"This could be one of those moments that define a generation. So it's probably a good thing to show up," says Dan (image 166) about his traveling to New York City to protest the agenda of the Republican Party during its national convention.

The Minneapolis-based Anti-War Committee organized a contingent of Twin Cities residents to travel by bus to New York for an August 30 anti-war protest - one of numerous protest marches and rallies planned for the duration of the Republican National Convention.

"I'm going to New York to resist the [Bush administration's] entire policy of imperialism - the war in Iraq and the poor-bashing, wage-cutting attacks on working people here and abroad," says Michael Wood (image 162). "I don't have a minute's doubt that the protests are going to be effective - in New York and around the world."

"I was thinking of making a sign that just says 'No!'," notes Cecil (image 163). "Because whatever [the Republicans are] saying in Madison Square Garden, No! We believe the opposite - straight on down the line on all the issues.

167. "This is probably one of the most significant things I've ever done," says Mark of his involvement in the protest of the 2004 Republican National Convention.

"I'm going to New York to resist the attacks on all the gay and lesbian Americans that the Bush administration is perpetuating. The shirt I'll be wearing tomorrow says 'President Bush hates me. The feeling is mutual.' And if asked to explain it, I will say three words: Federal Marriage Amendment.

"From what I've heard the president saying, I'm afraid that if he gets in again we'll be moving more and more toward a theocracy. It's scary."

168. "I'll be in New York resisting the war and the military culture that we have - a culture which believes we can solve problems with force and punishment," says Roger. "I think of all the dead and all the wounded who will have to be taken care of for the rest of their lives - and for a war that was totally unnecessary."

Reflecting further on the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Roger observes that as everyday Americans "we're part of the problem - the affluence we have. We have more than our share of the world's resources and we start a war to get more. How bad is that?"

Roger is aware that his alteration of the flag to get across his message of the negative and deadly influence of transnational corporations on the US system of government, on other cultures, and on the environment could cause offense. Nevertheless, he's more concerned with efforts of the Bush administration to inhibit free speech.

"We have to just keep holding a candle," he says. "Keep the fire burning and not be intimidated. It's possible that you could offend people and they vote for Bush. But those people need to be informed about how serious the problem is and what we're up against and how much resistance it's gonna take."

169. Anh Pham of the Anti-War Committee - August 28, 2004.

The busload of Minnesotans that left early Saturday morning, August 28, arrived in New York City on Sunday morning just in time for the major event of the weekend, the anti-war march organized by the United for Peace and Justice Coalition. As many as half-a-million people marched through the streets of New York City in protest of the Bush administration.

"The energy was amazing," said Anh. "I couldn't see the beginning or the end of the march, and at one point I called a friend on a cell phone and she was ten blocks away, and she couldn't see them, either. It stretched 15 to 20 blocks, at a very minimum."

Another member of the Minnesota contingent, Meredith Aby, was quoted in the Minneapolis Star Tribune as saying, "The important thing is, if this is the platform the Republicans have chosen to talk about their policies, this is the opportunity for the rest of us to say we disagree. Today the streets have been filled with people who disagree with the Bush administration."

170. Mick Schommer - photographed in Minneapolis, September 25, 2001. Now living in New York City, Mick shared with me via e-mail his experiences of the August 30, 2004 anti-war protest.

"The Park Board and organizers estimate about 450,000 at the march - twice as many as expected. But media are reporting only 'over 100,000'. The march took 5 hours to complete due to the swell of people. Most amazing experience I've had in 15 years of activism. Few arrests-mostly off the main march. The cops seemed to be everywhere, but not looking for a fight (yet). The city was completely shut down as activists took over the streets - from Union Square to Central Park. Many spectators joined in the march spontaneously."

In response to the Republican National Convention, author Hugh Pearson had a commentary published in Newsday on September 2, 2004. "As I watched Tuesday night's network coverage of the unrelenting political propaganda hour known as the Republican National Convention," wrote Pearson, "the first thought that came to mind was of old newsreels of those self-congratulatory Nazi rallies held in Germany during the reign of Adolf Hitler.

