NY Protest Makes The News- its about time- Wishing I was there

GREAT PICTURES FROM SOMEONE WHO WAS THERE: CLAMMYC'S PHOTOESSAY

AND IN OTHER NEWS
  
                             
Iraq Protest Draws Tens Of Thousands
CBS News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 5:57 PM PDT
At the end of the deadliest month this year for U.S. forces in Iraq, demonstrators crowded the streets of New York to protest the war. Led by the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Cindy Sheehan, the marchers called for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops.
/ World
China Daily Sat, 29 Apr 2006 6:23 PM PDT
Anti-war activists Cindy Sheehan (L), Rev. Al Sharpton (2nd L) and actress Susan Sarandon (2nd R) march down Broadway with thousands of supporters in New York April 29, 2006, to protest the war in Iraq. The marchers demanded an immediate withdrawal of troops, the same day news organizations noted April as being the most deadly month for US troops in Iraq, with at least 69 killed.

Tens of thousands march in mass anti-war rally in New York
AFP via Yahoo! News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 8:41 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of anti-war demonstrators marched in New York, demanding the immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq and vowing a summer of protests ahead of mid-term elections in November.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
AP via Yahoo! News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 6:07 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll reached 70.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
ABC News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 6:21 PM PDT
Tens of Thousands Converge on Manhattan for Anti-War Demonstration
Thousands converge on Manhattan for anti-war demonstration
Seattle Times Sat, 29 Apr 2006 5:16 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll...
Thousands converge on Manhattan for anti-war demonstration
WKYT 27 NEWSFIRST & WYMT Mountain News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 6:35 PM PDT
NEW YORK Thousands of anti-war protesters are expected to take part in a march in Manhattan to call for an immediate pullout of troops from Iraq.

Iraq developments
Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune Sat, 29 Apr 2006 10:03 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of antiwar demonstrators marched Saturday through New York City to demand an immediate withdrawal of troops. Cindy Sheehan, whose soldier son died in Iraq, joined in the march, as did actress Susan Sarandon and the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Organizers said the march -- held three years after the war in Iraq began --was also meant to oppose any military action against Iran, which is
Thousands come together for anti-war demonstration
Provo Daily Herald Sun, 30 Apr 2006 0:35 AM PDT
NEW YORK -- Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll reached 70. Cindy Sheehan, a vociferous critic of the war whose soldier son also died in Iraq, joined in the march, as did actress Susan Sarandon and the Rev..
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune Sat, 29 Apr 2006 10:03 PM PDT
NEW YORK (AP) - Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll reached 70. Cindy Sheehan, a vociferous critic of the war whose soldier son also died in Iraq, joined in the march, as did actress Susan Sarandon and the Rev. Jesse Jackson. "End this war, bring the troops
Thousands in Manhattan for anti-war demonstration
KGBT 4 Rio Grande Valley Sun, 30 Apr 2006 0:40 AM PDT
NEW YORK A lot of people want the troops out of Iraq. Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan demanding just that. There were enough people to stretch out over ten city blocks.Activist Cindy Sheehan (SHEE'-han) was among them.
NATION IN BRIEF
Washington Post Sat, 29 Apr 2006 11:30 PM PDT
NEW YORK -- Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through Lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, hours after this month's death toll reached 70.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War

Kansas City Star Sun, 30 Apr 2006 0:18 AM PDT
NEW YORK — Thousands of anti-war demonstrators marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq.
Manhattan protesters demand withdrawal from Iraq
Sun-Sentinel Sun, 30 Apr 2006 0:11 AM PDT
NEW YORK · Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, hours after this month's death count reached 70.
Thousands march to protest Iraq war
Miami Herald Sun, 30 Apr 2006 0:35 AM PDT
(AP) -- Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's U.S. military death toll reached 70.
Throngs in N.Y. protest war in Iraq
Houston Chronicle Sat, 29 Apr 2006 11:11 PM PDT
Themarch came a day after the State Department reported that insurgent attacks on civilians in Iraq surged last year, accounting for nearly half of the people killed in terrorism attacks across the world.           
Cindy Sheehan joins thousands in Manhattan for anti-war demonstration
KESQ Sat, 29 Apr 2006 4:27 PM PDT
NEW YORK "Peace Mom" Cindy Sheehan joined tens of thousands of anti-war protesters in New York City today.
Iraq Protest Draws Tens Of Thousands
CBS News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 4:32 PM PDT
At the end of the deadliest month this year for U.S. forces in Iraq, demonstrators crowded the streets of New York to protest the war. Led by the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Cindy Sheehan, the marchers called for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
San Francisco Chronicle Sat, 29 Apr 2006 3:07 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll reached 70. Cindy Sheehan, a vociferous critic of the war whose soldier son...
Protests against war...Iraq violence continues...In pursuit of the Taliban
KBCI Boise Sat, 29 Apr 2006 3:28 PM PDT
NEW YORK "End this war, bring the troops home," read one of the many signs held by protesters at a big anti-war war rally in New York. A crowd estimated by organizers at 300-thousand marchedthrough Manhattan todaydemanding an immediate withdrawal of U-S troops from Iraq. Activist Cindy Sheehan was among the protesters.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
AP via Yahoo! News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 2:29 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of protesters marched Saturday through lower Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, just hours after this month's death toll reached 70.
Tens of Thousands in NYC Protest War
ABC News Sat, 29 Apr 2006 3:06 PM PDT
Tens of Thousands Converge on Manhattan for Anti-War Demonstration
Sarandon tells of Iraq death threat
The Observer Sat, 29 Apr 2006 4:38 PM PDT
Speaking out against the Iraq war left the Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon and her family facing death threats and a stream of vicious attacks from the public and the media, she reveals today.
Thousands at Manhattan war protest
Newsday Sat, 29 Apr 2006 1:39 PM PDT
Tens of thousands of anti-war protesters marched Saturday through Manhattan to demand an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq just hours after an American soldier died in a roadside explosion in Baghdad -- the 70th U.S. fighter killed in that country this month.
Thousands march in US anti-war rally
Australian Broadcasting Corporation Sat, 29 Apr 2006 1:30 PM PDT
Thousands of anti-war demonstrators have marched in New York, demanding the immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq and vowing a summer of protests ahead of mid-term elections in November.
More News...
KXTV Sat, 29 Apr 2006 1:04 PM PDT
NEW YORK (AP) -- Thousands of anti-war demonstrators gathered in Manhattan Saturday to call for an immediate U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq. One protester sign read "End this war, bring the troops home." Another group marched under a banner that read "Veterans for Peace."



