September 11, 2007
War Protesters From Both Sides Get Ready to Rumble
The recent antics of the anti-war ANSWER Coalition, including pasting signs on utility boxes advertising their planned protest this Saturday on the National Mall despite orders from the city not to, resulting in several arrests and thousands of dollars in fines, haven't won the group many new fans among locals. Even though the District is a heavily liberal town populated by people who mainly agree with their stand on the war, ANSWER's attitude toward the city in which they organize has left some feeling baffled, if our comment threads are any indication.
Still, we haven't heard of any D.C. residents who are angry enough about the signs to plan any kind of anti-ANSWER protest -- that role will instead be played by a group far less sympathetic to the anti-war movement. The Gathering of Eagles, a relatively new group dedicated to "defending" the country's war memorials and opposed to the notion that it is possible to "support the troops but not the war," is organizing a counter-demonstration. The AP via NBC4 says the group plans to line Pennsylvania Ave. between 7th and 10th when the anti-war march goes by on Saturday, which begins at noon, though the Gathering of Eagles plan first to rally at 9:30 a.m. on the Mall.
The Post has more on the Gathering of Eagles, including a quote from member Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.), a man known for occasionally making rather poetic speeches at human rights issues meetings on the Hill. Currently Rep. McCotter seems to be rather more passionate about going to war with Iran.
So will there be a real rumble on the Mall this Saturday? We certainly hope not, and at least on paper, the Gathering of Eagles claims to adhere to nonviolent principles, as does ANSWER. Surely we can expect some heated shouting downtown this weekend, though.
Photo of protest signs from 2005 by Joe in DC
|
Does anyone know whether ANSWER is continuing to waste the District's resources by appealing the decision by which it was ordered to pay for the cleanup costs?
A group called the Institute for Public Accuracy put a press release today, tangentially related:
http://accuracy.org/newsrelease.php?articleId=1557
- A reporter
Is it safe to assume that this is happening on Pennsylvania Avenue between 7th and 10th in NORTHWEST?
Because I wouldn't put it past ANSWER to be stupid enough to hold a protest at Eastern Market, it being such a booshwa capitalist enclave and all.
It may get ugly around the Vietnam Memorial with the recent vandalism....I bet tensions will be running high.
Really? "Gathering of Eagles"??
Sounds like something Colbert would think up...
did they ever figure out what that was on the wall?
I love how a few people become more outraged about ANSWER hanging signs than they do about the miserable war going on.
I've stopped believing in the power of protests to accomplish much -- they are so easily ignored and caricatured by the media -- but I feel obligated to go out and at least vent my frustration over the situation.
Those Gathering of Eagles guys are interesting and I wish I could have a conversation with them in a calmer environment. Are they saying that you should never question any war we are involved in, under any circumstances?
I can't imagine MPD will allow the Gathering of Eagles to line the march route. That's just asking for a disaster.
Good, now that this has been posted maybe that one guest will stop spamming all these threads with his Gathering of Eagles tripe.
BostonRay says: The Gathering of Eagles, of which I am very proud to be one, has been granted a permit to demonstrate between 7th an 10th street NW. From what I am hearing from other members the desecration and violation of our Monument has provoked additional thousands more from across the country to drop what they were doing and make fast arrangements to ensure arrival in DC for this Saturday. We are already here and our numbers will be fast growing as the week advances. To understate the obvious - we are not happy with these homegrown Answer insurgent cowards. Many of us have names on the Wall. The Park Service attempted to cover up this desecration because of the reaction it would provoke. They failed in the coverup and will find now they will underestimate the reaction. If I were cindy sheehan I would take the day off like hanoi jane did in March to avoid the humiliation. The Gathering of Eagles will have a lot more boots on the ground then we did then. You take care of the posters on the control boxes - We will take care of our sacred Monument to be sure. To all Veterans of all wars this is a mandatory showup.
I love how a few people become more outraged about ANSWER hanging signs than they do about the miserable war going on.
Totally. Like the other day firemen were racing to a fire, and I was like "hey there's a war going on, why don't you fight that". And then there was this traffic light that was all like "first I'm green, then I'm yellow, then I'm red" and I was like "why are you trying to create an orderly city, when people are dying in war?" Jesus people, it's as if you're trying to take responsibility and ownership of the city around you instead of chasing that cathartic high of futile confrontation.
Gathering of Eagles are coming?!. HURRAY!!!!!
The greatest source of unintentional humor is descending upon us. Grab your digital camera/video and prepare the populate youtube with all sorts of funny.
Gathering of Eagles members are the ones who ‘vandalized’ the Vietnam Memorial. They always spread word that ‘anarchists’ are threatening the Wall right before a big ANSWER protest just to boost their numbers. This time I guess they took it a step further.
BostonRay - serious question; should we have stayed in Vietnam? Would it have been respectful to the troops to make that black wall just as long as we could? Or is it there to make us think individually, long and hard, about the reason and necessity behind every conflict.
That is why it is a sacred place, and should not be manipulated in this way.
I'm just thinking of the last time Gathering Of Eagles turned to have made up wholesale that "throw paint on the memorial" threat to pump their attendance. Not too long ago. Pretty well documented.
@ Reid [11],
My emphasis was on the "few". I am just frustrated at so many people's apathy about an apparently never ending war that is somewhere far away, out of sight, out of mind. And I am not really defending ANSWER on the signs, but I think the capital of the U.S. should err on the side of allowing more speech, more protest, more political activism, and more posters plastered across the city if it comes to that.
Speaking of - isn't there some anti-war group that's more rational than the ANSWER idiots?
It just bothers the hell out of me that the highest profile anti-war group is, in fact, a bunch of basically indefensible hippie communists.
Speaking of - isn't there some anti-war group that's more rational than the ANSWER idiots?
Yeah, they are called United For Peace and Justice (UFPJ). They'll be marching in DC on October 27th. If you want to support a real coalition support UFPJ. ANSWER is just a communist front group.
WOV: There are several groups that are more rational, but they don't organize marches.
GoE's website only says that they have a permit application in, not that they have received a permit.
The enemy of my enemy is not my friend.
If anyone was trying to make a political statement or trying to frame someone else by vandalizing the wall, I think they'd have done something a little more meaningful than spraying some oil. Either it was nonpolitical run-of-the-mill idiot vandals, or it was some sort of bizarre accident and not vandalism at all.
And judging by the other counterdemonstrations there have been during antiwar protests, I don't think they'll be exactly "lining" three blocks.
My emphasis was on the "few". I am just frustrated at so many people's apathy about an apparently never ending war that is somewhere far away, out of sight, out of mind.
Actually I'm more encouraged by the fact that people care about the city around them than I am discouraged by the fact people don't want to waste time and organizational effort living out the wet dreams of aging hippies.
Everyone has a pet cause that they just can't believe more people don't care about. We can't just throw out time, place, and manner restrictions on speech just because someone really cares about a particular issue. If we did, we'd just end up with noise.
This is a city; not a god damn soap box.
"Many of us have names on the Wall"
OMG Zombie pro war protesters return from the grave!
"Speaking of - isn't there some anti-war group that's more rational than the ANSWER idiots?"
Yes. They're called a majority of this country.
This is a city; not a god damn soap box.
Exactly. We all know they're coming to town. Shouldn't they be plastering their crap in THEIR home towns?? Its fine to protest here, I don't think any of us have a problem with that. We are aware it is the capital of our nation. All we're asking is that they be considerate of the fact that it is also our homes. I have no problem with them demonstrating, frankly I wouldn't have a problem with them plastering their crap all over the monumental core. I do however get pissed when they put that shit all over my neighborhood and then leave it there.
From the Gathering of Eagles website:
Doesn't sound like a scam at all - no sir.
Those Gathering of Eagles guys are interesting and I wish I could have a conversation with them in a calmer environment. Are they saying that you should never question any war we are involved in, under any circumstances?