"For many people, I'm sure, such a comparison sounds extreme. Yet, just as the Nazis were obsessed with endless displays of swastikas, the Republicans are obsessed with the red, white and blue (for that matter, the Democrats are, too).

"In the same manner that the German people were told that Nazi leadership was faultless, the Republicans are telling the American public that no one knows what's best for the world except the current leadership in the White House.

"'If you believe this country and not the United Nations is the best hope for democracy, then you are a Republican!' bellowed California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"In the same way that Nazis rationalized doing away with democratic rights and launching a pre-emptive war to protect the self-interests of the Third Reich, Republicans this week continue to encourage the American public to ignore our Constitution's directive that only Congress has the right to declare war (thus, we are not officially at war with anyone), and that a pre-emptive war with no exit strategy will actually protect 'the American way of life,' rather than further endanger it.

"Simultaneously, on the streets of New York City, the police are responding to dissent by protesters from around the country with a mild approximation of the kind of crackdown that happened decades ago in Germany. Tuesday night they arrested close to 1,000 protesters in an attempt to make sure the demonstrators couldn't come close to displaying to a world shocked by the mess our government has made of its foreign policy that, indeed, dissent in America is alive and well."

171-180. Lake St./Marshall Ave Bridge Peace Vigil - September 2004

"The occupation of Iraq is rooted in a long history of US imperial exploits and atrocities, " wrote Roger Burbach and Jim Tarbell on the CommonDreams.org website on September 7, 2004. They proceeded to provide a concise history of such "exploits and atrocities"-events ignored by the US corporate media yet well-known to the US citizens who weekly converge on the Lake St./Marshall Ave. Bridge to advocate an alternative to US imperialism.

"The very founding of the modern American empire began with the Open Door policy enunciated in the aftermath of the War of 1898," write Burbach and Tarbell. "Designed to advance US commercial and corporate interests abroad, military force was often used to break open markets that resisted diplomatic and economic pressures. To take over the Philippines in the first decade of the twentieth century, the United States waged a brutal war against the Filipino independence movement, destroying entire villages and summarily executing captured insurgents. At least half a million people died while the American Sugar Trust led the corporate takeover by staking out enormous plantation holdings.

"The 1960s and 1970s were particularly brutal decades in Latin America due to US intervention to stop the spread of national liberation movements that threatened US interests throughout the region. Repressive dictatorial regimes backed by the United States murdered tens of thousands of civilians in Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil. The horrors of the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq were anticipated in many of these countries as torture chambers were set up, often under the tutelage of the CIA.

"The first bold move to secure the US empire in the Middle East and the Gulf States occurred in 1953 when the CIA staged a coup against the democratically elected government of Mohammed Mossadegh after he moved to nationalize the Iranian oil fields. President Eisenhower placed the autocratic Shah of Iran in power. For the next quarter century Republican and Democratic administrations viewed the Shah as one of the most dependable leaders in the region.

"Bill Clinton pursued a similar policy of belligerence towards Iraq, imposing crippling economic sanctions, undertaking the most sustained bombing campaign since the Vietnam war, and making 'regime change' in Iraq official US policy. Madeline Albright, the US ambassador to the United Nations in 1996, when asked if she thought the sanctions were justified in light of a UN report estimating that more than 500,000 children had died because of a lack of adequate nutrition and medical care, replied: 'I think this is a very hard choice, but the price-we think the price is worth it.'

"But this military complex is overstretched. Bogged down in Iraq, the American empire is facing its most severe crisis since the Vietnam War. It is unable to carry out the regime change it wants in Iran, North Korea and Syria. In its historic backyard, Latin America, the populist government of Hugo Chavez thwarted a US backed coup in 2002, and has just won a recall election that will insure the continuance of Chavez' independent foreign policy stance and the redistribution of the country's oil revenues on behalf of the poor. In Argentina, President Nestor Kirchner is defying the International Monetary Fund, refusing to fully reimburse creditors who took advantage of the country in the 1990's during the halcyon days of the "free market." And under Luis Inacio 'Lula' da Siliva, Brazil is challenging US economic prerogatives in the region while criticizing the US invasion and occupation of Iraq.

