Reports from the Field: December actions

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LaCrosse


Here is a picture of "SANTA" working to bring PEACE for CHRISTmas. This is the 3rd Friday of December, 2008, at the foot of the Cass Street Bridge at approximately 5:30pm. People of LaCrosse are supporting the WAR MORATORIUM and here is a perfect example of SANTA braving near zero tempuratures and 30 inches of snow to get the message across to the masses and our elected officials.

Menomonie, WI

Ten people attended the first Iraq Moratorium in Menomonie. We stood in the Veterans Memorial in downtown Menomonie, greeting the passing cars, and receiving waves and friendly honking from many. We also received the expected shouts from some passing cars that we should support our troops, which of course is exactly what we believe we were doing. Phone calls were made from the site to our representatives, and one of us took a spectacular fall on the ice, adding to the festivities. We are working on having a banner printed for January, and hope to have better attendance and organization for the next event.

Rice Lake

Iraq Moratorium Standing for Peace. The People for Peace in Rice Lake Wisconsin fielded a dozen hardy anti-war enthusiasts this afternoon for the monthly observance of Iraq Moratorium Day. We waved at motorists and called our Congressman and Senators asking them to start spending our tax dollars on health care and not warfare. We mourned the loss of life in Iraq from the several thousand coalition military personnel, to the likely hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians. We prayed for peace this holy season, and we promised to be back in January.

Madison

After discovering that a Wisconsin manufacturer, Presto, makes weapons as well as Salad Shooters and Fry Daddies, two staffers from the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice , went on an anti-shopping spree for Moratorium day. They visited stores selling Presto products and followed these directions, using a flyer available here: 1) pick up box to admire Presto “Fry Daddy” or “Salad Shooter”, 2) replace box on shelf, with flyer discreetly tucked underneath, 3) repeat. For the whole report on Presto's involvement in producing 40mm cannon rounds, see Steve Burns's story here. That's Burns pictured with the flyers he designed.

Pickings were slim at Walgreen's, their first stop, as you'll see in the video, but he did find one Presto product and took appropriate action. Big box stores are probably better targets.

Milwaukee





Literally a foot of snow fell on Milwaukee between midnight and noon on Iraq Moratorium 16, prompting some discussion about whether to cancel the usual 5 p.m. downtown vigil. But we learned from last year's Good Friday/Iraq Moratorium snowstorm that you can't stop this event even if you wanted to.

Not only did 18 people of all ages, from college students to seniors, make it, but some of the campus crowd even showed up with hot chocolate, as you'll see at right. There's talk of a barbecue grill and tailgate party next month. (Maybe Cheeseheads?) This wasn't the coldest vigil we've had, with temperatures in the 20s. and although traffic was much sparser than normal, drivers -- including a city Dept. of Public Works truck with a plow and a parking meter checker -- leaned on their horns to support the cause. The effort was a joint production of Peace Action-Wisconsin, UW-Miulwaukee Students for a Democratic Society, Iraq Moratorium-Wisconsin and Milwaukee Coalition for a Just Peace.