March 2026

28 Mar 2026 - No Kings 3

No Kings 3! I was a Safety Marshal at one corner so I wasn’t able to walk around for photos. Super turnout (800) - an increase of 60% from No Kings 2!! (When I started protesting  with Neptune Beach Coalition’s weekly Saturday mornings at the Beaches Library last May there were 5 of us - today’s attendance of 800 is a 15,900% increase!!!!)

I had a couple stationary signs, chatted with many of my Beaches neighbors including a fellow Air Force Veteran,

met a fluffy and friendly dog protester;

 

saw volunteers collecting signatures for candidates (vote THEM OUT!);

 and I wasn’t even able to see the end of the protesters stretched 6 blocks on both sides along 3rd Street from my position! A great day!

Thank you to everyone standing up to protect one another and our Constitution. 

“I am not going to sit here and be an idle spectator to the diminution, the subversion, the destruction, of the Constitution.” - Jimmy Carter 

The people united will never be defeated!

Vigilance. Resistance. PERSISTENCE!

21 March 2026

Another super Saturday – I didn’t take many photos because I was chatting too much!

Next Saturday is No Kings 3 and we are expecting a crowd. There are over 3,000 No Kings events scheduled across the nation, search nokings.org to find one near you (nokings.org). If you can’t stand, bring a folding chair and sit, or drive past the crowd and give us a honk, peace sign, or a thumbs up.

War - Week 4: I am still holding my sign to bring awareness to the fact that Trump’s war is killing children. Why? His reason seems to change from day-to-day and even hour-to-hour. No one is “winning” and the killing continues while the administration tries to sell its war as a violent video game. 

The war videos made by the White House communication staffers use footage of military strikes inner cut with football hits or bowling pins being blasted apart or with clips for movies like ‘Top Gun’ and ‘Gladiator.’ These videos do not honor the people killed.

Political strategist Max Burns notes that the White House messaging is “appealing directly to the base, especially to these young, very online Maga people, who, just like Trump, treat war like a video game. You don’t see service members sharing this content.”

The administration is selling this war of choice as a violent video game because they fail to see how it is affecting people, especially children! Children, men, women, and whole families are being killed in the Middle East by US and Israeli bombs. The administration has a “concept of an idea” based upon a disregard for anything other than staying in political power Republican Senator Lindsay Graham said it out loud, "I feel good about the Republican Party and where we're going as a nation. We're killing all the right people…” Don’t listen to him! Our Constitution does not point us in the direction of hate, violence, and killing!

Listen to Raffi instead. Yes, Raffi is alive, well, and still active at 76+ years old. Raffi, the beloved children's singer known for "Baby Beluga," is the founder of the “Child Honouring” movement for social change. It offers a hopeful vision where a child’s early years are honored as the foundation for a compassionate and sustainable world. We need to honor ALL the world’s children! Raffi is using his voice for adults, too. He is writing lyrics for adult protest songs and posts frequently on Threads.

"We commit ourselves to peaceful ways and vow to keep from harm or neglect these, our most vulnerable citizens" – Raffi

Next Saturday, No Kings 3: support our Constitution, stand up for peace, speak out against violence in all forms.

Vigilance. Resistance. PERSISTANCE.  

14 March 2026

Another successful Saturday Sign Waving! I finally learned the “Bongo Guy's" name (Leo) and Voter Registration continued. While talking with some fellow sign wavers today about the war, one woman made this comment: “We aren’t the ‘good guys’ anymore, are we? Now we are the ‘baddies.’ Will any of our European allies ever trust us again?”

Thus far, US and Israeli militaries have since made over 3,000 strikes across the region, killing more than 1,300 Iranians - at least hundreds of them children – hundreds of people throughout the Middle East and thirteen US service members have died … so far.  Trump openly admits many more will follow. 

This is the long-term, human cost of his reckless decision. Civilians throughout the Middle East are now in harm’s way, and, motivated by the war, terrorist attacks in other countries (including our own) have occurred. Lives lost all because of his unnecessary, devastating war.

Short-term, his war is costing US citizens $1 billion dollars a day, and this does not include the increased costs of all the products affected by the war. To try and mitigate this, Trump lifted sanctions on Russian oil which is leading our European allies to lose trust in the US. Long-term or short-term, we all lose in this war! 

We have seen how these escalations start: no imminent threat, no clear authorization from Congress, no plan for what comes next. We remember Iraq. We remember Afghanistan. Thousands of US service members killed, trillions spent, and entire regions destabilized. 

