NATO Resistance At 75: Time For Reform, Or Revolution?

UNAC and Global Network buddies waiting to march from McPherson Park

Traveled to Washington DC this weekend to join two different summits focused on resistance to NATO, in town for its 75th birthday. As the enforcement arm of U.S./Western imperial hegemony the alleged "North Atlantic" military alliance has been responsible for countless deaths and the destruction of entire nations since it was created after WWII to "keep Russians out, Americans in [Europe], Germany down."

War Industry Resisters banner carried by Melody Shank who with Ken Jones met us in DC

It is perhaps not surprising that after seven decades of Russophobia, and a decade of using Ukraine to wage proxy war on the West's longtime foe, there is a split among those who turned out to say no to NATO.

Our first event of the weekend was the summit hosted by World Beyond War which had about 150 mostly old, mostly white people in attendance. Speakers from Germany and France used words like "immoral" and "illegal invasion" to describe Russia's response to years of Ukraine shelling civilians in the Donbas. NATO's role in arming Nazis has not resulted in a weakened Russia as had been intended. Two audience members objected on the grounds that Russia bashing really has no place in an effort to rein in NATO. This point of view received no support from the podium.

After lunch we traveled across town to the Resist NATO Coalition summit, sponsored by ILPS (International League of Peoples' Struggle) and UNAC (United International Antiwar Coalition). Hundreds of much younger people were energized to connect their struggle to the context of NATO exploitation in Palestine, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, South Korea, and beyond. 

Dynamic speakers had the crowd roaring, especially a panel moderated by a movement heroine of mine, Sara Flounders of Workers World. 

We also heard from the Nicaraguan ambassador to the U.S. connecting the axis of resistance to NATO in Latin America: his country, Venezuela, and Cuba.

Guess which meeting had the menacing police presence outside? As we departed an organizer let us know the cops were photographing people in case we didn't want to be identified. This was good preparation for the next day when we assembled in McPherson Square to march to the White House. 

Cops with bikes, cops hassling unhoused people and those trying to feed them, cops with dogs, and just a whole lot of cops were on hand and I encountered two of them personally when my husband and I tried to tie our banner to the White House fence.

The two groups came together at a final rally organized by World Beyond War. The energy again plummeted as the speakers were somewhat lackluster, plus most of us by then were wilting in the heat.

More than once this weekend I pondered the age old tension in movements between the wing that thinks things can be reformed and the wing that thinks the whole damn system needs to be burned to the ground in order for a new order to emerge. In this case the reformers were also hampered by their unspoken fealty to the Democratic Party which demonized Russia falsely as being responsible for Trump's first term. These are the kind of people who still think elections are terribly important.

The revolutionary wing understands some basic truths: we're not going to vote our way out of this mess, both corporate parties are complicit in the genocide in Gaza, and it profoundly doesn't matter who's in the White House. As long as NATO has not been disbanded, the crumbling imperium of Western financial control will lash out with militarized violence. A lot of people will get hurt and it is not unlikely that nuclear Armageddon could ensue.

I'll be standing with the freedom fighters whose analysis is based in the reality expressed by one of their many good chants this week: U.S. imperialists, number one terrorists!

Corporate Government Breeds Perpetual War, And What To Do About It

I'm preparing this morning to tape an interview with friend and fellow activist Bruce Gagnon. His This Issue television show appears on community access channels around Maine, and I've been his guest on a few occasions. But today the table will be turned and I'll be interviewing him.

Bruce spends a lot of time gathering information from varied sources and has been paying attention to the U.S. war machine for decades now. Recently he returned from a United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) conference where he was a panelist on missile "defense," and he wrote some interesting blog posts reporting back on what was shared there. I know he learned a lot from others in attendance, too. Here's a playlist on YouTube of the many interesting plenaries, workshops and planning sessions.

I'm interested to hear his response to the questions I've prepared:

• Much has been made of alleged ties between the new administration in Washington DC and Russia. Can you discuss why the Democratic Party and its media outlets have made such a big deal of this, and what you think the underlying truth is?

• The demagogue with bad hair has continued Obama's pivot to Asia, threatening North Korea and stationing THAAD missile "defense" plus warships like the Zumwalts built in Bath right on China's borders. What is to be gained from using our military to provoke China?

