�If I were in the States, I would be out pounding the streets ��

All that got me was (were?) a couple of bloody fists.

Brother, I know, these obese dollar loving flag worshipping poor Americans. If they could think even for 33 seconds one day the world won't be such killing fileds.

Or is it that the poor duffers are just ruled and controlled by AIPAC and not by the congress?

Anyway, poor people like these don't survive for very long. We don't need to quote anything from history as they think it just started on September 11.

Thanks, Sign Reader.  I missed your post wherein you mentioned MIC, but I have been rather highly attuned to the concept from the time that I first learned about President Eisenhower's (largely unheeded) warning to the nation.  It might interest you to know that many of us Americans are in fact quite aware of the issue and that there is a recently published and excellent book on the topic, written by an American academician (Boston University) and military man (West Point, Viet-Nam), Dr. Andrew Bacevich.  I have read it and strongly encourage others to do so.  It puts responsibility for much of the mess we (as a nation) are in right where it belongs: not on AIPAC, not on George W. Bush (although he is in a sense complicit), but squarely upon the laps of the American people themselves, which includes me.  Find reviews of the book here:  

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195173384/002-3225494-0916 830?v=glance&n=283155

_________________________________

Duende,

You are quoted below.

� but from here in Southern Spain, my best option is to be a cyber activist.

To that, I said "I understand."  I mean I understand about cyber activism being your best option.  Sometimes it is also mine.  I hope that you keep exercising that option because I like your posts and your activism!

Do you mean we are as likely to be succesfull as the foreign fighters who joined the Spanish civil war?

No.  I was really just thinking of Hemmingway and of his times and was drawing an admittedly indistinct parallel between that time and ours.  There was no particular point to the statement. 
 

Could it just be you think any initiative is a waste of time, or bound to fail? Please, just say so

No, I think neither.  I apologize if I have seemed overly pessimistic.

Over on The Pond Patty has also made comments which add absolutely nothing to the idea of an umbrella pressure group. Angel has also written that she feels Cassandra and I are not willing to listen to their comments. That's because we've had enough of comments which only seem to poke holes (which we already know are there) in this idea.

I, for my part, made an attempt to add something to the idea of an umbrella pressure group by quoting excerpts from the great umbrellist Arundhati Roy and by introducing, among other possible groups, her World Social Forum as one of possibly many reference points.  As for my jokes about the US Congress and the effectiveness of letter-writing, there is (as I see it) truth behind my humor and hyperbole. 

I don't see any point in discussing what we all know: i.e the strength of AIPAC, the dead drudge of writing letters to representatives, the power of military/corporate greed etc. etc.

Ok.  Agreed.  Let's not discuss it (at least not here).  I was just responding, perhaps with too much levity, and was trying to express my sense of frustration at being unable to actually effect change from my side, here in the States.  It is true that I don't have much confidence in the existing and institutional mechanisms for change such as the deliberative bodies (UN) and various parliaments, but that's another topic.
 

We just want to pressurise as many NGOs and peace orgs into uniting their voices/actions and raise a 'critical mass'. If we have to, we'll do it wihout anybody else's help, but it would be nice to have a few people encourage the idea, even if they are too disheartened to actually do anything concrete.

In that case, please consider yourself encouraged and know that I am not too disheartened to do anything concrete (provided it's legal).  Unfortunately for my poor self, my 30 minutes at this public library Internet terminal are about to expire.  I'll talk to you later.

Serv

Cass said: I have said for a while now that I think we need to form an umbrella
group.  But everytime I do so I have been told to calm down and chill
and wait for the bus.  Sorry, the bus passed us while we were waiting and asleep.  It swept by with such a speed that we didn't even 
recognise its passing."

Duende countered: Cassandra, I understand, and you're absolutely right! I also want to make sure you don't feel I am 'stealing' your suggestion and posting it as My Big Idea. I hate playground politics and as adults I don't think it's at all constructive to fall back on them, as tempting as it is.

If we were really retentive we'd be pasting and claiming: "I said it
first! No! I said it first!" And then we could all reach for our Lugers or
AK47

So, a suggestion: each of us takes time to research peace orgs and
find out what they are standing for and whether they appear to be
good targets. How does that sound? We need to put a deadline on it,
otherwise we'll just be sitting on the bus waiting for the driver
(GROAN)

Please get back to me as the more people do this, the quicker we'll
get a start.[/QUOTE]

Hey Girl, absolutely no competition intended nor implied.  It doesn't matter who says what or when.  All that metters is what we do about it.  July was perfect for me to really get actively involved.  August is called "making a living" and I don't have internet access at home. BUT, I suggest we divvy up the alphabet of grass roots organizations and contact them with our ideas.  Make some suggestions, send them to Maryah, Colin, Whisper, Colin, Herjihad, Servetus, Suleyman, Patty, Angel, Daniel........anyone who wants to get involved, and we must now: the time for talking has passed. Lebanon hjas made it so. The problem is, to my way of thinking: what is/are our ideas.? Angela came up with her plan and it is certainly a start, but with Afghanistan and Lebanon added to the equation (and they must be), we have to re-think our intentions.  What is our operation agenda?  Are we yet solid enough in our plans to contact other, much more experienced agencies than ourselves with our ideas of an umbrella group? You know how egos get in the way of these things, verdad?  I would be more than happy to hand that responsibility over to another group willing to "shelter" other groups, but make them a power to be reckoned with.  If no-one else can do it, well then, we do it ourselves.  I have suggested splitting the alp[habet: I'll happily take, say a - e.  But we need something solid, something we all agree upon when we contact these groups. 

What is, as I think either Colin or Whisper said early on, our Mission statement?

Also posted on The Pond.