<http://truthout.org/imgs.site_01/endwar3.jpg> Live blog from Camp Casey, Crawford, Texas <http://www.truthout.org/cindy.shtml> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/1.video.gif> Video Reports <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> Anti-War March in Washington, DC 09.24.05 QuickTime <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> DSL <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/march512K. mov> | 56K <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/march56K.m ov> Windows Media DSL <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/march512K.wmv> | 56K <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/march56K.wmv> RealMedia DSL <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/march512K.rm> | 56K <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/march56K.rm> <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> Cindy Sheehan: "We Mean Business" 09.24.05 QuickTime <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> DSL <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/cindy_in_D C512K.mov> | 56K <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/cindy_in_D C56K.mov> Windows Media DSL <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/cindy_in_DC512K.wmv> | 56K <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/cindy_in_DC56K.wmv> RealMedia DSL <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/cindy_in_DC512K.rm> | 56K <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/cindy_in_DC56K.rm> <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> Camp Casey | A Film by Sally Marr and Peter Dudar <http://www.truthout.org/multimedia.htm> QuickTime DSL <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/campcasey2 512K.mov> | 56K <http://websrvr20.audiovideoweb.com/avwebdswebsrvr2143/news_video/campcasey2 56K.mov> Windows Media DSL <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/campcasey2512K.wmv> | 56K <http://win20ca.audiovideoweb.com/ca20win15004/campcasey256K.wmv> RealMedia DSL <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/campcasey2512K.rm> | 56K <http://real21mt.audiovideoweb.com/ramgen/nj20real2514/campcasey256K.rm> Saturday Rally in Washington, DC <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092505C.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092505DC_sm.jpg> George Bush in Trouble (Cartoonist: Plantu / Le Monde Paris) <http://truthout.org/imgs.site_01/3.dc.protest-04_sm.jpg> <http://truthout.org/imgs.site_01/3.dc.protest-01_sm.jpg> <http://truthout.org/imgs.site_01/3.dc.protest-03_sm.jpg> Print This Story <http://truthout.org/$art_printer_url$> <http://truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> E-mail This Story <http://truthout.org/campcaseydc.shtml#> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> What do you think? The t r u t h o u t Town Meeting <http://forum.truthout.org/blog/> is in progress. Join the debate <http://forum.truthout.org/blog/> ! On the Move By Scott Galindez Monday 26 September 2005 12:20 PM Several hundred people marched from the AME Church to the White House. Most of the crowd went to the Ellipse and is now heading back to Lafayette Park. Code Pink has a large banner reading "Mothers Say No to War." It is expected that several hundred people will be arrested. ________________________________ Today's Activities By Scott Galindez Monday 26 September 2005 9:27 AM Capitol Hill is swarming with anti-war lobbyists this morning. They don't have their checkbooks open to gain access like other lobbyists in this town - what they have is the majority of the American people behind them. They are hoping they will convince Congress that it is time for them to start doing their job again, and hold the administration accountable. Later today, several hundred people will be risking arrest at the White House, including Jesse Jackson. Religious leaders will attempt to meet with Bush, and if they are not allowed to meet with him, they will kneel and pray at the gates, which will probably lead to their arrest. Code Pink will be attempting to deliver 1 million messages they have received in opposition to the war to the President. Many affinity groups formed yesterday and will add their own flavor to the mass civil disobedience. ________________________________ Preparing for Tomorrow By Scott Galindez Sunday 25 September 2005 3:48 PM Today's focus is preparing for tomorrow. At the University of the District of Columbia, Progressive Democrats of America is preparing everyone to lobby Congress tomorrow. Their event started with a bang, Reverend Yearwood brought the crowd to its feet several times declaring that it's time to "take." He argued that it's not enough to speak to power, you have to take power. William Rivers Pitt told the crowd that the we are the majority and promised PDA will be the change that we desire. Medea Benjamin called on the US to join the International Court of Justice so we can witness the trials of bin Laden, Saddam and George W. Bush. Cindy then delivered again. She told the crowd that she knows nothing about politics. Everyone laughed. She then proceeded to warn the members of Congress that she has brought Camp Casey to Washington to put the heat on them. She talked about coming away sad and disappointed from meetings with Howard Dean, Chuck Schumer, John Kerry and Hillary. Cindy also announced that there will be a permanent Camp Casey as close to the White House as they can get it, so I'm currently looking for an apartment here ... just kidding, I'm heading back to LA Tuesday. Congresswomen Barbara Lee