• The bloodbath in Syria, and the historic refugee crisis it has caused, seems to be escalating with no resolution in sight. Is this a civil war? Proxy war? What is the U.S./NATO role in this disaster?

• The U.S. has drawn closer to Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, with a state visit that had the U.S. president photographed dancing around with swords and communing with a glowing orb surrounded by Saudi princes. What is really going on -- more of the same in U.S. foreign policy, or a significant shift?

• This year marks the 50th anniversary of the annexation of the West Bank and Gaza by Israel, with construction of settlements on those stolen lands galloping ahead. Under any president the U.S. continues to support and fund the violent occupation of Palestine by Israel, and the apartheid state Israel has become. Why?

• How do you understand the proliferation of terrorist attacks in Europe recently? Who do you think is behind them, and what is their purpose?

• Will the U.S. always be at war in Afghanistan? Why has this occupation lasted so long, and produced so little in tangible progress for the U.S. and NATO? Why are we sending more troops there?

• What advice do you have for our audience to counter the downhill slide of our domestic economy based on building and exporting "security" and weapons? What can a concerned person do to make a difference?

There are so many other subjects I wish I had time to discuss with him: the Saudi war on Yemen and the U.S. role in torture there. The lies being told by corporate media about the real situation in Ukraine, where the U.S. is supporting the neo-Nazis. Also the recent suicide attacks in Teheran and what they portend. And what is really going on with the coordinated economic and diplomatic attacks on Qatar lately?

My guess is that I will not have to ask Bruce a direct question about the urgency of converting the military-industrial complex to building something useful and sustainable for humankind.

This is a theme that he and his partner Mary Beth Sullivan have returned to many times in their writing, speaking and direct actions. They live in an intentional community in the neighborhood where the corporation General Dynamics builds warships at nearby Bath Iron Works. Their house is named Adams-Melman in part because the late Seymour Melman was an early promoter of conversion as the path forward out of the wilderness we find ourselves lost in.

I also probably won't have time to ask him his views on the environmental degradation attendant on endless wars and massive investments in carbon belching war machines. Bruce has already signed the Maine Natural Guard pledge to connect the dots between climate chaos and the immense carbon bootprint of the U.S. military and its contractors. He is well aware that talking about reducing greenhouse gas in the atmosphere without talking about the Pentagon is foolish.

Bruce and I were arrested along with seven others on April 1 at Bath Iron Works for criminal trespass; basically, we refused to move from an area in front of their fence when ordered to do so. Jason Rawn was arrested along with us and had a recent letter to the editor published in the Portland Press Herald explaining his objections to a government infested by corporate investment. (Jason and I had dressed as our senators from Maine, Angus King and Susan Collins, respectively, with logos on our clothing indicating our corporate sponsors). 

The #Aegis9 have a disposition hearing tomorrow in West Bath District Court at 8:30am if you're in the area and would care to show up and support us.

I was struck by how many of the comments on Jason's letter online, "Angus King does not represent ordinary Americans" accepted the current system of rule by wealthy corporate servants as inevitable.

I'm old enough to remember when people in the U.S. thought that elected officials ought to represent the people, not General Dynamics. Bruce is old enough to remember, too, and he published his Sunday poem on that theme (reprinted here from his blog Organzing Notes):

Get Up Off Your Knees

We are talking
serfs
vassals
slaves
here

the return
of feudalism
21st century
corporate style

Mental slaves
all around us
go any place
where people meet
the joint
is crawling
with them

Whining about Trump
dreaming
of the good old days
when Obama
'respected'
the rule of law
ran a 'clean' government
only got us into
7 wars
Drone executions
Expanding NATO
Health care
was a corporate subsidy
but allowed
for pre-existing
conditions
yeah the glory days

Saw an invite
from a liberal group
'Join the resistance'
was the headline
the fine print
told the real story
come learn how to lobby

Resistance redefined
as accommodation
and horse trading
from a position
of weakness
and servitude

Putin
is on the west's
shit list
because he won't
submit
won't get on his knees
like vassals

resists being
another Yeltsin
won't bow
to the banksters
dares talk of
sovereignty

The fightback
is half-stepping
reading the
Post and Times
falling for the lies
another 'shock and awe'
Syria
Iran is next

Folks know better
but running scared
don't want
to get
outside their
comfort zones

