Posted on 10/30/2005 4:10:30 AM PST by Valin
Outside Walter Reed on Friday Nights, Two Camps Stand Their Ground
Every Friday night, Gael Murphy and Kristinn Taylor meet in Northwest Washington, separated by a bustling four-lane road -- and a whole lot more.
Since spring, the two have stood firmly on opposite sides of Georgia Avenue NW in front of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Murphy leading a coalition of war protesters, Taylor marshaling supporters of the Iraq war.
Both sides say they are there to support the troops. Beyond that, there's little common ground.
"They start yelling, 'Murderer!' 'Traitor!' They call me by name," said Murphy, a co-founder of the women's antiwar group Code Pink. "It's aimed at disrupting our vigil."
To Taylor, a spokesman for the local chapter of FreeRepublic.com, a politically conservative Web site, disruption is an honorable goal.
"It's galling for us to see them across the street," he said. "They've endorsed the terrorists."
The Friday night gatherings near the District's northern tip, about six miles north of the White House, have become one of the most visible reminders in Washington of a war that has claimed the lives of more than 2,000 U.S. troops. That they are being staged outside a military hospital that treats the war's wounded makes the standoffs all the more pointed -- and controversial.
The war supporters, many of them known as "Freepers" because of their devotion to FreeRepublic.com, insist it is unpatriotic and demoralizing to protest the war in clear view of wounded soldiers. They started congregating along Georgia Avenue on Fridays after learning that the protesters were out there delivering a "despicable" message.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Don't worry ... be happy! ;*)
DC has nothing on NE Ohio. I can tolerate the cold, far better than the heat. But, that's just me - then there's Landry Fan. ;*)
This just in at the Washington Post ---- WWII is over.
Darn! I was having a good time "picturing that'!
Thank you all for standing for those of us who can't be there! Kristinn, you've done an excellent job!
Are you still coming back to join us in November?
I hope that you can go to Walter Reed more than once.
bttt
bttt and wow!
Keep on Keeping on my FReeper FRiend!!!
Nah. No flagrant acts of journalism there.
Scowling at Justanobody! She'll be the first to hear how cold I am.
;*)
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Nonsense. Did you support the mission to Kosovo, to Haiti? What if a POTUS decides to get us into a war that is truly wag the dog? Do you support that?
The troops are just that and deserve our support. The mission can be futile, dishonest, political or just wrong.
Yes, most of us do support the mission - any mission - once the battle has been engaged. Failure to do so means you want the mission to fail and to lose lives "in vain". That is not an option.
Way to go, Kristinn and DC Chapter!!
Give the code pinko traitors the hell they deserve!!
I am coming back in November.
I'll be there for at least one.
Oh yes that's such a fair a balanced unbiased report in the WhiningtonPissed.
Old Viet Nam boy here, thanks for the sentiment.
We had that thing won when those people had us pulled out. They treated our dead like garbage. Each one of those dead guys were worth more than a hundred of those walking objects.
Am I still mad after all these years? Still mad? No. I am furious. Unfinished business.
Excellent. Good thread, too.
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