Poem of the world war, this one

This poem grabbed my attention because it captures the moment, as good poetry does.
It was posted on Facebook by friend and one-time writing professor
John Calderazzo in Colorado. Thanks, John.

What does fog sound like in a place known for noise?

February in a place known for its noise. Race cars that roar to grandstands of screaming fans. The pounding noise of motorcycles on every city street. Crowds of collegians arrive in March, their music and noise rise from beachside hotels, their cars parade A1A. On this morning wrapped in fog, I rolled outside, watched and listened. Birds sang and I didn’t know what kind of birds but it didn’t matter. The tap-tap-tap of a woodpecker. What does a bird hear? Fog doesn’t caution the noise nor does it enhance it. It just is. A carpenter saws and pounds nails next door. I live between two north-south main roads and cars hiss on wet pavement. An SUV’s headlights glow as it drives down my street which connects the two main roads. A train blares on the Ormond mainland a mile away, a train that stops traffic daily on the main east-west road that’s a hurricane evacuation route. Neighbors pass, quietly walking their dogs. They say nothing but wave. One sound I can’t hear – the sounds of surf slapping the beach. That came through my bedroom window last night but the day’s fog stole it away. A plane flies and it’s hidden by the fog and I wonder what fog looks like through the windshield of a small plane. In ten years, will I hear any of this? Will it be lodged in my memory, that foggy February morning when I skipped the TV news and cellphone screens and just listened? Will it be a molecule among my ashes swirling in the Atlantic? Where will these moments live?

Grandma and Grandpa were in France on November 11, 1918, when the guns grew silent

World War 1’s Meuse-Argonne offensive began on Sept. 26, 1918, and halted with the announcement of the Armistice on Nov. 11. It was the largest in U.S. military operation in history with 1.2 million American soldiers. Deadliest, too, with more than 350,000 casualties on all sides and 26,277 U.S. deaths. Many of the troops were inexperienced which probably added to the casualties. The so-called Spanish Flu was raging at the time which swelled the ranks of the soldiers being treated at American Expeditionary Force hospitals.

My grandfather, Lt. Raymond Shay of Iowa City was there serving with the Headquarters Troop, 88^th Division, U.S. Army.

Late in the day on Nov. 11, 1918, my grandmother, Florence Green of Baltimore, was a U.S. Army nurse serving at Evacuation Hospital 8 in France. She and other medical staffers still were treating casualties of the Meuse-Argonne campaign and would be for some time. Armistice Day (later Veterans Day) didn't yet have a name but here’s the entry in her diary:

November 11: Am so happy tonight to think the war is really over. I cannot believe it. Haven’t heard a gun since 11am. Great celebrating everywhere. Can almost hear the city hall in Baltimore ringing, and what a wonderful time for Paris.

The next day was Nov. 12 and she was still in France. She finally arrived back in the States March 10, 1919. She met my grandfather at Army General Hospital 21 (later Fitzsimons Army Medical Center) in Aurora, Colo. Raymond and Florence were married in 1922 and their first grandson, me, arrived on the planet on Dec. 18, 1950. Their son, my father Thomas, served overseas in the follow-up war to end The War to End All Wars from 1942-46. My mother, Anna Hett, was trained as a U.S. Navy nurse at Denver’s Mercy Hospital but the war ended before she could be shipped overseas.

More wars followed.

R.I.P. Sen. George McGovern, Democrat from South Dakota

Sen. George McGovern died this morning in his hometown of Sioux Falls, S.D. He grew up in the Great Depression Dust Bowl, won the DFC for his actions over Europe's skies during WWII, and was the Democratic Party presidential nominee in 1972.

He was the first presidential candidate I voted for, back when I was 21 and living in Boston.

McGovern's dedication to liberal politics was an inspiration to me then and remains so now.

This comes from an obit this morning on NPR:

President Bill Clinton lauded McGovern's achievements at the 2006 dedication of the McGovern Library in Mitchell, S.D.

"In the storied history of American politics, I believe no other presidential candidate ever had such an enduring impact in defeat," Clinton said at the time.

And this, from Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary:

Yarrow says McGovern inspired an entire generation of Americans.

