Where all the protesters went

SFGate.com ^ | 3/21/04 | Joe Garofoli - SF Chronicle

[NormsRevenge]

In sheer numbers of sign-carrying bodies on the street, the weekend of Feb. 15 and 16 last year marked the high tide of the anti-war movement until now. More than 20 million demonstrators in 600 cities worldwide -- including Arcata, San Francisco and Los Angeles -- hit the pavement in a last-ditch effort to try to at least delay the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

[cyborg]

back to the flea speck rehab half way house they came from OR the welfare office OR mummy and daddy's gated compound

[OpusatFR]

On the other hand, billions did not protest.

[anniegetyourgun]

"But they're not into electoral politics. They want to change the whole system."

Sigh....it is the way of commies and anarchists....

[Asclepius]

Since last July, Bolger has devoted his time to a start-up known as Adopt-an-Activist, in which people are encouraged to contribute to a bankroll for fulltime activists.

Perhaps they could teach them basic hygeine too. Just a thought.

[tkathy]

Could it be that people all over the world are starting to get it? The Spain massacre just may have the opposite effect from what the murdering morons wanted.

[Redcoat LI]

"Stanford University political science Professor Mo Fiorina said the antiwar movement "hasn't had much influence at all.''

I think that answers the question as to where they went.

[Seruzawa]

She wasn't a professional activist, she was a mom who couldn't sleep at night because of what was going on in the Middle East.

Oh. But she could sleep when Hussein or the Taliban were slaughtering 10s of thousands of their own people every day.

What is with these people who are silent in the face of the incredible brutality of foreign dictators, but then get all upset when some conservative tries to stop the slaughter? It must be a mental illness.

[Seruzawa]

Oops! I meant tens of thousands every year, not every day.

[gitmo]

Where did all the war protestors go when we invaded Somalia?

Where did all the war protestors go when we invaded Haiti?

Where did all the war protestors go when we invaded Bosnia?

Where did all the war protestors go when we invaded Haiti?

[T'wit]

>> More than 20 million demonstrators in 600 cities worldwide

Sure, sure, I believe that figure, if you count 19,800,000 inflatable plastic hippies and a smattering of flying pigs. I hear the Mother Ship spent weeks deflating and stowing the demonstrators afterwards.

[danamco]

She wasn't a professional activist, she was a mom who couldn't sleep at night because of what was going on in the Middle East.
Oh. But she could sleep when Hussein or the Taliban were slaughtering 10s of thousands of their own people every day.

What is with these people who are silent in the face of the incredible brutality of foreign dictators, but then get all upset when some conservative tries to stop the slaughter? It must be a mental illness.


9 posted on 03/21/2004 3:50:08 PM PST by Seruzawa (If you agree with the French raise your hand - If you are French raise both hands.)



Did we ever see that kind of protest in favor of Hitler when he ran over Europe and FDR got involved. Or, more recently when Clinton/Wesley bombed the hell out of Serbia.... Don't forget when Clinton invaded Haiti.

Where were all these kind of people then? They were total silent because it was the donkey's ass party sitting in the W.H.!!!

[syriacus]

A little over a year ago, Warren Langley -- the then-60-year-old former president of the Pacific Exchange -- shocked longtime associates by sitting down in his dress suit with activists in the middle of Bush and Montgomery streets and chanting, "No business as usual." He was quickly arrested.

The media ate up the story of the corporate icon -- and U.S. Air Force veteran -- who felt he "needed to do something more than marching in a demonstration, more than talking to my friends about it, more than sending e- mail letters to (my congressional representatives)," as Langley said before being arrested. He obliged interviewers everywhere from "The O'Reilly Factor" to National Public Radio, but few fellow corporate titans followed him into the streets.

I am getting tired of bogus stories of people suddenly becoming enlightened into anti-government activism

Here is a1999 article on Warren Langley which discusses what he was like in 1996 or 1997

The art of survival , Oscar winners Freida Lee Mock and Terry Sanders salute America's Vietnam War POWs in the awe-inspiring "Return With Honor." By Michael Sragow

Aug. 26, 1999 |  "You know, we live among some amazing people who, when asked to do something almost impossible, did it. And they honor us." That statement lodged in the minds of documentary filmmakers Freida Lee Mock and Terry Sanders and led them to chronicle the experiences of fighter pilots shot down over North Vietnam and held prisoner in and around Hanoi.

The man who made that statement was Warren Langley, a 1965 graduate of the Air Force Academy. Two and a half years ago Langley flew from Chicago and showed up at Mock and Sanders' Santa Monica offices with a couple of fellow alumni. He was sporting long hair and Guatemalan friendship beads and handing out business cards that listed his occupation as "Wizard." (He is a computer/finance/math whiz: Six months later, he became president of the Pacific Stock Exchange.)

[longtermmemmory]

Where did the protesters go? Well the Clintonesque men got sex from the ladies protesting and moved on to the next conquest. "He said he would caaaaaaallllll!"

[Alia]

They were protesting Ward Connerly, Tom Wood, Glynn Custred -- Prop 209, and doing all within their power to hang onto their "legalized" form of racialism.

[Pan_Yan]

I can only think of Scarlet, fists clenched, looking on the ruins of Tara and declaring that "I will never go hungery again."

Some one please get Mr. Garafoli a tissue.

On a similar note, its hard to justify the fact that you need professional protestors to get your message out, and still claim that your views are the mainstream.

[reformedliberal]

Yeah, but it means a percentage won't vote.

They used to say:"I'm not into politics" and organizers responded:"Everything is politics". Now, they understand that everything is politics and so "I am not into electoral politics." becomes the cant.

I am hearing faint strains of this as the weakest links prepare to contemplate futile NGO actions, once again. So they will continue to be a PIA, but many will not vote.

[NYCVirago]

Only in liberal land are failures such as these folks rewarded with such fawning articles. None of them really achieved a thing, other than a feeling of self-righteousness.

[NYCVirago]

Sure, sure, I believe that figure, if you count 19,800,000 inflatable plastic hippies and a smattering of flying pigs. I hear the Mother Ship spent weeks deflating and stowing the demonstrators afterwards.

Where do they get the 20 million number? New York, which had one of the biggest protests last year, only had 100,000 people at their big rally. Must be Million Moron Math.