No business as usual

If you're like me, after Bush's speech you indulged in a momentary feeling of helplessness, then rebounded and wondered what you could do, in practical terms, to stop the war.

I am guardedly optimistic. There is no reason to resign ourselves to this war. We can stop it. I'm not saying we will, but it isn't unreasonable to believe we can. Strongly in our favor are at least two unprecedented conditions: The intensity and breadth of the opposition to this war, and the ability to use communication technology to coordinate mass action. We truly have an opportunity that has never existed before. This is not your father's protest organizing. It's your father's protest organizing on steroids (instead of LSD).

If you're reading this and you're against the war, but you've never been a protester before, and you aren't sure if you want to be--I assure you, there's nothing to be afraid of. You'll be with a diverse group (parents, kids, students) of very friendly and welcoming people, and you don't have to agree with the political beliefs of every single one of the organizers. That crazy hippie who has the mic for a few minutes? Ignore the crazy hippie. We all do. And yes, those anarchists in their bandanas will be there, and they will jump around like monkeys and get themselves arrested, and we will all sigh as the TV cameras point at them, knowing that nervous pro-war folks watching TV will point to these rowdy 18-year-old boys out for fun, who represent a shrinking 1% of the movement, and say, "See--that's who's against this war." And their nagging doubts about this war--and they do have them--will be relieved by this prejudice.

Yeah, it's gonna happen. But you don't have to be like the monkey-boys to come out and protest with the other 99% of us who want to rescue this great country from this horrible choice. You won't have to perform, either--plenty of people don't chant, or don't chant the stuff they don't want to. You just need to show up, because that says all that needs to be said. It says you're against the war.

And believe me, psychologically it's a lot better at a protest than it is sitting at home, watching CNN and wishing you could do something. You can do something. You will help stop the war just by standing in public with your fellow citizens instead of sitting at home.

If you're a Republican and you feel guilty because you oppose the war but you don't want to oppose the President, you're in good company. A lot of prominent conservatives oppose this military action for precisely the same reasons the left does. Some things transcend partisan boundaries. That nagging feeling you have in the back of your mind that this is just plain wrong? Free yourself--come do what that little voice is nagging you to do. There's nothing wrong with a Republican protesting lawlessness.

I'm not being facetious. There are plenty of conservatives who just can't get on the U.S.-vs.-the-world bandwagon. The Associated Press interviewed a suburbanite who came to the L.A. Federal Building today to protest for the first time:

Arlette Chew of Glendale said she works for a defense contractor and had been supportive of the Bush administration until the last few days.

"I didn't have any trouble with Bush's decision making until he decided to ignore the U.N.," she said. "What he's doing is totally unprecedented and uncivilized."

Easily over 90% of the protesters coming out now are not "professional protesters." They're people like Arlette Chew who recognize that democracy only works when citizens use it.

If you were against the war until the shooting started, but now you feel bullied into "supporting the troops," please do come support the troops. If the Vietnam War had been stopped on the first day, we wouldn't have a Vietnam War Memorial. Support our troops by not converting them into names on a memorial--a memorial that it's quite likely we will have to look at with shame for the rest of this country's history. A memorial of the war that marked the United States' turn against the world and betrayal of the rule of law, for reasons so flimsy that history will be astonished that we fell for them. Support our troops' not ending up with that legacy. Support the future of the United States.

What can you do? You can check for demonstrations in your area:

United For Peace
Int'l ANSWER
Stop the War Coalition

(If you're in L.A., email me and we can meet up at an L.A. protest.)

Alternately, or additionally, you can do something that clearly states to your community "No business as usual." The government would like us to sit at home, watching TV, viewing the dazzling entertainment they and the networks have provided.

But the rallying cry at demonstrations to date has been, "No business as usual," and I think it's a good one. We're at war. The country needs to stop. Businesses should close. Entertainment (Oscars) should be suspended. This isn't a normal day at a normal time--it's war, and people are going to have to notice it, in the form of disruption, whether they want to or not. Yeah, it's rude. Yeah, it's confrontational. But it's not wrong. U.S. residents are not the ones being bombed, or the ones physically doing the bombing--people safe at home in the U.S. have no special right to comfort as their country goes to war. Relief is not a favor we deserve at this moment.

Of course, your own version of "No business as usual" could be anything you create out of it. I have friends who are keeping their kids out of school. What good will that do? They'll be missed. If other parents do it, maybe the class will have 5 kids instead of 20. It will feel strange. It will be hard to just get on with the routine. Staying away from work will have the same effect. The more people have their routines interrupted, the more they will be reminded that something besides television entertainment is actually happening here. The environment should remain appropriately tense and unpredictable, as if there are still unanswered questions, as if it is not yet time to relax into acceptance and watch the TV show.

The way I interpret it, "No business as usual" means that I will contribute to forcing the city I live in to be incapable of business as usual. A convergence march is scheduled for 5 pm at Hollywood Blvd and Highland Ave on the second day of the war. It's one of the busiest intersections in the city, and it controls access to the 101 Freeway. I'm sure there will be plenty of commuters who would like to head up Highland to the 101, so they can drive back to the San Fernando Valley, stop off at Pizza Hut and have a nice night at home with the family.

Sorry, commuter-trying-to-go-on-with-his-life, I won't let you. There's a war on, and your life is going to be disrupted whether you like it or not. Join the protest or get out of your car and tell me why you're not protesting--either way, no business as usual. There's a war on, and it's your war.

That's the sort of thing I'm going to do. I truly hope that if there's anyone reading this who is on the fence about becoming a first-time demonstrator that you'll give it a shot. Come on down and give it five minutes.

Alternately, I guess, one could just sit at home and watch TV.