Ithacans Hold Candlelight Vigil for Katrina Victims (turn event into "Hate Bush" event)

Copyright © 2005 The Cornell Daily Sun. All rights reserved. ^ | September 08, 2005 | by Rob Fishman

[Behind Liberal Lines]

ITHACA NY--Concerned Ithaca citizens from various religious and activist affiliations framed a circular gathering of prayer, meditation and discourse last night in response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina. The assembly, held in DeWitt Park, resonated with tension between conflicting passions: despair for unmitigated suffering, and naked anger for the government’s response to such distress.

The vigil allowed spiritual leaders of many faiths, as well as local residents, to share sentiments with the community. Common to each sermon was an element of shared suffering and compassion.

The neutral messages of commonality were often underlined by forceful political statements. “This is a centering moment … a time for us to reflect spiritually, morally, politically,” said Kenneth Clark, director of Cornell United Religious Work, who spoke of the “domestic cost of foreign wars.”

Clark argued that the war on Iraq — a conflict “fought on immoral grounds” — has drained the federal government of the resources and reserve soldiers needed to handle domestic tragedies like the havoc caused by Hurricane Katrina.

For several Ithaca residents, blame for a poor response to devastation was focused especially on President George W. Bush.

“I hold President Bush accountable for those decisions … many of the deaths are a direct result of him not doing what he should have done,” said Sunshine Bannister, an Ithaca citizen and New Orleans native who is still yet to make contact with her family.

Audrey Stewart, an organizer of the vigil, described the impact of Katrina as “overwhelmingly racist and classist.” Consequently, she said, “there is a lot of outrage in the community.”

Clark drew heavily on the words of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in describing what he saw as the nation’s “fault lines of race and class.” Quoting Dr. King in his plea for unity, Clark said, “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.”

For many of the speakers, however, the primary focus of the vigil was neither global nor historic, but local.

“What is happening there implicates our own reality in Ithaca, New York,” Clark said.

“People treat us differently,” Bannister said, commenting on her own experience as a poor Ithaca resident. “This very same thing could have happened here; it might have been your children being raped.”

Class issues raised by the speakers were accented by the makeup of the audience at the vigil — more homeless than Cornell students attended. Even the few Cornell students present were mostly affiliated with campus protest organizations.

Ithaca residents seemed unconcerned with the lack of Cornell students, however. Brien Colgan, an Ithacan who was considering driving down to New Orleans to help relief efforts, blamed the showing on “poor advertising,” and added that there is a “tremendous amount of enthusiasm among young people.”

[Behind Liberal Lines]

Clark argued that the war on Iraq — a conflict “fought on immoral grounds” — has drained the federal government of the resources and reserve soldiers needed to handle domestic tragedies ...blame for a poor response to devastation was focused especially on President George W. Bush... many of the deaths are a direct result of him not doing what he should have done...an organizer of the vigil, described the impact of Katrina as “overwhelmingly racist and classist"

Hit all the lib talking points, didn't they?

the few Cornell students present were mostly affiliated with campus protest organizations.

This is an important point. Often people who hear about what's going on in Ithaca, including Freepers, assume that it's a bunch of young, callow, students, who will outgrow these shenanigans.

It isn't. It's the adults who run the community, who vote on our budgets and teach (I mean indoctrinate) our children engaging in this petty, meanspirited and counterproductive behavior on a near-daily, and institutionalized, basis.

And that, my friends, is why Ithaca is the City of Evil.

[Behind Liberal Lines]

City of Evil bump:

[weegee]

Why don't they just hold a weekly "Hate Bush" rally and come out of the closet?

That way they wouldn't have to come up with a new "outrage" about why they hate Bush. They've always hated him, hated his father, and hated the man who held office along side his father.

[xcamel]

Forget "City of Evil"

"City of Hockey Helmets and Drool Cups" is closer to the truth.

[Only1choice____Freedom]

Ithacans Hold (insert beginen event here) and turn event into "Hate Bush" event.