and Lynn Woolsey, Jeff Cohen of FAIR and a representative from John Conyer's office also spoke. Down on the Monument grounds, non-violence trainings are being conducted to prepare for tomorrow afternoon's Mass Civil Disobedience. ________________________________ We Don't Exist By Cindy Sheehan t r u t h o u t | Perspective Sunday 25 September 2005 Last weekend, Karl Rove said that I was a clown and the anti-war movement was "non-existent." I wonder if the hundreds of thousands of people who showed up today to protest this war and George's failed policies know that they don't exist. It is also so incredible to me that Karl thinks that he can wish us away by saying we aren't real. Well, Karl and Co., we are real, we do exist and we are not going away until this illegal and immoral occupation of Iraq is over and you are sent back to the depths of whatever slimy, dark, and loathsome place you came from. I may be a clown, Karl, but you are about to be indicted. You also preside over one of the biggest three-ring, malevolent circuses of all time: the Bush administration. The rally today was overwhelming and powerful. The reports that I was arrested today were obviously false. The peace rally was mostly very peaceful. Washington, DC was filled with energetic and proud Americans who came from all over to raise their voices in unison against the criminals who run our government and their disastrous policies that are making our nation more vulnerable to all kinds of attacks (natural and "Bush"-made disasters). Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092505Y.shtml> . ________________________________ Anti-War Fervor Fills the Streets By Petula Dvorak The Washington Post Sunday 25 September 2005 Demonstration is largest in capital since US military invaded Iraq. Tens of thousands of people packed downtown Washington yesterday and marched past the White House in the largest show of antiwar sentiment in the nation's capital since the conflict in Iraq began. The demonstration drew grandmothers in wheelchairs and babies in strollers, military veterans in fatigues and protest veterans in tie-dye. It was the first time in a decade that protest groups had a permit to march in front of the executive mansion, and, even though President Bush was not there, the setting seemed to electrify the crowd. Signs, T-shirts, slogans and speeches outlined the cost of the Iraq conflict in human as well as economic terms. They memorialized dead US troops and Iraqis, and contrasted the price of war with the price of recovery for areas battered by hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Riffs on Vietnam-era protests were plentiful, with messages declaring, "Make Levees, Not War," "I never thought I'd miss Nixon" and "Iraq is Arabic for Vietnam." Many in the crowd had protested in the 1960s; others weren't even born during those tumultuous years. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092505Z.shtml> . ________________________________ Thousands Protest the Iraq War By Kathleen Sullivan, Chris Heredia, Janine DeFao and Todd Wallack The San Francisco Chronicle Saturday 24 September 2005 SF also crowded with Love Parade revelers. Tens of thousands of people marched in San Francisco and the East Bay today to urge the US government to pull out of Iraq, joining anti-war protests in Washington and other cities. Elsewhere in the city, thousands of people grooved to the sound of electronic music along Market Street and at Civic Center Plaza. And tonight, thousands more are expected to rock-out at SBC Park to Green Day, the celebrity punk band born in Berkeley. Police estimated 20,000 people marched today. Organizers pegged the crowd at 50,000. Either way, it was one of the largest anti-war protests since the US invaded Iraq two years ago. Protesters gathered in San Francisco's Dolores Park this morning, then marched for two hours to Jefferson Square Park, where the park was jammed with a standing room only crowd of bodies. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092505Z.shtml#1> . ________________________________ Thousands March to Demand Withdrawal of Troops from Iraq By Tom Anderson The Independent UK Sunday 25 September 2005 More than 10,000 protesters descended on London yesterday for a mass demonstration against the war in Iraq. Many of the protesters, who marched from Parliament Square to Hyde Park blowing whistles and carrying placards, were demanding the immediate withdrawal of British troops. Buses were used to bring people from all over Britain to join the demonstration, organised by the Stop the War Coalition. Scotland Yard estimated that crowds had swollen to 10,000 people by the time the march reached Hyde Park in the early afternoon, although organisers put the numbers at up to 100,000. Other marches were planned for the United States. