Thousands of peace activists in Columbus, Georgia.

[roody]

Thousands of people who want the infamous School of the Americas to be closed began their vigil in front of Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia today. Sunday, thousands will walk in a somber procession to the closed gates of Fort Benning. As someone sings the names of persons murdered by militaries, the vigilers will respond, "presente," and raise a name of someone killed by soldiers. They will leave crosses and other remembrances at the gates, and those who trespass will be arrested. www.soaw.org

Here's a short history of the movement.
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20061127/school_of_the_americas

[southerncrone]

1. Good

There needs to be more public exposure & disgust at what is going on with this "school". I pray the average American would be horrified if they realized what this is all about. Once again, our "bought off media" does not report this horror story!

[noel adamson]

4. There also needs to be awareness of John Negroponte's...

...role in setting up the death squads in Central and South America in the 80's, in his role in setting the "El Salvador 'Solution'" up in Iraq and now being head of all U.S. "intelligence" agencies (Director of National Intelligence). Everywhere he goes terrorism follows. If you have not wondered what they plan to do with the massive amounts of data attained through NSA spying on our communications please do a little research on the operations Negroponte set up in those regions along with gutting of Habeas Corpus, Posse Comitatus and stacking of our courts. In their minds this is a small price to pay for getting their way or as Henry Kissinger said, (just prior to overthrowing Salvador Allende, the popular elected president of Chile on 9/11 1973 to install General Pinochet and who set death squads upon that country's people), "I don't see why we need to stand by and watch a country go Communist due to the irresponsibility of its own people."

This is just what Negroponte himself had released but gives good insight into the mentality of these fascists. It is no coincidence that the death squads operated under the name Battalion 316 as in the Bible verse "John 3:16". These evil people always shroud their work in religion and flags to the extreme discredit of both God and country.



If, as Nancy Pelosi says, "impeachment is not on the table" then the recent Democratic victory is little different than the good cop bad cop routine. Trials for treason would be very much appropriate for what these uber-criminals have done and are still doing. Every time they get away with it, as they did in Iran Contra, they escalate the magnitude of their traitorous criminal operations.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Just like George W. Bush, a lot of people are profoundly incurious.

When presented with an unfamiliar name or situation, and it's connected in ANY way to any kind of protest, unless it's income tax protest, or protest of civil rights for others, they're flat out not interested.

Possibly their grandchildren will know what happened in Latin America and the Caribbean many years from now, but it doesn't look like it's in the stars for these people to wake the #### up in time to find out about anything in their own lifetimes.

They make very easy work for the right-wing propagandists, and right-wing lunatics who hope to regain control of the Latin Ameriacan countries through puppet dictators all over again.

[MadJohnShaft]

3. My dad went to that a bunch of times

and even got arrested one year, he has that framed

[gratuitous]

5. Now here's a place for immediate action

We can't move more than a hundred thousand military personnel out of Iraq overnight, but this den of thugs can and should be shuttered today. Anyone who commits a crime against humanity or a war crime who ever attended a session there should automatically have his or her sentence doubled due to this aggravating factor.

[roody]

6. Every year Congress votes on closing the SOA,

now known as WHINSEC. This will be introduced to the new Congress.