Let me tell you about a couple things that happened there:
First off, I met a guy there named Mike who was in Manhattan, five blocks away from the WTC on 9-11-01. He told me about hearing the jet engines as the first plane hit the South Tower. He also told me about being outside and seeing police running as the North Tower fell; a thick cloud of smoke, dust and ash following them at about 15 miles an hour.
It is hard not to remember what he said and think about the news footage. Of course, seeing it on TV is nothing compared to being there, which he was.
Well, I got kind of hungry, so I went inside the Capitol building and asked a Trooper if there was a place inside to get something to nibble on. He said there was a cafeteria one floor below. So I took the elevator, and noticed the place was closed. I hoped to find a vending machine for snacks or soda, so I walked along for a bit, even going down another floor in my search.
When it became obvious there was not one, I figured I should turn around and come back. One problem: I did not know where I was. So I looked for the first elevators I saw and went up to ground level. I went from there and followed to the entrance outside, and realized I was exactly across from the back of the Capitol building. I had to walk straight back through to get back to position A.
In the bottom of the rally, I noticed one anti-Amer....I'm sorry, anti-war protester not too far from us Freepers. I pointed her out to Allegra, then said to the female protester (holding the sign NO WAR ), "I hate to tell you this, but the war has already started." Allegra had a few things to say of her own, and a woman moved to another spot where she got in a row with another Rally participant. This did not go very well, as she walked away, calling the guy a creep.
As she left the area, I heard her say, "Viva la Cuba."
To which I promptly replied, "Viva la stupidity."
I hope everyone there had a good time!
Got some pics on the way as soon as I can figure out how to post them!
Welcome to Austin!
The crowd begins to form.
A sea of flags.
See the woman in the front with the backpack? She was covering the event for the BBC!
The guy wearing the white polo shirt with the "God bless our troops" sign is the Mike I mentioned in an earlier post.
Which brings me to this, in case anybody asks why we are fighting....
(My apologies to the girl holding this picture, as I forgot her name.)