The Convergence Begins!

I’ll be adding photos throughout the march … check back!

I’m guessing 2000 to 3000 protesters – tops.

I should have more photos and video later … this is just live using the iPhone app.

It’s over. Now home, maybe a few more photos and a little video … check back!

UPDATE: OK, I’m done posting. I think most of the photos are sadly self-explanatory.

More coverage at This Ain’t Hell and Marooned in Marin.

Here’s the video … enjoy!

OK, one of the morons marching yesterday commented on my video, saying “I guess this is supposed to be a mocking video, but all I see are people who care deeply about this country.” Well … as far as “mocking” is concerned that would fall under “duh”. As far as “people who care deeply about this country” … well, scroll down this post and judge for yourself. Quite the echo chamber these folks live in, huh?

I’m in an experimental mood. Here’s a version you can view in High Def if you want! Hit the “HD” button on the bottom

And I end, as usual, with … THE CHE!

MORONIC CONVERGENCE!

Holy Porcelain Squatting Mohammed!

What’s wrong with these folks?! I can’t believe it, but Team Tanless at ANSWER is at it again!

When? March 21, 2009

Where? Washington DC

Time? …

Time for another round of pointlessly pounding government pavement, followed by some serious fist-shaking, and workin’ the protest babes.

Yes my adolescent and otherwise unemployable friends: the ANSWER Coalition, along with Brian Becker and Team Tanless have once again managed to impart just the right amount of zest into your suburban basement bong-smoke filled haze.

I’m sure mom won’t be busy that day … she’ll give you a lift to the Metro and a little extra change. She’s like that.

See you there!

OK, I swear that this is my last 9/15 ANSWER/Code Pink anti-war protest blog post

OK, I swear that this is my last 9/15 ANSWER/Code Pink anti-war protest blog post.

But you must understand: there’s a story here.

After I created and uploaded my final video to YouTube I slapped my head in solipsistic disgust and said “Geez! I didn’t use that great image of the Soviet flag being raised …” [I really wanted to use that image. Damn ... I loved that image]. So I started to think what else I could use it in and … voila … the videos you see on this page.

The reason there are two is that nothing I could do to the file would force YouTube and their conversion process to render the proper resolution … everything I tried left the image way too lossy for my taste. So, what the heck I thought … I’ll just make my own Flash file and upload that into a webspace available to me and call it a day … and damn the bandwidth issues.

So, here’s the good file:

[I'm having some server issues, so the link may have disappeared for a while. It will return.]

And here’s the YouTube version if you start having bandwith issues:

Please enjoy. I purposefully parodied Soviet-style propaganda imagery and timing. At least I tried to given the material and the fact that this was completely impromptu.

For those of you who may think that the Soviet flag seen in the above-video was some sort of anomaly at these anti-war protests, or that the above-video doesn’t illustrate a deep truth underlying these events, here [below] is one of the “official” Code Pink banners leading the march … as for ANSWER … well, just click on the “ANSWER” label at the bottom of this post to see all the other ANSWER events I’ve covered. You’ll get the picture. Literally.

FINAL 9/15 POST: AN ANECDOTAL COUNT … No way was it 100,000

OK, I know that this is purely anecdotal, but I’ve heard the “100,000 attendees” count for the September 15th protest more than once [by ANSWER and their toadies] so I thought I’d put it to the test, along with my own count of 30,000 to 35,000 [tops].

After the march began and I had followed it for a while, I wended my way back to the beginning of the march seeking “musical” themes for inclusion in my blog and video. As you will note below [see previous posts ... especially the video] any fair observer will admit that I had an incentive to do so. If there was “musical” material to be had I would have it. I wanted it. Believe me … I walked to the end of the march.

I found the end of the march … at the moment I reached it … to be at or very near the intersection of what was once PA Avenue near the White House and 15th St, which runs just to the east of the Treasury Building.

You can see the intersection in the above image … taken from Google Earth … and the theoretical end point of the march indicated by the red dot. [Click on the image itself for a higher resolution image.]

