Date: Sat, 15 Feb 2003 16:49:49 -0800 (PST)
From: Michael Handelman <mhandelman1-AT-yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: AUT: 60 000 marched in Oslo according to the police


I'm worried, that the largeness of the demos, reflects
splits within the ruling class. Certain sectors of the
ruling class are very much opposed to this war (even
someone like Clinton spoke about more time for weapons
inspectors), and this was reflected within the demo.
It is manifested itself with slogans I saw like:

"France, stay tight"

I recently learnt that while in Britain, only 1/10
people support attacking Iraq, if the UN comes out in
support of attacking Iraq, the number shoots up to
6/10......Which does tend to support my argument, the
largeness of this demo, has a lot to do, with the fact
that certain sectors of the ruling class are opposed
to the bombing. If the ruling class decides to "stick
together" and support an attack on Iraq, the peace
movement will become MUCH MUCH smaller.

So let us hope, the ruling class remains
divided.........


--- Harald Beyer-Arnesen <haraldba-AT-online.no> wrote:
> 
> 60 000 marched in Oslo according to the police, and
> that is as good an estimate as any. Anyway that
> would
> be 12 per cent of the population of Oslo, and the
> largest demonstration here ever.
>         It was first and foremost a for peace and
> against
> war and Bush manifestation and a de facto
> anti-racist
> one. Apart from the numbers the most remarkable was
> that bishops have been the main speakers against
> war throughout Norway.
>         As is the case with the high numbers in
> London and
> elsewhere, it is hard to know precisely what to make
> of
> it expect that the fear September 11 created among
> many seem to have turned the other way around. That
> a
> group of young people carried banners with the text
> "make
> love not war" pretty much described the atmosphere
> together with a great distrust of the Bush
> administration.
>         What this could mean in longer perspective
> is even
> harder to say anything certain about.
>         It means something though. At least that
> many are
> more than usually concerned about the state of the
> world.
> It is on a value level, which is important but not
> enough in
> itself. It still also is much on the level of the
> sensible
> politicians --  in France and Germany -- against the
> bad
> mad, arrogant and irrogant ones, in the U.S and U.K.
> (together
> with Saddam and Sharon).  I expect in these parts at
> least,
> there is still a long way to go before stepping much
> outside of the legal framework. 
> 
> Harald
> 
>         
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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