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Anti-War Group Protests...um, a ban on Protesting
By John
Anti-War Vets Slam Parade Ban -
LONG BEACH - Iraq veteran Jason Lemieux might not be marching in the 11th annual Long Beach Veterans Day Parade on Saturday.The Marine, who served three tours of duty in Iraq and is now against the war, was hoping to march as a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, a national organization that calls for immediate withdrawal of troops in Iraq.
The group's application, however, was rejected last month because of its political views, parade coordinators said.
"I wanted to march like the rest of the Iraq veterans," said Lemieux, a 24-year-old Anaheim resident. "I served my country. I'm a veteran of a foreign war. I think I deserve that respect."
Iraq Veterans, along with the groups Veterans for Peace and Military Families Speak Out, applied to march together in the parade this year under the entry "Military Patriots."
After reviewing each group's mission statement, the Veterans Day Parade Committee, a non-profit group that organizes the event, voted unanimously to reject the application, said parade coordinator Martha Thuente.
"They do not fit the spirit of the parade," she said. "The spirit being one of gratitude for what the veterans have done. We do not want groups of a political nature, advocating the troops' withdrawal from Iraq."
Mixed feelings on this. One one hand, I'm thinking that anyone who has served (and was discharged honorably) deserves to march in parade celebrating military service. On the other, those guys are being totally obnoxious. I don't know what their intentions are, but their annoying "include me or else!" mentality makes it look as if they're trying to hijack a non-partisan event and use it for their own selfish purposes. Equally irritating is the way they act as if the legitimacy of the entire constitution rests on their right to crash another Bubba's BBQ. Witness:
The rejection has left many veterans and anti-war groups outraged."It think it's absurd," said Adrian Novotny, president of the Long Beach Chapter of Veterans for Peace, a national nonprofit that advocates non-violence, VA healthcare and veterans' rights. "It's a violation of Democracy, the whole concept which we are allegedly dying for."
Meh. No one is stopping you from holding your own parade that no one will show up to, Beavis.
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Comments
The bottom line is the parade was organized to honor vets, not as a vehicle for political expression.
The sad thing is, (though they may not acknowledge/realize it) the anti-war types view the people marching in the parade as making a political statement.
I in NO WAY support the protesters, however, I did spend 21 years defending their right of expression. Maybe it is time to let the "protesters" have their way and allow them to march in venues such as this. I think if this would go to the court system the organizers of the parade would be told to allow them or not have the parade. By allowing them to march, I think the court of public opinion would silence them. IMHO
these guys are part of a group that meets on thursday nights and is totally anti war.
the things that they bellow about on the media are not alwayse what they stand for.
C
"It's a violation of Democracy, the whole concept which we are allegedly dying for."
Risking the anachronism: isn't it the better idea to kill for Democracy rather than die for it?
The parade is to honor the service and sacrifices of our Veterans and not the politics of the conflicts in which they served.
Check your bags at the door.
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I agree that this goes both ways but I lean much more towards the parade organizers. They exercised their democratic rights by voting on the applications, and the anti-war groups lost the vote. That's what votes are all about, winners and losers. Further, I am of the mind that if vets want to spout off about their service, for which they volunteered mind you, they should run for office. The bottom line is the parade was organized to honor vets, not as a vehicle for political expression, and the anti-war groups are certainly marching to get their political views more exposure.