However, I'm reminded of something that a lot of people have said already, but which should be emphasized: no one listens to the speakers at these things. No one cares.
And more importantly, when the march actually started moving, it was joined by a lot of people coming in from other locations so that it was very large, moved slowly and lasted for hours. I am very bad at estimating crowd size, and anyway there would have been no way for me to do so from my vantage point. But it was definitely large and inspiring -- though the inspiration may have been due to the fact that I was marching in the company of 1199 New York, which brought down 18 buses (some of which, I am told, were not able to navigate the logistics of the event); the workers' chants were terrific, with simultaneous Puerto Rican, African-American, Haitian Creole, and Vietnamese accents on display (plus probably a dozen other accents I didn't recognize). When they had to leave early to catch their buses it was a real downer.
I saw some TV news coverage later, and it was remarkable. Even Fox News was saying there were 100,000; they reported, and I have decided that it must have been at least that. In any event, the news coverage (not Fox News, but others) did not highlight the goofy trots on the podium, but the military families and veterans in the crowd, mothers who had sons fighting in Iraq, and Cindy Sheehan herself marching in the demonstration flanked by Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. Overall, you can't help but conclude that this demonstration was a positive addition to the growing anti-war feeling in the country; it managed to get some coverage even despite the hurricane. Of course it's not all there is to do -- who would suggest that?
- - - - - - - - - - John Lacny http://www.johnlacny.com
Tell no lies, claim no easy victories