"There are few and far between that measure up to the dignity, honesty and fantastic commitment of George McGovern that kept this country strong and conscious for all these years," Yarrow said.

Public servant, war hero, anti-war hero, author and fine human being. R.I.P., Sen. McGovern.

Remembering candidate Barack Obama's acceptance speech in Denver four years ago

It was too bad that many thousands of Democratic Party volunteers and supporters didn't get to hear President Obama's acceptance speech Thursday night at the Charlotte Panthers football stadium. Threats of thunderstorms forced the speech indoors. I was able to see and hear candidate Obama's first acceptance speech in 2008 at Denver's Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium on a warm August night. Wyoming Dem delegate Lori Millin took this photo that night. It makes me look like the party standard bearer when in reality I was merely an embedded blogger. Still, it was a heady night for this lifelong Dem who had never been to a convention and may never get there again. Read a nifty article by Patty Calhoun about the lingering effects that the convention had on Denver and its image in last week's Westword. Especially illuminating in the interview with then-Mayor John Hickenlooper and now Colorado Governor Hickenlooper who delivered a memorable speech in Charlotte. He remembers being very nervous about security and traffic and all of the thousand-and-one details that make up a national gathering of this magnitude. He was nervous right up to the closing-night party at his Wynkoop Brewpub in Lodo. Especially illuminating are the details of his decision to let a Rage Against the Machine-led peace march go from the Denver Coliseum to the convention at the Pepsi Center. Instead of having the police stop the march, he ordered the DPD to escort the marchers through town, a decision that probably meant the difference between a peaceful protest to one of mass arrests and violence. That Hick is one smart cookie. He's going places...

Call for entries (kids only!): International Peace Poster Contest

"Children Know Peace," 2011-2012 grand prize winner

I know Lions Clubs best for its sight programs. Club members collect old eyeglasses and provide glasses for people who need them but can't afford them. The club also sponsors an eye bank and vision screening. But the Lions apparently have other visions for us all:

Each year, Lions clubs around the world proudly sponsor the Lions International Peace Poster Contest in local schools and youth groups. This art contest for kids encourages young people worldwide to express their visions of peace. For 25 years, more than four million children from nearly 100 countries have participated in the contest.

The theme of the 2012-13 Peace Poster Contest is "Imagine Peace." Students, ages 11, 12 or 13 on November 15, are eligible to participate.

Each year's art contest for kids consists of an original theme incorporating peace. Participants use a variety of mediums, including charcoal, crayon, pencil and paint, to express the theme. The works created are unique and express the young artists' life experiences and culture.

Twenty-four international finalists are selected each year, representing the work of more than 350,000 young participants worldwide. Posters are shared globally via the Internet, the media and exhibits around the world.

To learn more about the Lions International Peace Poster Contest, please view our brochure, contest rules and deadlines, call 630-203-3812 or contact the Lions Clubs International Public Relations Department.

Call for entries: Peace Song Contest

My K.C. pal and old college roomie (Go Gators!) Bob Page sent me this call for entries from his old friend, musician Karen Dunning:

Karen Dunning sponsors $500 Peace Song Contest.

Contestants from around the world are invited!  

Submit up to three original songs about peace in mp3 format to:  Karen@karendunning.com

The winner receives $500.  TRI Studios is donating audio and video recording for the winner at TRI studios in San Rafael, CA (the studio of Bob Weir of Grateful Dead fame).

Thank you for contributing to world peace!

Details:

Submissions close September 21, 2012 -- World Peace Day.

Artists may submit up to 3 songs in mp3 format up to 20mg/song

Songs must be original music and lyrics.

Songs must be original to the artist submitting the song.

Each song must include a short vision statement from the artist/s.

Please submit each song to karen@karendunning.com and put your song title and Peace Song Contest in the subject line

Artists retain rights to their songs, and grant Karen Dunning rights to play the submitted songs for promotional uses to raise awareness for peace.

Artists are responsible for their own travel and lodging expenses.

