Green Party's Jason Crane speaks at RCAN rally

Transfered from old site

My name is Jason Crane, and I'm the chair of the Green Party of Monroe County. I want to begin by saying that the Green Party unconditionally opposes this illegal war, and the use of violence in international affairs.  
 
As Bush's war begins, we're asked to cast aside our opposition and to support our troops.  
 
I can't do that. I can't pretend that everything we in the peace movement have been saying has been rendered meaningless by the start of the war. I can't oppose this illegal conflict, then turn around and support the illegal actions of our military.  
 
Do I want to see Americans killed in combat? Of course not. No more than I want to witness the deaths of countless innocent Iraqi men, women and children. And I sympathize with the mothers and fathers and husbands and wives and children whose relatives are fighting a war they didn't choose for a president they didn't elect. 
 
Some commentators and government officials have suggested that anything other than full support for our men and women in uniform amounts to treason. Well, I hope they're clearing out the jail cells, because I and millions of Americans are ready to fill them.  
 
Instead of supporting this illegal war, there are other things I support.  
 
I support the rule of law, both here at home and internationally.  
 
I support the rights and freedoms outlined in the Consitution - rights guaranteed to all people in the United States, regardless of the their ethnicity or religion or political beliefs.  
 
I support grassroots democracy, a concept we have yet to truly practice in this country.  
 
I support the right of our children to have health care; safe, lead-free housing; and a good education. I also support their right to grow up in a world made safer by the actions of their leaders - not a world sent plunging into chaos by unelected rulers hell-bent on revenge.  
 
I support the United Nations, an institution whose legimitacy is only strengthened by its refusal to kowtow to U.S. bullying and bribery.  
 
I support the countless artists, actors, writers, and musicians who are using their talents to imagine a better world.  
 
I support the millions of my fellow Americans who have taken to the streets to call for peace and justice, and who are not afraid to speak out. Their courage helps others come forward and join the movement.  
 
I support and thank the local activists who were arrested right here two weeks ago. They have laid out the path that more of us must follow.  
 
For many people, the start of this illegal war might signal that the time for protest has ended. Nothing could be further from the truth.  
 
It is now, when then U.S. is testing the idea of preemptive war, that we must be louder. We must be stronger. We must keep marching. We must keep shouting "NO!" until it becomes impossible for the war machine to roll forward over other countries and other innocent civilians.  
 
I have been called naive because of my belief in nonviolence. But who is the more naive - the person who places their faith in nonviolence, or the person who looks at thousands of years of bloodshed and concludes that the only way to peace is to keep killing people?  
 
On behalf of the Green Party, I thank you for being here. On behalf of my four-month old son, I ask to you keep marching, keep writing, keep speaking out. We have already slowed the machine. We CAN stop it.  
 
Thank you.  
 
Jason Crane is the chair of the Green Party of Monroe County. More information can be found at http://www.gpomc.org/