Sustained pressure from ordinary people who refuse to accept the killing done in their name is needed. Pressure must be built now - in our neighborhoods, our workplaces, and our schools - to expose Trump’s “excursion” for what it is: an illegal act of war.

WE the PEOPLE do not want this war, and we will fight back against it every step of the way. 

“It may be tempting for … even for good people to just wait for the storm to pass … but, if we don't step up, no one else will.” - Barack Obama

Vigilance. Resistance. PERSISTANCE! 

7 March 2026

Another Saturday Sign Waving! I had the opportunity to stand with fellow Veterans holding the Coffin Flag of a WWII soldier. The Anti-Fascist Veteran’s Alliance includes veterans who believe defending democracy is a civic duty. Their mission is to educate, organize, and empower communities to resist fascism in all its forms—through historical literacy, mutual support, and local action.

We, Neptune Beach Coalition, collected items for a Community Pantry, registered voters, and sang protest songs with Firepit and the “Bongo Guy.” I also waved my personal signs.

The war continues… UNICEF reports that approximately 168 schoolgirls in the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, in southern Iran, were killed on 28 February and many more injured. Their deaths are the result of a U.S. strike on a nearby Iranian Naval Base. In addition, 12 children were killed in other schools across five different locations in Iran … so far.

As U. S. military strikes continue across the region, children are increasingly exposed to violence. At least 20 schools and 10 hospitals have reportedly been damaged in Iran, disrupting children’s access to education and critical health services. 

Children and schools are protected under International Humanitarian Law and must be places of safety. However, Hegseth’s remarks and comments from the White House highlight the government's reluctance to consider the human costs of war. The lives and wellbeing of children must always be protected.

“It may be tempting to get discouraged, to give into cynicism. It may be tempting for good people to just wait for the storm to pass … but, we have a chance to make an impact … not for glory, but because it gives our life purpose, because it aligns with what our faith tells us God demands, and because if we don't step up, no one else will.” - Barack Obama, 6 March 2026

 

Vigilance. Resistance. PERSISTANCE!

February 2026

28 Feb 2026

Terrible start this morning … the first thing Dave said to me this morning was, “I turned off the news, I can’t stand it. He bombed Iran.” I replied, “**!!@&$!”

Two days ago, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led his country's delegation in the high-stakes nuclear talks in Geneva said "good progress" had been made and while there had been agreement on some issues, differences remained on others. He said more negotiations would happen in less than a week. There had been no official reaction from the US. 

Obviously the” official US reaction” was to bomb Iran. Why didn’t #47 work with his Board of Peace? 

Lie #1: "It's time for peace."- Trump 

The Board of Peace was launched in Washington on February 19, 2026. #47 convened the inaugural meeting of his newly formed Board of Peace at the U.S. Institute of Peace headquarters, a building that now bears his name. Its stated aims are to stabilize the Middle East region, with ambitions to address global conflicts as an alternative to the U.N.. #47 also said it would investigate "hotspots" around the world. I guess #47 was bored and needed a “hotspot.” He created a “hotspot” even though talks with Iran were ongoing – it was his choice to commit an act of war.  

Meanwhile, at least 80 people including school children have been KILLED … so far. 

Lie #2: Trump has pledged to deport “the worst of the worst.”

During his 2024 campaign and second term, Donald Trump frequently promised that his administration's deportation efforts would focus on removing the "worst of the worst"- criminals, gang members, and murderers. 

However, investigations and data analyses from 2025–2026, including reports from the Cato Institute and Transactional Records Clearinghouse (TRAC), suggested that in some periods, over 40% to 92% of those detained had no criminal record at all. Over 50 people have DIED in ICE or Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody during the current administration. Two people were also shot and KILLED by agents.

If it wasn’t for my fellow “Beach” people joining together every Saturday for “sign waving” and good conversation, I would sink into a deep depression fueled by frustration. Instead, we register voters, sign candidate petitions, and collect food and personal hygiene items for community members in need. We will not be silent.

Vigilance. Resistance. PERSISTANCE! 

21 Feb 2026

Another great Sign Waving Saturday! I don’t know if Stephen Colbert’s interview with Democratic Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, who confronted Christian Nationalism, had anything to do with the three Christians who I met today but there were new faces and more free speech. One man talked with me about Trump and the Book of Revelations, and he gave me some reading material.  Another man (I didn’t get a picture of his sign) wanted to call people to “Jesus” and to love one another. The third, a woman, wanted to proclaim that “Diversity is God’s Idea.” We welcome them, and their messages. Every “sign waving” participant expresses their thoughts, ideas, and opinions as protected by the First Amendment.

