ENOUGH!!! Lower the Flag to half-mast

In Italy, Rainbow Pace (Peace) flags began appearing in 2003 throughout the country on private balconies, businesses and public buildings in defiance of Prime Minister Berlusconis decision to join the U.S. attack upon Iraq. Some 2 million flags were distributed and remain displayed. They soon spread throughout Europe.
We suggest similar public declarations of independence by lowering American flags to half-mast to express a communitys shared grief at this time in our history. This could convey a grief of many facets, expressed in the following statements:

We mourn the falsely justified Iraq War, inflicted upon a society innocent of any wrongs against us.

We mourn the thousands of American Servicemember lives lost, primarily the young and economically vulnerable.

We mourn over 100,000 Iraqi lives lost, predominantly women and children.

We mourn the many tens of thousands of dismembered, deformed, and psychologically damaged survivors, both American and Iraqi.

We mourn the destruction of Iraqi cities, its homes, businesses, and public structures.

We mourn thousands of looted antiquities, the lost history of one of the worlds first civilizations.

We mourn billions of tax dollars diverted away from often desperate human needs here and abroad and recklessly squandered upon killing, maiming and destruction.

We mourn the lost respect of the world for the United States of America.

We mourn the lost trust of the world in the United States of America.

We mourn our failure as peacemakers, instead being the worlds primary weapons supplier.

We mourn the loss of our identity as an admirable, caring and principled nation.

We mourn our lost trust and pride in the democratic institutions of our country.

We believe that a majority of our communitys citizens share most or all of these feelings.

The dead for whom we temporarily lower our flag are not restored like the next frame of an animated cartoon when the flag is again raised on the following day.

Redemption of these terrible wrongs cannot begin until our troops are returned home, the natural resources of Iraq are returned to the Iraqi people, the Iraqi people are allowed to shape their own society without American interference or influence, and Iraqi victims are compensated for their undeserved suffering at our hands.

For these reasons, our own flags will remain at half-mast until that time.

Further, "We the people," request that all US and State Flags be lowered to half-mast to express our communitys shared grief at this time in our history. We request that flags remain lowered until our troops are returned home, the natural resources of Iraq are returned to the Iraqi People, the Iraqi people are allowed to shape their own society without American interference or influence, and Iraqi victims are compensated for their undeserved suffering at our hands.