Well, it is a time of war, and that airbase is an operational part of it. One can and should expect to have some civil liberties that they otherwise enjoy curtailed during hostilities. That's reality, not some pipedream.

Again we have an example of a biased bit of reporting. The author claims that they were just drinking water, not protesting. Perhaps they weren't actively chanting, but are we to surmise that they had no banners, posters, signs, or shirts emblazoned with messages? I would venture a guess that they weren't attired in Manchester United jerseys.

I just read John Leo's column On Society, from the 4/07/03 issue of US News and World Report. In it, John points out that many of these anti-war protests are organized by groups that hate America and western culture. There's a great quote as well from Tom Bevan "it matters a great deal who is organizing the protests . I don't absolve the 'true' anti-war protesters for taking part in a march organized by American-hating groups any more than I'd absolve someone who marched in a legitimate protest of immigration laws if it was sponsored by the KKK."