Mother's Day has roots in early peace movement

From Nation of Change:  

Mother’s Day began in America in 1870 when Julia Ward Howe wrote the Mother’s Day Proclamation. Written in response to the American Civil War and the Franco-Prussian War, her proclamation called on women to use their position as mothers to influence society in fighting for an end to all wars. She called for women to stand up against the unjust violence of war through their roles as wife and mother, to protest the futility of their sons killing other mothers’ sons. Read more here

. 

Back-sliding on FDR's "Four Freedoms"

This Norman Rockwell poster is based on the “Four Freedoms” addressed by Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt in a January 1941 speech. The following January, the U.S. would be at war and these freedoms would be at risk abroad and at home. They are:

1.      Freedom of speech and expression

2.      Freedom of worship

3.      Freedom from want

4.      Freedom from fear

They are all worth revisiting 70 years later. We seem to be back-sliding on these basic freedoms. At home and abroad.

Lifted the poster from Kaili Joy Gray's post today on Daily Kos. Thanks, Kaili. 

Denver Police overreact (again) at Occupy Denver

Here's how my hometown of Denver looks to the world right now. This photo comes from Westword and was shot by Kelsey Whipple. It shows cops aiming guns filled with pepper bullets at protesters. Photos like this were in newspapers worldwide. Here's the view from the London Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2055243/Occupy-Denver-Police-use-rubber-bullets-pepper-spray-protesters.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

My gun is bigger than your nonviolence: Police raise weapons while making an arrest during the Occupy Denver protest in Denver on Saturday. (Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post). Photos like this were on the pages of newspapers throughout the world today.

Read more:Occupy Denver protesters, law enforcement officers clash; 20 arrested - The Denver Posthttp://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_19223274?source=commented-news#ixzz1cHOwYtyh

Occupy Cheyenne 10/15/11 photo album

Leah Zegan (left) and Ashlee Redig carrying signs across Lincolnway in Cheyenne.

Mike Shay and Ken McCauley at Occupy Cheyenne. FYI -- Ken's sign reads "The middle class is too big to fail."  

Forrest King invokes Proverbs at Occupy Cheyenne

Kids on boot at Depot Plaza -- and Linda Coatney reminds us to occupy the polls on the next election day 

Dominic Syracuse rallies the crowd at Occupy Cheyenne

One of the 89 Occupy Cheyenne participants bring up the inconvenient truth about oilfield fracking

"People over profit"

From left to right (oldest to youngest?): WY public worker; David Dibble wearing his Wisconsin Solidarity T-shirt (and carrying the flag); Sioux who works three jobs and still can't support herself -- covering Occupy Cheyenne for Firedoglake; and a very good sign maker.

Cool signage at Depot Plaza

Rev. Rodger McDaniel

Nancy sends us all the news about OWS-Wyoming that's fit to print

Nancy Sindelar (left) at Occupy Casper last Saturday

Nancy Sindelar of Veterans for Peace in Laramie has done all of us a favor by tracking down all of the Occupy Wall Street events planned for Wyoming. Nancy contacted me last night about some ugly rumors circulating on Daily Kos that Wyoming, land of more antelope than humans, was Occupyless. As a long-time but very lazy Kossack, I checked it out and set the record straight. Now I have more info for the state-by-state list on Kos.

Nancy notes in her latest-mail newsletter that “Occupy Wall Street has taken hold here in Wyoming, with five actions planned in the next week.” She also points out a link to the new OWS manifesto:  http://current.com/shows/countdown/videos/special-comment-keith-reads-first-collective-statement-of-occupy-wall-street 

Occupy actions will take place in Jackson both Saturday and Sunday. Those in Casper, Cheyenne and Laramie are on Saturday only. A sign-making party is also planned for Cheyenne but no definitive info yet. 


Here’s what we know right now:

Thursday, October 13th, Jackson:  Sign-making party for Occupy Wall Street event this Saturday. 7 PM, Factory Studios.1255-A Gregory Ln.  Info: http://www.facebook.com/groups/242236869158039; http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Jackson-WY.

Saturday, October 15th, Casper:  Occupy Wall Street, week two. A hundred showed up in the rain and wind last Saturday and more are expected this week.  Bring signs, kids, friends & neighbors.  Noon, Pioneer park, Center & B Sts.  Info: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=286254034738100&ref=ts; http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Casper-WY. Free.  