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092505Z.shtml#2> . ________________________________ Numbers By Scott Galindez Saturday 24 September 2005 11:08 PM It is safe to say that there were hundreds of thousands of people marching against the war in Iraq today. Police Chief Charles Ramsey's only statement was that the organizers achieved their goal of 100,000. The DC police refused to make any other estimate. C-Span estimated 500,000, a number that I believe was possible from my observations. I was on the corner of Pennsylvania and 15th on the steps of Riggs bank when the march began. People were still arriving from all directions. The massive amount of people moving in all directions prevented a front of the march from forming. People just started marching on their own with no marshals anywhere near the front of the march. Thousands of people passed me before any organized contingent. The first major contingent that passed me were thousands of students with signs that said "college not enlistment." Thousands of people later, I finally saw what was intended to be the lead banner. I saw Congresswomen Lynn Woolsey and Barbara Lee, the Reverend Al Sharpton, and other dignitaries carrying that banner. Thousands of people behind that came the Iraq Veterans Against the War. Joan Baez was marching with them right next to Marine Jeff Key and dozens of other veterans of the Iraq war. Behind them was Gold Star Familes for Peace. About half a block later came Veterans for Peace, with Military Familes Speak Out a short distance behind them. At the time I assumed that they were in the middle of the march. I later found out that while they were not near the front, they were much further from the rear. I moved down to Pennsylvania and 13th to catch the front again and noticed for hours that there were still people heading up 15th street. I headed to the concert at 4:30 pm, 4 hours after the march began, and people were still marching past the White House, only 4 blocks from the march's starting point. To summarize, it took over 4 hours for people to clear out of the Ellipse area. I have been to several large marches in Washington DC since 1989 and this was by far the largest. ________________________________ Late Blog By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 10:42 PM C-SPAN is reporting the crowd size at five hundred thousand. I trust their numbers. ________________________________ End of the Day By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 8:28 PM This will likely be my last blog report for today. I am off to find a beer at the gathering spot we have chosen. This was a good day. The organization could have been better, the thing could have gone more smoothly, but you cannot argue with the size of the deal. To Hell with the media and its coverage. We know we were here, and we will be here all weekend. And we will be back, as many times as we have to. ________________________________ Blackout By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 5:11 PM I am receiving reports from a variety of sources that this march has been virtually blacked out by the television media. CNN threw that big number out earlier, and Headline News made mention of it, but that's all. The hurricane is dominating the news, and even C-SPAN has Generals on talking about predicting hurricanes and storm response. As frustrating as this is, I can understand it. Rita was a bad storm, made all the worse by Katrina. The oil infrastructure just took a beating, and water is flowing back into New Orleans. Besides, these TV yahoos have never covered these protests with any kind of accuracy or interest before, so why should today be any different? Psssst ... we are the majority now. I am going to find some food and check out for a bit. I will report in if something significant happens. ________________________________ On Counting Crowds By William Rivers Pitt <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/crowddc.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> Hey CNN! Does this look like 2,000 people to you? Photo: Kevin Spidel of Progressive Democrats of America Saturday 24 September 2005 4:32 PM Just got a great email from a man named Michael. He wrote: "On crowd estimates, Andrew Kopkind, the late New Left journalist had this rule ... Take whatever the organizers say and divide by two, then take what the police say and multiply that by two, take those two 'adjusted' figures and add 'em, then divide that by two, and you are likely to arrive at something close to truth." Pretty good. ________________________________ Numbers By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 4:26 PM CNN reported earlier in the day that 600,000 people were here. That seems, to me, a little bit of an overcount. I cannot be sure because this thing is spread in all directions and I'd need to be in a helicopter to get a good idea, and never mind the fact that counting noses is not my forte. But I have been covering these things in DC and New York since they started, and I feel comfortable saying there are at least 300,000 people here right now. ________________________________ Heh By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 4:18 PM CNN Headline News is reporting that this is the largest anti-war protest in DC since the war started. Someone should tell the goon who wrote that online article. 2,000 people my hind foot. ________________________________ Oh Brother By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 4:08 PM A CNN.com article says, "More than 2,000 people gathered," for the protest. Ye Gods, ya think so? Whoever wrote that article should maybe tune in to the TV station they work for. There are 2,000 people on about 20 feet of sidewalk ... for a dozen blocks. ________________________________ Annoyed By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 4:03 PM With a minute to breathe, I am going to talk a second about what I just saw with the Black Bloc crew. There were maybe about 200 of them, separated from the main march by several blocks. They traveled in a clot, shook their fists at McDonalds, threw dumpsters and newspaper boxes into the street, and generally made noise. The police were amused. I was not. Screw these people. Screw them for their mindless violence against stuff in the street - we blocked traffic in