Of course not. It's your patriotic duty to question each and every war, and anything else whatsoever, if the President is a Democrat.
Other than that, nope. It's in the Constitution. Or maybe the Bible, I forget.
I took the perfect photo at the first anti-Iraq invasion ANSWER march. It featured:
1- an attractive blond hippiechick wearing cat-eye glasses and holding an ANSWER poster (while looking oh-so-smart/cocky)
2- a guy wearing wayfarer glasses dressed head to toe in black leather (except the jacket had a US flag on the front) holding a "KILL SADDAM" sign (looking like a bad ass, except that she was taller). and they were
3- standing on Penn Ave in front of the WH.
Obviously neither side has evolved much on the marketing front.
Monkeyrotica will be there, to get some that free love! All these ijjits need is 8 minutes of quality boudoir time with the Monkey behind the dumpsters, and they'll be babbling like Lyndon Larouche.
And I need to get me $240 worth of puddin. Aw yeah. We had the two-forty, we had to have the puddin. I know what you're sayin: "Monkeyrotica? Where'd you get $240?" [puts finger to lips]
Shhhhhhhhh.
Maybe ANSWER is posting all over Cap Hill because it's close to their DC offices: [from their website]
National Office in Washington DC
(Also for International Contacts)
1247 E St. SE, Washington, DC 20003 · (202) 544-3389
info@internationalanswer.org · www.internationalanswer.org
For media inquiries, call here.
And I can't say that their web presence is stylistically all that different from Gathering of Eagles. Just a lot of shouting and oversimplifications.
To really protest the war, put your efforts into aid agencies like Doctors without Borders or Amnesty or another that reflects your passions. The more we support people who do good instead of harm, the less energy is wasted on bickering about the war.
So many people complain about ANSWER, but they actually get people out and active in protests, letter writing campaigns, and donations to causes that might actually stop the war. Compared with other anti-war rallys, they actually have an impact.
Yes, because people dying in a fire is equivalent to some posters around town. Prioities!
Guest #10, you sound like an American Nazi.
"We are already here and our numbers will be fast growing"??
"homegrown ANSWER insurgent cowards"??
"Hanoi Jane"???
Oh PLEASE!!!!!
And by the way, there are SEVERAL veterans and active duty in my family, and many of my relatives & I are against this fiasco that Smirking Chimp started under a lie, keeps changing military justification for, and will not end!
BostonRay speaks: Guest #31, congratulations on having a family! Why are you not on active duty? Too busy, huh? As a member of Gathering of Eagles might I suggest that you show up on Penn. Ave. this Saturday the 15th. It would give you an excellent opportunity to meet people like myself who have fought alongside a number of those who have their names inscribed on the Wall. Oh yes, we have met a defeatocrat congress before. We are looking forward to "interacting" with those mighty members of the socialist workers party (Answer) in a meaningful way. Can you find DC on the map? Might I suggest we leave the children at home.
Living in DC for six years has all but annihilated my desire to believe in and / or fight for anything. Occasionally, early in the morning, I experience fleeting bursts of political optimism. But for the sake of my coworkers--all smug hyper-lawyerly cynics like myself--I keep those impulses well concealed. It's a vast bureaucratic machine, I remind myself. What do you expect? Change the system from within, etc. etc. etc. etc.
I won't worry my pretty little head about it, Monkeyrotica.
I have an idea—maybe the city should pass out those 350,000 Trojans to all the protesters, so they won’t grow up and raise another generation of whiny protesters like their hippie parents did.
Amen, g35. If we're lucky, the next generation of young Americans will be even more politically milquetoast than the current one. Imagine, if you will, a million people marching on the Capitol, demanding nothing, and with a great sigh, shrugging their shoulders and quietly dispersing. God Bless America, Whatever.
Monkeyrotica, you brought sanity to an Iraq-War-related thread with $240 worth of puddin'.
I want to bear your monkey-chil'ren.
And I'm a dude.