Sidebar: I was heartened to see there was a March for Peace and Dignity in the Quad Cities, from Illinois across the bridge to Iowa in winter weather! “Love thy Neighbor” “Welcome the Stranger” – a peaceful, moving meditation – I salute you!

The positive news continues - More “young” people are joining us! I conversed with a young man and learned about his manga pirate flag - One Piece.  The One Piece pirate flag, featuring a skull and straw hat, emerged in 2025 as a global Gen Z symbol of anti-corruption and anti-authoritarian protest. Representing themes of freedom, rebellion against oppressive systems, and "Straw Hat" solidarity, it has appeared in demonstrations in Indonesia, Nepal, Madagascar, France, Peru, the USA and right here in Neptune Beach, Florida. Welcome!

My signs were inspired by the continuing efforts of #47 to put partisan pressure on our military. Last week at Fort Bragg, North Carolina he told troops, “You have to vote for us.” (More instances of his partisanship pressure are listed in the comments.) It is evident Trump is not familiar with the Army Field manual: “The Army as an institution must be nonpartisan and appear so too. Nonpartisanship assures the public that our Army will always serve the Constitution and our people with loyalty and responsibility.”

“There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty.” John Adams, Diary entry, Spring 1772.

Vigilance. Resistance. Persistence.  

 14 Feb 2026

Happy Valentine’s Day! My signs this week were inspired by Valentine’s Day, my favorite Patti Smith song, “People have the Power”, and the U. S. Constitution (of course!).

It was as a “Choose-Your-Own-Path” kind of week. We experienced two distinctive and diverse paths in life that converged in Washington D. C. One was the Walk for Peace in support of lovingkindness and peace throughout the world. The other path led to a Congressional hearing. There the Attorney General answered each question by referring to a binder full of prepared insults - the “Bondi Binder.” She was clearly on another path, a path of incompetence and insult. I can’t think of any other example that demonstrates the essence of the divide in our country today. 

During the Walk for Peace, the Buddhist monks experienced many encounters with “Christians” who used insulting language and held signs that read “you’re gonna burn in hell.” The monks could’ve continued walking and ignored the “Christians,” but they stopped. The monks were not silent. Neither did they refer to a “Bondi Binder” of insults. Instead, they calmly explained they were assembled, walking together, as a moving petition for peace and lovingkindness. Then they moved on - they persisted, step-by-step.

After 2300 miles, the monks were greeted in D. C. with large crowds, flowers, and friendly voices - "Thank you!” - “We love you!” - “Peace be with you!” 

Today, and every day, we can walk in peace. We don’t need to take the “Bondi Binder” path of hate, nor do we need to ignore injustice in silence. We can speak, assemble, and petition for a government that upholds the Constitutional and Human Rights of ALL people. We can take the path of nonviolent resistance. 

Vigilance. Resistance. Persistence.

 

Postscript: 

Counter "Protester" - Actually the arrow looks like it is pointing to him!

Obviously, this counter protester is following the “Bondi Binder” path - while lounging! Nothing on the sign about the Constitution or current events, just an insult. We are taking another path ... keep-on-keeping on! 

7 Feb 2026

Today 100+ people stood together for community “sign waving” - BONUS many young people are participating! A Registrar was on hand to handle Voter Registration and answer questions. 

Also joining us was Rachel Grage. She was collecting signatures for her Candidate Petition to run against Republication Representative Rutherford (he who refuses to hold public meetings!!!). I foresee a Grage for Congress sign in my future. 

I stood with my first-ever sign and my favorite sign.  They define my major “gripe” with 47 and his supporters. (Basic decency and humane treatment of ALL people - are my paramount issues). Not only does 47 think the Declaration of Independence is a "love letter" (!!?) but, when asked if he needed to uphold the Constitution as president, Trump answered, - “I don’t know.” But WE the People know. It’s your job! Read Article 2, Section 1, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution.

I also updated my sign about gerrymandering. 47 sued California over their voter approved redistricting and lost. Now he wants to “nationalize” elections in “15 states” (guess which states?!) But WE the People know better! Check out Article 1, Section 4, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution.

Still getting flipped off but also receiving many more supportive gestures compared to when I started with Neptune Beach Coalition 8 months ago. Plus, Firepit, Tim’s Bluetooth speaker, and the “Bongo Man” made for an excellent, musical morning. 

Vigilance. Resistance. Persistence.