the middle of a traffic jam, ooooh. Screw them for diverting attention from the main march. Camera crews were sparse at the main rally, because the cameras are spread all over the city. Yet of course, camera crews scrambled after these blivets like pilot fish. I'll bet you a dollar the corporate media will use these infants as representatives of the main. Oh, yeah, and they were all white kids. Twenty-something tattoed white kids with piercings in their piercings. If they are representing the downtrodden, they sure didn't have any in their crew. The ethnic makeup of the main march was as diverse as I have ever seen. These Black Bloc cretins should go home and do their homework or something. I think their mothers are calling. It occurs to me that the Bloc goobers did their thing blocks away from the main march for a good reason. The main march participants would not have tolerated them. The Blocies would have gotten their pants pulled down and spanked. ________________________________ Gone By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 3:32 PM The Bloc went one way, I am going another. The cops were laughing at them. ________________________________ Dumpster By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 3:24 PM The Bloc just flipped a dumpster into the road. They are trashing newspaper boxes and leaving them in the middle of the streets. The cops are moving in. ________________________________ Black Bloc By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 3:19 PM The Black Bloc is on the move, passing me right now and telling about burning down McDonalds. I am going to follow them a bit to see if they start any chaos. The people in Mickey Ds look decidedly nervous. ________________________________ Someday By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 3:07 PM Someday the Left will come up with new slogans. Hey hey, ho ho gets really tiresome after four or five hours. I'm just sayin'. ________________________________ Huge By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 2:57 PM Absolutely massive. Loud. Pissed. Beautiful. Did I mention loud? Haven't seen the riot cops yet. ________________________________ Cops By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 2:31 PM I just overheard ten cops getting new orders to move barricades and open the streets further. They are scrambling to control the size of this thing. The march has finally begun again, and a light rain is falling. ________________________________ Holy Crap By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 2:23 PM CNN is estimating the crowd here to be more than six hundred thousand strong. If CNN says it, it must be true. Wow. ________________________________ Restless By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 2:14 PM The crowd is getting restless. They want to march. I cannot find the front of the thing. It is splayed in all directions. Jessica Lange is speaking from the stage, but I can't hear her because of the helicopter overhead. ________________________________ Mammoth By Scott Galindez Saturday 24 September 2005 1:54 PM Huge is an understatement. The march has surrounded the White House. Hundreds of thousands. This is the largest march I have seen in the over two decades that I have been attending. The crowd is diverse, a true cross-section of American culture. ________________________________ Too Big By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 1:46 PM The march is unable to move because there are so many people coming in from all directions. Constitution Avenue is a wall of humanity. I am up on the hill that holds the Washington Monument, looking down on the crowd. This is a massive, massive showing. Hot damn. ________________________________ Riot Cops By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 1:25 PM Kevin Spidel of PDA ran up to the front of the march. Apparently, there is a huge gathering of cops in battle gear up the line waiting for us. The march has stopped again and I don't know why. The Amtrak line is running again. ________________________________ Stops By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 1:17 PM There are apparently several lines of the DC Metro shut down, supposedly for electrical problems. The Amtrak line from New York is also closed. Convenient. ________________________________ The Long Line By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 1:11 PM They are running a long rope through the crowd. Attached to the rope are pictures of every soldier who has died in Iraq. It took a long time to pass my spot. Next to me was a woman whose son is over there. She had a look on her face I can't describe. The march is underway. ________________________________ Rolling By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 12:56 PM The crowd is all lined up and ready, shouting, "Let's go!" in one voice. ________________________________ The Count By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 12:42 PM It is pretty safe to say that there are more than a hundred thousand people here. Many more. Welcome to the majority. ________________________________ Moving By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 12:28 PM I think the ANSWER rally is ending and people will begun feeding into the street. Funny moment. Mimi Kennedy is standing here trying to give someone directions to this spot: "Walk past the peace signs and through the pink balloons. Turn left at the Abu Ghraib guy and pass the giant Bush head." Hee hee hee. ________________________________ Patriotic Dissent By Cindy Sheehan t r u t h o u t | Speech Saturday 24 September 2005 Ahhhh, I love the smell of Patriotic Dissent in the afternoon! As we stand here on the grounds of a monument that is dedicated to the Father of our Country, George Washington, we are reminded that he was well known for the apocryphal stories of never being able to tell a lie. I find it so ironic that there is another man here named George who stays in this town between vacations, and he seems to never be able to tell the truth. It is tragic for us that our bookend presidents named George have two completely different relationships with honesty. