Signs O’ the Times

The antiwar protests in Washington, D.C., as elsewhere continue apace; nothing new there. There were a couple new posters posted near the White House, though.




This poster, appropriating the memorable phrase uttered by Todd Beamer aboard Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, depicts an anthropomorphic pig driving an SUV over a pile of crushed Iraqi bodies. It was pasted up on a utility box across from Lafayette Square, next to the Hay-Adams Hotel.




This one, likely torn by ideological opponents, invited people to walk out of their jobs and schools when hostilities commenced: “When the Bombing Starts, America Stops.” Looking back to earlier in the week, very few Americans followed the invitation.




Also near Lafayette Square, the drawing in this example has become almost completely destroyed. It used to be a depiction of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney:




Here’s what it looked like on March 15, 2003. At that time a couple people had pasted over it with bumper stickers reading “This Poster Paid For By Saddam Hussein.”




It was fresh and new on March 8, 2003 when this photo was taken.


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‘When you eat pussy cat, you don't get fever’

What is it about Cameroon? Is it their lack of arable land? The unfortunate prevalence of water-borne diseases? Their proximity to the Bight of Biafra? What is it about the place that leads people to eat housecats for good luck? And as if gorging on domesticated pets wasn’t enough, you just know that, despite government opposition, they’re going to end up washing down their feline feast with a brimming glassful of their own urine. When the Bush Administration is finished bring democracy to Iraq, maybe they could stop by Cameroon and build a few Olive Gardens. I assume he and Cameroonian President Paul Biya will discuss the plan when they meet at the White House tomorrow.

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Did We Get a Warrant For That?

The BBC reports today that phone lines in the offices of France and Germany’s delegations to the European Union have been secretly tapped. Le Figaro reported the story yesterday and naturally pointed the finger at the U.S. It’s not surprising that a French newspaper would accuse the U.S. of spying on our European adversaries, but one wonders what we would have heard that would give us any advantage. Both countries have done everything they could to thwart the effective disarmament of Saddam Hussein. What could they be saying in private that’s anything worse than what they’ve been saying in the Security Council?

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Twisting the Straight Story

Thanks to a wack-job on a tractor, residents of Washington, D.C. have something else to think about besides the waking of the sleeper cells. He’s a tobacco farmer from Whitakers, NC and he says he’s upset about the state of the federal government's subsidy program. He’s been driving his John Deere through the shallow waters of Constitution Gardens, to no apparent purpose, since last night. His claim to have explosives ready to detonate has kept the 100 or so law enforcement officials on the scene at bay so far. Imagine it – people in DC have been so unnerved by the prospect of terrorist retaliation for an Iraqi invasion that a psycho roaming the Mall and claiming to have access to explosives has become merely an amusing distraction from the otherwise serious news of the day. But of course we can’t let it go one for ever. By far the most popular response in news stories and from conversations with other people downtown has been to bring out the tranquilizer guns. After all, the National Zoo is only a few minutes away by emergency vehicle ride.

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War on Wednesday

From the Associated Press:

President Bush on Monday gave Saddam Hussein a 48-hour deadline to flee Iraq or face a U.S.-led invasion, saying American forces will wage war "at a time of our choosing."

The president, commander in chief of 250,000 U.S. troops poised at the borders of Iraq, addressed the nation at 8 p.m. EST.

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Bush = Caligula?

The author of Why the Left Hates America was also at Saturday’s anti-war protest, and he ran into some outspoken characters. Eric Dyer, one of the demonstrators interviewed, compared the President to Hitler (naturally) and, displaying his ample knowledge of classical history, the Emperor Caligula. While I don’t think Bush has ever had a sexual relationship with a close blood relative, perhaps Eric is encouraged by the original Caligula having been assassinated by his own soldiers. Thankfully there is considerable less palace intrigue in the U.S. Secret Service than in the Roman Praetorian Guard.

