The chants sounded like a solemn drum beat at dusk.
“January 1st: One U.S. serviceman died. He was from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; January 4th: One U.S. serviceman died. He was from Wasilla, Alaska.” And the list went on and on. So far, 69 Maryland troops have died in the war.
A group of 25 protesters called out the war toll Tuesday night for nearly 45 minutes in front of the county government building while Buffalo Springfield?s Vietnam classic “For What it?s Worth” played in the background.
For the Carroll County Progressives, the candlelight vigil was the fifth protest since the end of July in a county that?s overwhelmingly conservative.
“I?ve lived here for 20 years and I?ve always felt like an outcast,” Margaret Jones said. “I?ve always kept my views to myself because it?s a great place to live and it?s a great place to raise kids. But you can?t be in lock-step with policies that don?t work.”
War veterans and others, from toddlers to seniors joined the protest.
“We are the best and the brightest, and we are ultimately responsible for these decisions and the body bags that come home,” Vietnam veteran David Dechant said.
Andrew Duck, a Democrat and Iraq war veteran running for Congress against Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-District 6, agreed.
“We have done everything we can militarily,” Duck said through a bullhorn. “It?s time to start fighting politically.”
Eight such protests took place across Maryland Tuesday, with more than 11,000 estimated participants in 675 vigils across the U.S.
War Toll
» 3,733 U.S. soldiers dead
» 69 from Maryland
» 27,250 soldiers wounded
» 382 from Maryland
source: icasualties.org and Department of Defense