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092405Y.shtml> . ________________________________ Huge By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 12:06 PM The march just got huge all of a sudden. Medea Benjamin has taken control of things here on the street. Cindy Sheehan just took the stage and the whole place went berzerk. ________________________________ Coming Together By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 11:48 AM It is something indeed to watch a bunch of groups trying to get organized amid a crowd of thousands and thousands of people. The speeches have begun on the ANSWER stage. The soldiers are here, too, doing their martial law exercise. The Raging Grannies are getting ready to sing. The people keep coming. ________________________________ Clot By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 11:31 AM We have to march around a clot of counter-demonstrators who are being thunderously shouted down. The Iraq veterans are here. The streets of DC are wild. ________________________________ PDA's Corner By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 11:13 AM Here at 14th and Constitution, all the PDA caucuses and members are gathering. The crowds around us are swelling, and the shouting has already begun from the stage. A lot of the people here are protesting the war for the first time. I am also seeing a lot of young people. Good stuff. ________________________________ Chanting at Penn Station By Scott Galindez Saturday 24 September 2005 11:00 AM Amtrak service from New York has been delayed for 2 hours. A spontaneous demonstration erupted at Penn Station as delayed passengers chanted, "Bring the troops home now!" All service has now been restored. ________________________________ Big Stuff By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 10:55 AM The crowd here is incredibly large already, and the march itself is still more than an hour off. I am standing in the middle of Camp Casey, transplanted to DC. The funny part is that all the rebels and so-called outsiders here are suddenly in the majority according to all the polls. Roll, wheel. ________________________________ Here We Are Again By William Rivers Pitt Saturday 24 September 2005 10:00 AM Here we are again. White skies and relative cool in DC today. Need to find some coffee. Let's go march. ________________________________ History in the Making By Scott Galindez Saturday 24 September 2005 8:15 AM We are preparing to leave our hotel in Washington, DC. In the lobby there is a picture of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. delivering his "I Have a Dream" speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Later today, all eyes will be on a grieving mother who has emerged as a leader of the movement to end the war in Iraq. I observed Cindy Sheehan rise to the occasion many times in Crawford, Texas. She responded to the media with a calmness that takes most people years to learn. I watched her take her message to a new level during the first Saturday rally at Camp Casey. Today, however, the eyes of the world will be on her, and for that reason George W. Bush and his administration should be nervous. The Congress that authorized the war has good reason for concern as well. If Cindy Sheehan delivers today she may emerge as not just a leader of the anti-war movement but a leader of our country. Come Sunday morning Cindy may just be the leader of the opposition to the current government. No Democrat has really stepped up to fill that hole. After spending three weeks covering Cindy in Crawford, I think she can do it. There is excitement in the air here - everywhere you go you see groups of protesters. We will keep you up to date throughout the day. Well it's time to head for the White House and watch history develop ... ________________________________ 'You Can't Wash Your Hands When They're Covered in Blood' By Hart Viges The Independent UK Saturday 24 September 2005 My name is Hart Viges. September 11 happened. Next day I was in the recruiting office. I thought that was the way I could make a difference in the world for the better. So I went to infantry school and jump school and I arrived with my unit of the 82nd Airborne Division. I was deployed to Kuwait in February 2003. We drove into Iraq because Third Infantry Division was ahead of schedule, and so I didn't need to jump into Baghdad airport. As we drove into Samawa to secure their supplies my mortar platoon dropped numerous rounds on this town. I watched Kiowa attack helicopters fire Hellfire missile after Hellfire missile. I saw a C130 Spectre gunship ... it will level a town. It had belt-fed artillery rounds pounding with these super-Gatling guns. