[lbo-talk] The Problem of Conspiracy Theorists at the Anti-War Meeting Yesterday

[C. G. Estabrook]

We're having similar experiences in our local anti-war group, but I'm 
actually a bit more concerned about "Americans Against Escalation in 
Iraq," a well-funded Democratic party front.  Nell Lancaster writes 
correctly about AAEI in her blog, "these organizations aren't led by the 
grassroots, but by electoral operatives. They don't want to end the war; 
they want to get it out of the way as an issue."  --CGE

Yoshie Furuhashi wrote:
> I was shocked to find that about _five_ 9/11 conspiracy theorists
> (only one of whom I had seen before) showed up at a local anti-war
> meeting yesterday, which made them about a quarter of the meeting
> participants.  This was the first local anti-war meeting after the
> annual March mobilization against the Iraq War called by the Central
> Ohio Peace Network.  It seems to me that, as the anti-war movement
> generally went down, the movement of conspiracy theorists grew.  What
> is to be done about this problem?  I doubt that any thinking people
> want to come to a meeting if they have to listen to a prominent
> contingent of conspiracy theorists wishing to educate everyone about
> The Truth of 9/11.
> 
> At the meeting was also a young Black woman organizer from Americans
> Against Escalation in Iraq (backed by MoveOn, SEIU, etc. -- Website:
> <http://www.noiraqescalation.org/>), promoting the group's agenda:
> focusing on Deborah Pryce, pushing the City Council for an anti-war
> resolution, holding a rally at the end of August, and so on.  The
> woman is from out of state, as with two other organizers sent into
> Columbus by AAEI.  While AAEI's agenda is not my agenda, at least she
> seemed sane.  On the other hand, after summer, the three AAEI
> organizers will leave, and working with them may not leave anything
> behind in Columbus to build on.
> --
> Yoshie
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