181. Julia Jackson and Jack O'Wril - October 20, 2004.

"It's important for young people to voice their opinion and fight for a cause," says Jack. "This country is going in the wrong direction."

When asked about the two main candidates in the upcoming presidential election, Jack notes, "Aside from their political differences, [George W. Bush and John Kerry] have major fundamental differences that I think can influence the country in many ways. I think Kerry, on the whole, will be better for my great grandchildren."

"I like representing young people," says Julia, "and letting the people driving by know that their choices are important in the upcoming elections. We give strength to those driving by who agree with us."

When asked about the choice between Bush and Kerry, Julia admits with a sigh of resignation that "they're all we have." She goes on to say: "We have a flawed system but we have to work within it. Kerry's the better of the two."

182. Longtime justice and peace activists and bridge peace vigilers Kathleen Ruona, Mary Swenson, Tom Bottelene, and Kate McDonald - October 20, 2004.

183. Don Christensen of the Minnesota chapter of the Fellowship of Reconciliation - one of the world's oldest interfaith peace organizations.

Asked about the UN flag he carries on the bridge, Don observes, "The UN isn't perfect, but it's all we've got to cooperate in the community of nations. Let's embrace what we've got. It's one way to join the world. The last thing we should be doing is undermining it as the Bush administration did when it lied to the UN about going to war with Iraq. [And yet at the same time] we have a terrible record of using the UN to maintain Israel's occupation of Palestine."

184. "Wars don't accomplish anything," insists Elmer Zoff. "They're mostly for the benefit of corporations." These corporations, says Elmer, have "a strangle-hold on society."

"Corporations are not concerned about the welfare of the people - just in how they can make a profit. We have to stop corporate capitalism. The more power corporations get, the more they want."

Elmer's justice and peace activism dates back to the 1930s when he opposed the Japanese invasion of China and Germany's takeover of Europe.

His hope has always been that "in the long run, a little idea may finally take hold - the idea that there is no need for war; that war is outrageous."

185. "I try and make eye contact with everyone and smile at them," says Jo about her time spent on the Marshall Ave./Lake St. Bridge every Wednesday afternoon. "I hope they look at my face and my sign. I hope they think about what my sign says and think about peace.

Reflecting on the types of reactions she receives from passing commuters, Jo notes, "I really think people of color are more attuned to peace. The most scared seem to be middle-aged white women. I love it when families come by and the kids wave. Having a peaceful world is all about the health of our families."

186. Mary Lynn was one of hundreds of Twin Cities residents who participated in an anti-war march and rally in Minneapolis on Saturday, October 16, 2004.

187. Amy Goodman, host and executive producer of Pacifica Radio's New York-based Democracy Now! program - Minneapolis, October 17, 2004.

"Independent media," says Amy, "has a crucial responsibility to go to where the silence is and represent the diverse voices of people engaged in dissent." During her visit to the Twin Cities, she made a compelling argument that the corporate news media have failed to represent the "true face of war."

188. A week before the November 2 US presidential election, students from South High - Margo, Sage, Molly, Megan, and Anne - participate in the weekly Marshall Ave./Lake St. Bridge Peace Vigil.

"It's an important election and it's very close," notes Molly. "But I'm going for Kerry."

Elaborating on her choice, Molly says, "Both candidates are supporting the war, although Bush, I think, is doing it wrong. I think there should be no war but I believe that Bush is going to be a worse outcome and [a Ralph] Nader [win] is an impossibility."

189. "Kerry is not my top choice but it's 'Anybody but Bush would be better than Bush'," says Greg, pictured with his son Eric - Wednesday, October 27, 2004.

"We need to change the direction away from fear to hope," says Greg. "There has to be a different direction and getting John Kerry elected would be a good start."

190. "I hope Kerry wins and I'm going to support him only for the fact that we need to send the international community a message that we're not going to give George W. Bush a mandate," says Kyla. "I mean, we didn't give him a mandate last time and we're not gonna give it to him now."