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092405A.shtml> . ________________________________ Soldier's Chilling Testimony Fuels Demonstrations against Iraq War By Andrew Buncombe The Independent UK Saturday 24 September 2005 A former American soldier who served in Iraq and filed for conscientious objector status has given an extraordinary insight into the war's dehumanising effects - an insight that helps explain why the British and American public has turned sharply against the occupation. On the eve of large anti-war demonstrations in Washington and London, Hart Viges has told how indiscriminate fire from US troops is likely to have killed an untold number of Iraqi civilians. Mr. Viges, 29, said he was still haunted by the memories of what he experienced and urged President George Bush to withdraw US troops from Iraq. "I don't know how many innocents I killed with my mortar rounds," Mr. Viges, who served with the 82nd Airborne Division, said during a presentation this week at American University in Washington. "In Baghdad, I had days that I don't want to remember. I try to forget," he added Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092405A.shtml#1> . ________________________________ Why We're Marching By Medea Benjamin Common Dreams Friday 23 September 2005 On Saturday, September 24, tens of thousands of Americans from all walks of life will come together in Washington, DC to call on Congress and President Bush to end the war in Iraq and bring the troops home now. When hundreds of thousands of us marched against this war before it began, the Bush administration called us a "focus group." Now that focus group represents the majority of the American public, who in all the most recent polls are saying this war was a mistake, it's unwinnable, it makes us less safe at home and it should end. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/C092405Z.shtml> . ________________________________ When Rose Met Cindy: The Case against the War in Iraq By Andrew Buncombe The Independent UK Friday 23 September 2005 On both sides of the Atlantic, two mothers who lost sons in Iraq have launched campaigns to end the conflict. One camped outside George Bush's ranch. The other stood in the general election. This week, they came face to face for the first time. Andrew Buncombe reports. Along the sunbaked sidewalk of Pennsylvania Avenue came the sound of singing. It was music from an earlier generation, but as relevant now as it ever was. "All we are saying is give peace a chance," chanted the group of demonstrators as they made their way to the north-west gates of the White House. "All we are saying is give peace chance." At the head of the huddled group was Cindy Sheehan, the woman whose soldier son, Casey, was killed in Iraq last year and whose campaign to demand an explanation for the war from President George Bush took her to the gates of his Crawford ranch, made headlines around the world and - seemingly almost single-handedly - re-energised the US peace movement. At her side was Rose Gentle, a woman whose son, Gordon, was also killed in Iraq and who has launched a similarly relentless campaign to demand answers from Prime Minister Tony Blair. "It's exciting to be here, to let George Bush know what we think about the war," Mrs. Gentle said moments afterwards, standing at the junction with 17th Street, carrying a photograph of her son wearing his uniform of Royal Highland Fusiliers. Asked if she thought he would have approved of her campaign, she glanced at the photograph of the young man, 19 years old, and replied: "Gordon would have wanted this. His pals are still there [in Iraq] and he would have wanted them home safe. They still keep in touch." Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092505D.shtml> . ________________________________ Anti-War Rally Will Be a First for Many By Petula Dvorak The Washington Post Friday 23 September 2005 Focused message draws protesters of all stripes. The seasoned protesters who organized tomorrow's antiwar demonstration are well-versed in many other causes. They have marched and rallied against police brutality, racism, colonialism and the policies of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. But their message on the Mall tomorrow will be singular: "End the war in Iraq." Because of that sharp focus, they will be joined by novice protesters such as Patrice Cuddy, 56. Interviewed by phone yesterday, the former public school teacher in Olathe, KS, said she had to pull off her gardening gloves each time a neighbor interrupted her yardwork to ask about joining the bus she had chartered to go to the nation's capital. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/C092305Z.shtml> . ________________________________ Letter Delivered to the White House on Wednesday 21 September 2005 Dear President Bush, We are veterans, families of active-duty military service people, and parents of soldiers who died as a result of the war in Iraq. We have been traveling the country from your vacation ranch in Crawford, TX, speaking to the American people about the true cost of your war based on lies. We have brought this nation a precious gift - the truth. It is a truth that you have tried so hard to hide, as you banned the media from photographing flag-draped coffins as they come in to Dover Air Force Base. We brought the anguish of military families whose loved ones are and will be in harm?s way for no good reason. We brought the determination and the pain of Iraq Veterans, who all took a vow to defend the Constitution of this country, but were betrayed by being sent off the fight an unjustifiable war. And we brought the voice of veterans from the Vietnam War who know so well about physical and psychological damage from a war that should never have happened. In 51 cities, 28 states and over 200 venues, we carried the message: Bring Our Troops Home Now, Take Care of Them of When They Get Home and Never Again Send Them Off to a War Based on Lies. