P. S. I NEED AN ADDRESS TO SEND SOME SIGNS.
Posted on 08/20/2005 7:50:19 PM PDT by FairOpinion
CRAWFORD, Texas - A patriotic camp with a "God Bless Our President!" banner sprung up downtown Saturday, countering the anti-war demonstration started by a fallen soldier's mother two weeks ago near President Bush's ranch.
The camp is named "Fort Qualls," in memory of Marine Lance Cpl. Louis Wayne Qualls, 20, who died in Iraq last fall.
"If I have to sacrifice my whole family for the sake of our country and world, other countries that want freedom, I'll do that," said the soldier's father, Gary Qualls, a friend of the local business owner who started the pro-Bush camp. He said his 16-year-old son now wants to enlist, and he supports that decision.
Qualls' frustration with the anti-war demonstrators erupted last week when he removed a cross bearing his son's name that was among hundreds the group had put up along the road to Bush's ranch.
Qualls called the protesters' views disrespectful to soldiers, and said he had to yank out two more crosses after protesters kept replacing them.
Cindy Sheehan, whose 24-year-old son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, died last year in Iraq, started the anti-war demonstration along the roadside on Aug. 6. "Camp Casey" has since grown to about 100 core participants, and hundreds more from across the nation have visited.
Sheehan vowed to remain there until Bush agreed to meet with her or until his monthlong vacation ended, but she flew to Los Angeles last week after her 74-year-old mother had a stroke. Her mother has some paralysis but is in good spirits, and if she improves, Sheehan may return to Texas in a few days, some demonstrators said.
In her absence, the rest of the group will keep camping out for the unlikely chance to question the president about the war that has claimed the lives of about 1,850 U.S. soldiers.
Bush has said he sympathizes with Sheehan but won't change his schedule to meet with her. She and other families met with Bush about two months after Casey Sheehan died, before she became a vocal opponent of the war.
Large counter-protests were held in a ditch near Sheehan's site a week after she arrived, and since then, a few Bush supporters have stood in the sun holding signs for several hours each day.
Bill Johnson, a local gift shop owner who created "Fort Qualls," said he wanted to offer a larger, more convenient place for Bush supporters to gather.
He and others at "Fort Qualls" have asked for a debate with those at the Crawford Peace House, which is helping Sheehan.
It's unclear if that will happen. But a member of Gold Star Families for Peace, co-founded by Sheehan and comprised of relatives of fallen soldiers, said her group would not participate.
"We're asking for a meeting with the president, period," said Michelle DeFord, whose 37-year-old son, Sgt. David W. Johnson, was in the Army National Guard from Oregon when he was killed in Iraq last fall. "We don't want to debate with people who don't understand our point of view."
P. S. I NEED AN ADDRESS TO SEND SOME SIGNS.
I've got half a mind to bring the Qualls some cold drinks all the way from Minnesota.
If we lived anywhere sort of close to Crawford we would be there with our 'God Bless our President and God Bless America' signs.
Thanks for your work. In my work I sometimes come into contact with Law enforcement officers. They, as the military, understand that with our enemies--foreign or domestic--it's street rules. The discipline and compassion our "guardians in uniform" demonstrate battling evil is not appreciated until you're the citizen facing danger.
Well done, American patriots!
All of these brave fallen warriors deserve nothing but RESPECT from the American public and this dad is making sure that his son's name is not used by the 'useful idiots' of 'Camp Casey'.
Semper Fidelis
"We don't want to debate with people who don't understand our point of view."
It's a Freudian slip.
Yeah. All that difference of opinion would make for a pretty poor debate.
Any sanitation legal requirements?
Any licenses with fees required for booths and tents set up as businesses selling literature, tee shirts, caps or refreshments, etc.?
Any health department requirements for food handling and serving?
Any county or state regulations concerning parking on highway shoulders or easements?
Any enforceable legal regulations for the proper disposal of waste, human or otherwise?
Are their porta-potties handicapped/wheelchair friendly?
Will they replace all divots when they leave?
Leni
God Bless you. I appreciate what you and the other FReepers do EVERY Friday night outside of Walter Reed Medical Center.
Our numbers and support keep going up and the pink-o's keep going down. We are now getting visits every week from soldiers telling us how much it means to them that we are there. It is truly an honor for me to support them.
Did you see the thread from Wednesday night in front of the White House? Great fun!
You said in a nutshell. That's why Liberals are so hard to talk to...you just want to reach out and thrash them instead.
I sure wish I lived closer!
Just as Cindy was about to fade into obscurity, the story gets some more juice.
Dittoed!! Anyone know if Fred Mattlage has a next door neighbor with some land for rent???
For those of us who cannot make it, we can STILL shop at The Yellow Rose.
Make sure you tell them you support our troops and the kindness they're showing...(like I had to tell you that!).
:)
http://yellowrosecrawford.com/
Additionally, I will be putting together a group of images showing Pro-Bush/Support Our Troop rallys and gatherings tha you can all use ~ if you can't make it to Crawford you can print out these pics and put them all over a nice deli platter or basket of cookies and take them to a recruiters office near you as a gesture to show them you are here with in Texas in spirit!!
It will also give them a chance to see the kind of real support they aren't likely to see on the eleven o'clock news!
I'll post a url for the images the first part of next week.
Thank you!
We'll be out of town next weekend, headed in the opposite direction....with NO internet access!!!
YIKES!
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