If you missed the impeachment protest on Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007, in Springfield, MO at the major intersection of Glenstone and Battlefield Rd., you missed a gratifying experience in seeing and hearing the increasingly positive responses from the public. The wave is rolling all across the country now with more people standing up everywhere, and there is very positive evidence the wave has arrived in the Ozarks. The loud continuous honking and thumbs up from the public are the same as standing up with us in recognition of what has happened to our country. Many more people now recognize our country needs desperate repairs. We need to correct the course set by the present leaders by replacing them with reasonable-minded men and women.

On the curb would you believe we had a visit from both the president and vice president? They were quite visible in their orange jumpsuits and shackles. They didn’t seem to have too much to say because their heads were hanging low, and when pressed for answers their only mutual response was… “We… ah, ummm, we gotta… ummm, we gotta ongoing investigation here.” We were happy, however, that at the end of the protest, the energetic volunteers who were brave enough to wear those costumes with limited visibility and breathing room, were paroled on their own recognizance to join us nearby for a snack and a good laugh over their experience.

We recognize that the public is entitled to more than one opinion, and we will respect that of our fellow citizens, even though a few of them don’t demonstrate much respect for anyone or anything. But a lot of people were duped by our leaders and many of these people are waking up now to an understanding of the downside of war.

Somehow we have to stop the unwarranted and unprovoked attack on Iran that would have catastrophic effects on the Middle East, America, and the world. The loss of innocent life would be catastrophic including that of the American military placed in harms way by poor international policy. Also affected would be the economies of the nations involved.

All the experts are saying that it will be three to five years before Iran can even have a large weapon. There are increasing reports that our intelligence contains deliberate mistakes in translation of sensitive material resulting in the present administration being accused of cowboyism. However, there are reports that the highest echelon of the military is urging caution in any decision to preemptively attack Iran. Independent media that do not suffer stifling corporate censorship lead the debate in screaming for caution based upon this information.

According to an article from the New York Times dated September 30, 2007, Freedom's Watch along with the American Enterprise Institute, two tax-exempt right wing organizations are raising $200 million from very rich people to sell the attack on Iran to the American population with glossy advertising and overwhelming propaganda. Why? Because in any poll you read, the vast majority of Americans want the Iraq War to stop, and precautions taken in furthering war.

We have to keep standing up, and be as strong and as smart as we can to educate and communicate. Somehow we need to stop the out of control leaders who obviously don't care about the American majority.

Commentary by Dave Davison, president Peace Network of the Ozarks

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