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/C092205Z.shtml> . ________________________________ Cindy Sheehan Goes to Washington By Sarah Ferguson The Village Voice Wednesday 21 September 2005 Peace mom takes her message to the president, Congress, and a lot of television crews. <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy3.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy3_sm.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> September 21, 2005 | The press and interested parties clamor around as the Bring Them Home Now tour arrives in the nation's Capitol. (Photo: Laura Sennett / Isis) Cindy Sheehan brought her anti-war crusade to Washington, DC, on Wednesday, arriving with a caravan of three RVs and several cars ferrying about three dozen military families and Iraq War veterans on the final leg of their 21-day Bring Them Home Now tour. The tour included members of Gold Star Families for Peace, which Sheehan helped found, Military Families Speak Out, Iraq Veterans Against the War, and Veterans for Peace. They set off from their encampment outside Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, on August 31 and covered 51 cities in 28 states in a hell-bent sprint to mobilize public opinion against the war in Iraq while building momentum for what they hope will be a 100,000-strong peace march in DC this Saturday. The plan was to close out the tour by converging on the steps of the Capitol for a noon press conference, where they would lambaste Congress for continuing to fund the Bush administration's misguided war. But the schedule was derailed by Capitol police, who blocked the RV Sheehan was traveling in, claiming they could not let the RVs pass until a bomb-sniffing dog had searched the vehicles. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092205Z.shtml> . ________________________________ Cindy Sheehan Caravan Stopped by Capitol Police By Sarah Ferguson The Village Voice Wednesday 21 September 2005 Bring Them Home Now treks afoot to press conference. <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy1.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy1_sm.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> September 21, 2005 | Cindy Sheehan arrived at the nation's Capitol at noon today with the "Bring Them Home Now Tour." Mrs. Sheehan is a leading voice in the growing anti-war movement in America. (Photo: Laura Sennett / Isis) Washington, DC - At just past noon on Wednesday, anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan and the rest of the Bring Them Home Now tour were stopped by a pair of squad cars two blocks from the US Capitol by members of the Capitol police force. Officers explained that they wanted to use bomb-sniffing dogs to inspect the caravan of three RVs and several cars. The officers said it was standard practice to inspect large vehicles in the area. "RVs aren't allowed on Capitol Hill," one said. "That's standard procedure. Any trucks that come on Capitol Hill are stopped and turned around." Campers aren't allowed at all, the officer said, "unless they've been previously authorized." Officers told the peace activists they couldn't park at the Capitol because they don't have the proper permits. Sheehan and company then began preparing to make the rest of the trek on foot. Awaiting them near the Capitol steps were a crowd of television cameras for a scheduled noon press conference. Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092105Q.shtml> . ________________________________ Battle Lines behind the Battle Lines By Petula Dvorak The Washington Post Wednesday 21 September 2005 Protest to make DC a flash point for rift among military families. <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy2.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.art_01/3.092105.cindy2_sm.jpg> <http://www.truthout.org/imgs.site_01/2.ClrSpc.indent_2.gif> September 21, 2005 | Cindy Sheehan holds her first press conference in Washington, DC. Mrs. Sheehan is a leading voice in the growing anti-war movement in America. (Photo: Laura Sennett / Isis) Fayetteville, NC - In military communities across the United States, a debate over the Iraq war is being waged by reluctant, neophyte activists. Their microphones chirp and squeak, or don't pick up their quiet voices at all. Their signs are too small. They forget the banners. "This is my community. I don't want to offend people here. But my husband is a soldier; he can't say anything. So it's my duty as a citizen to speak up," Kara Hollingsworth, a DC native and Army wife at Fort Bragg whose husband served two tours in Iraq, said as she took a seat on a panel of antiwar activists last week. A few hours earlier, another Army spouse stood in the red-brick village square near the base and held up a handmade sign supporting the war. She threw it together after she heard that an antiwar caravan was coming to town. "I've never done this before. I'm usually a quiet military wife. But I can't take this anymore," said Marlene Lowrey, whose husband also served in Iraq. "This isn't right, coming into a town like this with that antiwar stuff. Those people don't realize this brings down morale." Read the complete article <http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092105Q.shtml#1> . _______________________________________________ Marxism-Thaxis mailing list Marxism-Thaxis@lists.econ.utah.edu To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism-thaxis