Liberals
demonizing
Russia
trying
to change
the script
off their
big loss
to the 'Donald'
gotta blame
the evil bear

There's
no fight
in the bones

Speak out
get accused
of being violent
or too radical
blacklisted

Liberals
run and hide
wait for next election

Been determined
by some
that
on your knees
is the safest
position
to face
coming
high tide

Bruce

Odessa Massacre By Neo-Nazis 2nd Anniversary Statement of Solidarity With Victims

Photo sourced from Organizing Notes "The U.S.-NATO Created Mess in Ukraine"

‘Statement of Solidarity’ with 2nd anniversary May 2 memorial in Odessa delivered to Ukrainian Embassy in Washington, D.C., followed by press conference

Report by the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC)

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 25

Today Ana Edwards, representing the United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC), and Ray McGovern, a former CIA analyst and now prominent peace activist, delivered a Statement of Solidarity with Odessa to the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, D.C.

The statement calls on the governments of Ukraine, the United States and the city of Odessa to ensure the civic rights of the people of Odessa to hold a memorial program this coming May 2 to mark the second anniversary of the massacre of 46 pro-federation activists in that city at the hands of rightwing extremists. The memorial is being organized by the Mothers' Committee for May 2, comprised of family members, friends and supporters of the murdered activists.

Photos sourced from Organizing Notes Some of the 46 who were burned alive inside the Odessa Trade Union hall

The Solidarity Statement, signed by 139 human rights organizations and activists from 20 countries in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia, also supports the Mothers' Committee public call for the United Nations Human Rights Committee to arrange an impartial investigation into the events of May 2, 2014. Although the attack was videoed by numerous participants and passersby, to date not one of the perpetrators has been brought to justice.

Photo source: Organizing Notes
Neo-Nazis burning the Trades Hall in Odessa, Ukraine on May 2, 2014. 
The massacre killed well over 50 people.

The Solidarity Statement also announced that UNAC is sending a delegation of U.S. human rights activists to monitor the May 2 memorial program in Odessa. Other delegations will be present from France, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Poland, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Israel and Sweden.

The Solidarity Statement was received by an embassy staff member on behalf of the Ukrainian ambassador.

Immediately after, Edwards and McGovern held a press conference outside the embassy at which they read the solidarity statement and answered questions from reporters. Media present included Tass News Agency of Russia, RT (Russia Today) America, Channel One Russian TV and RTRTV, a Russian language television station whose audience includes 50,000 subscribers in the New York City area. The Russian language is spoken by an estimated 171 million people in 17 countries.

While no major Western media were present, it is expected that the broad news coverage by major Russian media will put pressure on other media outlets to cover the story of the May 2 memorial, the international solidarity campaign and the international delegations that will be in Odessa on May 2 to monitor the memorial program.

Ana Edwards is a founding member of UNAC and chairs the Sacred Ground Historical Reclamation Project of the Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality in Richmond, Va.

Ray McGovern is a former analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a prominent member of Veterans for Peace and Cofounder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity.
The United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC) is a broad alliance of U.S. justice and peace organizations founded in 2010. www.UNACpeace.org

For more information, contact UNAC CoCoordinator Joe Lombardo at:UNACpeace@gmail.com or 518-227-6947.

 

To add your name/organization to the statement please click on https://www.unacpeace.org/ukrainepetition.html

Statement of Solidarity Endorsers

 

as of 4/24/16

 

U.S.

 

Ramsey Clark - Former U.S. Attorney General; Human Rights Activist

 

Bernadette Ellorin - Chairperson, Bayan USA

 

Rep. Jeffrey Evangelos - Maine House of Representatives

 

Bruce Gagnon - International Coordinator, Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space

 

Margaret Kimberley - Editor and Senior Columnist, Black Agenda Report

 

Cynthia McKinney, Ph.D - Former Member, U.S. Congress; 2008 Green Party U.S. Presidential Candidate

 

Ray McGovern - Former CIA Analyst; Co-Founder, Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity

 

Joe Lombardo and Marilyn Levin, UNAC Co-coordinators

 

International Action Center

 

U.S. Peace Council

 

United National Antiwar Coalition

 

Beth Adams - Hancock Drone Resisters, San Francisco, California

 

Elliott Adams - Veterans For Peace, Sharon Springs, New York

 