Saturday, October 15th, Cheyenne:  Occupy Wall Street, demand a fairer distribution of wealth.  Noon, Depot Plaza.  Support not only of the Wall Street demonstrators but for the 99% of Wyomingites who are not being heard.  Bring creative signs.  Info:  http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Cheyenne-WY/388492; http://www.facebook.com/pages/Occupy-Cheyenne/188084631268023; Roger McDaniel at http://facebook.com/rodger.mcdaniel. 

Saturday, October 15th, Jackson:  Occupy Wall Street for anyone who is fed up with the way our government is no longer representing the 99%, instead siding with corporate greed. Noon, Town Square, W. Deloney & N. Jackson Sts.  Info: http://www.facebook.com/groups/242236869158039; http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Jackson-WY   

Saturday, October 15th, Laramie:  The corrupt banks and their bought politicians hurt 99% of Americans.  So come stand up for what needs to be done to change the system.  County Courthouse, north side, 526 E Ivinson Ave. Info: http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Laramie-WY/384552. (I'm assuming this is noon.) 

Sunday, October 16th, Jackson:  Occupy Wall Street We are the 99%. Please bring your friends, family, signs, folding chair, spirit and join us for this peaceful protest. Noon, Town Square, W. Deloney & N. Jackson Sts. Info: http://www.meetup.com/occupytogether/Jackson-WY/393072.  Free.  

If you are aware of a progressive-oriented event in your community, please send it directly to Nancy sindynan@juno.com. You can also sign up to get the newsletter by contacting Nancy via e-mail.

Cheyenne artist takes many pieces and creates a work of peace

Cheyenne artist Forrest King took these items from Sept. 11 ceremony...

...and constructed this work of art seen in background at International
Day of Peace ceremony in Herschler Building.

Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead penned a proclamation marking Sept. 21 at the International Day of Peace. At today's lunchtime ceremony at the Herschler Building honoring this day of peace, the Rev. Rodger McDaniel read the proclamation because the Gov was busy with the "lying in state" events for the late U.S. Sen Malcolm Wallop.

Gov. Mead's proclamation mentioned the United Nations many times. The International Day of Peace originated in the U.N. in 1981 and was first celebrated on Sept. 21 in 2002. I couldn't help but wonder how nuts the proclamation would make Gov. Mead's U.N.-hating Tea Party followers. They'll never read it, of course. But if they did, heads would be exploding all over Wyoming.

Sen. Wallop was no fan of the U.N. or of peacenik ways. He was a Cold Warrior, one of Ronald Reagan's staunchest supporters.  I doubt if the International Day of Peace ever deserved a ceremony, much less a mention, at Sen. Wallop's digs in Sheridan County.

My thoughts were not in keeping with the peace and justice ways of today's ceremony. But that's how it goes when you've spent two decades as an outlier in the reddest of red states.

Cheyenne's International Day of Peace featured fine words by Christian, Jewish, Muslim and UU leaders. Music too. And a work of art by local artist Forrest King.

At the Sept. 11 commemoration at the State Capitol, Forrest collected mementos from different faith communities. These items represented the brokenness of 9/11. Forrest was charged with bringing a sense of hope to these materials via his art.

And he did. Forrest is sending more photos. For now, the above images show the items from the Sept. 11 ceremony and the sculpture fashioned by Forrest. I'll do a more complete description of the work in future posts.

I leave you with the words that Rev. McDaniel left us with: "All in Peace. Go in Peace. Create in Peace. Live in Peace."

Shalom

Laramie's Nancy Sindelar: Eat an apple for peace, ya'll

Nancy Sindelar, Veterans for Peace, Laramie

It may be a slight exaggeration to say that there would be no peace movement in Laramie without Nancy Sindelar.

A slight exaggeration.

Nancy, a military veteran, helped initiate Laramie's weekly downtown antiwar protests (still going strong) and is the point person for its Veterans for Peace chapter.

She has lots more in the works. The Peace House, for one.

The Peace House is a block from my place near downtown being set up for potlucks, house parties (films) and meetings. Space for a share garden. Great apple tree getting close to harvest.

