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Let's hear some of the comments people made to you. A few had the courage to cross the street and try to convert us. BIG MISTAKE!

As I posted on another thread, I went over to the "belly of the beast" to see just how many attended, knowing the media would exaggerate the numbers. I estimate 500.

The grandfather of a lost WTC victim (one of their guest speakers) read a letter his daughter and son-in law sent to President Bush asking we refrain from seeking retaliation -- "Don't do it in the name of New York, or the name of our son. This does not ease our pain-- does not unify us", blah blah blah. He then lead the group in song to the melody was "Down By The Riverside". After hearing the first stanza ("Drop down your hands and swords, down by the riverside, down by the riverside") I left in disgust.

Well, I was the target of hostility TWICE yesterday. I think it must have been my sign :D. I brought three with me, and was going to change them according to whatever was going down at the moment across the square. One said "Peace through Victory" (a nice positive one, IMO), another was "God Bless America (God Help Our Enemies)"--still not too threatening or offensive, to anyone except the thinnest-skinned radical. Anyway, one or two people hadn't brought signs, so I passed those two over to them and was left with the last sign. I was going to save that one for "later" but ended up with it from the beginning.

I don't know what the fuss was about, really. It was just a very bright piece of yellow poster board that said "Hey Peaceniks: WHAT COLOR is this sign?" But for some reason it really seemed to fry a few people's pork chops.

Very early on, some guy got a look at my sign and spat at me, before scampering off. He missed me by about two feet. I was at the southern end of our group at that point, and nobody saw him do it. Radicals raise such lovely sons, don't they? Spitting at women. He wouldn't have dared to do that to the men.

About midway through, another guy got in my face and said my sign was "disgraceful" and seemed to be saying that I had no right to voice that particular opinion because it was a slap in the face to the people across the street who were only exercising their First Amendment rights (well, wasn't that what *I* was doing?).

Ladies, chivalry is still alive and well in Freeperville--I barely had time to say "I really don't carewhat you think of my sign" to the bozo, before Race and Dutchy and the guys were shouting him down and calling HIM a disgrace.

Thanks, guys!

There was also some sort of disturbance at the 15th street end, which I was too far away to see in its entirety, but the police finally dragged the man away. Perhaps someone else who stood nearer to the corner could describe what happened. But except for those incidents (over a three-hour freep), it was pretty peaceful, and NEVER got violent.