October vigils and extras

[Roberta]

I love your record-keeping and visuals, Brian and Anni, many thanks.

"Neighbor Steve" communicates re peace and on 2 SF valley vigils. The assignment below is from his reminder of a few weeks ago. It made me laugh, an important criteria for any activist message for me. Yes, he is kidding, as I am when I issue "excused absences". But there is also truth here -- nothing will change if we don't keep the wars in the collective consciousness of our communities and nothing does that like visible public activity.

Quoting Steve Fine:

If you wish to be excused, you can submit an essay on one of two topics:

1) Why you believe the wars and occupations are over, or will soon be over, if you do nothing to pressure Obama to end them. (Just let the right wing and the Pentagon and half the lobbyists in Washington D.C. run amok, in their highly organized and well funded way, ramping up the pressure to escalate the war in Afghanistan and slow down the withdrawal from Iraq.) Or . . .

2) Why you now believe wars, occupations, and long-term military garrisons in hostile regions of the world are actually a vital stabilizing force for the American economy. (Example: point out the connection between military spending and the deficit and how that leads to sound fiscal policy on the domestic front. ) Or you can . . .

COME TO THE CORNER!

[Brian]

Oct 19, 2009 9:07:58 GMT -8 Roberta said:

nothing will change if we don't keep the wars in the collective consciousness of our communities and nothing does that like visible public activity.

I love that!

Hard to say which was better Friday evening, the weather or the company. Certainly, anti-war sentiment feels stronger on the street. Also increasing on the corner is the attendance:

• Oct. 2 - 16
  
• Oct. 6 - 9 (Curveball)
  
• Oct. 9 - 11
  
• Oct. 16 - 10
  
• Oct. 23 - 13
  

In addition to our stalwarts, I was glad to see Chris for the first time in a month, saying he'd gone to the vigil in Glendale a couple of times in between. And Linda returned from her vacation in Hawaii. Also included in the total are two high schoolers who demonstrated energetically for ten minutes before I arrived, Anni told me, then said they were tired and had to go. It's heartening that kids have been participating again.

[Brian]

If you're reading this on Saturday, Oct. 31, and it's not yet 5 p.m., come to the corner of Ocean View and Honolulu in Montrose during the merchants' Halloween street festival and candy giveaway. There you'll see Montrose Peace Vigil members in period costumes and hear them quote heroes of pacifism in full view of the Vietnam War memorial under the flag of these United States.

Jeanne, Roberta, Nancy, Paige and Anni attracted amazed passersby at the dress rehearsal at Friday evening's vigil. One young woman crossed the street saying she's a women's studies major who recognized all of the characters. Her name's Theresa, just visiting from Nevada, and she gave all of the actors a hug when she left.

So I count Theresa in the official attendance:

• Oct. 2 - 16
  
• Oct. 6 - 9 (Curveball)
  
• Oct. 9 - 11
  
• Oct. 16 - 10
  
• Oct. 23 - 13
  
• Oct. 30 - 14