As I had reached the beginning of the march and knowing for certain that no more material was to be had, I decided that I would race to the beginning of the march … as I wanted to be among the first to “run the gauntlet” between the ANSWER crowd and the GOE crowd. I thought it would be good material as my video [below] attests.

It took me … and I timed it … approximately 10 minutes to get from the first intersection noted above to the intersection of 13th and Pennsylvania, which is noted in the image as the final red dot marking the end point. According to Google Earth, there are 2157 feet in that path.

That measure can be, therefore, taken as an approximation of the length of at least the main body of the march … slightly longer, in fact, as during the time it took me to quickly traverse the length, the first end point itself moved slowly forward while I raced ahead, while the final end point itself crawled forward. The march also halted briefly at some points. However, in the interest of fairness I’ll ignore that. The difference would be minor anyway.

Now to the approximation of area.

Along 15th St. the march took up all the lanes, or approximately a width of 60 feet [see the image above] … once it met PA Avenue moving east, it took up all lanes once again, or approximately, also, 60 feet in width.

Therefore, for about half the march [from the beginning to the intersection of 15th St. and PA Avenue] the total area was nearly 66,000 sq.ft. and for the next half [from the intersection of 15th St. and PA Avenue to the intersection of 13th St. and PA Avenue] approximately another 66,000 sq.ft. for an [admittedly approximate] area of 132,000 sq.ft. Actually slightly less as there is an overlap at the turning point … but as there was also a certain amount of bunching there too it probably evens out in the end.

So for ANSWER to be correct, the marchers in that area would have to have been packed in at somewhat more than one [1] person per 1.3 square feet.

Try it. You won’t like it.

Most people won’t tolerate less than 4 sq.ft. of personal space, which puts an average density of around 33,000 people into the area described above. To be fair, some people may have attended the initial protest at Lafayette Park and didn’t continue on with the march to the Capitol, while some may have joined the march somewhere along Pennsylvania Avenue between the White House and the Capitol. Which would put the total for the march between 30,000 and [tops] 35,000.

And that’s MAX. The average density of marchers was actually way below that and there were huge gaps.

You be the judge.

PROTEST CODA: September 15, 2007

Yes, that’s just a hand. My own left hand, to be precise. It’s holding the corner of a Code Pink banner on the Capitol Steps. Don’t ask why.

****

PLEASE NOTE: More photos and the two videos are in the post just before this one … just keep scrolling down.

****

I’ve tried to keep my anonymity in tact for these events. Sadly, it’s become somewhat unravelled over time … Medea Benjamin [Code Pink] and I exchange nods and smiles from time to time … same goes for Cindy Sheehan and Brian Becker [ANSWER], among others. People are people, after all.

Still, I’ve never shown an actual photo of myself on this blog and I’m going to keep that as a rule. This hand is about as close as I’ll ever get.

By the way, I’ve heard silly rumors that ANSWER is trying to claim 100,000 attendees at this protest. No way. 30,000 maybe … 35,000 tops. I walked the march from beginning to end and from front to back. The videos I took are from various parts of the march and should be adequate testimony that there were no where near 100,000 people at this thing. That’s not to say that 30,000 is anything to sneeze at … it was a respectable showing.

MySpace activity in and around DC must have nose-dived for those few hours.

Here, of course, is a collection of “peace-scarf” wearers … or, as I prefer to call it … the “I’d Rather Be Killing Jews, But OK I’ll Settle For Your Infidel Protest” scarf.

QED.

If you read the printing on this dude’s t-shirt I think you’ll agree it’s somewhat less than “peaceful”. Just to be clear.

You can click the photo to get a higher resolution.

The shirt says “Enemy Combatant”. I believe it.

And what would an ANSWER protest be without … the Che?

Sadly, these folks kept thinking I wanted a photo of them with their pre-printed signage. I finally had to insist … just put down the signs: I want the Che!