Abayomi Azikiwe - Editor, Pan-African News Wire; Organizer, MECAWI, Detroit, Michigan

 

Roger Batchelder - OPENER, San Diego, California *

 

Mike Beilstein - City Councilor, Corvallis, Oregon

 

Judith Bello - Founding Member, Upstate Coalition to Ground the Drones & End the Wars, New York

 

Bethlehem Neighbors for Peace - New York

 

​Judy Collins & Jim Allen - Vine & Fig Tree, Lanett, Alabama

 

Paul Cunningham - South Portland, Maine

 

William Crain - Peace and Justice *, Billings, Montana

 

Bob Dale - Veterans for Peace, Brunswick, Maine

 

George Dardess - Rochester Peace Action & Education *

 

Nicolas J.S. Davies - Author, “Blood On Our Hands: the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq”

 

Jacqui Deveneau - Maine Green Independent Party, Portland, Maine

 

Catherine Donaghy - Western Mass TroopsOutNow! Coalition, Massachusetts *

 

Chantal Dothey, MD - Cleveland, Ohio

 

Tim Duda - American Federation of Teachers, San Antonio, Texas

 

Nancy Eberg - Greater New Haven Peace Council *

 

Ana Edwards - Chair, Virginia Sacred Ground Historical Reclamation Project, Richmond, Virginia

 

Anthony Ehrlich - West Volusians for Peace & Justice, Barberville, Florida

 

Kristna Evans - Vintage Quaker Books, Friends Community of New England, Bath, Maine

 

Sara Flounders - Co-Director, International Action Center, New York, New York

 

Freedom Road Socialist Organization

 

Roberta Frye - Faith in Action, Unitarian Universalists of Santa Monica *, Culver City, California

Ronald Fujiyoshi - Ohara Ho'opakele, Hilo, Hawaii

 

Terry & Tom Fusco - Maine Progressive Party, Brunswick, Maine

 

Genesee Valley Citizens for Peace - Geneseo, New York

 

Starr C. Gilmartin - Peace & Justice of Eastern Maine, Trenton, Maine

 

Ellen Grady - Ithaca Catholic Worker, Ithaca, New York

 

Peter Gunther - Progressive Archivists

 

Joseph F. Hancock - Los Angeles Peace Council, Los Angeles, California

 

David Hartsough - PEACEWORKERS, San Francisco, California

 

Marilyn Hoff - Peace Action, New Mexico

 

Herbert J. Hoffman, Ph.D. - Albuquerque Veterans For Peace, Albuquerque, New Mexico

 

Connie Jenkins - Pax Christi, Maine, Orono, Maine

 

Mack Johnson - Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, Silverdale, Washington

 

Ann Joseph - United Church of Christ, Chicago, Illinois *

 

Matt Kelly - Petersburgh, New York

 

Mick Kelly - Editor, Fight Back!

 

Ed Kinane - Upstate Drone Action, New York

 

Bob Kinsey - Colorado Coalition for the Prevention of Nuclear War *

 

Heather Koponen - Alaska Peace Center, Veterans for Peace, Fairbanks, Alaska

 

David Laibman - Editor, Science & Society, Brooklyn, New York

 

Barbara Laxon - Miramar, Florida

 

Mickie Lynn - Women Against War *, Delmar, New York

 

Jeff Mackler - Director, Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal, Oakland, California

 

Kevin Martin - Executive Director, Peace Action, Silver Spring, Maryland

 

Natasha Mayers - Union of Maine Visual Artists, Whitefield, Maine

 

Rob Mulford - Veterans For Peace, Fairbanks, Alaska

 

Meryl Nass MD - Ellsworth Maine

 

Doug Noble - Metro Justice *, Rochester

 

Jon Olsen - Green Party, Jefferson, Maine

 

Tatyana Olson - Diplomatic School, Washington D.C.

 

Dr. Lewis E. Patrie - Western N.N. Physicians for Social Responsibility, Asheville, North Carolina

 

Rosalie Paul - Greater Brunswick PeaceWorks, Maine

 

Patricia Patterson - Retired International Mission Executive, United Methodist Church, Claremont, California

 

Tina Phillips - Brunswick, Maine

 

Charles R. Powell - President, Veterans For Peace, Albuquerque, New Mexico 

 

Brian Noyes Pulling, M.Div. - Minister, Social Worker,Peace & Social Justice Organizer, South Carolina

 

Megan Rice SHCJ - Transform Now Plowshares, Washington, D.C.

