A Cavalry Charge by The Anti-Peace War Whores

Good news at last for the Commander-in-Hiding: busloads of Pro-War Bush supporters have descended upon Crawford, Texas in opposition to Cindy Sheehan and the members of Camp Casey.

From JS Online:

Bush supporters gathered for an event marking the culmination of the "You don't speak for me, Cindy!" tour, which started last week in California. The crowd of about 1,500 chanted, "Cindy, go home!"

"You are giving hope and encouragement to the enemies of America(emphasis mine)," said former California Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian, a Republican who co-founded the group that coordinated the rally.

I've bolded what I consider the money quote of the article. This entire view of the war just infuriates me to no end. First of all, this kind of thinking is the kind of faux-patriotic breast-beating that obscures the real civic duty of American citizens: to question our leaders. This has been one of the hallmarks of the Bush Administration's rhetoric for war support; that, somehow, disagreeing with the civilian leadership in this country means that one supports the enemies of America. I'm sure Bush loves having supporters such as these; supporters that are willing to completely abrogate their responsibility as citizens under the Constitution in favor of a "Let's Go, Team!" nationalism that threatens to keep the United States at war indefinitely.

Note to the Pro-War wingnuts: without our invasion, there would be no insurgency in Iraq killing our soldiers. Bush did that, not the Iraqis. Also of note: young Sunni insurrectionists in Iraq are not watching CNN or reading Newsweek to get motivation for their actions. Our invasion and occupation, coupled with 20 years of exploitative foreign policy, have given them that. Besides, it's pretty hard to watch much cable TV when you don't have dependable electricity.

The wingnuts have it exactly backwards: peace demonstrations in the U.S. give hope and encouragement to our friends, not our enemies. It shows our friends and allies around the world that, despite the questionable results of the 2004 election, at least half of this country do not support George W. Bush and his illegal war. It gives the Iraqi people the hope that, in spite of all evidence to the contrary, it is possible that the United States does not intend to wage war in their home indefinitely; that perhaps they can look to a day in the not-too-distant future when American foreign policy involves something besides catastropic military intervention. Their hope is our hope!

In spite of the grim purpose of this Republican-sponsored Pro-War death march, there is still some humor to be found in the wingnuts’ antics:

There also were some heated moments at the pro-Bush rally when Bush supporters mistakenly identified two people as war protesters. The two walked in with a sign that read "Say No to War - Unless a Democrat is President."

Many Bush supporters only saw the top of the sign and believed the men were war protesters, so they began shouting and chasing the pair out. One man tore up their signs.

It challenges the rational mind, attempting to understand how consumed with hate these people must be in order to attack at even the slightest hint of disagreement. Is it any small wonder that they are avidly Pro-War? If, as the President is wont to claim in his torturous public speaking engagements, the terrorists wish to destroy our way of life, then isn't it clear that these Pro-War cheerleaders are giving the terrorists exactly what they wanted? Moreover, why are these people marching on Crawford to harass a peaceful demonstration instead of enlisting to fight in the war in which they are so proud to support? Allowing our young men and women in the military to fight and die for a war that these Pro-War demonstrators are too cowardly to fight in is the very height of hypocrisy. At long last, have they no shame?

But, in the end, I admire Cindy Sheehan, again, for her courage and optimism:

"I know that the Camp Casey movement is going to end the war in Iraq,"

I hope she's right.