Internet Civility, and IVAW bylaws

For all those who may not be aware (excerpted with permission from IVAW National):

Any of the following acts outlined below are strictly prohibited.

2) Verbal, physical, or sexual harassment;
3) Conduct endangering the life, safety, and/or health of others;


If any member is engaging in this behavior, they are not acting as an official spokesperson of IVAW. IVAW does not condone, in any way, shape, or form, this sort of behavior.

As a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, I would like to apologize for the behavior which took place over the last few days in the milblogosphere. I am not going to link to it, because I, quite frankly, don't want that filth touching what is effectively "my house". A penny and a Google will find it for you anyway.

Denis Keohane, of Obiter Dictum, makes a very good point: there are individuals on both sides that have not seemed to grasp the concept of adult behavior, and agreeing to disagree. On our side, we will be policing our own, and I would hope that Gathering of Eagles is also policing their own side. I also suspect that it may in fact be once again as Mr. Keohane says, and that people spew all sorts of violence on the internet that they would never mean. As he puts it, (excerpted without permission and it will be removed if so desired:)

With all the years of demonstrations and counter-demonstrations we've had in this country, you would think at times that blood has been running down the streets and the ERs jammed to capacity and calling in aid from other states every time CODEPINK or IVAW and GOE members temporarilly share a zip code!

It ain't happening and it hasn't happened.

All sides can point to the incident or a few where tempers went critical and things happened. But they are a tiny, tiny few, out of hundreds of events engaging thousands of people.

I hope that I am correct when I say that no one will be meeting in DC with violence. That any retired law enforcement officers will look at their weapons, and as men who have dealt with violence all their lives, choose not to bring an escalating object to an event at which multiple veterans, many of which are diagnosed with PTSD on both sides, will be present. That all of our hotheads will allow the crisp March air to cool their thoughts as well as their bodies.

I have great hope for this. I have hope for this in the mutual respect I am seeing on many sides, the respect I am seeing at The Sniper (who still probably throws up a little in his mouth just thinking of it), the respect at Obiter Dictum, and even the newest in the respect contingent, who I'm sure will be a surprise to everyone- Adam Kokesh. Yes, folks, Adam Kokesh met the national director of operations for Gathering Of Eagles, Chris Hill the other day, and not only is nobody dead, the two of them apparently had a nice talk, and may be doing an event for charity together.

No, I swear, it's not Opposite Day. Sanity has in fact prevailed, it would seem, and if one doesn't have an eye on the ugly emails filling my inbox right now, one would almost think that peace on earth, good will to men, all that, were filling the whole political-veteran world.

Eh. I'll take what I can get. I'm really happy for this. And I look forward to seeing the match. My money will, of course, be on Adam. He'd probably kick my ass if I didn't bet on him, anyway.