 

Coleen Rowley - Retired FBI agent, former Legal Counsel, Minneapolis Division, Minnesota  

 

Lisa Savage - Maine Natural Guard, Solon, Maine

 

Adria Scharf - Richmond Peace Education Center, Richmond, Virginia

 

Richard D. Seifert - Fairbanks Peace Center, Fairbanks, Alaska

 

Diane Shammas, Ph.D - Shammas Group, Laguna Beach, California

 

Ruth Sheridan - Anchorage, Alaska

 

Alice Slater - Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, New York, New York

 

Gar Smith - Co-founder, Environmentalists Against War; Director, Academic Publishing, California

 

Jean Sommer - Peace Action, Cleveland, Ohio

 

J. Michael Springmann - "Visas for Al Qaeda: CIA Handouts That Rocked The World *,  “Washington, D.C.

 

Mary Beth Sullivan - Greater Brunswick PeaceWorks, Bath, Maine

 

David Swanson - Director, WorldBeyondWar.org; Author, "War Is A Lie," Charlottesville, Virginia

 

Wil Van Natta - Reality News Radio, Riviera Beach, Florida

 

Virginia People’s Assembly for Jobs, Peace & Justice - Virginia

 

Steve Wagner - Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace *, Oakland, California

 

Karen Wainberg - Great Brunswick PeaceWorks, Maine

 

William H. Warrick III, MD - Veterans for Peace, Gainesville, Florida

 

Dave Welsh - Delegate, San Francisco Labor Council, San Francisco, California

 

Phil Wilayto - Editor, The Virginia Defender, Richmond, Virginia

 

Mike Wisniewski - Los Angeles Catholic Worker, California

 

Rowan Wolf - Uncommon Thought Journal, Portland, Oregon

 

Kristina Wolff - Veterans for Peace, Maine

 

Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) - Minneapolis, Minnesota

 

Russell Wray - Citizens Opposing Active Sonar Threats (COAST), Hancock, Maine

 

Sandra Yeager - Millersville University *, Lancaster, Pennsylvania

 

 

 

AUSTRIA

 

Christl Meyer - Amnesty International *, Vienna

 

 

 

CANADA

 

Tamara Lorincz - Canadian Voice of Women for Peace, Saanichton, British Columbia

 

Hamilton Coalition To Stop The War - Hamilton

 

Roza Husseini - Student of PACE at University of Winnipeg, Manitoba

 

Rev.  Wm. J. Hutton - Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

 

Amir M. Maasoumi - Palestinians & Jews United for Peace & Against Occupation (PAJU), Montreal, Quebec

 

Mobilization Against War & Occupation (MAWO) - Vancouver, British Columbia

 

Nicolas Royer-Artuso - Laval University *, Montreal, Quebec

 

Marguerite Warner - Peace Alliance Winnipeg, Manitoba

 

 

 

CZECH REPUBLIC

 

Vaclav Exner - KSČM, Alterantiva zdola, Praha

 

 

 

FINLAND

 

Ernst Mecke, Ph.D. - Helsinki, Finland

 

 

 

FRANCE

 

Csizmazia Alexis - Université Paris Est Creteil, Paris

 

Arlette Cavillon - Mouvement de la Paix *

 

Oranus Ravar - Aix-en-Provence

 

Guenter Schenk - CJACP, Strasbourg

 

 

 

GERMANY

 

 Judith Dellheim - Zukunftskonvent, Berlin

 

Dr. Henry Stahl - Bund für Soziale Verteidigung, Eschwege, Hessen

 

 

 

INDIA

 

J. Narayana Rao - All India Peace & Solidarity Organization, Nagpur

 

 

 

IRELAND

 

John Kelly - Mullingar, County Westmeath

 

June Kelly - County Westmeath

 

 

 

ITALY

 

Arrigo Colombo - Movimento per la società di giustizia, Lecce, Puglia

 

U.S. Citizens Against War - Florence

 

 

 

JAPAN

 

Yasuaki - Matsumoto *, Japan

 

Akira Asada - Takarzuka, Hyougo, Japan

 

 

 

MEXICO

 