I'll settle for an apple even though (like Duane) I usually eat a peach for peace.

And this is coming up:

Wednesday, September 21, on the International Peace Day, come see the film "The Day After Peace" at the Albany County Public Library in Laramie. At 7 p.m., Veterans for Peace Wyoming chapter 65, and the Wyoming Peace, Justice, and Earth Center, will be presenting the story of how one man managed to get the cooperation of all the factions in Afghanistan to stop fighting long enough to vaccinate 1.4 million children against polio.

Nancy has a fine calendar of events hat she distributes by e-mail. I regularly steal postings from it and you should too. To get on the list, drop me a line and I'll send it to her. To keep up with Nancy via Facebook, go to http://www.facebook.com/nancy.sindelar

Peace. And thank you for your service, Nancy.

Cheyenne artist Forrest King takes a little of this and a little of that for artwork celebrating peace and healing

Forrest King and daughter at table filled with donated items for International Day of Peace artwork

Local artist and community activist Forrest King has his work cut out for him.

During the next ten days, Forrest will craft a work of art from a firefiighter's gear, an empty wine bottle, a string of Islamic prayer beads, shards of a shattered stained glass window and a broken bone.

The items were donated to the cause at today's 9/11 commemoration at the Wyoming State Capitol. It was the first in a series of 11 days of peace that will culminate in the International Day of Peace ceremony Sept. 21 at the Capitol Rotunda.

The ceremony started with a performance by Hands in Harmony and a community chorale made up of the LCCC chorus and members of local church choirs. Speakers came from local Christian churches, Mt. Sinai Synagogue, the Southeast Wyoming Islamic Center and the UU Church. The most touching aspect of the day featured mosque members translating the original Hebrew text and Synagogue members translating work recited in the original language by mosque members. It was all scripted but really illustrated the "healing" theme of the event.

People representing at least a dozen local congregations donated items for Forrest's commemorative work of art.

From the V.A. Medical Center -- a broken bone representing wounded warriors of our many wars.
From Mt. Sinai Synagogue -- Jason Bloomberg, who spent 20 years as an emergency responder, brought an EMT's jump kit found at Ground Zero and a firefighter's helmet.
Community of Christ -- a peace candle
St. Paul's Lutheran -- pieces of a stained glass window.
SE Wyoming Islamic Center -- a broken string of prayer beads

Community choir assembled on the WY State Capitol for 9/11 commemoration

We were piped out of the ceremony by a lone piper performing "Amazing Grace."

We eagerly await Forrest's finished artwork. Its theme is the journey from brokenness to hope.

Shalom

NN11: Make Clean Energy Not War (through art)

Artwork by Susan Slavick

Minneapolis Convention Center protest by the group 10 Years and Counting, as artists try to put a face to 10 years of war. Protesters hold up a 13-figure number that represents the bill for a decade of wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and various other locales.

Sept 11 - Oct 7, 2011 will mark the ten year anniversary of our nation continuously at war. 10 Years + Counting invites artists and others to take this historic moment as inspiration and use the power of creativity to illustrate the costs of war and image a more peaceful world. 

Paint it, dance it, sculpt it, write it, sing it! Imagine peace and create connections. Concerts, public art projects, garden parties, bake-offs, gallery exhibitions, street art, flash mobs, walks and runs: the possibilities are endless. 

Turn the weeks of this anniversary of devastation into an unstoppable, irrepressible explosion of imagining the possible, a new beginning.

Add your creation, gathering or event to the 10 YEARS + COUNTING calendar by going to www.10yearsandcounting.org

Who is Bradley Manning?

Nancy Sindelar of Laramie's Veterans for Peace was at the action in D.C. and Quantico this weekend and asked me to post some of her photos of protests against the treatment of military whistle-blower Bradley Manning:

Bradley Manning protest photos

Who is Bradley Manning?

