Vigils in November 2021

[Brian]

Every Friday since January 2006, we've stood for peace and justice from 5:30 to 7 p.m. along the wide northwest corner of Ocean View Boulevard and Honolulu Avenue in Montrose, CA 91020, not far from the Vietnam War Memorial.

Only nine regulars came to this Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil, after averaging a dozen per week last month.  Sharon and Bill sent an e-mail before the vigil saying they could not make it and asking me to say "hi" to those who came to the corner.  Glad to do it -- and everybody looks forward to seeing them again soon.

Since October 2011, we have printed and displayed every Defense Department news release announcing the deaths of soldiers, Marines, sailors and Airmen in our many ongoing military operations around the world.  The Pentagon reported no uniformed U.S. casualties in the previous seven days.

[Brian]

This Friday's Montrose Peace vigil took place the day after Veterans Day, which I have always called Armistice Day even though the name was changed four years before I was born. We have two national holidays dedicated to the military -- why can't we have one that commemorates peace? This holiday was marred by constant references in the news to it being "the first Veterans Day in 20 years when the U.S. was not at war." I'm glad that we finally left Afghanistan, but that's wrong.  Last year, a special operations solider was killed in Kenya along with two civilian contractors by Somalian terrorists. Three years earlier, four soldiers were killed in an attack in Niger. Those operations continue.  In between and ever since, uniformed personnel died supporting operations elsewhere in Africa along with Iraq and Syria, though fewer than at the beginning of those conflicts and mostly by accident.  Yet if those troops weren't serving overseas, they would probably still be alive.  The 2001 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force are still being exploited to this day.

Rant over. We were greeted at the corner this week by a near record high temperature and nighttime darkness after the end of Daylight Saving Time.  The trees wrapped in little white lights and a green floodlight above us -- awaiting the annual arrival of a large nutcracker statue -- helped illuminate our signs, and Anni brought her bag of candles.  The eight regulars who made it were joined at the end of the vigil by two passing pedestrians, Meddy and Mike, who said that nothing makes him happier than holding a protest sign.  Now he knows where to find happiness every Friday evening.

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

[Brian]

On the Channel 5 news I saw that only two dozen people showed up downtown for a protest against the acquittal of that messed up kid in Wisconsin. If everyone who came to this Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil had gone there, we would have increased their attendance by nearly half. Instead, I was celebrating the commutation of an innocent man's death sentence by the Republican governor of Oklahoma, who was doubtlessly influenced by powerful pleas and peaceful protests, including those in the state capitol's beautiful rotunda.

Foot and wheel traffic was sparse this chilly evening.  Ten regulars participated.  In order of appearance, they were me, Anni and Rosalind, Nancy, Terry, Bill and Sharon, Jeanne, Mary and lastly Jim, believe it or not.  Jim is almost always the first to arrive but this week he came around 6:30 and stayed to the end of the vigil.

No U. S. military deaths were reported in the previous seven days.

[Brian]

The day after Thanksgiving is always one of the lightest days for vehicular traffic on Ocean View Boulevard and Honolulu Avenue in Montrose. Good thing -- that's when the city closes one block of Honolulu to vehicles on the other side of the intersection from Montrose Peace Vigil's corner to conduct the shopping park association's Christmas tree lighting ceremony and sing carols.  Last year's ceremony was canceled because of the pandemic, and turnout didn't appear to be as great as past years, but lots of people walked by the vigil on their way to the festivities, many wearing Santa hats and Christmas sweaters.  A fire truck parked sideways across Honolulu to protect the crowd from runaway vehicles.

Friday marked our 16th consecutive post-Thanksgiving Montrose Peace Vigil.  Attendance was down slightly this month because some regulars were traveling or had other obligations:

• Nov. 5 - 9
• Nov. 12 - 10
• Nov. 19 - 10
• Nov. 26 - 11

This month's weekly average was exactly 10 participants, after averaging 12 in October, 22 in September and 30 in August (when we were joined by anti-recall demonstrators), 11 in July, 17 in June, 11 in May, 10 in April, 9 in March, 8 in February, 7 in January and December and 8 in November 2020. Twelve peaceniks was our average attendance for many years before the pandemic.

For the 13th week in a row, the Pentagon reported no U.S. casualties.