Safety In Numbers

The 9/12 Grand Tea Party March on DC seems to have devolved into an argument over numbers, with both sides making outlandish claims.

The liberal arts majors on the Left are allowing that "tens of thousands" were there, which is insultingly ridiculous. I lived in the DC area for many years. The pictures I've seen, whether overhead shots or the now-famous traffic cams show what can only be called a sea of humanity. The Mall is a large open space that easily swallows "tens of thousands." You need a crowd in the six figures to fill it up, and fill it they did.

On the other hand, claiming that 2 million people were there is silly, especially when you start reading rationalizations about "hey, there were people coming and going" "we went but didn't stay long" etc. Etc. Look, this was an event that was advertised on the internet, and mentioned on Glen Beck's show, among other outlets. It had absolutely no favorable pre-March hype to get people whipped up to go down to DC like you would for, say, an anti-war protest or an Inauguration or even the Million Man March. Getting 500,000 folks to show up on a wet 'n' dreary late summer afternoon in DC (just typing those words, I can feel a proustian rush of humid air that takes me back...) is impressive. Saying there were 2 million is simply hype.

The March did achieve one thing: it showed that conservatives could rely on their own media and communication outlets to organize in an impressive fashion. But, the March lacked the crucial Memorable Moment factor. Apparently, there were speakers, but no one there was saying "I have a dream" or anything like that. The Right has the message, but the Left is still the master of the gripping image.

And all of those "Obama = Hitler" posters were just plain stupid, even if you've read "Liberal Fascism".