On the other hand, there were about 8,000 who turned out in St. Paul, Minnesota. That is a very respectable political rally, especially on short notice. I was there; I've been estimating numbers at demonstrations and rallies for over forty years and I'm quite sure of the attendance.

At the St. Paul rally, the crowd was mixed with maybe 1/4 to 1/3 being either Ron Paul followers or Constitution Party types, and the balance consisting of orthodox Republicans and of "dittoheads" indoctrinated by ultra-right talk radio and Fox television . . . which of course dominate and dictate what passes for political dialogue in this country.

It felt as if I were witnessing a manifestation of about 12 out 14 of the "Fourteen signs of Fascism." All they need is a LEADER. I would not scoff at or underestimate the rallies and their potential . . . although it IS tempting. After all, these were the same sort of who people would have been Tories, not Patriots, back in the Revolutionary era.

Well, I had the costume, complete with three-cornered hat, knee-high stockings, and buckled shoes. So all I needed was a placard. I printed one which said: "Legalize HEMP for Health, Happiness, and Revenue." Decorated it with a big green pot leaf. Pinned on my Ron Paul Revolution button and I was all set.

The effect was sensational. Dozens of people took my picture, or asked to pose with me. For three hours, these acolytes of Hannity and Limbaugh came up to me and expressed their thanks and approval and agreement with my sentiments. It was odd --- made me wonder if maybe marijuana DOES cause brain damage after all. Not everyone liked it, to be sure. I spent some time debating with doubters and prohibitionists . . . hope I took some of the fun out of the rally for THEM!

So what I saw was, on the one hand, a bunch of angry and fearful white folks, feeling their prosperity threatened, who are looking for a SCAPEGOAT. On the other hand, I saw people who are the salt of the earth---just ordinary workers who sense something isn't at all fair. But they have been brainwashed and misled with clever diversionary propaganda.

That crowd constituted the raw materials for a fascistic movement. And they are formidable in a way that liberal protesters are not. They ALL have guns and know how to use them. They also know which manhole covers to pop up in order to cut the critical fiver-optic cables, if they wanted to disrupt things far more effectively than any street demonstration would.

Their spirit has been fired by this outburst of fake populism. As I was driving on the freeway into town today, a horn blared at me and a speeding driver with a Palin sign in his car's back window stuck out his fist and gave me "the finger." His ire was kindled by my Paul Wellstone and Al Franken bumper stickers, I guess.

If he had seen me blow a kiss his way in response, I suppose he would have shot me.