December vigils

[Brian]

Montrose suffered a lot less wind damage Wednesday night than neighboring La Canada Flintridge, but when I arrived at Friday's Montrose Peace Vigil, I saw that the next block up Ocean View Boulevard was without power except for the restaurant, which had a generator out front. Big branches were missing from many trees but the streets had been cleared for Saturday's Christmas Parade. Nine of us came to the corner. The counter-protesters were absent again.

Mike pointed out that nonmembers cannot download the attachments available on this message board. I'm almost always logged in, so I hadn't noticed. I wish everyone could see the weekly compilation of Defense Department press releases announcing the deaths of troops in Afghanistan and Iraq (still) that we've been posting on Mike's temporary flagpole at each vigil since October. Please consider joining this forum -- there are other advantages to being a member and no detriments whatsoever, I can attest as a ProBoards user since 2004 and an administrator for four years. Here is this week's PDF flyer, sadly for members only:

Attachments:

[Brian]

Montrose Peace Vigil had 14 participants on the corner this Friday -- without stalwarts like Jeanne and Nancy, who had duties elsewhere, and with no strangers joining spontaneously. That's a great turnout, thanks to five Glendale Peace Vigil regulars: Pearl and Norm were front and center for the entire vigil. Sharon and Bill stopped on their way to Glendale to drop off our Peace Train banner, and they held signs for awhile. And Cindy-Roy arrived with his guitar before 7, in time to sing two songs.

The counter-protesters were absent for the third week in row, unprecedented in the past four years.

Since I'm counting everything, this Friday marked the 11th consecutive week that Mike hoisted his half-mast replacement flagpole at the Vietnam War Memorial where we gather. Here's the PDF attachment of our flyer, with four deaths in Afghanistan announced in the past seven days, compared to three last week:

Attachments:

[Brian]

For the first Friday of the Montrose Peace Vigil without U.S. troops in Iraq, Roberta brought a new sign to the corner, "One Down, One to Go." Our spirits were lighter. The foot and wheel traffic was holiday heavy. The turnout, however, was below average:

• Dec. 2 - 9
  
• Dec. 9 - 14
  
• Dec. 16 - 9
  

The opposite corner was devoid of counter-protesters for the fourth consecutive week. That is, until two middle school age boys set down their bikes and started jumping up and down and shouting "War!" A fabulous parody of us? Then they got large squares of cardboard that we couldn't read because they wrote on them with markers. So I went across to talk to them and see their messages. One said, "War Bitches" and "MW3," which they had to explain to me, because I'm now officially old, was Modern Warfare 3, the most popular video game. The other sign read, "Honk if You're Horny."

Back to the world in 3D: The Department of Defense announced the deaths of five soldiers in Afghanistan this past week. Mike printed the press releases on this PDF attachment and posted them on his flagpole:

Attachments:

[anni]

Dec 17, 2011 0:27:30 GMT -8 Brian said:

The opposite corner was devoid of counter-protesters for the fourth consecutive week. That is, until two middle school age boys set down their bikes and started jumping up and down and shouting "War!" A fabulous parody of us? Then they got large squares of cardboard that we couldn't read because they wrote on them with markers. So I went across to talk to them and see their messages. One said, "War Bitches" and "MW3," which they had to explain to me, because I'm now officially old, was Modern Warfare 3, the most popular video game. The other sign read, "Honk if You're Horny."

Here's the best picture, (taken by our famous Mike) of the "counter-protest"

[Brian]

Roberta and Jeanne brought the lead panel of the Peace Train to display at Montrose Peace Vigil's sixth consecutive Christmas season on the corner. Anni will post some photos. Cindy-Roy, one of the few performers who knows the subversive verses of "This Land Is Your Land," was back with his guitar. The singing of Christmas carols followed naturally. Here's the official count of vigil participants this month:

• Dec. 2 - 9
  
• Dec. 9 - 14
  
• Dec. 16 - 9
  
• Dec. 23 - 10
  

I print the flyer compiling the Defense Department's press releases that we post every Friday on Thursday night. For the first time this week, no deaths were announced. Mike was going to leave his half-mast flagpole at home, but the DOD reported the fate of a female soldier Friday morning:

Attachments:

[anni]

Roberta with her 1 down 1 to go sign really not sure if it's safe to come out from behind the Peace Train. Cindy-Roy assuring strength through song:

[Roberta]

For our last vigil of 2011 Linda Nuckolls is going to bring to share wth all of us her collection of about 40, she estimates, musical instruments. Get ready to ring in the almost-new-year with a joyful noise!

[Brian]

Montrose Peace Vigil ended our sixth year this Friday facing light wheel and foot traffic at Ocean View Boulevard and Honolulu Avenue. We also marked our first New Year's without a war in Iraq. Roberta updated the numerals -- but could not add to the number of paper adhesive rose petals -- on the signs she made for last year's Rose Parade: 1863 troops have died in Afghanistan, 418 more than at the end of 2010. This month, a few vigil stalwarts missed weeks on the corner while traveling and we had no strangers joining us, but several friends from Glendale Peace Vigil came to demonstrate in Montrose:

• Dec. 2 - 9
  
• Dec. 9 - 14
  
• Dec. 16 - 9
  
• Dec. 23 - 10
  
• Dec. 30 - 9
  

We averaged 10 participants per week, the same as December 2010. The weekly average for 2011 was 12.

This was the sixth week in a row that no counter-protesters showed up on the opposite corner. More importantly, we observed the 14th consecutive weekly raising of Mike's temporary flagpole and the posting of a PDF flyer with the troop deaths announced in the past seven days:

Attachments: