Silent rally protests Iraq war

On the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq Wednesday, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher expressed mixed feelings about the conflict’s worth. For the war’s opponents, candlelight vigils were scheduled throughout the county Wednesday by MoveOn.org members, including those in Huntington Beach.

Few thought a march would change the nation’s foreign policy, but they said they wanted to remind residents about a war that would soon enter its sixth year.

“I think it was a noble purpose and a noble goal,” Rohrabacher said. “We did overthrow a vicious dictator who had murdered hundreds of thousands of his own people. Whether or not the cost we have had to pay was worth that result, I think there’s an honest question about that.”

But he went on to say, “Whether or not we should have been there, and how we get out, do not rest on the fact that some mistakes have been made.”

A few hundred protesters had marched through the streets from Huntington Beach Pier Saturday, in a rally organized by the Orange County Peace Coalition.

Huntington Beach activist Karen Riggs, who has shown up at City Council meetings with a group calling for a resolution to impeach President George W. Bush, said she was impressed by the turnout on a windy day.

She said she found the multihour program moving.

“I really liked the silent march,” she said. “I’ve been to a number of demonstrations, and in trying to amplify your message you have signs and you speak loudly. But sometimes being silent speaks volumes.”

Riggs, who said arguments over the war split her extended family, said the length of the war has made for a greater sense of urgency among its opponents.

“Once someone has scratched the surface, they feel compelled to do something,” she said.

Orange County Green Party member and local activist Lynda Hernandez said such a march in Orange County was more effective than it would have been in a more urban, liberal area like Los Angeles.

“It’s hard for people not to notice,” she said. “I feel people need to be reminded. It’s not something we should take for granted or take lightly.”

Hernandez said she was heartened by the turnout from a wide range of groups.

“You had a lot of the religious community, you’d have senior citizens from Leisure World, and students from Long Beach State and Golden West College,” she said. “This is America. If you can count 1,000 people for every letter sent in, how many people were standing behind each person who participated out there?”