January 27th marked a peak of potential. Multitudes of protesters converged on the national mall this past Saturday with a familiar message and new hope, and gave shape to a fervor that is bursting at the seams - seams that are loosely held together by the misinformation and untruths of the mainstream media. A parade of speakers sought to connect the realities of a post-9/11 America – the many Americans who are still quite literally caught in the wake of Katrina, a domestic energy crisis that has led to egregious foreign policy decisions, and a morally bankrupt administration who continues to directly profit from the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Americans.
Still, a new way is possible. The November elections gave Congress a new face, yet another example of the displeasure the American people have with this administration and their occupation of Iraq. At this critical juncture in the war, and amidst the decider-in-chief’s blind adherence to rampant militarism, we have an opportunity to hold these new leaders accountable. Beware presidential hopefuls of both stripes who commit to increasing the Pentagon’s already massive budget, and fail to take real steps towards a clean-energy revolution. Seeing the interconnectedness of these two issues is no longer avoidable, as our obligation to act still cannot be masked with the threat of terrorism.
I recently learned this President uses the same desk John F Kennedy once did, and nearly became ill. I pictured he and Karl Rove sitting around this centerpiece excusing the outing of Valerie Plame, concocting false justifications for the invasion of Iraq, and putting pen to paper promoting one of many points on the neo-con agenda - the very same desk where JFK signed the Peace Corps into existence, a body intended to promote peace and diplomacy, in complete contrast to the guidelines of the Bush/Cheney White House. And so here it is – do we continue to let this administration spit on the finer points of American history, or do we rise up and make them part of it.
