country gone astray.
As others have recognized and urged:
Claudius, yes the economic oppression is increasing and as it squeezes the financial blood out of average Americans they will join the battle against the war —- (and the Empire behind the war).
PrestonDigitator, yes, a “critical mass” as you note, is needed for a true majority of the average people to rise up against the war —- (and the Empire behind the war).
.
Colleen, yes, the Democrat party and the media are nothing but lying shills (as part of the con in this Three Card Monte), and do nothing but distract and keep the majority of people from realizing that there is a common reason that we all share to be against the war —- (and the Empire behind the war).
Dichterfreund, yes, (as you say) “there isn’t a single political agenda animating all those who oppose” the war —- but like the ‘blind men describing the elephant in several different ways’ ALL of the symptoms of foreign war and domestic oppression have one and only one common cause which all people can rally against — and that is EMPIRE.
As Hannah Arendt profoundly warned, “Empire abroad (always and also) entails tyranny at home”
Therefore, I strongly believe that there is a hidden common element that could easily unite a vast new majority of good, average American people to actively engage in anti-war protest and take real committed action against the current foreign wars abroad –— and the nearing future war, which even Bush himself describes as WWIII.
This same hidden common element could easily unite a vast majority of average Americans to become enraged about the domestic tyranny of our democracy, our economy, and our own freedoms and liberty being destroyed at home.
This same hidden common element could easily explain the lies and false promises of the corrupted, phony and supposedly two-party system and the shilling media which keeps the lid on popular dissatisfaction, continual disappointment, and ultimately the rage that the ‘system never seems to respond to our democratic demands’.
Yes, Dichterfreund (and all the other progressive posters on this forum), there is a singular and unitive “political agenda animating all those who oppose the war” —– BUT this single common element of our common purpose as citizens is hidden by precisely those forces that we all are frustrated about —– and that single common element is the corporate EMPIRE hiding behind this current façade of a “Vichy America” that has been as fully taken over by an occupying EMPIRE as ‘Vichy France’ was taken over by the Nazi EMPIRE.
The singular element that we can all see when we rip-off our phony two-party blindfolds and rip-off our lying corporate media blindfolds is precisely the real image of that big, 8 ton elephant of EMPIRE — which is both the common element of all our war frustrations, our economic frustrations, our frustrations with getting the ‘truth’, and our democracy frustrations.
Both now in the streets and in the 2008 election the motivating theme must be, “It’s the EMPIRE, stupid.”
The EMPIRE is both the common hidden basis for our frustrating lives in the dark of un-democracy — and thankfully, it is also the basis for our common march as thinking and compassionate human citizens for breaking our into the light, and breaking the fascist grip of this global corporatist EMPIRE which has stolen our country and is working on stealing our common humanity and our whole world.
no coverage whatsoever here in the state capital of new york. they were too busy discussing the world series. the media are simply ignoring anti war protests. if you cant see it, it aint there. soon it will be too late, and we wont be allowed to protest.
I hope that the media and the government keep ignoring these demonstrations… Soon it will be clear, if it isn’t already, to both the govt/media and 70% of this country that other methods and means will have to be used in order to get the attention of the govt/media. And they will regret not listening in the first place.
The proles, oh the proles. If they only knew their power.
The American revolution was only pulled off by about 20% of the colonial population, with only about 5% actually fighting the war itself.
Currently, the Government is directly spying on approximately 1 million American citizens, while maintaining databases and collecting information on pretty much everyone else. And they can turn on the spying for any of these citizens at any time.
We HAVE to step it up and keep marching regularly and keep the momentum going. If we continue to make a showing and our numbers continue to increase then people shopping will see us in the streets and not on the news. THAT is very telling. That shows us where things lie in this country. This was my first protest. Just a couple of years ago I was too drugged out to know where to begin to see what’s happening. Now, though living in poverty, I am making a BIG difference in our landscape JUST BY GIVING FORTH A VOICE AND INVITING OTHERS TO LOOK IN THE DIRECTION THAT WE ARE POINTING! Keep it up, our only chance is in NOT GIVING UP! Keep chanting, and wear a smile because you know what is right.
Sick Thoughts on American Apathy About Stopping the War:
I think if Americans began rioting for war free war securities, bonds that paid interest on the plunder, then we’d see some real action.
If Americans suddenly realized that they are all paying the bill but getting none of the spoils of war, and were suddenly offered some payback in return for social disobedience and activism, then you’d see republicans as well as democrats joining hands in a demand for plunder.
These bonds, I predict will come soon.
Names for them:
1. US Plunder Bonds (not to be confused with “blunder”)
2. Loot Securities (Invest in War, Uncle Sam would be on the engraved paper)
3. Iraqoil Bonds: (Has nothing to do with steroids)
4. Triumph Stock (You get interest on rents out of the torture facilities and other “reconstruction” projects)
5. Latin American Mercenary Incorporated Prefferred Shares.
I predict that the next step in the “privatisation” of war will be a massive stock offering to US citizens, encouraging them to “invest” in war and plunder. You see, just like creating an “all volunteer” corps of mercenaries, it would be expected that the consumer, the taxpayer, could also rent his or her capital to the war of aggression effort, in return for plunder.
