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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Before I moved back to Houston, I was part of
Galveston Peace Action Network for years, sang at many rallies, made signs and
banners, marched in the MLK parade, stood in the rain in front of the courthouse
time after time, held signs on Broadway at morning rush-hour with one other
person, while drivers flipped us off and aimed fingerpoints like guns
at us. Those rallies, historically, have never been well attended,
but the important point is that we showed up anyway for peace and against war.
GPAN can not rely on numbers to make its statement. It's more about
heart. I salute Mark Muhich for his tenacity and spirit at
single-handedly keeping the peace movement alive in Galveston.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Tucker Bradley</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=jlarsen7@houston.rr.com href="mailto:jlarsen7@houston.rr.com">June
Bennett Larsen</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=Discuss@paa-tx.org
href="mailto:Discuss@paa-tx.org">PAA Discussion List</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, January 30, 2007 6:00
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [PAA-Discuss] Article in today's
Galveston County Daily News</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Georgia
size=6><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 18px"><B>Where have all
the peace people gone?</B></SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 19px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 16px Times"><BR></DIV>
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<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><A
href="http://news.galvestondailynews.com/contact.lasso?ewcd=468f7db5dc277c3738a9f6484a5e3b7c857b8498f97b2db2"><FONT
class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana size=3><SPAN class=Apple-style-span
style="FONT-SIZE: 12px"><B>By June Larsen</B></SPAN></FONT></A></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=3><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 10px">The Daily
News</SPAN></FONT></DIV></TD>
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<P style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=3><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 10px">Published January
30, 2007</SPAN></FONT></P>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">The following
quotation is from an article by Molly Ivins in the Jan. 17 edition of The
Galveston County Daily News:</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">“We are the people
who run this country. We are the deciders. And every single day every single
one of us needs to step outside and take some action to help stop this war.
Raise hell. … Join the peace march in Washington on Jan. 27. We need people
there, banging pots and pans and demanding ‘Stop it now.’”</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Ivins’ words have
become a mantra for the growing number of us who passionately object to the
invasion of Iraq and the proposed “surge” of troops, many of whom will either
never come home or will return wounded and maimed shadows of their former
selves.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">On what started
out to be yet another grey, rainy, foggy day on Saturday, some people gathered
on Galveston’s Seawall Boulevard at 47th Street not only to voice their
opposition to war but also to speak and sing in praise of
peace.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Chants were
chanted, peace songs were sung, people spoke and we heard the text of a speech
with praise for our troops who have been maimed or who have died because a
small group of powerful men in Washington saw an invasion of Iraq as a way to
make tremendous amounts of money at the expense of those who would have to
fight this war.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">With the theme of
“Honor... Duty... Country,” the writer of this speech, Gold Star Mother Amy
Branham of Houston, challenges “we the people” to show at least half the
courage of our servicemen and women, as well as their parents, wives,
husbands, brothers and sisters who must send their beloveds off to
battle.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">As of Saturday,
3,066 of the troops had been killed, as well as thousands of Iraqis, and
thousands upon thousands who have been injured for the rest of their
lives.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">And for what? Amy
Branham’s only son, Sgt. Jeremy R. Smith, was killed in Iraq, in Feb. 2004, at
the age of 22.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Peace rallies were
held across the country, the largest in Washington, where thousands gathered
and speeches were made by a distinguished group of speakers, including U.S.
Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who voted against both the invasion of Iraq and funding
yet another deployment of troops to Iraq.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Houston had a
sizeable crowd at its peace rally, with members and supporters of Radio
Station KPFT in attendance.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Sad to say, I
counted only 11 people at the Galveston peace rally, most of whom were from
Galveston, but with three from Friendswood.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Three to four
people showed up late, but at least they made an
appearance.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">Small as the group
was, we were very proud to be there.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">“Where have all
the flowers gone?” wrote Pete Seeger during another senseless and stupid war,
and a song we sang at the conclusion of our dedication to
peace. </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">And, I ask, why
were there so few to attend the Galveston peace rally? Where have all the
Galveston County Democrats gone?</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV style="MIN-HEIGHT: 16px; MARGIN: 0px; FONT: 13px Verdana"><SPAN
class=Apple-style-span style="LINE-HEIGHT: 17px"><BR></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0px"><FONT class=Apple-style-span face=Verdana
size=4><SPAN class=Apple-style-span style="FONT-SIZE: 13px">June Bennett
Larsen lives in Friendswood.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P>
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