Code Yellow

The selling-out of the antiwar movement

by Justin Raimondo, October 09, 2009

(Graphic courtesy of Willyloman)

"Right on time for the somber eighth anniversary of the Afghanistan war and occupation, Code Pink founder and primary spokeswoman Medea Benjamin has announced that her organization – which made so many headlines and newscasts protesting "Bush’s war" – is now "rethinking" their position on Afghanistan. A piece in the Christian Science Monitor, which Code Pink is now strenuously trying to spin, reports that the famous antiwar group is seriously amending their position after listening to the views of Afghan women. On a recent trip to Afghanistan, the leaders of Code Pink met Afghan women who opposed the idea of a US withdrawal, and this somehow forced them into a reevaluation of their views.......

This sea-change in Code Pink’s view of the Afghan war calls for a more formal recognition of their new perspective. Perhaps a name-change: I propose "Code Yellow" – because a more brazen act of political cowardice hasn’t been seen in quite some time. Not since 1941, when Hitler invaded the Soviet Union and Communist-controlled "peace" groups in the United States suddenly changed their "antiwar" tune. One Communist speaker in New York City’s Union Square, having been handed a note informing him of the invasion, is reputed to have changed his "line" in mid-speech – without missing a beat. This incident is famously replicated in George Orwell’s novel, Nineteen Eighty-four, in which a government propagandist seamlessly segues into denouncing "Eastasia" when a few moments ago the object of his hatred was "Eurasia."

The title of an interview with Benjamin by our very own Scott Horton, "Is Medea Benjamin Naïve, Or Just Confused?" – in which she tries to wriggle out of the implications of her position, to no avail – is a question that begs an answer, and the answer is: neither. She’s just another opportunist, who has left the antiwar movement for greener pastures. Maybe she’ll be the new Van Jones."