(Click for larger version. More photos here.)
Walked through Martin Luther King Jr./Civic Center/Provo Park on the way back home from class, hoping to take in the confrontation between the pro-troop, pro-Iraq (and maybe pro-free speech) contingents and our dependable local antiwaristas. From afar, the only sign that democracy was in ferment was a Cessna circling slowly over downtown towing a banner reading “Semper Fidelis.” The confrontation turned out to appear pretty good natured. I saw a trio carrying what they probably hoped would be provocative signs (sample: “Pink is the new color of treason,” referring to the local Code Pink antiwar group). They looked glum and seemed to be leaving. Apart from that, plenty of the “we love the troops” people seemed to be talking earnestly and calmly to the “we love the troops just as much” people. I came away thinking that, except for the fact the gathering was occasioned by a dumb City Council vote, this was a pretty neat display of dialogue.