DNC CONVENTION- DAY 3
BOSTON-DAY 3
I awoke with the sickness and the hunger. Both were alleviated with orange juice and a fruit smoothie (I'm having to live out of a supermarket, for the most part.) I had been up until 5:30 in the morning, the previous night, and was due to do some video shoot at an ACLU event at a cathedral in the heart of Boston at 11:00. After another icy shower, and a change of clothes, I headed into the city.
At this point, I feel the necessity to apologize, somewhat, for my previous comments about Boston's subways. They do have one advantage: The cars run CONTINUOUSLY. I dunno if this is standard, or just for the convention, but the trains are just minutes apart. You don't have to wait for more than five minutes, for a train to arrive. Compare that to NYC, where, sometimes, your wait for a train can be 30 minutes or more... The event went well- Dennis was scheduled to speak (it was my job to film), and he delivered in classic Dennis style. Dennis, I've heard, considers himself first and foremost to be a communicator- and it shows. This guy can raise the roof like no one else I've ever heard.
That's how I first came to know of Dennis- those first few primary speeches of his carried via c-span.org. Since then, I've had a chance to see him speaking publicly, twice, and the just has a way of connecting with an audience, and getting them on their feet, that just has to been seen to be believed.
He didn't dissapoint, this time around, either. While he was at the podium, I temporarilly forgot I was sitting in a hot, muggy cathedral filled with the stagnant exhalations of over a thousand people.
Then, at the height of his speech, Dennis announced the surprise appearance of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who went on to deliver a speech, calling for the unity of progressives with the Kerry ticket, in his own inimitable way.
It shames me to say that I couldn't get any photos of the event, as the still cam I have has problems with indoor lighting. I did, however, shoot the event on video, and will be featuring highlights, when I get it edited. The acoustics were kinda screwed in the church, and even though I had a top-notch DV can on loan from the campaign, the sound came out with a horrific echo. I hope to be able to splice my footage with another audio recording, and have a good resulting product.
Afterwards, I headed back to the college for a bite to eat, after which, I headed back to the city center for my first encounter with the infamous "free speech zone."
En route, I happened to espy about 100 folks gathered for no apparent reason, and wandered over. It turned out to be an impromptu press conference/Q&A session by Green Party presidential candidate, David Cobb.(This made the second presidential candidate I've ever met, personally- whee!) Myself- I'm not voting green, but Cobb has an infectous energy to him that's quite endearing. He patiently, and at length, was willing to answer any and all questions asked of him, and always had a smile on his face, and a spring in his step- I have to wish him well- anyone able to maintain such an exuberance in the face of the overwhelming odds against him deserves respect, at the very least.
The zone was a horrific spectacle- looking like a cross between a sewer and a freeway underpass, surrounded on all sides with overlapping chain link fences that made it impossible for you see anything outside, covered over with a steel-beam-and-concrete ceiling that sometimes got so low that I had to duck. There was no way that any protester could see, or be heard by, any of the delegates that they were trying to reach. There were only two entrances, heavily patrolled by cops, well away from the Fleet center.
This was pretty much expected by the veteran protest groups and organizations, so they eschewed the zone, in favor of roving public actions, wherever they could get away with it. The only people who bothered to do their protesting in the zone, therefore, were either bored onlookers, or raving lunatics that didn't know better. (Not that I have anything against raving lunatics- they're fun to watch, and I got some good footage...)
There was, indeed, a stage set up, with a mike, podium, and sound system, but the concrete, enclosed space had horrible acoustics, and the majority of those who took the mike to speak knew nothing about public speaking, and literally screamed their protestations with the microphone practically rammed into their throat. It's a pretty nasty spectacle- a freaky, wild-eyed, potbellied anti-abortion zealot, stalking back and forth, gesticulating wildly, accompanied by an echo-ridden, inarticulate NOISE that defies description.
The speakers that day were mostly from the left- mostly the same folks that made up the aforementioned ANSWER rally. The crowds in attendance were minimal- as stated before- the very space itself was uncomfortable to be in, and there really wasn't much to see, that day...
I swiftly got bored, and wandered outside- and espied an interesting sight- two guys walking along the street carrying the ODDEST signs:
Imagine, with me: White background, about 4X6 feet. At the top, in 6-inch-high lettering, "Support Bush". Below that, stark, black-and-white, icon-like images of tanks, bullets, bombs, missiles, mushroom clods, etc. Beneath that, in red, six-inch high lettering, "Praise Jesus."
Man- waving a sign like that in front of me is like waving a 40-ounce bottle of malt liquor in front of a chronic alcoholic. The guy was obviously there to court controversy- he attracted more than his fair share of abuse, and could argue to the ends of the earth.
But- Public confrontation isn't my forte- I figured the guy had had his fill of screaming, and got a good ten-minute interview out of him. Needless to say, the guy was barking- so right wing, it makes your teeth hurt, intolerant as all hell, and there to start a fight- however, I have the feeling I was one of the first people who had actually spoken with (rather than yelling at) him all day, and I got some good stuff out of him (more when I have time to edit the video...)
After that, I discovered that the whole street in front of the fleet center had become a more genteel spillover of the zone. Peace activists, evangelists, third parties, and such were doing their thing, wherever they could- and the cops didn't interfere, as long as they stayed civil.
And there- I encountered a very odd sight. In dunno if you're all aware of Lyndon LaRouche- perennial presidential "democratic" candidate for the presidency- the whole story about him will have to wait until another day, as it would take a few websites to cover it all- just check him out at google- you'll find out everything you need to know.
His campaign staff was out in strength, on the streets surrounding the fleet center- handing out fliers, talking to folks, and doing what indie campaigns usually do.
But what was strange: Occasionally, groups of them would converge, and begin singing choral tunes together- songs about freedom, LaRouche, or whatever. That, in itself, isn't all that remarkable- what distinguished these folks is that they were GOOD at it- VERY good- they obviously had spent endless hours, practicing together. I hope to have an MP3 of one of their songs available soon- on the tram ride back to the college, I listened to it over and over- they were, without a doubt, the best a capella choral group I've heard in years.
If presidential elections were handled like American Idol, LaRouche would be the next president...
By then, it was getting late, and I needed to get back to HQ. I made a fortunate accident, as I accidentally got on the wrong rail line, and wound up at St Mary's station, a short walk from the place I wanted to be, where I found the best chinese food I've had in years- fresh made egg rolls, hot and sour soup with just the right blend of spices, and the right amount of pork. After a hearty meal, the pain in my feet fa
ded a bit...
I got back to the hotel with every intention of updating the site, but the campaign needed my skills, that eve, and wasn't done with me, until 4:30.
Fade to black.