                        

War Is Personal: Carlos Arredondo's Story

If you haven't seen this article about my friend Carlos then you must! Peace be inside all of us, Cindy

War Is Personal: Carlos Arredondo/Age 45/Roslindale, Massachusetts

by EUGENE RICHARDS

[from the May 8, 2006 issue]

I remember the war in Nicaragua in the 1980s, the contra scandal, the weapons for hostages. Oliver North took the blame for Ronald Reagan. I remember when a bomb blew up in Beirut and kill about 200 Marines. I watch them on the TV, searching for them, carrying the bodies out on stretchers, pieces of them. And what I learned of Vietnam in my country? I never understood what they was fighting for. Costa Rica, it was my home when I was a boy, and we had the same climate, same weather, and I was afraid the United States would someday come to Costa Rica and do the same thing. So, when my son told me at age 17 that he was going to join the service, I said, "Oh, no," and he said, "Don't worry, Dad."

His mother knew the whole time. Then they told me last, I guess because they know how I was feeling. The Marines had an office in the high school and the recruiters know everything, know who comes from divided families, especially when the father's not around. They offer Alex thousands of dollars for signing up and help with college. Though we share custody, one parent can sign. His mother sign the paper. From that moment on, of course, I support my son. I had US Marine bumper stickers on my car, flags in my home, letting people know, even though I didn't want him to go.

Alex went to basic training in California, then more training. Then, because he wasn't being told anything by the military, he began asking me for information about the Middle East, about what the President is saying. Next thing I know, my son is being made ready for urban combat. Next thing he's on the way to Kuwait, on the way to Iraq, and I'm here at home learning that there's no nuclear armaments there, there's none of them. I'm starting to learn all this, and my son is on the way there.

So much happen. I have two TVs at the same time, the radio on. I can't go to sleep. I've been married with Mel seven years, working as a bus driver, part time, sometimes a landscaper and painter, but I can't go to work, because I wantto know what happen. I was worried, very worried, by reading all the newspapers and concentrating too much on the war on the TV. I see how my son got from here to Iraq, see them prepare for invasion, see sandstorms, they reach the Tigris River, and two Marines got killed there, and my son was traveling inside a tank that was very noisy, a lot of fuel smells. All along I see the minister of information for Saddam Hussein on TV say, "I'm going to kill all of them." I see all the sadness, see how they kill, see how the Marines move through the dark alleyways, kick doors, blindfold people, while afraid most of the time for snipers and bombs. I was all the time calling the Marines and the Red Cross, asking them about the situation. I hear nothing about my son for days and days. It was too much, too much, too much for parents.

Next thing I know, I see soldiers rolling into Baghdad, people at the side of the road saying hello, welcome, and I was very happy. And I say, "Thank God." The statue go down, they catch Saddam, and I see the President of the US landing on the air carrier with big signs saying, "Mission Accomplished." And I say, "Oh my God, it's over. The war is over."

