#07 / 2003 Peace Tour: April, Pittsburgh

SHADOW LOUNGE, PITTSBURGH

#07

Back on the road and the weather has turned a bit cruel again. After a visit to the country where my mother grew up and a visit with the cousins we took the back roads out of Indiana and headed to Pittsburgh. It is a great town, full of enormous houses, lots of diversions. But the political situation is far different than it was when we first hit the road. Now we are in a war.

I was watching Dr. Phil last week as he held discussions with a war protestor in Chicago. He has come from the position that the protestor is now unpatriotic because she has chosen to lay down in the street and stop traffic in downtown Chicago. He comes from the position that she is now a pawn of Saddam Hussein because she protests. And he has challenged this protestor saying it is unpatriotic to complain at this juncture because we should be supporting our troops.

Don’t tell me I am a political pawn for Iraq because I am speaking out against this war and saying it is wrong. I am haunted by the face of those captured American soldiers, especially the women, who we now know are dead. Dr. Phil says since we are now in a war we should fall in line behind the president in order to support the troops.

My heart breaks for them, I feel sorry for them. But to me not speaking out is to be sheepish. What is wrong is to be led blindly into something inherently immoral, without resistance. One audience member referred to a quote: The only way for evil to triumph is for good men and women to remain silent. So if all my efforts do no more than fulfill the democratic process, even if every word I say falls on deaf ears, I will still continue to speak out.

And to this day, I tell you, everyone I have personally spoken to has supported me and my opinion. I honestly believe most people hardly have an opinion, they don’t know anything about the region we are fighting in and they are far too busy trying to get their bills paid and their children through school to even have time to educate themselves. We were propagandized into this situation and even the most casual observer of the war can see that the rhetoric about a quick war an easy war has been changed.

We were at the Shadow Lounge last night. It was a venue that I booked from Nashville, after I spoke to the manager, then he told me that they did no promotions. So for this gig I tried to do some publicity long distance. The turnout was poor, and despite my efforts for promotion, there was no mention in the paper, no fliers up. So, I have found it far too painful, disappointing, and time consuming to try to promote as I go along. No more.

Now, I am just going to turn up at places where people are already gathered and speak out. And despite the turnout of eight people at the Shadow Lounge, still, everyone was in agreement with our efforts, thanked us for our efforts, and blessed us for our efforts.

I honestly believe a big part of the problem is the lack of concern or care from the media. Editors are indifferent to such a small peace protest; it certainly won’t sell papers like war reporting. I feel like we are climbing a mountain of indifference with the media. But that is no different than what I felt back in Nashville.

You can’t expect to get out a crowd if editors won’t even publish a listing, much less state your cause. And that is why it is so important for people to work to educate themselves. You are not going to find the truth in newspapers or on nightly news.

I have been fascinated by Bill Moyers’ programs on public TV. He is such a voice in the wilderness, explaining issues with such clarity. But that takes time. That is why I believe the population is sleepwalking towards this terrible fate. My president makes me feel like a loser, like my opinion doesn’t count. And I want to emphasize to all who read this that what I hear on TV, and what is claimed in polls, is not what I hear on the street and in the coffeehouses.

We have a long journey ahead of us, and there will be many more opinions in New York. But we began this mission because I believe the media is slanted toward glorifying war and polls are skewed to accommodate the Bush regime war propaganda.

I haven’t talked to millions at this point, or thousands, but I have talked to hundreds of people and everything I have heard substantiates my belief. I will be the first person to say I am wrong if Bush ever finds those weapons of mass destruction. But I believe it is all about oil. Bush has seized the oil fields and now is telling the UN he has first take on their profits now.

Only two days ago, this is Sunday Apr. 6, that the US can’t seize oil profits. Right now the profits from sales of Iraqi oil for food go into the UN Security Council fund. Bush has claimed he will not turn over oil profits to the UN because they did not support his efforts to fight Iraq. He says he will rebuild Iraq with the sale of the oil.

And the UN says it is not his to take. So, we ostracized ourselves from the rest of the world when we took the war on, and we will alienate ourselves even more when we start sparring with the UN over Iraqi oil profits. This is not the America I know. After the poetry reading tonight, I want to hit the road toward Kingston NY.

That is where we are parking the van before we head into the city.PA weathermen say it is going to snow. And indeed the weather has turned against us rather cruelly. Last night it was 30 degrees in the van. But Joe and I keep warm as long as we stick together. I know everyone is busy, but please pay attention as best you can, because what you are being told and what is really happening are two entirely different things.