You don’t consider *every* 9/11 truth advocate to be a kook, do you? It’s a shame when some folks give the rest of us a bad name.

Gary North and others at LRC are 9/11 truth advocates. http://www.lewrockwell.com/north/north383.html

Lew even posted an article last year titled “What happened to Building 7?”

I’m not asking you to come out for 9/11 truth because that’s a personal choice, and it’s obviously an extremely touchy issue…

You still have Nothing – except your stupid beliefs.

So, why don’t you go to a Klan rally or Stormfront forum or something where everyone respects you as a legend?

I’m all for common ground movements. I just wouldn’t frame it in right/left terms given the wild connotations they have here.

Mr. Ultley, who seems to consider himself right of center/conservative, is certainly an example of common ground with some people on the progressive side.

Common ground distinguishes those who are against US imperial interventionism. Again, what difference does it make if some progressives are strong on community and liberaterians are strong on individualism, in the end none of it matters if we can’t reign in this empire and it’s predatory nature.

But there are those on the “left” who are more interested in Michelle Obama’s garden and the use of pesticides than the fact that the US government is on a daily basis killing children and babies in the lands of occupation.

And there are those so-called right-wingers who have no problem with that except that don’t care about pesticides, but in tax reduction (not so much the bail out of banks but the idea of the government spending money, period (with the exception of for war – which they never found reason to complain about – can’t spend enough for war, just not on those homeless folks!)

It is beyond fantacy that there is a left and right that are on the same page. Are there some principled anti-empire on both sides? Sure, but they have yet to connect in any significant and meaningful way.

Antiwar.org is probably one of the few places where both left and right anti-empire folks meet up; and that just won’t make a real difference given the power and dysfunctionality in the larger American landscape.

A strategy for creating that “union” is needed, if it can be cobbled together; but talk about “natural” alliances is just that, talk.

The leaders were all about the stimulus, “pork,” lower taxes, and “socialism.” There were also strong anti-immigrant speeches and signs, frequent singings of the national anthem and chants of “USA, USA.” However, among the protesters were a number of true libertarians and a smattering of open-minded leftists. Everyone was civil and all were against the bailouts, although the speakers hardly mentioned them.

My sign said “Left and Right unite. Stop the Bankers’ Takeover. Jail, not Bailouts!” I got many nods and thank yous for this message, and no criticism, although one person stood behind me for about ten minutes with a sign that said “Infil-traitor.” We got some good conversations going. The one thing everyone agrees on is no bailouts for the banks.

The event was promoted heavily on right-wing radio and on Fox. It had a definite “astroturf” feel to it, but there were some genuine grassroots types there, too. I do think we should continue to try to connect with these people as much as possible. My stock line was “The Left blames the corporations; the Right blames the government. Have you figured out yet that they’re the same people?” You can’t honestly attack one without the other.
David

It is DC driven but self-interest is appeased through this kind of MIC funding. The MIC, need it be said, is not in DC, it is scattered all over the US map and includes our food system and even our auto industry.

People don’t WANT an empire, but they want what the empire provides, because it provides what they’ve come to expect as NORMAL.