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Just got back to a computer, back from Crawford! Haven't read all these thousands of posts, but thought to add a few on site personal observations.

Before arriving in the small town of Crawford there was an elderly man on the right of the road with a huge sign in the back of his pickup truck. It was surrounded by large waving flags, and said Support the Troops! The man was in new overalls, a nice long sleeved shirt, a new-looking straw hat with bandanas around his hat and neck. But most noticeable was his oxygen tank and tubes in use. He explained that he was suffering from heart trouble, but was going to do what he could to help our troops and our country. About four hours later (in 110 degree heat index sweltering heat) the man was still there, except on the other side of the road, so people leaving Crawford could see his sign.

I entered Crawford about 11:45 Central Time, and a man (Kevin) and his wife joined me as we went to Camp Qualls. Kevin looked right smart in his green beret and his Camp Gitmo orange shirt.

There were quite a few people walking with smiles and with pro-Bush signs, but I did not see any signs that were hateful or against the mission. During the whole afternoon I encountered no more than two pro-Cindy people, and they must have been somewhat awed by the numbers of people who kept coming, many with signs to carry as well as signs on their vehicles. It was a real grass-roots happening. (No, I did not go to Camp Cindy.)

Camp Qualls right in the middle of downtown Crawford, had an impressive ceremony of speeches and honoring those who paid the ultimate sacrifice. Bill Johnson gave a fine speech while sitting on a well-behaved horse. George Lucas was there, a fervent black preacher, who expressed disappointment with Al Sharpton. A number of parents who lost sons spoke during the afternoon, not wanting to cut short the mission.

Tom Burnett's wife, Deena, spoke about receiving 3 cell phone calls from her husband on 9-11-01, before his plane crashed in the Pennsylvania field. She told him about the WTC happenings, and he told her, We are Going to DO Something. He and others instantly turned into citizen soldiers.

It is hard to estimate the crowds. I saw a helicopter probably trying to do so when the bulk of the crowd was assembled in the field near the Crawford Community Center, but people just kept arriving. Even when I was leaving about 3pm, cars were just then arriving. At one point we were informed the line of cars coming to Crawford stretched for 40 miles. So my best estimate is that there were well over 3500 people in the Pro-Bush Rally.

Sorry, have to retire as I am happily Bushed (pun okay?). Feel free to FReepmail me if you have questions. It was just a wonderful experience, and thank you to all of you who were truly there in spirit!!