Peace vigils and public opinion

Dennis Piszkiewicz

Saturday morning when I read the newspaper, I learned that,

according to a Los Angeles Times Poll, a solid majority of Americans

(58%) would support President Bush if he started a ground war against

Iraq.

I remembered that former Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill said,

“All politics is local,” and I wondered if my neighbors would agree

with the majority as reported by The Times Poll.

After putting away the paper, I went down to the peace vigil at

Main Beach to take my own un-scientific poll of local opinion on war

against Iraq.

I counted about a hundred people on the grass, facing South Coast

Highway and holding placards and banners. They seemed to span the

ages from toddlers to gray-haired activists, who must have been in

their 90s. They were not just the remnants of the anti-Vietnam War

crowd.

Some of their signs had the old 1960s peace symbol, but many were

up to date. My favorites were: “‘Regime Change’ Begins at Home!

Vote!,” “War Is the Ultimate Terrorism,” “SUVs, Not Iraq, Are the

Enemy.” I think that last one had something to do with the source of

oil.

On the street, a lot of people blew their horns as they drove by,

apparently in agreement with those in the vigil; but did that mean

that those who did not sound their horns favored war? Maybe they were

just preoccupied with driving safely.

I was surprised by the number of people who waved, made the

V-symbol, or gave a thumbs-up to the folks with signs -- maybe a

half-dozen or more with every red light-green light cycle. And

surprise, I saw only one upraised middle finger and heard rude words

from only one driver.

On the sidewalk, two men exercised their right to challenge those

opposing war. I thought two men and a couple of drive-by dissenters

were a lousy showing for the pro-war faction. At Main Beach, anti-war

sentiment overwhelmed token support for war.

The following morning, I wondered how fair it was to judge public

opinion only by what I had seen in our little town. I went looking

for the national perspective on the Internet at Google News

(news.google.com). This search engine claims you can “search and

browse 4,000 continuously updated news sources.” I selected U.S. news

and searched for “anti-war rally.” It gave me 1,280 hits, which told

of dozens -- maybe hundreds -- of anti-war rallies across the country

on Saturday.

Then, in the interest of balanced reporting, I searched for

“pro-war rally.” I got 15 hits. Most of these stories related to the

use of the phrase “pro-war” in the context of an anti-war

demonstration. A handful mentioned pro-war demonstrators who showed

up with placards at anti-war rallies. Not one story reported an

independent pro-war rally.

If, as the Times Poll reported, the majority of Americans are in

favor of a war in Iraq, where were they on Saturday? Why didn’t they

hold their own pro-war rallies? Who is standing up in public to

support President Bush’s war? People may say they support this war,

but few show any commitment to it.

If those favoring a war in Iraq ever hold a vigil at Main Beach,

I’ll be there. I want to hear them explain why this war is justified

and in the best interest of our country, but I have little hope that

that will happen.

DENNIS PISZKIEWICZ is a writer and resident of Laguna Beach. His

book, “The Evolution of Terror: America’s War with Terrorism,

1958-2001” will be published in July.