Go to http://www.bradleymanning.org. I was reading some of the posts from yesterday's protests. Here's a sample:

Things have taken a nasty turn at Quantico. As protesters silently moved to march to the Iwo Jima Memorial to lay a wreath to remember the dead, Marine MPs refused to allow all but press and six veterans to proceed on to the Memorial. Prince William County police on the site joined the Marines in attempting to delay the protesters from proceeding, according to live tweeting by Jane Hamsher. In response, protesters laid and sat down on the ground, refusing to move. Police then began arresting protesters one by one and are loading them on to two nearby police buses for booking. Daniel Ellsberg is among those being arrested.

One of the protesters there, Helen Gerhardt, tweets that protesters are being peaceful in response to police pulling them up by both arms and putting them behind the line.

Rootwork updates that some protesters have stuck “Free Bradley Manning” stickers on police riot shields.

Read more: http://www.bradleymanning.org/16510/march-20th-events-update/#ixzz1HEpeOuo9

Many local events lead up to March 29 talk in Cheyenne by activist and author Greg Mortenson

I try to spend some of that time I once devoted to Sunday morning mass to the contemplation of nature, spirituality and even organized religion.

While reading this morning’s Cheyenne paper, I saw an ad promoting the appearance of activist, educator and author Greg Mortenson. He wrote the acclaimed bestseller, “Three Cups of Tea,” about his experiences promoting primary education in Afghanistan. He will speak on Tuesday, March 29, 7-8:30 p.m., at the Taco John’s Event Center in Cheyenne. Tickets are $5 for students and $15 for the general public.

Presented by these Cheyenne Community Partners: Laramie County Community College, LCCC Foundation’s Gerald and Jessie Chambers Speakers Series, Rotary International, Laramie County Library System and Foundation, Laramie County School District #1.

Great cooperation on this project by all levels of the public education system. That includes the library. Kudos to Rotary International. I admire their good work. So many selfless and community-minded organizations out there. The Lions work on behalf of better vision, the Shriners sponsor childhood learning disability clinics, the Kiwanis Club seems to do all the good things a community needs, such as the amazing free pancake breakfasts during Cheyenne Frontier Days. I find it compelling that a bunch of people can gather together to perform good works. Such a contentious age we live in, yet altruism continues. We must crave it.

A few words about Mortenson from the LCCC Foundation web site:

Greg Mortenson, co-author of the New York Times bestseller, "Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time," will share insightful commentary and stunning photography to educate and promote awareness of the importance of primary education, literacy and cross-cultural understanding about the remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Mortenson has dedicated his life to bringing education where few education opportunities existed before. In 1996, he co-founded the Central Asia Institute with his wife, Tara Bishop, and since then has managed to construct 145 schools in the Middle East and bring educational opportunities to more than 64,000 students, including 52,000 girls. Mortenson’s extraordinary journey has had many hardships, but recently it also has brought international appreciation. In 2009, he was awarded the "Star of Pakistan" and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in both 2008 and 2009. FMI: 307.433.0024.

A number of events this month lead up to the March 29 event. Our family has been collecting pennies for Pennies for Peace. The library has focused many of its events around the concepts of altruism. Here’s one:

TEENS MAKE A DIFFERENCE, March 16, 6 p.m.: Join us for an evening with Judge Ronn Jeffrey as we explore ways you can impact your community in a positive way. Teens will have a chance to win a ticket to hear Greg Mortenson speak at the Taco John’s Event Center on March 29, 7 p.m. Don’t forget to bring your Pennies for Peace! (Grades 7-12 & parents, Cottonwood Room, 1st floor).

The library also will host a tea party on St. Patrick’s Day, celebrating tea-drinking cultures such as Ireland, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Very innovative. ON St. Patrick’s Day, many of us forget that the Irish also drink tea.  

LCCC has also planned a number of related events. This coming week is spring break on campus. But on Wednesday, March 23, these are scheduled:


Ethnic food tasting: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Center for Conferences & Institutes, Room 129/130. Food tasting limited to LCCC students and employees. Roundtable discussion: “Women and Islam in a Central Asian Context” with Dr. Marianne Kamp, Dr. Mohammed Salih and Arshi Nisley. 1-3 p.m., Center for Conferences & Institutes, Room 129/130.

See other events celebrating the work of Greg Mortenson

Imagine a protest with imaginative signs

My fellow progressive blogger at thepoliticalenvironment in Wisconsin had the following to say about free speech and protest. Pictured above is an example of the of the "angry, distasteful signs" on display at Saturday's rally in Madison.

