A Small Victory

In Europe we're getting tons of coverage. It's amazing to see the people packed on the streets in solidarity. As I was watching the protests on tv my husband said "We were there!" and sure enough we recognized a square where we stopped to snap pictures during our visit to Spain four years ago. My heart grieves for the victims, their families, and their whole country.

Michele,

I know it would be an idea that could easily grow out of its proportions, but I really liked your Voices Project, and I was just thinking today: "What if she would extend it a bit?". Or maybe create a kind of parallel project? Just a thought you know; again, I realise it wouldn't be a simple thing to do.

And I hope they don't waste that solidarity by invading a country with no reason, proof or sanity; something no sane leadership would do.

Oh, wait...

(Note: someone will claim I'm being cruel to the hundreds of martyred Spaniards. Tell that to the thousands of humans dead in New York, used as political fodder by Bush and his cronies to invade Iraq, and see who was the more cruelly used.)

J. Finn

The Spanish people were against joining the coalition. They will not join in a senseless war against the Basques.

Flint, what kind of idea do you have? Email me, I'm very interested.

Joseph, can you for one freaking thread give it a rest? You are so inappropriate sometimes.

No, Joseph, I won't claim you are being cruel to hundreds of martyred Spaniards. Compared with the cruelty they have suffered recently your efforts have all the impact of a fungo bat, if even that much. I will just point out that you are an ass. (You are no longer merely "being" one, you have become one.)

Joseph: people like you who claim that the invasion -- and subsequent and ongoing efforts to build democracy -- in Iraq was a mindless rush to war, had nothing to do with the war on terror, etc. etc. have lost their ability to reason and willfully overlook the facts because of your blind hatred of the President and his party. You and your ilk sicken me. If you believe so strongly that the Iraqi operation lacked legitimacy, please, by all mean, go take up arms for the resistance. At least you'll present a viable target for our fighting men and women who know how to handle friends of dictators and enemies of freedom.

I'm sorry, I have had it with people like you!

Rock on, Michele.

I only mention it when appropriate, Michele. I can only hope the government of Spain is wiser than the leadership of the US and their craven and cowardly use of the loss of thousands of humans to justify an unjustified invasion. I pray that this is so.

Joseph:

That unjustified invasion is a fact now. Nothing can change that. And Pres. Bush has changed the history of the 21st Century with that one stroke.
Since regime change in Iraq was the official policy of the Clinton administration, I believe he followed the good example of Mr Clinton and Sandy Berger in effecting that change.

Yes, it would be so wonderful if only Saddam were still in power. He could be stealing money from the UN, one of his sons could still be crashing weddings and raping the brides. I will say a prayer tonight for Saddam's safe return to power. I'm sure a majority of Iraqis wish he was still in power. Let's all join hands with Joseph. We can form a big prayer circle.

I've noticed this about the internet in other elections: the political season brings out the worst people. They'll be here till after the election, and more and more of them.

Interesting. So what's the message here: that a tragedy with political causes shouldn't be discussed in political terms? That we should all throw our sympathies out to the Spanish, but not reflect on the whys and wherefors? So, sympathy, in the "teddy bear with a car" sense, rather than the "talking about what happened" sense?
Just for future reference.

Political causes? This whole tragedy seems to have psychopathic causes. :-P

Josh, it's been discussed. It's not like anyone is ignoring the issues.

I wasn't using this post to politicize the death of 200 people; I was merely feeling sympathetic.

Try it sometime.

I've seen this before,

Hmmmmm interesting !!!

Hmmmmm interesting !!!

Hmmmmm interesting !!!

Hmmmmm interesting !!!