The Rebranding Effort is Under Way

Let me state my position unequivocally to preempt spin. I am not necessarily anti-war across the board, but I am and have always been anti Iraq war. I am as pro-G.I. as you can possibly be, but I am as opposed to Resident Evil and his 'policies' as is possible as well. He is a warmongering toad, and a danger to the Republic.

But the MBA president sure has a good marketing team. The marketing team is so effective that they have convinced staunch withdrawal advocates that another Friedman is called for.

The most vapid bullshit is being repackaged and sold...and Democrats are lining up to buy it. Hillary has been so fished in that she swallowed the hook.

"We've begun to change tactics in Iraq, and in some areas, particularly in Anbar province, it's working," Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) said in a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars on Monday.

BZZZTTT!!! Wrong! What is happening in Anbar has nothing - nothing - to do with the so-called Surge™/troop buildup and everything to do with deals being struck with Sunni insurgents that involves massive amounts of firearms and ammo. Consider this for a moment: 170 million mostly 9 mil. rounds for Iraq, and stateside our police forces train with paintballs because there is insufficient ammo. (I have been very vocal about pointing out that the Romney boys and the Bush twits are ducking duty, but Chelsea Clinton isn't in uniform either, and if Mommy is going to be a war-monger on the stump, it's only fair to point that out.)

John Edwards called her on it, too. "Senator Clinton's view that the President's Iraq policy is 'working' is another instance of a Washington politician trying to have it both ways," Edwards campaign manager David Bonior said in a statement. "You cannot be for the President's strategy in Iraq but against the war. The American people deserve straight talk and real answers on Iraq, not double-speak, triangulation, or political positioning."

Rep. Ellen O. Tauscher (D-Calif.), an Armed Services Committee member seems to get it. "I don't know of anybody who isn't desperately supportive of the military," she said. "People want to say positive things. But it's difficult to say positive things in this environment and not have some snarky apologist for the White House turn it into some clipped phraseology that looks like support for the president's policies." (emphasis mine)

Congress comes back in two weeks, tanned rested and refreshed, having sold out the Fourth Amendment on their way to the beach. But when they come back, they are in for a surprise, because America will be standing watch, silently scrutinizing from the gallery. And it will just get worse for them from there. We, the People, have had it, and we are taking matters into our own hands. On September 4, we begin to stand watch, and on September 21, we observe the first Iraq Moratorium Day.

Participate, people. Be a worthy descendant to the founders who put it all on the line to give us a Republic that these fools have pissed away.

Iraq Moratorium Day: September 21, 2007

“Anyone who thinks they are too small to make a difference has never been in bed with a mosquito.” Mahatma Gandhi

If you were to ask my children, they would tell you that when I get to the point of stone-cold deliberative, when I stop ranting and get quiet...that is when to get scared.

I am at that point with the occupation of Iraq.

I am saying “When.”

The Vietnam War ended after ordinary people – nurses, secretaries, teachers, bankers, housewives, lawyers, factory workers, men and women, all colors and all creeds, from all walks of life, peacefully and calmly assembled to display their conviction that their government was not acting in the best interest of the American people, and that the war had to be stopped; by assembling on a monthly basis to make their displeasure known.

Recalling that part of history, and toward that end, I have committed to spending the afternoon of September 21, and every third Friday of every month thereafter to protest the ongoing occupation of Iraq and demand a withdrawal of American forces from combat operations in that country.

You can find more information about the Iraq Moratorium at iraqmoratorium.org and find out about activities in your area.

If you don’t find a group or an event near you, you can still take part.

• Use that time to write a letter to the editor of your local paper.
  
• Send an email to your representatives in the legislature.
  
• Call the White House switchboard.
  
• Call the House and Senate switchboards.
  
• Take part in an online discussion.
  
• Contact your state legislators and demand that they take up the issues that affect your state. (When the Guard is deployed they are not here to fight wildfires and clean up after tornados or sandbag levees during floods.)

Enough. They don’t want to listen, so we have to make ourselves heard.

We raise our voices in unison on September 21.

I have never started a "Swarm" before...

...but I'm game to give it a whirl. I got the following email in my inbox, and I am flattered anyone thinks my little blog is important enough to launch something like this. So I did what any realist with a hundred and fifty hits a day would do - I forwarded it to Edger and Skippy. They know how to get a party started.

I've been reading your comments on Kevin Drum's blog and lately on
your own blog. I was thinking back to the Viet Nam era and remembering
the day that was referred to as the Viet Nam Moratorium (October 15,
1969). A couple hundred thousand people marched on downtown Boston (the
part I remember) and other American cities to protest the Nixon
policies. What made it effective politically was that it signified the
first time that lots of normal-appearing people showed up in their
jackets and ties to protest. When the lawyers and businessmen and
housewives protested, that was a major signal to the political
establishment.

The Bush veto of the appropriations bill is worthy of just such a
national protest. I fear that the congressional leadership may waver,
but a large public outcry would provide a little stiffness to their
backbones. I would like to suggest a National Day of Mourning and
Protest to be held perhaps on May 22 (ie: the third week anniversary of
the Bush veto). We should mourn our dead, honor our military, and
protest the Bush veto. The underlying strategy is to limit how far the
congress can compromise on the next edition of the supplemental
appropriations bill. Getting a million people out to protest would make
a big difference.

Would you be interested in promoting this idea? The publisher of our
blog (CitywatchLA.com) would like to cover the story, but does not want
to be the story, so I am looking for somebody who already has a
following to make the initial public proposal.

So...Whaddya say folks? Let's get our Peace March on Saturday, May 19? (Since the three week date of the 22nd is a Tuesday, turnout might be hard to get...)