Vigils in March 2020

[Brian]

As much as I loathe Daylight Saving Time, I look forward to it for just one reason. After four months of protesting in the dark, we will soon be seen in daylight for the entire vigil at the intersection of Ocean View Boulevard and Honolulu Avenue in Montrose, CA 91020, where we've advertised for peace every week from 5:30 to 7 p.m. since January 2006. Half of this Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil was conducted in daylight.  Next week everybody will be able to read our signs throughout.  Anni has put her bag of candles back into storage.

Vigil co-founder Roberta knows Dan Brotman, who was very likely elected to the Glendale City Council this week based on the vote count so far and who founded the very successful Glendale Environmental Coalition.  Dan stopped by the corner and stood with a sign Roberta had brought from the Fire Drill Friday demonstration in San Pedro, hosted by Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin.

Fifteen people participated in this week's Montrose Peace Vigil.

Since October 2011, we have printed and displayed every Defense Department news release announcing the deaths of soldiers, sailors and airmen in our many ongoing wars during the vigils. The Pentagon reported no uniformed casualties in the previous seven days.

[Brian]

A light drizzle fell throughout most of this Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil.  Still, 12 regulars came to the corner to hold waterproof signs -- which has been our weekly average for many years. As expected, few pedestrians were out and the passing vehicle traffic was much lower than usual.

This week, we had two Defense Department news releases to post on the utility pole announcing the deaths of four service members in Iraq.  On Tuesday, the Pentagon named two special ops Marines who died while trying to clear ISIS forces from a tunnel complex in the mountains of north central Iraq.  One of those soldiers came from nearby Simi Valley, California:

www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2106455/dod-identifies-marine-casualties/

On Friday, the Pentagon identified a U.S. soldier and an Oklahoma Air National Guard airman who were killed along with a NATO medic in a rocket attack on their training base north of Baghdad that was blamed on Shiite militias:

www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Releases/Release/Article/2110986/dod-identifies-army-air-force-casualties/

[Brian]

On the first day of statewide closures of nonessential businesses, almost every parking space along Ocean View Boulevard and Honolulu Avenue was empty. The only businesses open were Big Mama's & Papa's Pizzeria and Kabab Daddy for take out and, until 6 p.m., the Coffee Bean.  Oh yeah, the banks of course.  Still, there were a few people of all ages out walking, more than I remember seeing when the Friday evening vigils have coincided with Christmas Day, traditionally the slowest day of the year at the intersection.  We got more honks and waves from the passing vehicles, per capita, than we usually get.

Seven regulars came to the corner for this week's Montrose Peace Vigil.  We stood at least six feet apart with our signs, yet we were able to converse at the same time without shouting because it was so quiet.  If our average of a dozen demonstrators had showed up, we still would have plenty of room to spread out on the patches of grass along the wide northwest corner, not far from the Vietnam War Memorial.

In the previous seven days, the Department of Defense reported no military deaths in Operation Freedom's Sentinel in Afghanistan, Operation Inherent Resolve in Iraq and Syria or in any of the many other U.S. operations underway around the world.

[Sharon W]

Our virtual participation Friday was to put our Fire Drill Friday sign in the Bill's office window. When he went out to take a photo he heard a little girl walking with her mom down on the sidewalk read it out loud. Thanks to those demonstrated social distancing.

[Oss Rae]

Mar 21, 2020 11:00:36 GMT -8 Sharon W said:

Our virtual participation Friday was to put our Fire Drill Friday sign in the Bill's office window. When he went out to take a photo he heard a little girl walking with her mom down on the sidewalk read it out loud. Thanks to those demonstrated social distancing.

YAY!!!

One thing I like about San Francisco is the signs people put up in their windows (under ordinary circumstances, at least).

[Sharon W]

I put "Belated Happy Vernal Equinox" in the window yesterday in case they walk by again. There's a FB group for Montrose-Sparr-Heights-LCF that had a Shamrock Hunt for St. Patrick's day. People printed out or drew Shamrocks and put them in a window or somewhere visible in the yard and families with bored kids at home walked or drove around looking for them. They're picking something different every few days, silly faces, flowers, etc. Lots of creative thinking these days to keep young children amused and not frightened.

[Brian]

Foot and wheel traffic was even lighter at this Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil than it was last week. Yet 13 frequent participants came to hold signs, not only surpassing our average attendance but also greatly outnumbering the people passing at any given time.  We spread out, occupying all three patches of grass along the wide northwest corner.  At least three long time stalwarts have understandably decided to forgo the weekly vigils and stay home to reduce their risk.  Cyber hugs to John and Justeen for driving from west Van Nuys to join us again.

Here are my tallies of each week's participants in March:

• Mar. 6 - 15
• Mar. 13 - 12
• Mar. 20 - 7
• Mar. 27 - 13

This month's weekly average rounds up to 12 participants, after averaging 12 in February and January, 13 in December, 12 in November, 13 in October, 12 in September, August and July, 14 in June and May, 11 in April and 12 in March 2019.

The Pentagon announced no U.S. military deaths in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria or anywhere else in the previous seven days.

[Sharon W]

We put our Fire Drill Friday sign in the window again and I put on my Peace Vigil t-shirt and walked around the yard waving to the neighbors taking walks down on the street. We have California Poppies and lots of other things blooming beautifully. The skies have never been so clear in my lifetime - a real illustration of what a bad idea the internal combustion engine turned out to be.