Loyalty to petrified opinion never yet broke a chain or freed a human soul, and never will. — Mark Twain

While most people spend Sunday afternoons relaxing with family and friends, a small but faithful group of people spend that time in a not-so-quiet vigil, of sorts.

From 4-5 p.m. every Sunday, year-round, the group meets on the corner of Ballenger Hwy. and Miller Road in Flint Twp. to protest the war in Iraq.

“Most of us, if we don’t come out here, we can’t live with ourselves,” said Debra Conway of Mayfield Twp. in Lapeer County.

The group has been protesting at the corner for nearly five years — before the war began — said demonstrator Pat Kelly.

“We want our troops to come home,” said Nikki Hughes, 15. “It’s our right (to protest). It’s freedom of speech. If we don’t do it, who will?”

Frank A. Evanoff, 94, carries a peace symbol sign during the demonstration. Evanoff served a year-and-a-half in Iraq during WWII, and “learned to respect and like the Iraqi people.”

“I just don’t see how this helps, slaughtering innocent people,” Evanoff, of Flint, said. “I’m sorry to say, I believe the war is based on a bunch of lies.”

Many Americans, tired of spending billions of dollars fighting a war that doesn’t show signs of any significant progress, believe that the administration in Washington, D.C. has deceived the public about the reasons for getting into the war in the first place — and worse, doesn’t seem to have a plan to quell the escalating hostilities.

Our president has lost sight of his original goal of battling terrorism. A report last week stated that Al-Qaida is as strong now as before Sept. 11, 2001, but President Bush seems determined to commit troops to refereeing a campaign that has degenerated into a civil war.

“Stay the course” becomes a folly of a policy when the administration doesn’t know where it’s going or how to get there. Wise leaders adapt their policies to events in order to achieve their goals; bad leaders continue to try the same failed tactics again and again, regurgitating the same tired catchphrases, no matter what occurs.

The war, the nation and the world are at a crossroads over what to do next, and Bush only sees the myth of his vision, not the reality on the ground. His lack of pragmatism has already doomed the country — and troops — into a stalled war, but as most of the American public knows, he’s really only talking to the walls when he spouts his slogans of success.

It’s time for everyone to contact our leaders and demand an end to a war that already has claimed the lives of more than 3,600 American men and women and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis.
“We understand that it may not be the best way to do it, but what else can we do as a citizen?” Evanoff said, toting his peace sign a little higher.

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