pav

RNC 2004 has come and gone (for me anyway).

Missed the march but made it Monday. I was honestly surprised at the lack of destruction and violence. And even more taken aback by the snooze-inducing civility of it all. (protesting permits, friendly police, people saying "excuse me" as they walked past, WTF? Where's Jerry Rubin when you need him?).

So there I was among the throng of people gathered outside the U.N. that day, pondering the extreme mellowness of it all. I was probably looking rather bored (though not as bored as Irina) as I sat there knocking back a $6 bottle of ice cold pilsner in one of the portable mini-bars that some enterprising genius had mercifully set up in the middle of it all.

Then it slowly dawned on me that there were about as many cameras and press passes floating around as there were picket signs. Seems everyone and their mother had joined the ranks of the DIY "alternative media" and were doing their best to outnumber actual protesters. It was giving this entire spectacle a bizarre feeling of self-referential voyeurism. Kind of cool, but kind of creepy.