Ethelia Ruiz Medrano - National Institute of Anthropology and History, Mexico *, Mexico

 

 

 

NETHERLANDS

 

Khalid Ahmed Chaudry - Ambassador & Deputy Chairman, Supreme Council of the International Human Rights Commission *, The Hague

 

 

 

SOUTH AFRICA

 

Dewald Wilhelm Scholtz - Pretoria, Gauteng Province

 

 

 

SOUTH KOREA

 

Choi Sung-Hee - Gangjeong Village International Team, Jeju Island

 

Regina Pyon Yeon-shik - Korean House for International Solidarity, Seoul

 

 

 

SWITZERLAND

 

Oriane Peschoux - UN, Geneva

 

 

 

NEW ZEALAND

 

Julie Webb-Pullman - Independent Journalist and Activist

 

Kay Weir - Editor, Pacific Ecologist, Pacific Institute of Resource Management, Wellington

 

Wellington Zapatista Support Group

 

 

 

RUSSIA

 

Alexander Ionov & Anastasia Promskaya - The Anti-Globalization Movement of Russia

 

 

 

SWEDEN

 

Agneta Norberg - Swedish Peace Council, Stockholm

 

Einar Schlereth - Retired Journalist / Translator / Writer, Klavreström, Kronoberg

 

Aaron Tovish - Executive Adviser, Mayors for Peace, Stockholm

 

 

 

UNITED KINGDOM

 

Allen L. Jasson - RightOfChoice.com, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire

 

John Pilger - Two-time winner of Britain's Journalist of the Year Award

 

Angie Zelter - Reforest the Earth

*Organizations listed for identification purposes only

No to Islamophobia

UNAC march NYC April 9, 2011

There are tools, and then there is wealth. I have a tool made for me by my friend Peggy Lovejoy. It is the silliest shade of pink ever with swirls and sparkles. A young man in Union Square asked: "Is that a protest apron?" It has extra long apron strings and extra deep pockets the full width of the garment, each so wide it will hold a regular sheet of paper without folding. What it mostly holds are half sheets printed on both sides, one side telling what Maine or Connecticut or wherever I happen to be could have bought with the funds wasted on war e.g. four years of undergrad tuition for the next 21 entering classes at U Maine. Now that would be wealth.

My apron also holds my camera and phone and lip balm and everything else I need to march for 1.7 miles helping to hold a banner in one hand, a pie chart on my outside hand (54% military for FY10 draws the comments: "It's more now.").

I was honored to march yesterday holding a banner with Pardiss Kebriaei who advocates for prisoners in limbo at Guantanamo, and two school age girls in headscarves whose mom and dad walked behind and popped snacks into their mouths like birds. The UNAC banner we carried said: Stop Government Attacks On Unions, Muslims, Immigrants and Communities of Color. On this day the NYPD was on its best behavior, and the legions of officers were polite and respectful in their attempts to keep us on one half of Broadway while the hipster shopping crowd had their phones out snapping away, looking at us like they had never seen a protest march before. Maybe it was the legions of moms, dads, kids, grandmas and grandpas that had turned out to represent for the Muslim peace community. Such a variety of clothing, languages, chants and messages. One handmade sign read: Islam Means Peace.

A hug from Ann Wright is always welcome, and I was able to shake Cindy Sheehan's hand and thank her for her work. Both were among at least 50 speakers who had 90 seconds at the mike to deliver their message. NYC Codepink coordinator Cristina Castro and I went up together while Denise and Starr held BOW$H banner on the steps down front.

Lots of dot connecting in the remarks. The war against the poor at home and abroad, the war against the environment that is our collective home, and the insane waste of resources all around. I cannot even count how many times I heard or read a reference to the need to bring our war dollars home. On my very early morning drive home after the convivial bus (thank you Steve Burke) dropped me off in Portland I was parsing our demand like this.

Bring: resolutions, op eds, speeches, teach-ins
Our: public forums, big tent marches like this one
War: Libya, Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, aid to Israel, aid to dictators, 800+ military bases around the world, drones, recruiting budgets
$$: taxes the working poor and middle class pay, but corporate "citizens" don't -- cause they're not part of us

Home: green energy, fully funded schools K-post grad, health care, public transportation, jobs / job training, housing, legal aid, infrastructure upkeep