Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Tuesdayistas Are Gonna Throw the Bums Out

[This post dates from Fall, 2011, when a group of us launched a campaign on Twitter -- #AfghanistanTuesday, a weekly #twitterstorm of antiwar tweets every Tuesday -- to draw attention to the continuing war in Afghanistan and the failure of Congress to curtail U.S. warmaking.]

Have you seen the latest poll numbers?

Only 12% of Americans approve the job that Congress is doing.

Come again?

Only 12% of Americans approve the job that Congress is doing.

Could we hear that one more time?

Only 12% of Americans approve the job that Congress is doing.

An election is coming and the handwriting is on the wall: Tuesdayistas (together with the rest of the American electorate) are gonna throw the bums out.

What do Tuesdayistas foresee for 2012?


Change of government, France, 1789


(Oops! Wrong image . . . . )

What do Tuesdayistas foresee for 2012?

Election 2012: I support ANTI-WAR candidates!
(know any?)
Tuesdayistas and others working to end the war have realized that 2012 is an election year and we no longer have to take what we're being offered. From now on we dictate the terms of the political discourse.

Want my attention? Want my vote? Start talking about how you're going to end American wars and drastically reduce military spending.

2012 is going to be a long year . . . especially for politicians who haven't woken up to the antiwar message.


Related posts

Recently, some of us have been wandering the Twittersphere, searching for a congressman or congresswoman who will speak openly about their opposition to drone killing and drone surveillance.

(See The Diogenes Project: Can Anyone Find an Anti-Drone Congressman? )







Isn't now a moment when, instead of falling back into our existing habits of trying to change America's war-making ways, we should put our recent experience under a microscope? And ask what we can learn from this experience? Can we make 2014 the year that we sort the wheat from the chaff in Congress? And get the control over war and peace back into our own hands?

(See Election 2014: The Moment of Truth for the US Antiwar Movement?)








The #AfghanistanTuesday campaign on Twitter involved hundreds of people around the country and around the world, making a commitment to spend time every week on the problem of ending the U.S. military destruction of Afghanistan.

(See #AfghanistanTuesday - ALL LINKS)












One place I've focused my activism is my church community. Last fall, at the time of the Afghanistan invasion anniversary, I posed the question, "Where is the Church?" In the weeks and months that followed, I realized that I, myself, had to be part of the solution of giving direction to the Church.

(See Obama? NO! Activism? YES! )

3 comments:

  1. The only antiwar candidate that I've found so far is Ron Paul, but his promise to stop policing the world within weeks of becoming president doesn't sit well with the GOP, which is probably why he is getting almost zero media coverage.

    More and more republicans are waking up, and more democrats I know are becoming "Blue Republicans" to help support this man, whether the neo-conservatives like it or not.

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  2. Thanks for your comment. IMHO, if we're serious about antiwar candidates we're going to have to do two things, and the sooner the better:

    (a) Get Ron Paul's positions out in the open and give them a good airing. (People on the Left who can't stomach Ron Paul's economic and social positions - let's have a good, frank talk about the relative weight of the WAR/MILITARY issue vs. the BIG GOVERNMENT issue, and also about what alternatives we have!)

    (b) The best thing that could happen to the Left right now would be for the vast number of Democrats who have abandoned the incumbent president to come right out and say it, so that strong, viable candidates are encourage to come forward.

    If those two things happened, I believe, people would rapidly fall away from the few "least worst" candidates that are getting all the attention, and we could start giving our attention to candidates who are committed to ENDING WAR!

    Thanks again for your comment!

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  3. I completely agree on both points.

    Getting the word out is probably going to be the hardest part, not just for Ron Paul, but for the entire anti-war movement. There were plenty of active protestors during the Bush administration; the media was silent then as well, and there's currently a media blackout on anyone that wants to end these wars, heck, even now, the media is pushing anyone that opposes the war as unpatriotic and even traitorous or supporting terrorists. I think it's why Ron Paul is getting no attention from the media, despite that he's winning every online poll and I think he's polling in the top three for national polls (if you haven't seen this yet, you can see what I mean about the blackout: http://bit.ly/ovhmDI ).

    Despite media blackout though, the message of ending these wars is really starting to push through. In my opinion, last Tuesday was a success, and I recall one tweet getting retweeted more than any of my other's was this one: http://twitter.com/#!/AnthonyIanozi/status/116183813574500352

    I think if Ron Paul's message could get out to the masses though, the popularity from the people would encourage many politicians to think about changing their stances, and it would also pave the way for other anti-war politisions to come through. If the man actually gets into office, even better; if his 20-year voting record is any indication, I know he will bring our troops home the moment he's in office.

    As for Big Government vs. the War, I think ending the wars NOW should be a much bigger priority, but I also think the wars are a reason we are running out of money -- but I digress. Economic policies can be changed from Administration to Administration, but this bloodshed needs to end.

    Also, I love your idea on the second point. I know plenty on the Left that are frustrated with our current president’s foreign policies, and even the guys over at AngryVoters ( http://twitter.com/#!/AngryVoters ) are pushing for a Democrat primary to challenge our president.

    Sorry for the long response, looking forward to Tuesday!

    ReplyDelete