Taking out the trash
I live on Capitol Hill and try to go to as many major marches and rallies as I can. To some extent, it's easier to cover or follow a rally via C-Span. At a rally, you simply can't hear much of what's going on unless you're right in front of a speaker system. But what you don't get from the comfort of home is any sense of what a crowd is like.
At yesterday's rally, I spoke with many people to find out where they were from and what they were thinking about. I met nice folks from Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania -- but also Oklahoma, Texas and Massachusetts.
Now, the first major Washington march I attended was the Million Man March back in 1995. I have attended dozens of rallies and marches -- anti-war, pro-life, pro-choice, anti-circumcision, you name it.
And I saw something so shocking yesterday, that I had to stop and take a picture.
As my husband and two children and I were headed back on our long walk home, we saw women tying extra garbage bags onto trash receptacles. I noticed that they had already hit the other trash cans on our way out. And other folks were collecting extra trash into other bags. It was already surprising how little trash there was in the general area. Normally a crowd that size can have quite a bit of trash. But what type of American thinks to bring extra trash bags to help keep refuse from being spread out and about? I know many in the media are trying to sell the idea that the Americans who attended this rally are dangers to society, but that simple trash vignette speaks volumes, doesn't it?
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Jul '10
Re: Taking out the trash
There really are two Americas.
Re: Taking out the trash
Mollie, what you saw were people who do not expect others to pick up after them, either physically or metaphorically. Self sufficient, looking after themselves and helping their neighbors not out of coercion, but out of a desire to practice what they preach. I guess that would be a rare sight in DC. These folks aren't dangers to society, but they are an unmistakable threat to collectivists. And for that, we may thank the heavens.
May '10
Re: Taking out the trash
Indeed - one cleans up after itself, while the other stomps and cries about being expected to clean up after itself.
Jul '10
Re: Taking out the trash
So what you are saying is that the Predominantly White Crowd actually picked up the Predominantly White Crowd's trash before going to the Predominantly White Crowd's homes.
And that somehow when the Predominantly White Crowd picks up the trash and leaves the mall clean after the Predominantly White Crowd leaves that is somehow different than what non Predominantly White Crowds do?
I remember pictures of the mall after the Obozo inauguration when what was not a Predominantly White Crowd swooned over the first president who was not Predominantly White.
The mall was Predominantly messy that day.
Edited on Aug 29, 2010 at 7:15pmJul '10
Re: Taking out the trash
We need elite academics to explain why Bigots, Racists and Homophobes suffer from a compulsion to hoard random bits of trash.
Jul '10
Re: Taking out the trash
Jason Hart
Indeed - one cleans up after itself, while the other stomps and cries about being expected to clean up after itself. · Aug 29 at 7:12pm
No, I don't think they even have a conception of cleaning up after themselves.
May '10
Re: Taking out the trash
I made mention in the thread of Molly's post how polite drivers in DC were on Friday afternoon, and I attributed that politeness to the fact that many of the drivers were in town for the Beck rally. This is so different from Obama's Inauguration. We had some friends staying with us from out of town who came for the Inauguration. I showed them around The Mall the day before. We rode on the Metro, and one Obama supporter, with the hat to prove it, was drinking a Pepsi and dropping cracker crumbs on the floor of the Metro car. It is a big no-no to eat/drink in the Metro. I said to her, "You know, there are people like me who actually live here and ride the Metro frequently, and we'd like you to observe the clearly posted signs not to trash the train car." What a difference. Obama's fans think DC is a giant trash dump, and these folks think it something worth looking after. I'll say it again, "Please, come back!"
Jul '10
Re: Taking out the trash
...but can they take out the trash in November?
May '10
Re: Taking out the trash
I also live on Capitol Hill and went to the rally. I only made it for the last 30 minutes. The last time I was in a crowd that big was at the Obama Inauguration (although this wasn't nearly as big a crowd as inaguration). What struck me was how quiet it was. It was a huge crowd of peacefulness and quiet. And I noticed that all the trash was in the trash cans or piled neatly next to the trash cans.
Re: Taking out the trash
I propose a Ricochet bar crawl!
Edited on Aug 30, 2010 at 8:45amMay '10
Re: Taking out the trash
Definitely!