Nato summit leaders should have been forced to watch the moving protest of the former troops chucking their medals away
"No amount of medals, ribbons, or flags can cover the amount of human suffering caused by this war."
"I have only one word, and it is shame."
"This is for the people of Iraq and Afghanistan."
"Mostly, I'm sorry. I'm sorry to all of you. I am sorry…"
In the shadow of the Nato summit,
under the watchful eyes of a phalanx of full-black-clad riot police,
dozens of former servicemen and women in uniform, veterans of the Iraq
and Afghanistan wars, threw away their medals, with apologies. It was
one of the most moving experiences many of us had witnessed in our
lives. It is hard to describe in words. I couldn't get the lump out of
my throat. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a woman next to me
crying. Their words, their voices, crackling under the emotion of their
courageous act, breaking under the weight of the pain, the trauma, their
anger, sadness, and hope – theirs was a heroic and beautiful act, a
moving ceremony. It was a privilege to be there with these women and men
who served in our wars.
Read on....
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Showing posts with label anti-war protest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label anti-war protest. Show all posts
Documents Show NYPD Infiltrated Anti-War, Justice Groups
The Associated Press this morning reveals how undercover NYPD officers attended meetings of liberal political organizations and kept intelligence files on activists who planned protests around the country, according to interviews and documents that show how police have used counterterrorism tactics to monitor even lawful activities.
That the NYPD used such tactics made headlines in 2007 after a New York Times report revealed that they had infiltrated protest groups leading up to and during the 2004 Republican National Convention, but the new document (pdf) reveals that the practice continued at least through 2008.
That the NYPD used such tactics made headlines in 2007 after a New York Times report revealed that they had infiltrated protest groups leading up to and during the 2004 Republican National Convention, but the new document (pdf) reveals that the practice continued at least through 2008.
Today's report follows revelations earlier this year that the NYPD had an ongoing monitoring program that spied on Muslims throughout the city and beyond, including college students throughout the northeast. Civil liberties groups demanded investigations and a halt to such tactics.
Russian Protesters Encounter Surveillance UAV Drone
Thank goodness this sort of thing doesn’t happen in the land of the free… oh wait
Video has emerged of Russian pro Democracy protesters being watched by hovering surveillance drones overhead.
25,000 people gathered in Bolotnaya Square in Moscow Saturday, were stunned to witness the strange hovering object directly above them. Some climbed trees to take pictures and get a closer look at the “UFO”.
The craft is clearly some kind of small quadricopter drone similar to the one pictured below:
Alex Jones is over-the-top........but........... And there is this story:
Police employ Predator drone spy planes on home front
Tom
D.C. Superior Court Rules Sidewalks Trump Free Speech Rights
WASHINGTON - October 31 - The D.C. Superior Court ruled last Friday that possible pedestrian inconvenience was more important than the US Constitution or stopping wars.
Arrested during a White House demonstration on March 19, 18 defendants, including 8 members of Veterans For Peace, were found guilty by Judge Canan, Friday, of “failure to obey” and “blocking/incommoding” and fined $150.
The defendants argued for their 1st Amendment right to petition their government for redress of grievances.
They called on the US Government to obey the domestic and international law and to stop its crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The government argued that protecting Constitutional rights and ending war crimes were less important than assuring that a potential pedestrian would not be delayed by a few seconds passing in front of the White House.
Canadian cities at a loss on how to end Occupy protests
They have muddied parks, overtaken public squares and clashed with police. But while Canada’s Occupy protesters may be wearing out their welcome, nobody has figured out how to get rid of them.
Although the encampments are violating bylaws, damaging public land, and in some cases, prompting public health concerns, confrontation-shy municipalities are finding themselves increasingly powerless, or at least unwilling, to remove them.
Alberta’s two largest cities have arguably taken the hardest line against occupiers — although both have failed to negotiate an end to the protests. Toronto protesters have angered neighbours of the downtown park they are camping in, prompting the church next to the site to plead with the protesters to “respect the members of the community who live and work in the area.”
