Run for your lives!

cindy sheehan is the single most annoying person in the country. her message is lost in her shrill shrieking shouts. she has done more harm than good for her cause.

If I were a shopowner, I'd like to be forewarned of days when nobody in the immediate area would have money, a job, or soap. I'd just close up at 1pm, a full three hours before everything usually closes in Downtown Crossing.

should not be made to pay for it, imo. While, I, too am opposed to our war on Iraq and to what Dubya's Administration does, just generally, I believe that certain tactics, such as sitting in the middle of busy thoroughfares blocking traffic, illegally occupying buildings, or preventing people from going to work, or going about their daily business, pleasures, and their lives generally are counterproductive, rude, and, in addition to making many people more angry and alienating possible potential support, often result in the loss of sight of the issue at hand, imo.

While demonstrations have their place if done respectfully and in an organized manner, the above-mentioned are not the way to go. Regarding blocking traffic, aside the risks of arrest and a possible permanent record that would make it tougher to get employment or whatever later, here's yet another problem with it: Blocking traffic also makes it more difficult for emergency vehicles(such as ambulances, fire vehicles, and police cars) to get through.

All of the above having been said, I believe that some (hard) questions
should be asked: A) Is it really worth going out and sitting in the street to block traffic to make one's point really worth the risk of getting arrested? Suppose a loved one, neighbor, friend or acquaintence was in the ambulance trying to get to the hospital? Every second of every minute counts when a seriously ill/injured person is being transported to the hospital, and when the police have to move the crowds aside and out of the way to let ambulances and other emergency vehicles through, which can and does cause dangerous delays. (B) Would anybody who decided to block traffic to make their point be willing to do some community service for the family of, say, a heart attack or stroke victim who failed to reach the hospital in time due to insistence on making a point by blocking traffic? C) How would you feel if somebody had to get themselves or family members to an important medical appointment and they ended up being late due to crowds' blocking of traffic to make their point? (D) Are there more constructive ways to make this same point and let our voices be heard and our opinions known? I believe, that, if people really put their heads together and think it over, there are.

The best way to hold demonstrations/marches is for the cops to cordon off certain streets to vehicular traffic, and re-route the vehicular traffic around the demonstration. I myself have attended several anti-war candlelight vigils that did not involve blocking traffic, were respectable and got our message across without being rude and disruptive. Emailing and/or calling our senators, Congresspeople, State Reps and legislators is also another way to get the message across.

Here's yet another example of how making nontargets of this kind of anger at our government's policies pay for it can and has had, disastrous results. Back in 1970, Catherine Power and afew of her friends, who, btw, were also opposed to the Viet Nam War (I was too, btw), decided that it would be a good idea to rob a Boston/Brighton bank to fund their cause, and their attempted bank robbery went horribly wrong.

A Boston Patrolman who responded to the robbery ended up getting shot in the back and killed by one of Ms. Power's friends. Although Ms. Powers was driving the getaway car, she and her friends were indirectly responsible for the death of the Patrolman, and for the fact that his wife became a widow and that a brood of kids was forced to grow up without a father.

Catherine Power went underground for a number of years, often under different names, surrendered to authorities in the late 1990's, and ended up serving an 8-12 year term in a penetentiary for her involvement in that bank robbery that went horribly wrong.

I admittedly have little to no pity for Catherine Power, even though it did threaten her mental health. Here's why: It's not as if Ms. Power was an adolescent who got in a jam due to being caught up in the excitement not knowing what she was doing, imo. She was a consenting adult who knew what the people she was with were up to, who they were and what they were doing. She could've/should've walked away from them and didn't. Instead, she got herself into a mess, where she was not only indirectly responsible for causing grief and pain to others, but threatened her own health as well.

when people decide to sit in the middle of a main thoroughfare blocking traffic, causing unnecessary and/or dangerous delays, and unnecessary tension, or to prevent, or attempt to prevent people from going about their business, pleasure, and their daily lives, they are violating the rights of others, in their own way. Imho, it's not any better than the actions and behaviours of the anti-abortionists who block reproductive cllinics to interfere with people's rights to obtain abortions.