'Bring them home now!' chants Rage crowd
Paul A. Anthony, Rocky Mountain News
Published August 27, 2008 at 1:10 p.m.
Updated August 27, 2008 at 1:10 p.m.
Photo by Carrie Porter © The Rocky
The audience chants "bring them home now" as veterans speak about their experiences in combat.
DENVER COLISEUM -- Ron Kovic, the paralyzed Vietnam veteran whose story became the basis for the story "Born on the 4th of July," just led a nearing-capacity Denver Coliseum crowd in a raucous chant of "Bring them home now!"
Kovic, speaking from his wheelchair between sets during Tent State University's and Iraq Veterans Against the War's free protest concert featuring Rage Against the Machine, said he has been arrested 12 times opposing war since he returned from Vietnam.
"This is our country," he told a screaming crowd easily numbering in the thousands. "They can't take it away from us. They're not going to shut us up. They're not going to shut us down."
The speech followed a demonstration from the stage of how the Iraq veterans group plans to march from the coliseum to the Pepsi Center to deliver a letter calling on Barack Obama to bring troops home from the wartorn country.
Liam Madden, an organizer of the march, stressed nonviolence to the crowd, which is expected to join the march after Rage's set this afternoon.
"Any violence, the media's going to jump on that, and it'll be the only story," Madden said, later adding to a huge roar: "The Democrats are going to s--- themselves when we get down there."
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August 27, 2008
1:22 p.m.
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JustSayin writes:
Good to see that Iraq vets will take part. Compared to most of the protesters, they have some real cred' with me. They've seen the senseless violence, heard (bought) the lies, and have paid dearly.
Now, for the response of the chickenhawks and those who think that protest is somehow un-patriotic...........
August 27, 2008
1:38 p.m.
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Buckwheat writes:
Bobby_Jones, thanks from a greatful nation for your service.. Well at least thanks from those of us from wars past who understand.. Well put.
August 27, 2008
1:44 p.m.
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GTFOOH writes:
@BOBBY_JONES
Don't attack as "cowards" people who disagree with you -- that would be us, the large majority of Americans who are tired of wasting nearly $1,000,000,000 on this war, not to mention 4000 dead US soldiers and 90,000 Iraqi CIVILIANS you claim we're protecting.
By the way, you forgot to mention Abu Graib in your list. I guess in your happy fantasy world atrocities only happen on "the other side"?
August 27, 2008
2:43 p.m.
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hikingartist writes:
GTF; forget free speech, BJ only serves those who agree with his one-sided rants.
August 27, 2008
2:59 p.m.
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GTFOOH writes:
> It’s OK to be against something, but not because when you’re just part of the screw America crowd, as you sound.
Not sure what a "screw America crowd" is, but guess you mean the Bush-Cheney-McCain crowd who's screwed America's economy and standing in the world for 8 years? Nope, I'm not with them.
> 90,000 civilians? Where did you get that number?
http://www.iraqbodycount.org/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/...
http://www.informationclearinghouse.i...
Not makin this up. Many estimates are over 100,000.
I respect your service, but remember Americans get to "run our mouths" without conditions -- that means both of us. It's a constitution-thang.
Yes, the worlds' full of evil men. But who made us the Planetary Police that poke every hornets nest we find with a stick? How'd that work for us in Vietnam? How's it working now, in Iraq?
Answer: AQI is now on steroids -- thank you, Bush-McSame!
Republicans won't stop til they send you to fight their pointless wars EVERYWHERE around the world -- Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Korea, Russia -- no matter what the cost in American lives and dollars.