Interesting thoughts. It doesn’t sound outlandish that we could see that in some hidden form or another, or maybe not so hidden. We are already doing that kind of thing by supporting the corporations that profit while buying our lollipos. In a sense we are enjoying the spoils of war. If such profit was offered out in the open that could be a real test on where peoples hearts are.
It’s official. The marches over the weekend didn’t happen. CNN never reported it. MSNBC and ABC had some coverage on their sites, but it is not there today. I didn’t check CBS, but expect nothing different. It wasn’t on any of the weekend news reports that I saw. If a tree falls . . . .
Okay, my dear fellow ACT-ivists! –this is for you, not the negative-minded detractors, who belittle others’ sterling efforts, but never *actually* achieve anything themselves…
It has long been the case that the mEss media (internationally) often either plays down, or totally ignores the People’s protests.
So what are we going to do about that?
It’s kinda useful when dealing with the media to understand how they work, — and then take actions which they really *can’t* ignore!
BTW: I’m not talking, and I never talk about *violence* because that stuff just plays right into their hands. After many long years of being involved in the whole scene, I have come to realise that talk of ‘guns on the streets’ etc is always hot-headed silliness: **Violence begets violence** (check out the world stage if you don’t believe that, we *should have learnt better by now!)
So… the media can be approached in several ways:
Apart from kinda ‘hoping’ that they may, -or may not, cover an event, we can ensure that they DO have to sit up and take notice. Prior planning!!
1. Ensure that video, photographic stills, and ‘copy’ (well-written text) all about the demo are sent to the media organisation -just in case they ‘forgot’ to send a reporter!
2. Ensure that there are some ‘memorable images’ — such as people fooling around, novel stunts, unusual happenings etc, that grab interest.
3. Then hatch some devious plots to ensure they HAVE to take notice! How about checking out who the MSM reporters covering an event are and homing in on them? -surrounding them with ‘grannies’ -or little kids – *anyone* who can kinda ‘intimidate’ and embarrass them, but in a *non-violent* way…
Ensure that whoever is carrying out this sort of action has some good placards, spelling out the central message.
4. If all else fails to make their papers or air time, then focus ON the media organisation itself, via the next march, (-routed past their offices!) or a with separate demo, which is aimed specifically AT the HQ of the media.
~ Now THAT will get their attention!
However, once again, whatever else you *imaginatively* do, please ensure at no time the demo turns ugly, or you’ll just be reported as “rabid lunatic terrorists” or some such garbage.
That’s one of the reasons the CODE-PINK gals succeed so well (bless ‘em!) they are, after all, ‘just a bunch of silly females’ (sic) so it’s really hard for the media donkeys to paint them as ‘violent terrorists’ -or whatever.
Keep on keepin’ on, dear progressives.
~ Like Cindy said, we DO have ‘right’ on our side!
xx
This discussion is great. About tactics - in the 60s the American Friends Service Committee (Quakers) used to vigil every week (and finally around the clock) in Lafayette Park (right across from the White House) and other places by wearing black and taking turns reading out the names of the Vietnam dead (with microphones). This caught the attention of the media, and was also stunning. I have since read that Nixon used to stand at the window and watch them with “fear and loathing.” Many groups across the country adopted this as part of their own vigils, and it may have made a difference in the growth of the peace movement. It’s a good tactic and perhaps could be used today. Unfortunately, we now have dead and wounded again in an illegal and cruel war. This sort of vigil seemed to be taken as a tribute to the soldiers and many bereaved family members joined our group in this.
Worth a try?
Grandma, well said, ~ I think this is a very good move, after all, it accomplishes at least two things:
1. It is a rallying point for all those who want to protest the war.
2. It helps to foster unity amongst those with perhaps a variance of views, eg, between veterans, and those who’ve never fought, or between religious folk and disbelievers and so on.
~ and of course, it makes it VERY difficult for the rightwing oafs, or government fools to declaim that those who’ve gathered there are ‘unpatriotic’ (etc, etc).
Pathetic. Less than a third of one tenth of one percent of the American public could be bothered to get off their fat, pampered arses and protest the atrocities being committed in their name.
When the histories are written, the US citizenry will be seen to have been complicit in genocide, and the myth of the ‘good German’ will look plausible in comparison.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/city_region/breaking_news/2007/10/thousands_come_1.html
This is the link to the Boston Globe, Sunday 10/28 coverage of the Boston event. They did a pretty decent job after all. But I’ve been reading many recounts of papers across the country that did no coverage at all.
I know I keep moving back in my mind to the 60s, but so many things are the same as then. I suggest that people stop expecting the MSM to cover demonstrations fairly. They never did before - and if they did cover them it was usually to show or describe people fighting (the “opposition” used to start fights just so the MSM would film the fight) or a bunch of hippies in their clever outfits. I loved the hippies, but many people were scared of them and stayed away from demonstrations even if they opposed the war. Scaring people was the MSM’s and government’s idea, of course. But it didn’t really work - the demonstrations grew just the same.
They will grow this time around, too.