Still Going

Yesterday morning, I went down to Lake Forest Park, to see if the demonstrations were still happening. I've been doing this, irregularly, for some time now, my second post here was about the weekly gatherings. The "Support the troops" group that originally waved the flag from 10 to 11 AM was not in evidence yesterday. Whether they're taking the winter off, or eventually jsut wound down, I don't know yet.

But the 11 AM peace protesters were still there, about a half-dozen old white men with a banner, some signs and literature they would hand to anyone who would take it. A few people honked as they drove by. But otherwise, it was just a quiet time in a grassy strip near city hall, the bank and the local strip mall. There was no shouting, no altercations and no-one deciding that this would be a good place for some petty vandalism. There were no news cameras, no police officers onsite and no "free speech zones."

It's probably the very model of American demonstrations; a small group of people with something to say and the hope that other people will hear the message and maybe take some small action.

When all of this started, I lived about a mile and a half or so down the road, and would see them sometimes, when I drove by. One day the BBC put out a call for photographs of interesting things in one's neighborhood, and I decided that this was close enough, so I took my camera and went down to get a few snaps. I never got around to finding one I liked enough to send in.

But I kept going back. Not with any sort of regularity, but often enough that the regulars recognized me and would stop to chat. At first they were suspicious, but before long I was just that guy who took enough of an interest to see if they were still at it.

Are they doing any good? In the end, I suspect not. But I don't think that's on them. I mean, I haven't exactly done anything to advance the cause, myself. Sure, I've written about them here, but I have to remind myself to even go down and check on them once in a while. I'm not writing letters to Mesdames Murray, Cantwell or DelBene, or pushing my employer to avoid working with the military. Were I any more of an inactivist on this issue, I'd be a stone.

But they're still at it. Their numbers have faded, and when I go, I'm usually the youngest person in attendance. Eventually, the last of them will stop coming, and in time, everything will be forgotten. It's the nature of humanity, I guess. So much of what we do is fleeting and ephemeral. One day, someone will flip a switch on a server, and this record, too, will disappear. But in the meantime, I'll drop in on them from time to time, take a few pictures and post one here once in a great while. If for no other reason than to remind myself that remember them.