Reply #19: Hey, EVERY LITTLE THING! Every little thing chips away at it.

[calimary]

I like the idea of taking it a little further (and shoving it straight back in their faces in the process).

Y'know how the war-lovers and sympathizers and apologists all keep talking about "another six months" or "in six more months" - for example: "Well, we'll give it another six months and then we'll see." Or "give it time to succeed and then we'll reevaluate it in six months." Or "we'll take another look at it in six more months." It started with rumsfeld and one of his slick-talking sessions about how he expected the war would last "six days, six weeks, I doubt six months." And it's continued ad nauseam ever since, up to and including this current fucking "surge."

So how 'bout we throw that "six months" business back in their faces? "No possible chance of enlisting for another six months." Or - "well, we'll give it six more months and then we'll see - if I think it's a good idea to enlist. And then we'll see." And we can even say what we're doing: "Well, YOU sure do like this "six-months" business. You've been talking it up since before the war started. You seem to think that's a reasonable period of time. Well, SO DO I." You got your six months, I got mine. You're gonna do the six-months dance? So will I.

Any little thing is a good thing to keep chipping away at the war. We should be doing what the Xtian extremists have been doing since ralph reed first reared his ugly head - 30-some-odd years ago. Chip away at it from every direction and by any means necessary. Keep chipping away at it. If you can't get rid of it in one fell swoop, then get it with a thousand little nicks. The bad guys have done it to us women on the choice issue ever since Roe v. Wade. And look how they've succeeded. And yeah, it's taken time, but it's happened. Why aren't we doing the same thing??? ALL of us, in ways big and small.

I keep being reminded of that scene in, I think, the second "Jurassic Park" movie. It was a scene involving an antagonistic character who was out in the jungle a little way from camp. One of these pesky little dinosaurs started following him. He shooed it away with a sneer, and off it scurried. "That'll take care of HIM! Harrumph!" And he starts walking again. Soon enough, the pesky little dinosaur is back, following him yet again. But he has a friend with him this time. Big Bad-ass shooes them both away this time. He's a little annoyed, but he turns and continues. They return. Only now, there are three of them. He shooes them away again. They don't shoo away quite as far this time. He gets a little flustered. Resumes walking, a little faster and more in earnest. They start following him again. And they have a few more friends with them. He notices. Gets flustered. Sees quite a few of them coming after him now. Doesn't see the fallen log in front of him that he trips over. Hurts his ankle. Here they come. He gets up, limping now. They're almost on top of him. He really can't shoo them away effectively now, because many of them went through that before and aren't afraid of it anymore. He falls again, and all of a sudden, there are hundreds of them. Little bitty pesky dinosaurs. And he's become their lunch.

It all starts with little steps, from little guys. Teenagers too.