As I arrived to start the vigil, there was Korean War veteran and peace activist John Fortier already on the street corner proudly holding up a green flag with a peace symbol, as it flapped in the 15 mile an hour winds.
It was a nice way to start a vigil that attracted widespread attention and support, with blasted horn honks, waves and two fingered peace signs.
At different stages, we were joined for a few minutes by a 50 ish couple who often stop by and later by a 52 year old Englishman, who on occasion does.
While in Washington yesterday, the House of Representatives debated ending the Afghan War after nearly nine years and to acknowledge the attempts to defeat Al Qaeda (presumably in Iraq) had failed.
The measure was defeated 356 to 65. But that Congress even had a dialogue on the subject raises a glimmer of hope. "The country is totally bankrupt and we are spending trillions of dollars on these useless wars," said Ron Paul (R-Texas).
But late in the vigil, something happened I've never seen before. During a red light, the four lanes of traffic and a heavily occupied street feeding into it were stopped as normal, when just then, everything seemed to fall silent.
All eyes were on the vigil as if it was a stage play. Until the signal turned green, nothing distracted any one's attention. They were mesmerized and hopefully their hearts absorbed what was in front of them.
If Americans got to know our brethren elsewhere in the world, we would realize our similarities far outweigh our differences and we would see them as families and not as enemies to be killed and their nations occupied.
We would nurture their children as we do our own and vigils like these would be a thing of the past, as we united to make this world a better place for everyone.
Dick
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