"I don't see Kerry an as anti-war candidate yet here we are on the Peace Bridge for a peace vigil. This is what I support - the message on this WAMM poster I'm carrying. If Kerry wins we need to keep him accountable and start changing some things that have been totally eroded away these last four years. We need to take a look at how we're treating each other - within our country and within the international community. I'm so ashamed of a lot of the decisions that this administration has made."

About her presence each week on the bridge, Kyla says, "It's important that the voices are out here. I'm always here because of the fact that we spend 52% of our discretionary budget on the military. It's just totally disgusting. What do we need all this stuff for? Come on, let's get real."

Reflecting on the upcoming election and the "winner takes all" voting system the US has, Kyla says, "I support proportional representation. What we've got now is just messed up. Who know what's going to happen next week. We'll see."

191. "Although I'm more liberal than him, I want John Kerry to win. We just can't take any more of Bush's war," say Louise, pictured with her daughter Marina - October 27, 2004.

Commenting on the possible outcome of next week's election, Louise says, "I hope it won't be a tight race but I'm a little fearful because of the drive of the Christian right to the same-sex marriage ban referendums in various key states. That's going to bring more people out that will vote for that ban. That's what I think is scary. And I think it's been highly orchestrated and hidden."

192. "It's important for me to be here on this Wednesday before the election, but it will be just as important to come out next Wednesday no matter who wins, and still say 'No to War'," says Carol.

"I don't want another four years of Bush, but I don't exactly agree with Kerry's policies either. So I think we'll have to keep the pressure on him [if he wins]."

193. Marshall Ave./Lake St. Bridge Peace Vigil - Wednesday, November 3, 2004.

Writing in the November 2, 2004 edition of the Sydney Morning Herald, Peter Hartcher observed that "The American people have for the first time decisively endorsed George Bush, handing him an explicit affirmation for America's most controversial war since Vietnam and a mandate to press ahead with strident foreign policy.

"The President lost the popular vote in the 2000 election by half a million votes and suffered from questions about his legitimacy, but has now won it by about 3 million to 4 million votes. The result gives him over 50 percent of all votes cast, a feat his predecessor Bill Clinton never achieved.

"If his dominance of the popular vote is validated by a victory in the Electoral College, the Republicans will be in a commanding position, cementing control of the White House as well as both houses of Congress."

Hartcher also made the observation that "International antagonism to US foreign policy had, up until now, centred on the Bush Administration, while sentiment towards the American people was more benign. But Mr Bush's return will entrench world opinion against the US as whole."

Further insights on Bush's victory were offered by Sidney Blumenthal in his Salon.com article entitled "Bush Unbound."

"In the aftermath, Democrats will form their ritual circular firing squad of recriminations," Blumenthal wrote, "But, finally, the loss was not due to their candidate's personality, the flaws of this or that advisor or the party's platform. The Democrats surprised themselves at their ability to raise tens of millions of dollars, inspire hundreds of thousands of activists, spawn extensive new organizations, attract icons of popular culture and present themselves as unified around a centrist position. Expectations were not dashed. Turnout vastly increased among African-Americans and Hispanics. More than 60 percent of the newly registered voters went for John Kerry. Those concerned about the economy voted overwhelmingly for him; so did those citing the war in Iraq as an issue. But the surge of the Democrats was more than matched.

"Using the White House as a machine of centripetal force, [White House strategist Karl] Rove spread fear and fused its elements. Fear of the besieging terrorist, appearing in Bush campaign TV ads as the shifty eyes of a swarthy man or a pack of wolves, was joined with fear of the besieging queer. Bush's announcement that he favored a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage was underscored by referendums against it in 11 states, including Ohio - all of which won.

"The evangelical churches became instruments of political organization. Ideology was enforced as theology, turning nonconformity into sin, and the faithful, following voter guides with biblical literalism, were shepherded to the polls as though to the rapture. White Protestants, especially in the South, especially married men, gave their souls and votes for flag and cross. The campaign was one long camp meeting, a revival.

