30 JAN 07: THEIR SECOND COMING
No, not THE "second coming" - THEIRS. Monday marked the second appearance of SOA Watch protesters in Columbus in three months. The turnout was much smaller than in mid-November - which is strange, considering more people are likely to see your signs on a Monday in the middle of downtown.
After a short march and rally on 12th Street, 16 SOA Watch protesters went inside federal court for trial. They were convicted of illegally crossing onto Fort Benning during last November's demonstration. If they had shown up a couple of weeks later with Christmas trees, they would have been welcomed with open arms.
(A few of the SOA Watch protesters actually did some more demonstrating over the weekend, in a "Festival of Hope." You may have the picture in Sunday's Ledger-Enquirer of people demanding U.S. soldiers come home from Iraq. Some business owners along Victory Drive may join them in a few weeks.)
A federal judge sentenced many of the SOA Watch trespassers to 60 days in federal prison. But if I heard the news correctly, the guilty can report to prison anytime they please. This might actually increase the protest next November - with homeless people joining, to get some warm winter shelter.
One of the SOA Watch trespassers was a repeat offender, and was sentenced to six months in prison. Either this person is very committed to the cause, or he actually thinks the prison food is pretty good.
But one West Virginia woman actually left jail, when her court hearing ended. She had been locked up in the Muscogee County jail since the November protest, refusing to post bail. So she effectively already served her prison sentence - and now you wonder if she's been doing double duty, as an informant for the Prison and Jail Project.
One of the SOA Watch protesters sentenced to 60 days for trespassing was Josh Harris. He said outside court he could not believe he's facing federal prison time for "a peaceful and nonviolent protest." Then I guess Harris won't mind if someone peacefully and nonviolently steals his identity, or hacks his computer.
The SOA Watch group contends it actually can spread its message against Fort Benning's Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation while in prison. If you think about it, that's not so far-fetched. The protesters have all day to write letters of complaint to members of Congress.
If you're not familiar with that message, SOA Watch claims WHINSEC at Fort Benning trains mean, brutal Latin American leaders. Yet here's the strange thing - I don't think Venezuela's Hugo Chavez ever went there.
Of course, Fort Benning denies the old School of the Americas or the relatively new Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation train people to be cruel oppressive dictators. And besides, why would they need to do this? Any Army or Marine private can learn about this sort of treatment at boot camp.
I didn't think of this until Monday, but have you noticed SOA Watch makes two appearances in Columbus a year -- while "God Bless Fort Benning" only has the November event? Maybe next year, the pro-military group will organize a counter-event for the "Festival of Hope." Perhaps they can reserve Ruth Ann's restaurant for breakfast, so the protesters have to eat at big corporate Burger King.
BLOG UPDATE: Columbus Police announced an arrest Monday, in the "potbelly robber" case. Jason Smith is charged with holding up several convenience stores over the weekend. If Smith did it, he should have worked on that waistline by attempting to flee on foot.
Now let's check other news from one of the coldest days of the winter....
+ The Muscogee County School Board voted to pay $19,000 to the city of Columbus, to cover years of unpaid landfill fees. Superintendent John Phillips explained the school district never received a bill. And then he wonders why some parents don't seem to care about their children's grades....
+ Former Muscogee County School Superintendent Guy Sims resigned as President of the Columbus-area United Way. Sims says he plans to work on ways to fight poverty in Columbus. Apparently he's decided the first step is to join the poverty rolls, by giving up an income.
+ The Columbus Community News reported a home on Waterford Road recently was sold for $830,000. We mention this as a public service to local Girl Scouts, who are looking for the best streets to sell cookies door-to-door.
+ The 14th Combat Support Hospital returned to Fort Benning, after a year of service in Afghanistan. In fact, the unit arrived on post earlier than scheduled - so someone must be listening to those "bring them home now" protest shouts.
+ The Georgia General Assembly marked "Israel Day." Why do I have this strange feeling we won't see an "Iran Day" for a long time to come?
+ Northside pulled a surprise, by winning the Muscogee County High School boys' swim meet. Of course, it might have been an even bigger surprise if Jordan and Kendrick High had shown up with teams....
+ Instant Message to Locos Grill and Pub: Thanks for the late dinner Monday night. And I'm sorry I left you at halftime of the Kansas-Nebraska game. But my beloved Jayhawks were grinding the Cornhuskers 43-16 at the time -- and none of your other TV sets showed the Miss America pageant.
COMING SOON: Can you listen in, on a closed-door meeting?....
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