What we need is massive protests in our nation's capital!

[left of center]

I feel this is necessary after having just viewed the latest Abu Griab pictures. The emotion they stirred in me is like what the Hurricane Katrina footage did. I'm disgusted and enraged!!! This presidency and the current congressional leadership have no moral compass whatsoever. All this coming from the very people who wear their faith and morality on their sleeves! Since they think morality is about putting criminals to death, saving embryos, prolonging death of the terminal and suffering, teaching creationism, prosecuting people for being gay, it should really come as no surprise that they equally fail to see the immorality of not taking care of fellow citizens during disasters and of torturing and killing people! They don't know the difference between right and wrong! Period!

Anyway, I'd take off work and join a few million other like-minded citizens in essentially shutting the capital down for a couple days! A massive protest might get our leaders' attention, as well as the attention of people everywhere

[MnFats]

1. agreed. organize the campuses, unions, poor...

...veterans, disabled veterans....you could wind up with millions of people marching on the white house...

[RagingInMiami]

2. Can't we just sign an online petition?

I'm kidding, man. I totally agree. I was in DC during the last protest in September and it was amazing.

[az chela]

5. We have to keep protesting like we did during the viet nam war

This country is doomed if we dont unite and run these people out of our white house.
Everything they touch has evil behind it and yet they get away with murder,corruption,stealing,lying,etc

[RagingInMiami]

6. I've been waiting and waiting

Meanwhile, I attend the small protests down here.

[tool_of_the_people]

8. I was in DC in September too...

and it WAS amazing.

[Canuckistanian]

3. ..

I wish you well.
:popcorn:

Welcome to DU!
:toast:

[skylarmae]

4. 'join a few million' being the operative phrase here, right!

In order to really make a statement, the protest would truly have to be that large. Much less than that would be considered just another bunch of anti-war hippies and dead enders and worse, (as they like to brush us off with insults).

[left of center]

7. Critical mass would indeed be necessary for any impact

because the media and the general public would have the exact reaction you describe. People have become apathetic torward protests, myself included. Only the scale would impress people and move them to think.

[Katherine Brengle]

9. then let's do it--let's start it right here, right now--

I'm serious--we do a lot of talking, and there is nothing wrong with that, but if these conversations are never translated to action, nothing will get done.

We should dedicate one serious thread, officially, to discussing possible plans and organizing a massive march on Washington for human rights.

[melody]

14. excellent, positive post. n/t

[CoffeeCat]

10. We need something to galvanize those who are sick of this stuff!

Many are against Junior now. Just look at his sinking poll numbers.

Many people are fed up and America is again talking about politics around the dinner table and at the local diners.

There is a lot of concern, outrage, anger and sadness for BushCo's sick policies and corruption.

Somehow--we have to all descend upon the same place.

We need a Woodstock. We need some kind of event that galvanizes us.

BushCo's heavy-handed tactics regarding protests, and the Gestapo-like security tactics at his speeches---are designed to disperse dissent. These people know damn well that visible protest feeds additional protest. They've put a great deal of effort into squashing protest and making people afraid to speak out.

We can't let them do that to us. I would say that the country is just as angry and outraged as it was during Vietnam. They've kept us dispersed though.

So...where are we all going to meet up?

[Joe Fields]

17. We need Willie Nelson and Neil Young, now!

I'm serious. Organizers could bring George Clooney and Richard Dreyfuss. We could have a peaceful event that would attract hundreds of thousands, speakers who people would listen to, a few politicians like Feingold and Obama...

It could be huge. I feel like Mickey Rooney saying to Judy Garland, "Let's put on a show!"

I'm serious. Who's with me and how do we go about getting organized? This is one of the things it will take to wake average Americans up and affect the change so desperately needed.

[left of center]

19. Is there some existing entity with the infrastructure and

resources to organize it? Say, Moveon.org for instance?

Maybe the Nation of Islam might have ideas. I don't agree with them, but their million man march got everyone's attention.

[rowdyjesus]

11. What we need is a nationwide local effort...

Not all of us can get to DC, as much as we would like to join a massive event. Maybe we could get to our state capitols once a month or to our city government centers every week. There are five or six or a hundred and eleventy-'leven treasonous reasons this administration should be taken down and tossed out. Let us focus on the Veep's embarrassment, put on hunter orange and just do some congregating and howling for all the important issues.

Just because our elected officials are impotent and stymied by this administration doesn't give us a pass at following their lead. It is time to take to the streets. It is way past time. If we show courage and direction, they will come snivelling after us for our votes.

[John Q. Citizen]

12. Yes, the last march in DC barley made the news. it was ignored.

Local action gets at least local coverage and the turnouts on a nationally co-ordinated basis could be so much larger.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=106x26835

[newyawker99]

16. Hi rowdyjesus!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[stevietheman]

18. I would say do it on a city/town level...

It's time to "glocalize" our protests.

[left of center]

20. I'd thought of that, but wouldn't many people wonder

why large numbers of people were on local street corners or in state capitals protesting against federal policies?

It might be easier, but I'm not sure it would have the same affect. Maybe if the local efforts were large, widespread, and sustained, the media would then pick up on it and depict it as a wave of sentiment sweeping the country.

If done this very year, it would be a great buildup to November.

[EstimatedProphet]

13. I will go, but

they don't care. Period. They don't care. There is one big difference between now and Vietnam-in Vietnam we didn't have rigged electoral machines. They don't care, because they know they will always 'win' the elections from now on, and they have enough media control that they will make the elections out to be representative of some mood in the country (like they did with 2004 and the 'values' crap) and the average lobotomized American will swallow it.

People keep claiming that they would only be able to spin the rigging of the elections if they are close, but we don't get to see the votes at all. Every single person in the US could vote against Bush, and they would still rig a victory, and there is no way whatsoever we could ever provide the grounds to prove that the election is bogus.

So, marches are good for solidarity, and getting us on the same page. But they aren't going to sway these guys.

[High Plains]

15. Symbolic actions like mass marches accomplish little, I think.

Now, a mass march that shut down the Pentagon and the Justice Department, for instance, might be a little more powerful. Is it time to just shut down the machine?

If so, count me in. If it's just another march, well, I've done enough silly chanting in my life.