Cold weather, discomfort can't silence local protester

For the past three and a half weeks, Bloomington resident Steps to Freedom has been living with his fellow peace protesters in Dunn Meadow. Steps to Freedom is the spiritual name of Sean Bagley. He adopted his spiritual name and cast off his old one as "legal fiction." \nSteps to Freedom, who prefers to go by "Steps," and his fellow protesters have camped out to protest the bombing in Afghanistan. Steps' tent is a gathering place for many of the protesters; they've set up a make-shift mess under its canopy. Nearby is a wood stove that has been brought out to keep the protesters warm through the winter. Steps spends the day outside with his fellow protesters and makes a special effort to greet passers-by warmly. \nBart Peiffer, 41, a former student in 1986 and 1987 from Pennsylvania, came back to Bloomington to finish his degree in mathematics and philosophy. He said he joined the peace movement because of Steps.\n"Steps is propelling. He gives you a will to become active," he said. "He gives you an inner energy."\nAlthough Steps said he feels that "some people despise us because they think our free-speech is anti-American," he said the Bloomington community has been very supportive. Many residents have brought them supplies such as food and blankets.\nSteps said he sees the war as a futile effort. \n"The war won't work, it will just create more terrorism," he said. "What's the point in killing and starving millions of people?" \nHe said he's disappointed that the United States has not proven that the Taliban or Osama bin Laden were involved in the Sept. 11 attacks. Because of this, Steps said he does not support the attack.\nHe urges Americans to "combat hate with love" and stresses that the United States did not try any other solutions. He describes the war as a "knee-jerk response" caused by an emotional reaction, which he sees as short-sighted.\nSteps said he sees the attacks on the United States as a product of America's foreign policy. \n"The people were interested in being treated as humans, not commodities," Steps said. \nSteps to Freedom has very specific demands from the U.S. government. First on his list is to abolish the CIA. He stresses that it has never been proven that bin Laden was behind the attacks on the United States and he leaves open the possibility of CIA involvement. His demands change in U.S. foreign policy. But, Steps is also frightened by Congress' new anti-terrorism bill and is concerned for Muslims in America.\nSteps makes it clear just how determined he is. \n"We're here till the war's over and they say that could be years," he said. \nBut, he does say that it would be nice for the war to end before the winter so he can go home. \nUntil then, company continues to join him.\nJay Settlemeyer, who followed his girlfriend to the peace camp, became active when he realized that he held similar views as Steps. \n"I'm into following the rainbow, going wherever that takes me," he said. "And Steps gives me the inspiration to do so." \nStaff reporter Eric Baker contributed to this story.