Older generations remind us that America is the birthplace of the hippie movement, and many recall protests carried out in the peaceful spirit of leaders such as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Adults have decried what they believe to be a pervading sense of political apathy among our generation, but as a young person, I’d have to disagree.

The spirit of protest is alive and well in America, but there’s just one problem: Many people don’t know exactly what they’re advocating. Recent events on our own campus lead me to believe that some activists – particularly self-professed peace activists – are little more than hypocrites.

Any student who was near the UA Mall around midday on Oct. 5 likely saw or heard the anti-Bush-administration protest that took place there. Organized by members of the World Can’t Wait movement, the event was the site of a physical assault on one of the few Bush supporters who stood by to voice his support for the president.

Tucsonan Wayne Boettcher was one of the Bush supporters standing calmly by the protest holding up signs. All was well between supporters and the crowd until an elderly man began cursing and hurling insults at Boettcher and his friends. Boettcher reminded the man that such behavior was unacceptable at a so-called peace rally. When another man attempted to physically wrest away a Bush supporter’s sign, Boettcher began yelling “”Violence at a peace rally, violence at a peace rally!””

Boettcher tells the rest of the story: “”The man hurled papers…then pushed, shoved and hit me. My MP3 player fell to the ground and no longer works.”” Of course, a police officer witnessed the event and Boettcher is pressing charges against his assailant.

“”Violence at a peace rally”” indeed.

Though alarming, the events of that day pale in comparison to some disturbing aspects of the World Can’t Wait movement. Many are unaware of the fact that the entire movement was begun by leaders of the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA. Aside from espousing Maoist-style communism, RCP advocates the revolutionary overthrow of our capitalist democracy.

Chief among the organization’s laughably absurd claims is the belief that “”Of all the tyrants and oppressors in the world, there is none that has caused more untold misery and committed more screaming injustices against the people of the world than the rulers of the U.S.”” Of course, the contrary is nearer to the truth. In fact, few nations have been so helpful to the world’s poor and downtrodden. For instance, President Bush recently pledged over $230 million for redevelopment in war-torn Lebanon, and the U.S. has appropriated over $2.5 billion for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – nearly $1 billion more than any other nation.

World Can’t Wait alleges that “”the Bush administration is the most dangerous force that has ever existed.”” The administration, the group claims, is even “”more dangerous than Hitler.”” This statement is indicative of the organization’s loose grasp on reality.

While the American military might be one of the most powerful fighting forces ever assembled, President Bush has used it to depose an evil dictator and work towards self-governance in Iraq.

Aside from telling us that our democratically elected President is more evil than Hitler himself, World Can’t Wait and its revolutionary founders are guilty of a few other things.

Perhaps fearing that responsible adults are generally too wise for their lies, World Can’t Wait frequently solicits minors to skip school and attend its rallies. I’m not even going to discuss why it’s discreditable of a group to go after impressionable children to do its bidding, but the comparison is obvious: World Can’t Wait frequently attempts to portray President Bush as being the next Adolf Hitler, yet its members are the ones actively recruiting an indoctrinated army of angry adolescents à la Hitler Youth.

There’s one last thing that’s troubling about World Can’t Wait. One of the movement’s catchphrases is the motto “”This regime doesn’t represent us!”” As expected, I witnessed a sign with this slogan at the rally on Oct. 5. The simple truth is that yes, this president does represent you and me, according to the Constitution.

You see, simple disagreement with the policies of our president doesn’t give the right to advocate his overthrow. In 1992, Bill Clinton won the presidency with a mere 43 percent of the popular vote, certainly no great majority – yet revolutionaries didn’t jam the streets crying out, “”This regime doesn’t represent us!””

Instead of associating with Communist insurrectionists and hanging out at rallies where the opposition is violently assaulted, why not advocate for real change until 2008 by volunteering for a political campaign or another respectable form of advocacy? Maybe that way you’d find out that yes, you can wait until 2008.

David Francis is a pre-business sophomore. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.