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My Beautiful Day with 75,000 Friends
I posted few of my notes on my experience at today's incredible Barack Obama rally in Portland over at The Huffington Post. For those who don't frequent that site, I'm reposting them here at good ol' TPM.
- You know the switchbacks used for lines at theme parks? Well, it was
a single long line to get into this event at Tom McCall Waterfront
Park, which had been sealed off, with the exception of a single entry
area. A sizable portion of Portland's downtown sidewalks served as a
giant form of switchbacks. A line of at least 60,000 people (the
approximate number in the park itself) snaking block after block...
Quite striking. And I'm very glad we were on a shady sidewalk, considering we were there for about two hours before the line started
moving.
- TSA agents handled most of the entrance screening duties. The
experience was extremely similar to entering the boarding area at an
American airport, metal detectors and all. Shoe removal was not
necessary and there were no liquid restrictions, though.
- I also went to the Obama rally a couple of months ago at Memorial
Coliseum here in Portland. The crowd at today's event was noticeably
younger and, although about six times larger, wasn't as energetic as
the Memorial Coliseum event. I would attribute that to the fact that
most had spent hours in the virtually unobscured midday sun and there
wasn't the major endorsement (Bill Richardson) that took place at that
previous Portland event.
- It was in the low 80s. Good timing. The previous two days had been in the mid-90s.
- Michelle Obama and their daughters joining Barack as they took the stage was a nice surprise.
- Other than commenting on the size of the crowd, the beauty of the
location, and Portland's promotion of bicycles and public
transportation, Barack Obama gave pretty much his standard stump speech.
- As with the Memorial Coliseum event, the crowd was exceptionally
diverse and extremely polite. 75,000 people, yet no pushing, nothing
even approaching a confrontation, but rather it was "excuse me",
"sorry", and plenty of friendly talk among strangers. It all further
confirms what I've already experienced - Obama supporters don't just
talk the talk, we walk the walk. Together we'll (everyone) restore that
sense of caring and respect for our neighbors that's been slipping away
for too long. : )
Comments (2)
Nice post.
That sounds like the Portland I know and love. Oregonians are, in my experience and as generalizations go, pretty down to earth folks. It's one of those things that I find so attractive about that state.
That so many of these people - diverse in countless ways, book smart, curious, genuine - would come together is itself an intimation of the appeal of the broader message.
May 19, 2008 4:14 AM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks, Upper Visual Noise. :)
Although I prefer San Francisco, the awareness and open-mindedness of Portland is definitely something I appreciate.
And thanks also to those who recommended.
But only one comment and four recommendations...? I'm reminded why I moved my focus over to Huffington Post and widened my posting to other sites, as well. The number of people viewing these TPM reader blogs has clearly dropped significantly, leaving a small clique of posters that, in my opinion, lacks the diversity of ideas found at other more active sites.
Yes, there's more garbage to sort through at those sites, but I've found it to be a fair trade-off.
I apologize if I've hurt any feeling, but I'm just calling it as I see it, and I take no pleasure in it. Really, I just miss the TPM of even as recently as a couple of months ago.
May 19, 2008 7:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
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