Something I've noticed on DU lately.

[oxbow]

In the past, it seems like a lot of energy was spent by us educating and influencing public opinion about the war/occupation in Iraq. Something in that dynamic has changed in the last month though. I don't know if anybody else has seen this, but I've noticed a lot more DU'ers spending time talking with pro-war pro-Bush individuals, as opposed to taking actions to sway nameless masses of Pro-war Americans. Gone are the daily media blitzes, the demands for MSM coverage of important stories that were the norm when I first joined. These days, the threads that get the most nominations are DU'ers recounting their discussions with those on the other side of the aisle, the individualized stories of people just talking.

A large part of this has to do with how the country has changed in the last few months. The war has been going badly, the White House has been plagued by one scandal after another, and the public mood has become decidedly soured on this War and this president. Perhaps we are just changing strategies with the times, confronting the hold-outs, non-newsies, and others who are still unaware of how terribly wrong things have gone in our country.

It also reminds me of something I read here months ago, in a discussion about the Vietnam war. The peace movement in America really took off when people began talking to their neighbors and acquaintances in earnest, began discussing as equals the reasons and evidence against continuing that conflict. The war ended when those who knew the truth went into their communties and just talked with other people.

I believe that we are approaching a similiar point in our peace movement. This time around, there's the internet though. This makes it much easier to reach out and contact people all across our country who we need to talk to. At the same time, it does not provide the same human contact and powerful experiences that a real-live discussion between two human beings can have. This is why we must continue to be active in our own communities as well as on the net. No chatroom can compare with the interaction and passion of a real town-hall meeting when they're discussing an important issue.

The situations are different but I believe that as in Vietnam, we are on the right track to reawakening the essential humanity of our country. The shifting dynamic of our recent actions reflects a simultaneous shift in America as a whole, one that we would do well to acknowledge and ride home to the end of this illegal Invasion.

[eleny]

1. Very nice and a belated welcome to DU, oxbow

[oxbow]

2. Thanks Eleny!

the warmth behind responses like yours is why I know I'm in the right place

[blondeatlast]

3. So true, so true. We need to be willing to accept even those who realize

they made a mistake in November. I've known a couple who have come around (one actually apologized for her vote).

This is what the shrubbery fears most--ordinary people with the blinders off.

We are winning. Never Give Up.

[oxbow]

4. Some people won't ever change their minds

For instance, I've been exchanging emails with the author of this op-ed against Cindy Sheehan for about a week, and if anything he's become even more intractable. http://www.americandaily.com/article/8685

Some people are too lost in the RW echo chamber to be swayed by ANY amount of evidence, because they invariably have their own "evidence" to counter with. I still do believe that most people are reachable though. Everybody knows killing and lying are wrong. If you can prove that our own leaders did both again and again, then that can often be enough to change a POV.