Black-Out in DC: Pay No Attention to Those Veterans Chained to the White House Fence
There was a black-out and a white-out Thursday and Friday as over a hundred US veterans opposed to US wars in Afghanistan and elsewhere around the world, and their civilian supporters, chained and tied themselves to the White House fence during an early snowstorm to say enough is enough.
Washington Police arrested 135 of the protesters, in what is being called the largest mass detention in recent years. Among those arrested were Ray McGovern, a former CIA analyst who used to provide the president's daily briefings, Daniel Ellsberg, who released the government's Pentagon Papers during the Nixon administration, and Chris Hedges, former war correspondent for the New York Times.
No major US news media reported on the demonstration or the arrests. It was blacked out of the New York Times, blacked out of the Philadelphia Inquirer, blacked out in the Los Angeles Times, blacked out of the Wall Street Journal, and even blacked out of the capital's local daily, the Washington Post.
May 4, 1970: The Day the War Came Home
Forty years ago, on May 4, 1970 soldiers opened fire on a student anti-war protest on the campus of Kent State University, nestled around the small, sleepy Ohio town of Kent.
![[Four students were killed, including Elaine Holstein's son, Jeffrey Miller]](http://www.commondreams.org/files/article_images/kentstate_40years.jpg "kentstate_40years.jpg")
Four students were killed, including Elaine Holstein's son, Jeffrey MillerAnd the death toll cannot begin to compare to the number of Vietnamese civilians who lost their lives: between 700,000 and 2 million, according to estimates.
But those student deaths were momentous.
"May 4th represented the war coming home to America. And in many ways it was. It was soldiers firing at unarmed people," said Jerry M. Lewis, who was just a young professor at the time of the shootings, an eyewitness who is still troubled by what happened, four decades on.
It would be nice if some small portion of society cared enough to protest current wars. Guess everyone is too busy. Tom
13 Activists, 9 from Minnesota, Arrested in Front of The White House for Protesting US Militarism
WASHINGTON - January 26 - The Twin Cities Campaign for Peace, Women Against Military Madness, and other Minnestoan peace groups, aligned with the Peaceable Assembly Campaign, organized a civil disobedience action today, in Washington, D.C. 13 nonviolent activists were arrested in front of the White House protesting US militarism. Beginning at 10:30 a.m., over thirty participants read names of 77 Minnesotans killed in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with the names of Iraqis and Afghans killed in the U.S. wars. After each name was read, a bell was rung and the participants said “We Remember You.” A banner that read, “Occupation” was pelted with shoes inscribed with anti war slogans. Finally, the 13 walked onto the sidewalk and laid down in remembrance of the war dead. Father William Pickard anointed the “dead” with olive oil.
The Washington D.C. Park Police arrested all 13 lying on the pavement. Vickie Andrews, John Braun, Marie Braun, Lori Blanding, Ward Brennan, Stephen Clemens, Diane Haugesag, Maxine McNamara, Ceylon Mooney, Joe Palen, Mary Percich, Father William Pickard and Cornelia Sullivan were first taken to the Anacostia Police station. Then they were transported to Washington D.C. District 1 police station only to be taken later to the Washington D.C. lock up. They have been told they will remain there until they appear before a judge on January 27, 2010.
Harassment of peace protesters was common under the Bush presidency and continues under Obama's presidency. Tom
Bush still pre-screening questions at speaking events.
Throughout George W. Bush’s presidency, his handlers always made a special effort to ensure his appearances with regular Americans were scripted in such a way that shined the best possible light on Bush and his polices. Whether he was meeting troops in Iraq, leading “Ask President Bush” re-election campaign events, or trying to sell his (failed) Social Security reform plan, Bush always had a friend in the audience ready to ask a softball question or heap praise on the president. It appears that old habits die hard, as those attending Bush’s upcoming speech in Michigan will be forced to submit their questions ahead of time:
Read on...
First of all the website www.protestbush.com is back online and it has been updated. The protest is today at 3 p.m. at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Be interesting to see how many protestors show up. Tom
Read on...
First of all the website www.protestbush.com is back online and it has been updated. The protest is today at 3 p.m. at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Be interesting to see how many protestors show up. Tom
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