Raging Mom

Cindy Sheehan — arguably the nation’s best-known peace
activist — visited Santa Barbara last weekend on the two-year
anniversary of her son Casey’s death in Iraq. Sheehan became famous
late last year when she camped outside of President Bush’s Texas
ranch, demanding a face-to-face with the commander-in-chief. Her
presence drew a standing-room-only crowd last Saturday night at the
Veterans Memorial building and a sizable gathering at the weekly
Arlington West installment near Stearns Wharf on Sunday afternoon.
Joined on Sunday by several prominent local political
figures — including Congresswoman Lois Capps and Mayor Marty
Blum — Sheehan warned against possible U.S. military action in
Iran, condemned the Bush administration’s dishonesty, and urged the
U.S. to solve its differences with “words, not violence.”

— Ethan Stewart