so i went out to the protest in los angeles this saturday with at least 99,999 of my closest friends. a quick shout out to abigail for feeling the same way i did about sublimating the nuances of your position on the war for the greater good. i actually didn't do as good of a job as she did: i had made myself a t-shirt that morning dissing one of the groups that put together the rally, the ANSWER coalition. they seem like a nice enough bunch of people but they are also a front group for the workers world party and are seen by the mainstream and right wing media as a bunch of socialist freaks. now i have no problem with socialists, communists, anarchists, etc., coming down and adding their voices to anti-war protests but i think it is vital that the organizers and nominal leaders of these kind of events be mainstream groups like coalitions of religious leaders and students -- basically people that warmongers can't cast as enemy sympathizers. today's peace movement is a remarkably mainstream movement but until its leadership reflects the actual political demographics of the thousands and millions of people who were in the streets on saturday those people who want to ignore this movement will be able to do so.

that said, i had a great time, and was glad to be out there. Martin Sheen was far and away the most moving speaker, although i only caught the last half of his address. very few people in american public life still speak with power and poetry, and sheen certainly does (for all gore did poorly in his camaign, i remember his concession speech being beautifully written and delivered as well, incidentally.). I looked high and low for a transcript of his remarks somewhere on the net and found none. I'll keep looking.



coming later: i finish fourth in a rock-paper-scissors tournament