WHAT DO WE WANT: GUEST BLOG BY THE HEX
WHEN DO WE WANT IT: NOW


NOTES FROM ABOVEGROUND ( BEST OF the peace rally, NYC, 4/29/06).

BEST THING ABOUT THE WEATHER: it’s perfect. It’s september 11th perfect (that day too, was cloudless, warm and deep blue).

WORST DECISION OF THE DAY: mine. I looked at my camera, I tnought about taking my camera.I kew I would miss my camera if I left it behind.which is exactly what happened.

BEST THING ABOUT STARTING A MASS RALLY AT UNION SQUARE ON A SATURDAY AT NOON: the farmers market is open. It closes for nothing, including(apparently) revolution and peoples power. Before marching it is always advisable to eat a piece of warm banana bread ,home-made that morning somewhere up state (or so I like to think).

BEST 3-SOME AT THE FRONT OF THE MARCH: Cindy(Sheehan),Al(Sharpton) and Jesse(Jackson). Roger Toussaint,( the just released from jail) head of the MTA union is next to Jesse, but he’s not really in their league, is he.

BEST BLOW UP DOLL ON A STICK: George Bush, in full flight suit, sporting a Pinochio sized nose.

BEST POSTER(there were so many good ones): OSAMA BIN FORGOTTEN.

BEST MOTHER AND DAUGHTER (YET AGAIN);I see them at every rally that marches down Broadway. They must live in one of the buildings on Broadway at around 12 th street. It is a classic looking New York building with full fire escape overlooking the street. And every mass rally, there they are, on the escape,way up on the third or fourth floor, blowing into conches. they make a thrilling sound.it is beautiful.

BEST USE OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT GOOD PLACES TO PISS IN THE CITY WHEN YOU NEED TO: that would be by me. As we wind our way down B’way, I am needing to go.we are at the corner of Prince. I realise that Fanelli’s is a quick dash away, and as I am always in there (both peeing and drinking), I feel quite comfortable running in.

BEST IMPROVISED USE OF THE NAME OF A STORE ON BROADWAY FOR THE PURPOSES OF A CHANT: The Yellow Rat Bastard store (it really does exist). The chant, of course, was GEORGE BUSH IS A YELLOW RAT BASTARD, with a football hooligan sort of delivery.(you had to be there)

BEST PIECE OF PHYSICAL THEATRE: the 17 belly dancers, all shapes and sizes,doin their thing.bringing it, as they say.

BEST OVERHEARD COMMENT(again, there were too many): “ where are the grannies…?”

MOST(BEST) ENCOURAGING SIGHT: the size of the crowd. It was massive. Really massive. At one point, down past Canal, the rally paused. There is a slight incline in the road there. The entire front of the crowd turned to look back and down, along B’way. There was a spontaneous, deafening cheering as we looked all the way back, up town. It went on and on, blocks and blocks of people.

BEST FAUX PAS OF THE DAY: throwing my apple core, from an impressive distance,into what appeared to be a garbage can. Only to find out,it’s the collection holder for rally donations. Oops.

BEST ULTERIOR MOTIVE FOR ATTENDING RALLY: my downstairs neighbours are selling. They had an open house this morning, with lots of strangers coming into the building. Annoying, right.(anyone out there want to buy a kind of crappy 2 bedroom for,um, $700,000?)