Wisconsin Department of Administration Secretary, on behalf of Gov. Walker, told a Madison judge Tuesday that the display of "angry, disdainful signs" was one reason that protesters should be denied access to the State Capitol.

Mean signs? Really? Should we pull up the Tea Party photo album?

No need - - as Wednesday the US Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that truly angry, disdainful signs displayed weirdly and offensively by anti-gay protesters at US military soldiers' funerals is legally protected free speech under the US Constitution.

Huebsch picked the wrong day to complain about signs.

Another miscalculation by the Walker Gang, and for now, the Capitol remains open - - though Huebsch and Co., in slowing down the flow of people through the doors, seem to playing fast and loose with the word "open."

Cheyenne marks the 25th anniversary of King holiday

Today we celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. Many speeches will be delivered, many of the man's quotes will be requoted. The holiday this year comes on the heels of the violence in Tucson. Violence, of course, is "as American as apple pie," said sixties Black Power activist H. Rap Brown. His original quote mentioned cherry pie. Apparently, that didn't seem American enough. But you get the picture. The U.S. has a history of violence that can't be denied, no matter how many whitewashed texts are written by ultra-conservative revisionists (Lynne Cheney, Glenn Beck, Texas, etc.).

But Americans haven't yet cornered the market on violence. Protesters in Tunisia were gunned down this week. Coalition soldiers continue to be blown up with IEDs planted by Afghanis angry that their relatives were blown up in a U.S. drone attack. Knifings and shootings and beatings and torture are a fact of life worldwide.

Martin Luther King, Jr., was a proponent of nonviolence. He died by the gun, but he didn't promote the gun. Just the opposite. Some black activists did take up guns, although their numbers were wildly exaggerated at the time. But not MLK.

Dr. King gave thousands of speeches that promoted peace and nonviolence. Her actively campaigned against the war against black people in the South. He also opposed the Vietnam War and the Cold War. As he said often, notably in "Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community:"

Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars... Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Chaos or community? Have to wonder if those are the only choices we have. We're not exactly at the chaos point, but closing in on it. Community was much in evidence in Tucson last week, as we all came together for a brief time to honor the dead.

Author and Rice University professor Douglas Brinkley makes a great point in AP story about Dr. King. If we don't create a nation that's serious about nonviolence, Dr. King's legacy may fade away. In 50 years, all that we may be left with is a day off to go buy more trinkets at Wal-Mart.

"The holiday brought the freedom struggle into the main narrative," Brinkley said. "The day is meant to be a moment of reflection against racism, poverty and war. It's not just an African-American holiday. The idea of that day is to try to understand the experience of people who had to overcome racism but in the end are part and parcel of the American quilt."

Two years ago this week, I walked in Tucson's King march. I walked with my son Kevin from the University of Arizona campus to a city park. Nice January Arizona day. The marchers were white and black and Hispanic and Asian, a representative mix of Tucson's population. Many, such as my son, were younger than King was when he was gunned down in 1968. They are aware of his struggle but might not know the full weight of his commitment to nonviolence.

Two years later, some of these same people will march again. They also were out last week at vigils and memorials and funerals for Arizona's dead. Yesterday, hundreds of Tucsonans staged a march from McCormick Park to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords office. Today, many will be volunteering during a "Day of Service" for the King holiday.

Returning from my 2009 trip to Tucson, I watched most of Pres. Obama's inauguration from the Phoenix airport. I thought to myself: "A new America begins today." I jumped the gun a bit was a bit premature with my forecast. Change has begun, but so has a violent reaction to it. We can make progress as long as we don't succumb to fear and hate. We'd do well to keep Dr. King's words of nonviolence in our minds and in our hearts.

Today's Cheyenne march for Dr. King begins at noon at the Depot Plaza downtown. It concludes at the Capitol Building. Following the event, Love & Charity Inc. will serve chicken noodle soup at Allen Chapel, 917 W. 21st. Weather forecast: This morning's weird torrential rains have given way to sunshine. Wind still blowing, but what else is new?