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More photos from the March 15, 2003 Emergency National Anti-War Convergence on the Mall

We all understand the idea behind yesterday's event - to stop the U.S. from invading Iraq. But who are these people that feel so strongly opposed to forcible disarmarment of the Hussein regime? Where are they from? Let's begin locally:




Greenbelt, Maryland which, according to its website, is a "National Historic Landmark," is a suburb of D.C., just outside the Beltway in Prince George's County. I couldn't find any information on the city's website about their decision to oppose an invasion of Iraq, so the sign pictured here not have been strictly authorized. It does have several charming features, though - a sprig of greenery and a Mardi Gras-style harlequin mask among them. Very creative.




But the list of peace-loving municipalities isn't limited to small liberal enclaves. The State of Florida was also represented at the event, and clearly displayed their opposition to war. No doubt there is some tension these days between George W. and his brother Jeb over Florida opposing war in Iraq. Also, perhaps fearing that the Florida state flag would have gone unrecognized, you can see on the right that the Sunshine State demonstrators have opted for the next best thing.




Not wanting Florida to be out there alone, New Jersey sent its own Coalition Against War in Iraq. Next to the anti-war New Jersians was one of several demonstrators holding a United Nations flag. One wonders what they'll do with their flags if the Security Council actually does vote to authorize the use of force in Iraq.

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Some early photos from the March 15, 2003 Emergency National Anti-War Convergence on the Mall

Let's start with the religiously themed signs:




We have confirmation. The Jews really are forcing the U.S. toward a selfish war to benefit Israel. I just hope that's not Nancy Pelosi holding that sign.




Just in case you were still confused, the Jews are bad. Don't think for a minute that as a Christian you should support the Children of Abraham in defending their homeland.




To round out today's course in comparitive religion, we have a reminder that Islam is a religion that seeks nothing more than justice and peace for everyone. I'm sure the pious men of Nabatiyeh, Lebanon couldn't agree more.


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Dirty Talk in Mombasa

As any international development expert will tell you, different countries have different needs. Some nations desperately need telecommunications reform, and some are in greater need of indoor plumbing. Kenya could use a little of both. According to the BBC, a mobile phone dropped into a latrine by careless university student Dora Mwabela ended up causing the death of three people sent to retrieve it. Upon lowering themselves into the pit, police hypothesize, they were overwhelmed by the fumes rising from the pit and slipped into the “putrid mess.” Some would argue that a nation with a 40% unemployment rate and an industrial production growth rate of -1% has more pressing concerns than mobile phone toilet retrieval, but let’s not forget we’re talking about human lives here. How many have to die before officials act?

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Giving War a Chance

Anti-war activists wont be the only people demonstrating in the streets this weekend. In addition to the Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Los Angeles rallies being planned by International A.N.S.W.E.R. for this Saturday, Free Republic is also sponsoring events in Washington and San Francisco. While it’s always interesting to see conservatives hit the streets like their counter-cultural opponents, their ranks are generally a little thin. The pro-Bush people at the White House protest on March 8th were gathered together in a little knot of about a dozen people, chanting their slogan “War freed the slaves! War saved the Jews!” as thousands of anti-war people streamed by them on 17th Street. Very few bothered to actually talk to (rather than shout at) them until the demonstration itself wound down and everyone else had gone home. They were persistent, though, and managed to rile up even more people than the pro-life protestors with the bullhorns and aborted fetus posters from earlier in the day.

A few photos from the other side of the street: the pro-war people who showed up at the March 8, 2003 CODE PINK Protest Against War in Iraq:




The leader of the Free Republic encampment argues with some anarcho-teens while other interested parties look on. The young woman in black was in a highly agitated state.




A father and daughter duo (left) engage in a surprisingly civil discussion of the prospect of invading Iraq. I was a little disturbed, though, by the wild-eyed look of the woman on the extreme right (perhaps in more ways than one).




When everyone else had wandered off to Starbucks and McDonald's, a few dedicated souls from each side linger on 17th Street next to the Renwick Gallery. The Saddam poster (left) and U.S. flags (center) are from the Free Republic people, the UN flag (right) from the other side.


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