And how, I ask, could I conclude this dreary little tale without reference to Medea Benjamin and her sewing circle? That is, after all, where I began my 9/15 sojourn.

Here’s Medea herself at the end of the march … at the “die-in” … walking among the dead. Notice she is on her own two feet.

And here, also, for your viewing pleasure, are other images taken that 9/15 morn as we waited for the festivities to begin.

A lovely time was had by all.

And, finally, just a reminder of what all this is really about …

MORONIC CONVERGENCE: September 15, 2007; Washington DC

Puppets. Let’s get that out of the way, shall we?

Yes, there were puppets. Small and aging puppets. And stilt-walkers. That’s new. Sort of.

Once again, my video[s] will concentrate on the oddities … especially the musical oddities … present in these protests. Stuff you won’t see otherwise. The speeches you can hear on C-SPAN, etc. and they’re boring anyway.

I’ll probably have one video, however, dedicated to my walk between the ANSWER Protest and the Gathering of Eagles [henceforth: GOE] Counter-Protest. There was about a 10 foot corridor between them.

I call it “The Gauntlet”.

**** CHECK BACK FOR VIDEOS ****

**** UPDATE: SUNDAY 09/16/2007 ****

Here’s my second video: More Protest Music. It’s still processing through YouTube so it may take a while until it actually works, though YouTube is getting quicker at approving these things. UPDATE: It’s live … go ahead and click!

I think it’s my best work. Hope you enjoy!

**** FIRST VIDEO IS UP ****

The last time we saw this puppet it was being blown to bits crossing Memorial Bridge. It is definitely the worst for the wear. I have a few words with the creator in one of the videos.

Sticking with the jokes … there was a small Ron Paul representation at the protest. Most people kept their distance.

And of course, the ultimate joke … Ramsey Clark … was there in person. I got kinda close, ya think?

Then there were the “normal” insanities one expects at ANSWER anti-war protests:

These … I have no idea where to even begin …

… and then there was the just plain ugly.

Or just plain stupid.

Or, well … er …

Then there are the surprisingly sentient and yet oddly insane … and happy [!] … jew-haters …

The Iraq Vets against the war marched …

Some folks got arrested …

And then the party … well … just … er … died.

We wanted to … well … pull the plug on the whole thing …

… but then Santa showed up again and everything was OK!

YAY!

I’M BACK! AND SANTA’S COMING TO TOWN!

No, not really … but it was [in a word] insane. Or, to quote the final scene of the “Bridge on the River Kwai” … “Madness! …. MADNESS!!“

I’m sifting through photos and processing video.

You know the routine, right?

Check back!

I’M OFF!

Please be sure to check back at the end of the day … at which time [subsequent several Knob Creek Manhattans (up) and a couple of Torano Cigars as an antidote to the insanity] I will begin to post the usual photos and video!

See ya then!

MORONIC CONVERGENCE!

When? September 15, 2007

Where? Washington DC

Time? Time once again to comb out that pillow-matted hair, huff yourself some initiative, and tell dad that, yes, you will finally mow the south-forty. Crank up the Toro, folks, ’cause you’re gonna need that extra cash: What’s on? a die-in on hot DC September asphalt, followed by some serious fist-shaking, and workin’ the protest babes.

Yes: the ANSWER Coalition, along with Brian Becker and Team Tan-less have once again managed to impart just the right amount of zing into your suburban basement bong-smoke haze.

I’m sure mom won’t be busy that day … she’ll give you a lift to the Metro and a little extra change. She’s like that.

See you there.

Pro-Terrorist Rally on US Capitol Lawn: June 10, 2007

Pro-Terrorist Rally on US Capitol Lawn: June 10, 2007

Lamest Protest Rally … Ever.

There’s a line from Woody Allen’s “Annie Hall” where Woody and Annie are sharing their first glass of wine together on a rooftop in New York City, and Annie complains that she meets a lot of … “jerks”.

