Move to the back of the bus, shut up, and sit down - sometimes ya gotta make a stand

[The Straight Story]

Even when it is unpopular.

From Cindy and code pink, to the dems in power, to DU and other leftist sites.

I have been a critic to be sure, and someone who has praised. We got our own infighting to be sure, but so did the folks back in the 60's.

But when our backs are against the wall, we still stand by the ideals - even if we don't like the 'how' of it all.

We won in 2006 - we got some more power, but obviously that was not enough.

We tried to use the system to end this war. We played it safe to win the swing votes.

It goes on.

We sat in the back of the bus. We tried to change it by emails, phone calls, and finally votes. We got the people on the board of the bus company. And waited on them to change the rules so we could sit anywhere on the bus we wanted.

And like we did before, they decided to play it safe and not upset the rest of the passengers.

The bus driver, bush, keeps driving and smiling. And those on the bus who relate to the passenger(s) who refuses to sit down throw things at the person(s) who refuses to budge.

Sometimes, you have to stand up and refuse to move to the back - even when others think you are just doing it for attention. And in some ways, maybe you are doing it for attention - because that is what is needed.

I have been a critic myself, playing it safe, playing politics.

Sometimes you just have to stand, even if the storm it blows up comes from all directions.

One message. Many voices. End the war now.

If you sit down now, Cindy and others, you lose.

The war is wrong. How we protest it, as long as it is peaceful, is right.

The only attention whore I have seen has been bush.

The only real mission accomplished has been the efforts to make the anti-war people look like kooks - while the people behind the death of thousands is somehow seen as doing the rational thing, so much so that our own party we elected continues to fund his endeavor.

I'd rather lose and go down standing than to win an election or two helping kill more people. At least I could sleep at night knowing I stood up and refused to sit at the back of the bus.

Sometimes, perhaps, you have to lose to win. Otherwise you end up playing the game on the terms of others, and make them legitimate.

The war won't end until the fear we have of losing goes away. Until we stand on principle and show the people we won't back down, that it is worth the sacrifice to us.

Some gave all for this country. We sit at times too scared to even fight because we don't want to lose our seat on the bus. Having more of us on the bus does not mean we will ever get the front seat.

[TwilightGardener]

1. I don't agree with the Rosa Parks comparison, but otherwise some good points.

[The Straight Story]

2. I didn't mention Rosa Parks by name

and someday, people won't mention folks like Cindy - but when they talk about protests to the war the name will be related just the same. ;)