Doin' the anti-war shuffle

It's the dance sensation that's sweeping the nation! Or at least downtown Portland, Oregon this afternoon. What you do is this:

• Take the bus from close to chocolatesmudge and nedthealpaca's house to Hawthorne Street and walk several blocks to flamingweasel and joyquality's house. Meet their housemate Jason on the way. Meet flamingweasel's sister and wait for qousqous to arrive. Be glad that the rain has stopped.

• Walk downtown. Be impressed by the number of people assembling on the east side of the (Willamette) river, let alone Waterfront Park on the other side, which is where the rally is happening and the march is beginning. Get stuck in a big crowd on the Hawthorne Bridge as it is raised so a boat can go under it.

• Get to the rally and start looking at the signs and banners and stuff people are carrying. (My favorite: "French is just another word for nothing left to lose.") Notice an SUV with riot cops hanging off of it. Worry a bit. Wander into the center of the rally and listen to a speaker or two. Applaud and cheer.

• Start walking, very slowly, along the prescribed march route. Occasionally get your groove on to random drumming happening through the crowd. Notice that there are riot cops keeping people off the Morrison Bridge, but that they seem to be pushing people back in a relatively nonviolent and orderly way. End up under the bridge just in time to avoid a little rain.

• Continue (did I mention very slowly?) along the parade route some more. Admire the "bellies not bombs" belly dancers. When the parade passes the Saturday Market, at which point the food will smell so good that you cannot resist its power. Stop for food.

After food, we split up into groups: the ones who continued marching, and the ones who went to various places to prepare for movie night fun. The first bus on the way back to chocolatesmudge and nedthealpaca's place was hugely packed, partly with people who'd been to the rally and march. One guy saw my "No War" button and asked if I thought I'd stopped the war today.

"No," I said, "but I feel like I sent a message to my fellow Americans and the rest of the world that not everybody in the U.S. supports what the administration is doing." And that's the truth. I think that if Bush & company are as determined to have this invasion as they seem to be, it'll happen no matter how many people rally, march, shout, and scream in opposition. I just want as many people as possible to know that just it's just the U.S. government that's determined to destroy its international credibility and piss on even the idea and spirit of international cooperation --- not the citizens of this country.

French is just another word for nothing left to lose, kids.