Well, I meet a lot of jerks at these rallies … true, some require more critical observation, some less …

This guy ….

I think it was the keys. And the pathos. I mean really … three signs? Or maybe it was the hair.

Oh well …

This guy, then again, came a close second.

I’m not really sure why. I do know it was close, though.

***

The rally was marketed as:

The World Says No to Israeli Occupation March and Rally

Sunday, June 10th 2007 2pm

People around the world are joining together in a global day of action as “The World Says No to Israeli Occupation” to protest the 40th anniversary of Israel’s illegal military occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, and Syrian Golan Heights. In the United States, thousands of people from all over the country will converge on Washington, DC, from June 10-11, 2007, to send a clear message: The United States Says No to Israeli Occupation!

Those “thousands” ended up being about a thousand. Tops. That’s “a” thousand, as in “uh” thousand. And that’s counting the speakers. And I’m pretty sure that most of them were locals. Which means that the only people happy about this tonight is the ANSWER crowd. Finally someone has put on a protest more lame than their own.

That must be a relief. I would think.

There were, as usual, packs of pathetic leftovers from the 60′s.

How anyone who actually lived through the Carter presidency can look at a picture of that man without either revulsion or lapsing into a giggle fit I have no idea.

Luckily for me I missed most of the fiasco by living in another country.

I did, however, manage to get the tail end, viz: the Iranian Hostage Crisis. Now there was a well managed international crisis. Yep, Carter put us in solid with the Iranians.

That peanut growing, rabbit fearing anti-Semite was the nail in the coffin of my own naive leftism. He was leftism’s reducto ad absurdum at its best.
He still is. Perhaps more so.

I suppose I owe him for that.

One of the benefits of attending these rallies is one get’s the truth raw.

I mean, none of this namby-pamby “two-state” crap.

Let’s just drive those pesky Jews right into the Mediterranean.

That’ll fix everything.

The Capitol Building really is beautiful, isn’t it?

Hard to remember sometimes that Lincoln walked these grounds, along with most of the great men and women in our history.

At many points during the Civil War Union cavalry messengers would gallop across this very lawn with news from the front. The disaster of Chancellorsville … the triumph of Appomattox. People crowded here on hearing the news from Pearl Harbor. VE Day, VJ Day were celebrated by thousands of cheering Americans, some weeping with joy. One can almost see them sometimes.

That truth just adds to the pathetic tragedy that is today’s left.

Sometimes it just makes me want to weep.

Then I catch a glimpse of something that encapsulates so well everything they stand for … a mascot … an avatar of the irony and the comedy that is the warp and weft of today’s left along with their pathetic, attention seeking neurosis.

And I just have to laugh.

Ah … that’s better.

More to come … I hope.

**** UPDATE 06/11 8:45 pm ET ****

OK, the media and the organizers of this dead-end rally have obviously tried to pull their embarrassed butts out of the fire by claiming 5000 attendees. Now, while 5000 is still pitifully small, I want to enter into the record in the interest of full disclosure a group of photos I took at the height of the rally ~ 4:00 pm. I have put them together into a panorama. Please click on the image to get a larger, more detailed look. I have another 14 meg version on my computer here at 8500 pixels/2500 pixels if the media or anyone else wants an even better look.

That ain’t 5000. It may not even be 1000. Don’t push it.

**** UPDATE 6/12 8:15 am ****

Just a few more photos for those who are in denial that this event was essentially leftist:

Brian Becker … National Coordinator for the ANSWER Coalition.

The “Man With No Tan”

He’s holding the sign.

The keffiyeh/Che convergence.

This is the ANSWER table. The fellow to the left (!) is actually a decent enough bloke … I’ve seen him at a number of these rallies and have spoken with him.

Sad.

He’s the bloke in this video I took last year in front of the Israeli Embassy ….

Medea Benjamin (to the left, appropriately), one of the founders of Code Pink and professional harpy to various and sundry legislative assistants … along with some of her quilting bee.