(PICS) Arlington East on Cape Cod National seashore (DIALUP WARNING)

[unhappycamper]

The Cape Codders for Peace and Justice, Code Pink, and the Veterans for Peace installed the first Arlington East on Coast Guard Beach on the Cape Cod National Seashore in Eastham, MA yesterday. It was a perfect New England Indian summer day.

Veterans from the WW II. Korea, Viet Nam, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars came from all over the country to help us build this memorial for those who have died in the Iraq war. Code Pink members from all over MA were there. Veterans For Peace chapters from NY, ME, NH and RI were there. This is not a complete list; I was kinda busy working on the exhibit & did not have the chance to talk to everyone.

The building of the exhibit merits a story of its own. Many Peace groups and individuals across New England helped build, assemble, and install the crosses and markers. A lowball estimate of the time required to cut, paint and assemble the crosses is about 1,800 hours. A family of 4 from Connecticut who were vacationing saw an article in the Cape Cod Times about the project. The entire family – Mom, Dad, and two teenage children – spent two days of their Cape Cod vacation painting the wood that would be used to assemble crosses.

Before the pictures start, I want to give a special thanks to the National Park Service Rangers of Coast Guard Beach for their assistance, understanding and support to make this event a success. They were superb.

I checked http://icasualties.org/oif/ at 4:45AM and found that 2,759 men and women had died as a result of the invasion and occupation of Iraq. The Cape Codders for Peace and Justice created a exhibit of 213 markers memorializing the deaths of Iraqi children. This exhibit and the field of American crosses made up the display.

All markers were three feet apart in all directions. The Iraqi children memorial was placed on the front left of this exhibit. Total row width was 51’; total length of the exhibit was 558’ (186 rows.) Somewhere between 80~100 volunteers helped us build Arlington East; it took us a little over six hours from start to finish.

Up here in New England, sunrise is around 6:50AM these days. We started unloading crosses at daybreak (6:15 AM or so.)




Carting the crosses to the beach. The distance from where the truck was parked to the beginning of the exhibit was about 125 yards (114 m); distance to the end of the display was about 310 yards (283 m.) That’s a whole lot of carrying.





Setting the Iraqi markers signifying the deaths of Iraqi children. The smooth sand to the left of this exhibit is the high tide line. When we started construction around 7ish, the water’s edge was in this part of the exhibit.



Construction









A family paying their respects



You can see the construction teams working at both the front and the back of the field





A few pics of the completed exhibit







At noon we had a non-denominational service to honor those who have died in the Iraq war and occupation. We gathered around a campfire for prayers, comfort, and words of support





Taps were played



Here’s a view from the front





A walk along the beach on the ocean side of the exhibit





By 2:30PM, the tides were coming in & we needed to take down the display before it went underwater.







Mother Nature at work





After everything was removed, the team made a final sweep across the beach to make sure the beach was as pristine when we left as it was when we arrived.





A few final thoughts

2,759 is more than a number.

If the recent Lancet reports of 655,000 Iraqi deaths are true, a field of markers representing that tragedy 51’ wide (15.55 m) would be 21.14 miles (34.02 km) long.

To all the volunteers on the Arlington East project who gave their time and effort to make this happen: thank you. Words cannot express gratitude for what you have done.

To the Santa Barbara chapter of the VFP: thank you for your creative genius in creating Arlington West, and for the guidance you offered as we worked our way through the issues.

On a final note, the Cape Cod chapter of the VFP is planning to make this beach exhibit available for those who wish to bring Arlington East to the beaches across New England. We’ll be working on logistics, etc. through the winter months & will get the word out when we’re ready to rock & roll. I fervently hope we can show this from Connecticut to Maine.

[xchrom]

1. thank you. n/t

[Captain Hilts]

2. Really nice. Well done!! nt

[babylonsister]

3. This is so moving, uhc. Thanks for sharing. My

appreciation goes out to all who took part in this emotional project, and my heart goes out to the families of those you have honored.

