Posted by Atticus on August 30, 2004, at 9:56:46
In reply to Atticus you live in NYC what's happening?, posted by Jai Narayan on August 29, 2004, at 21:55:29
Well, as an ultra-ultra-ultra-liberal ("And proud of it, man!", to quote Bart Simpson), you can well imagine how I feel about having all those conservative Republicans on my home turf. I'm not going to get too deeply into how I feel about these people and what they stand for because I'd earn a PBC from Dr. B for sure. I did join the main march and it was completely peaceful from my vantage point in the immense crowd as we moved along the route. I saw later on the news that there were a little over 100 or so arrests, but considering that some estimates put the crowd of protestors as high as 200,000, that's pretty peaceful. There was a real sense of positive energy crackling through the crowd. I didn't carry a sign (I've done that before, and, God, do your arms get tired along the route, until you end up practically dragging the thing), but we were all chanting in my section of the group. There were a handful of counterprotestors trying to start something; I suppose it was in the hope of inciting a violent reaction on our part, so that would lead the evening news. But it didn't work among the people I was with, who were an anti-war group. It's hard to pick a fight with pacifists, and we were all joking about how frustrating it must have been for the people on the other side of the ideological aisle trying to stir the pot. Anytime you have a fifth of a million people passionately voicing their opinion about something, and it goes as smoothly as this did (despite what all the doomsayers in conservative NYC tabloids like the Daily News and Post predicted), I think your side comes off pretty well. I walked the whole route, past Madison Square Garden and ending up in Union Square. It was pretty exhilarating. The only way to get anywhere in town at this point is by subway. Forget any and all surface transport; there are so many streets blocked off, it's just hopeless. I usually take the city buses in the summer because the subway stations get so hot, then go back to the subways once the weather cools. The underground was just jammed, but even though the subway cars were really packed, there was an unusually convivial mood in them for New York; we were all folks on a common mission. I was amazed at how many out-of-towners I met. The vibe was great. I just hope cool heads prevail the rest of the week. :) Atticus, exercising his constitutional right to peaceably assemble and soaking his achin' feet in a nice hot bath
poster:Atticus
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URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20040830/msgs/384075.html