[TexasCajun]

Mayor Nagin is Uncle-Tom, just like Colin Powell and Condi Rice, working for The Man and ignoring his black citizens, leaving hundreds of buses sitting idle while pointing to the SuperToilet and ConventionToilet and saying, "You're on your own"

Governor Blanco must then be a racist, closet Klan Kleigal, holding off the Red Cross and ignoring The Man's call to turn over evacuations to the Fed's.

Their Hurricane Plan was just a decoy and was never intended to be implemented, "You're on your own!" is indeed part of their plan.

[ariamne]

Ithaca used to be a nice place. My mother and father went to Cornell in the 50's, and my father's aunt lived in a farmhouse in Ithaca where as children we would delight to visit in the summers. We would go to Buttermilk Falls and camp, the whole family.

I don't know what came over that town. Leftist profs and their ilk, I suppose.

[Soaring Feather]

If the silly putty (that is called brains )in the heads of a lot of Ithacans' ever dries up, we will need massive relief efforts here.

Enough said.

[edmond246]

Over the summer I spent a week at a school with a person from Ithica college. She was very nice, until we got into the political discussion. She attacked me, almost hit me, and yelled at me...even after we stopped talking. She insulted my religious beliefs and really upset me. It was quite an experience.

[Flash Bazbeaux]

A candlelight vigil? I thought that was something you did when something bad was happening over which you were powerless and had no control -- such as when someone is sick, or, as the anti-death penalty people do in hopes that a murder gets a last minute stay or reprieve.

In this case, there is a lot these people could be doing to help. "Candlelight vigil" sounds caring, but in these circumstances it approaches the immoral.

Now here in poor, working class, Oakland, California, where despite our proximity to Berkeley, the masses are still enslaved by the "false consciousness" imposed upon them by the capitalist elite, there will be a CHRISTIAN gospel choir at the Oakland Coliseum on Saturday, presented by the "United [CHRISTIAN, I expect, or mainly so] Pastors of Oakland, to raise money for the people of New Orleans. While I do not know of this group, I expect the majority of them are African-American. I intend to stop by and make a donation.

The Oakland Tribune, in which I read of this event, almost bent over backwards to apologize in advance for the fact that there would be [CHRISTIAN] "prayers" involved, both in the "news article" publicizing it, and in an editorial encouraging everyone's attendance. The warning against the occurence of [CHRISTIAN] "prayers" did not quite approach the level of "some scenes may be harmful or offense to viewers", but that was clearly the point they were making.

[Soaring Feather]

Oh yes, I know, "they" are rabid.

[DrewsDad]

“I hold President Bush accountable for those decisions … many of the deaths are a direct result of him not doing what he should have done,” said Sunshine Bannister, an Ithaca citizen and New Orleans native who is still yet to make contact with her family.

Sunshine Bannister? LOL

The reason she hasn't heard from her family is that they have probably disowned her.

I guess she didn't catch the news that it was the State of Louisiana that kept the Red Cross out instead of that mean old Bush.

[Chode]

brought to you by the Peoples DemocRATic Republic of Ithaca WE HATE BUSH!!!

[denydenydeny]

“I hold President Bush accountable for those decisions … many of the deaths are a direct result of him not doing what he should have done,”

Typically, a fact-free condemnation of Bush. What horrible thing did he do? He didn't do what he should have done!

This is exactly how Kerry would answer Iraq questions on the stump last year.

Q: What would you differently than President Bush in Iraq?

A: Everything!

[popdonnelly]

Another generation of students turned into idiots by left-wing professors.

[edcoil]

While they stand around burning candles, the rest of the us are packing clothes, food and water bottles and get them to those that need it.

Thanks for the no-help there folks. People could have used those candles where there is no power.

[Behind Liberal Lines]

People could have used those candles where there is no power.

Great point. Great point.

[popdonnelly]

Thank God for conservative college students everywhere. Stay in school. Do well. You're our only hope against the leftist idiots who want to control our intellectual life.