[meganmonkey]

4. Thanks for posting these pics

:cry:

They're beautiful.

Each of those markers could represent 237 Iraqi Civilians along with the US soldier, that would be another way to look at it.

It's such a powerful thing to see. I saw the setup at Camp Casey in DC last year and I just crumbled to the ground and wept. Same thing happens everytime I see pics of it. Devastating.

[smoogatz]

5. Beautiful.

Great work, y'all. K&R.

[maddezmom]

6. Thanks for all you and VFP do UHC

:thumbsup:

[katinmn]

7. Wow! Thanks UNC and PVD, and all the others who led this effort.

I have a lump in my throat.

Thank you for honoring the Iraqi children, too.
:cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

[AlamoDemoc]

8. WOW! Thank you...K&R

[katinmn]

9. Kick!

[Quixote1818]

10. Those are nice comma's! nt

[Swamp Rat]

11. k&r

:patriot:

[JeffR]

12. Thanks for posting this

:kick:

[AlamoDemoc]

13. kick

:kick:

[noamnety]

14. There is also an Arlington Midwest

Run by the Northwest Ohio Peace Coalition. Contact them at http://nwopc.org/ if your group is interested in hosting the display somewhere in the midwest.

Some recent photos of it in Michigan:

[proud patriot]

15. Thanks for Sharing

and for everything you do :hug:

[PuraVidaDreamin]

16. Ken your vigilance payed off nicely. I believe I kicked my ass!

And ask Katinmn- That's a fricken tough thing to do.

So many volunteers- and Everyone wanted to help.
It was as if....Finally, there is something physical
I can do to try and stop this insanity.

Ken- your stressing yourself to the max drove me crazy
but your striving for perfection was cleary a winner!

Tears, love and hope for a peaceful future were
felt throughout the day. I love you man!
Thanks for the beautiful photo documentary.

An amazing front page plus photos with story from
the Cape Cod Times
http://www.capecodonline.com/cctimes/thehuman15.htm

By K.C. MYERS
STAFF WRITER
EASTHAM - Her son taught nursery school. He was a case worker for mentally retarded adults. And he was a member of Pennsylvania National Guard who hoped the military would help him pay for his education.

Sgt. Sherwood Baker, 30, lost his life on April 26, 2004, when shrapnel from a nearby explosion in Iraq struck him in the back of his head, said his mother, Celeste Zappala of Pennsylvania.

His death is what brought Zappala to Coast Guard Beach in Eastham yesterday, where her son's cross stood among about 2,800 small grave markers plunged into the sand, each representing a U.S. soldier who has died in Iraq. Headstones nearby represented some of the Iraqi children killed in the war.

On a clear day, they stretched as far as the eye could see. The erection of ''Arlington East: The Human Cost of War'' took more than 200 volunteers in excess of six hours. They started at dawn, and would only begin to take down the grave markers after a rendition of Taps was played at 6 p.m., said Diane Turco, of

[unhappycamper]

19. Thank you, my Friend.

Your passion, and all of those who are part of the Arlington East experience, powered me. We did it; I am very, very pleased.

[rasputin1952]

17. This old vet says Thank you...

:patriot:

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. Wow how beautiful!

Thanks for your hard work and for sharing your wonderful pictures.

[volstork]

20. thank you for sharing

what a tragic and moving sight

[Heidi]

21. Thank you for your part in this, unhappycamper.

:thumbsup:

:kick: and recommended.

[NJCher]

22. I wish the Iraqis could see this

It bothers me terribly that they undoubtedly think this is what the American people are doing to them. No, it's that we have an immoral, corrupt government, like they did (now they have no government at all, to speak of). It is not we the American people who are killing their children, this is the act of morally bankrupt, corrupt individuals who will do anything for a dollar.

And now we see 50 American soldiers dead this month alone. How long can this go on?

Thank you, thank you, thank you unhappy camper, for what you are your colleagues did.




Cher