The 25th of August in 2004 was the day of my birthday, and I was expecting a phone call from Alex, which he never miss, to say, "Happy Birthday, Dad." My mother start baking a cake, and I was working outside with my cell phone in my pocket when I saw the Marines get off the van. Thought it was a surprise, and my happiness was overwhelming. Next thing, the Marines ask me if I was Carlos Arredondo. I don't understand why they asking me that, and I don't see my son anywhere. I even ask them, "Are you guys here to recruit some kids?" because I have a second son, a 16-year-old, Brian. And he said, "I'm sorry, I'm coming to notify you that Alexander Arredondo got killed in combat." At that moment, not expecting those words, my world tumbled and I felt my heart go down to the ground and rush up through my throat. I run from my house to the backyard, looking for my mother to tell her what these men were saying. And she run to try to talk to them, while I was trying to call Maine to reach Alex's mother. Brian answer the phone and because I was in tears, all I could say was, "Sorry, I'm sorry. They're telling me your brother got killed." And Brian said, "I know that, I know." "How do you know that?" "'Cause the Marines, they're here right now, and when I saw them coming, I know."

I run back into the house, grab Alex's picture to give it to my mom. Then seeing the uniforms, ask the Marines to please leave, leave. "Can you please leave." Perhaps I thought that if they did leave, then none of this was happening. I ask God to help me, then call my wife, who was working down the street. And again I ask the Marines to leave, to leave the house. When they answer that they are waiting for my wife, I went into the garage and got a hammer. After asking them to leave again, I walk toward the van, wanting to smash it, all the time hearing the Marines telling me, "Sir, don't do that, don't do that," and my mother yelling in Spanish, "Carlos, Carlos, we've already lost Alex." My head full of confusion, asking myself what's going on, what's going on, I pounded the hammer hard into the ground, then went behind a tree to cry when I think to call Alex's recruiter, Sergeant Martinez. I have his telephone number in my phone. I call him, explain that I'm Alex's father and ask him to please help me, the Marines are telling me Alex has died. The voice on the other side say, "Sir, sir, you've got the wrong number." I look and the phone say "Sergeant Martinez." Pretty sure it was Sergeant Martinez's voice. I call him back again, and again he hung up on me.

I got so angry I go to my garage and get a five-gallon can of gasoline that I keep for my lawn mower, also a torch like they use for welding. And with one in each hand, I once again ask the Marines to leave my house. And they... I don't really remember what was the answer, but they didn't move. So I approach the van, pick up the hammer, bang at that window so hard I cut my arms. When my mother pull the gasoline can away I chase her, got it back, open the van door, begin banging everything inside the van--the computer, the dashboard, the seats, the roof. I couldn't find my son. I was screaming for my son when I threw everything, everything from the van. When I have nothing else to throw, I found the five gallons of gasoline and began pouring it everywhere, everywhere. I was splashing my body, my legs, my clothing. And there was my mother, screaming, the Marines outside the van, talking the whole time on the phone, the fumes that were so strong I couldn't breathe, though the windows were broken.

I am with one leg out of the van, holding the acetylene torch, with my mother pulling at me, when I lose my balance. But what happens was I press the button, which ignite the torch. Next thing was an explosion that threw me out with a lot of fire, and I was falling head down on the ground in flames. And not knowing yet what happen to my mom, I run across the street, until one of the Marines jump on top of me, on my back. And I was screaming, "Momma, Momma, Momma," because my socks, my feet, my shirt were burning. As they dragged me away from the van something blew up. A big bang. And I continue screaming, yelling for my son Alex. "Are you sure that was Alex? Are you sure?"

The day of my son Alex's wake, I was on a stretcher because of the burns. On morphine, so I don't remember many people. I remember hugs, shaking hands. And I remember waiting outside of the funeral home for my ex-wife for two hours, not wanting to see my son's body by myself. When I first approach the casket, I thought it might be hard to recognize him, because we had not been told yet what killed him. We hadn't learn yet that he had a wound in the temple of his head, so that he had a three-inch-wide hole in back of his head. But it was him. And seeing him laying flat in a casket, I thought, he's not breathing and that he looks a little different, a little older. That his hair is a little bit longer. Wanting to reach him I was lifted off the stretcher and climb up to kiss him, to touch his head, his hands, his fingers, his shoulders, his legs, to see if they were still there. I lay on top of the casket, on top of my son, apologizing to him because I did nothing for him to avoid this moment. Nothing.

I did not know....

One of the reasons why I was paying for AOL was to keep the email address I've had for almost 10 years. Another reason - because I had this blog and wanted to keep it.

I don't know everything about Blogger.com and my new blog.   I don't like the looks of my new site. I don't know how to change the layout. There are so many thing I want to do on the site and don't know how. I would love to add pictures of my kids to the sidebars but haven't figured it out.

WHAT I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT AOL  
When I called to cancel my account, because of the reasons sited below, I was never offered free months to stay with AOL. Instead what they did offer me was allowing me to keep my email address. I also thought this blog would go away when I canceled but I am able to still use it.

SO Anyone how is paying for AOL to keep their email address or because you don't want to dump your blog. Dump AOL and still keep what you have been paying for all this time. I'm happy I am saving money each month and not giving it to AOL.

I have decided, since I do get people who read this site, I will keep it. It's easier format for posting and I can put pictures of my kids on it easier.

WHICH MEANS

I'll be back posting here soon

Peace be inside all of us,
Cindy