Posted on 03/22/2003 9:56:32 PM PST by SerpentDove
More pics here too, folks ! Check it out.
(whispers) can you tell I had a great time, excited, etc? Yee-Haaaaaa ! . . .
Please let me know if you want ON or OFF my Texas ping list!. . .don't be shy.
No, you don't HAVE to be a Texan to get on this list!
A shame you can't name network.
[shooing little birdie off shoulder]
The DIRECT LINK to our Rally Pix is HERE God Bless! GRRRRR
Thanks for posting all these pictures. And thanks to all who attended in support of our troops.
What a great thing to see early in the morning!
As for me, Saturday's fun and games almost didn't happen. I received a call on my cell from work when I was about 15 miles outside of Dallas; thankfully I was able to fix the problem telephonically and continue my journey uninterrupted.
Anyway, to the event: I got there early enough to give myself enough time to overcome my quite natural revulsion to driving in the City of Dallas. I was originally going to try the new intercity train between Ft. Worth and Dallas, but I didn't really want to brave public transportation lugging my large sign, "Batman Utility Belt", and other devices I carried with me.
Weather: Steady light rain, but not too bad under the protection of my cheapie "emergency" poncho and Indiana Jones hat. I was warm and comfortable even with a short-sleeved shirt.
Camera: My spiffy new digital camera utterly failed the all-weather test. With the exception of the first, poorly-focused shot I took, every single picture was fogged and blurry. So, no pix this time.
Propaganda Materials: As was documented in painful detail elsewhere, I carried two signs on this trip: SerpentDove's "President on Drugs" comparison and protestwarrior.com's "Hey France" modification of an old World War II poster.
A Lady Named Marie: About 4 PM, I was watching the hijinks ensue between the upstanding, righteous pro-America group on my side of the boulevard and the pitiful band of scruffy, plastic banana anti-war types on the opposite side when I felt a light tap on the shoulder. I turned to regard a petite woman with light gray hair, probably in her late 40s, who regarded me intently. With my usual Southern charm and debonair manner, I smiled, tipped my hat, and passed greetings of the day. She replied by regarding my "Hey France" sign and saying sharply (and I'll never forget the way she phrased this): "Mah name is Marie, and All Zee French Are Not Like Zhat!"
After my initial surprise at this statement, I began to thank G*d for the gift of this obviously confused individual who had wandered over alone from the anti-war contingent to get in my face, surrounded by 3000 of my closest friends. Although I would not really have struck a lady, I rather felt like Ben Grimm in the Fantastic Four cartoons whose catchphrase was "Its Clobberin' Time!!!".
But, what Marie said after that stopped me in my tracks. She proceeded to explain, in that same charming accent, that she was born in France but had emigrated to America years ago, had voted for Bush and supported our troops. We talked for quite some few minutes, and I wondered out loud how the land that had given the American people the gift of the Marquis de Lafayette could have whelped such a disgrace as Jacques Chirac. She shook her head, smiled sadly, and said, "I thought zee same thing of Sleeck Weely when he was zee President." Touche' - point to the lady.
We parted with a handshake and an exchange of phone numbers. I think I've seen her before - if I remember correctly, she works at the Mansion at Turtle Creek (a high-falutin' eatery in the Dallas area). I guess I got my head handed to me on that series of exchanges, but there will be a next time ;)
All in all, a great time was had by all. Nobody got killed, nobody got towed, and the anti-war contingent got a free shower. Kudos to the guy in the Bush mask, the older gentleman sporting the "Burn THIS Flag, (expletive) T-short, and the double digits of Freepers I met at the event.
And, oh yes:
The Masked Freeper: One of the Freepers I met in Dallas wasn't really supposed to be there (a work situation apparently), and I will respect his or her privacy by stating unequivocally that I DID NOT see him or her there on Saturday.
It never happened. Now go home.
TEXAS FREEPERS ROCK!!!
But I gotta tell you how much it makes my blood biol whenever any of these idiots say Bush is a draft dodger! I'd like to just once get my hands on them and really knock some sense into them!
I don't call being in the National Guard as draft dodging!
WEWE! Got that rant off my chest! LOL!
GOOD! 'cause I wanna be on your ping list! :^)
Wish I could have been there!
GREAT job and GREAT Pics!
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