". . . While Kerry ran on the mainstream American traditions of international cooperation and domestic investment, and transparency and rationality as essential to democratic government, Bush campaigned directly against these very ideas. At his rallies, Bush was introduced as standing for "the right God." During the closing weeks of the campaign, Bush and Cheney ridiculed internationalism, falsifying Kerry's statement about a 'global test.' They disdained Kerry's internationalism as effeminate, unpatriotic, a character flaw and elitist. 'You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig,' Vice President Cheney derided in every speech. They grafted imperial unilateralism onto provincial isolationism. Fear of the rest of the world was to be mastered with contempt for it.

"These emotions were linked to what is euphemistically called 'moral values,' which is actually social and sexual panic over the rights of women and gender roles - lipstick traces, indeed. Only imposing manly authority against 'girlie men,' girls and lurking terrorists can save the nation. Bush's TV ads featured digitally reproduced crowds of cheering soldiers, triumph of the leader through computer enhancement. Above all, the exit polls showed that 'strong leader' was the primary reason Bush was supported."

194. "I think it's important that people come out here just so others know that there are people who oppose what's going on abroad and at home," says Alex - November 3, 2004.

"It's important to keep up the pressure," notes Alex. "I would have been here if Kerry had won. He wasn't promising to bring home the troops or end the war."

195. "It's very important to protest the war regardless of what period of time it is with respect to the election," says Brett.

"I also wouldn't say that Bush is necessarily legitimate, and I wouldn't say that he's got the support of the majority of Americans because a little more than half of eligible voters voted in this election. I think a lot of people see there's no option, really. I mean, George Bush and John Kerry pretty much had the same position on the war on Iraq and the occupation of Iraq. So I supported Raph Nader because he consistently opposed the war and said that he would bring the troops home.

"I think it's unfortunate that George Bush got as many votes as he did. I think people are confused about what he really stands for because he's lied to the public. To some extent he also played on people's fears."

As to the future, Brett suggests that the "best thing" to do is to build a new political party based on the working class. "I think the working class really has a potential to change society and stop the imperialist warfare that's going on," says Brett. "People should also be involved in movements like this [the weekly peace vigil] and demonstrations against the war."

196. The day after the 2004 presidential election was the first time on the bridge for Lia - "I needed something to do," she said.

When asked about how she felt about the election result, tears welled in Lia's eyes. "I am very sad and disappointed. It is very dark but hopefully [the presence of] people here on the bridge will be noticed by others and the world."

When asked what the priority should be for those dedicated to justice and peace, Lia said, "People need to pick what is their one thing that they want to work toward and then put all that they can towards it. For me that's women's rights and the war. I have dear people in my life who are much more likely to be sent to Iraq now than two days ago."

197. Helen Caldicott, photographed in Milwaukee, February 2004.

"This is the most serious election that has ever occurred in the history of the human race, without a scrag of doubt," said Australian paediatrician, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and founder of the Washington DC-based Nuclear Policy Research Institute, Helen Caldicott.

Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald in December 2004, Dr. Caldicott questioned if humanity would "survive the next four years."

"I don't think the Americans have, on the whole, the faintest idea - and I have to say also I don't think most Australians do either. But it's not just the threat from nuclear war. It's the threat of what's happening to the environment, the global warming which is occurring rapidly now, to ozone depletion, to species extinction, to deforestation - it's the whole thing."

"I don't think I've ever felt so personally, politically devastated in my life and that includes when [former president Ronald] Reagan won a second term of office - which was pretty devastating for me as I was so heavily involved in the anti-nuclear movement in those days. But this is worse, these people are much worse than the Reagan people."

"They [the Bush administration] have been able to con the American people with their extremely brilliant propaganda and brainwashing, with the help of the media. They consistently lie. On the whole the American people don't really understand the dynamics of the Right at all. They don't know that Bush et al want to go into Iran next and that they want to dominate the world militarily and that they want to put weapons in space.

"I don't think they [the American public] understand. It is a mandate for Bush to do absolutely anything he wants. I know people don't like me using this word but they're fascists."

The Sydney Morning Herald also noted Dr. Caldicott's criticism of Australian Prime Minister John Howard, and her concern that Australia was now the "51st state of the US."

"I've always been so proud of my country. Now I'm not just ashamed and embarrassed by what's happening, but I really fear for the future of Australia and the previous wonderful quality of life that we've always had."