My Forrest Gump Day in D.C.

[Oilwellian]

I just got back from the rally and had to share some of my photos with my fellow DU'ers. What a day. It seemed as though I was in the right place at the right time all day today to grab some fabulous shots. My girlfriend laughed at one point and said it was like Forrest Gump always showing up at the right place. We managed to get ahead of the marchers and walked along side the Iraq veterans who lead the protest.

Veteran leading the march carrying upside down flag.


Oh my god, look who I stumbled upon. :D Right after I took this photo, my eyes met with hers, I was smiling ear to ear, and she blew me a kiss. And I blew one back. How cool is that!


This is what I saw when I turned around.


And this is what was ahead of me...


A long way from home:



Look who else I stumbled upon:


It was intense at times...particularly with the veterans leading the way.








I wasn't too sure about these two. They just appeared before me so how could I resist not capturing them:


ROFLMAO!

Overall, it was a gorgeous day, intense and a wonderful experience. The Die-In kinda fizzled and people seemed perplexed about what to do once we reached the Capitol Building. I saw a couple of the people jump the barrier and get arrested but wasn't in a position to get decent photos of it. Santa Claus on stilts told everyone to lie down, and surprisingly most of those around me did. It was quite symbolic to the day, particularly seeing the veterans marching with a flag in a distress position, and a flag draped coffin with boots on it was in their midst. To me, that was heart-wrenching.




You can see all of my photos here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13629012@N06/

If you click the slideshow link, they'll be a nice size.

[countingbluecars]

1. Great photos!

Thanks for sharing.

[Freedomofspeech]

2. We were there with the Pittsburgh group...

what a great day, and thanks for sharing your photos. How about some of the signs of the pro-war people? Are they nuts, or what?

[Oilwellian]

6. Oh man...

My girlfriend and I got caught between the freepers and the human chain that roped off the crowd from the veterans marching on the street. I'm talking a space of MAYBE 3 feet between us and the freaks. We didn't give them the attention they were looking for. We walked with our heads down that entire block and completely ignored them. I did look at one guy though...he was so angry I thought he was going to come across the barricade and attack the veterans. They were PISSED that veterans were marching against this war. It was BEYOND their comprehension. How can they say they support the troops and then make such a spectacle?

[Freedomofspeech]

9. There were 4 of us walking to Union Station and one of ...

those idiots screamed at us, "Look at the Commie girls". They were a scary looking bunch of people. The best thing to do is ignore them, they don't deserve any attention. Everyone of them should be in Iraq fighting, if they believe so strongly in the stupid invasion.

[loudsue]

19. "Look at the Commie girls" ???? WTF???

Did you shout back at them: "You buy things at WalMart, who supports the Chinese communists' economy, and then call US "commie girls??? YOU are the commies!"

Just sayin'.... I would have probably started WWIII with those assholes.

:kick:

[defendandprotect]

3. Thank you!!! Looks like the anti-war movement is going to have to record its own history . . . .

cause C-span didn't cover it -- !!!!

[WillyT]

4. Thank You !!! - K & R !!!

:bounce::yourock::bounce:

:hi:

[emilyg]

5. Thank you.

Nice to see all age groups.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. That bus in the 5th picture

was here in KC last Sunday. Those guys are awesome.

Thanks for the great pictures!

[Oilwellian]

8. The bus was awesome

It was so.....60's. :D

[Arugula Latte]

13. I heard it goes ... "Further"

:)

[kas125]

14. Actually, it goes "Furthur."

;-)

[JohnnyRingo]

17. "Merry Pranksters"....You give away your vintage by knowing that.

...Or you're just very cool

[babylonsister]

10. Can you give an estimate of the size of the crowd?

I heard over 100 people were arrested. :shrug:

You had me at the Cindy shot. Thank you for sharing! :loveya: and one for Cindy :loveya:

And recommend for a day you will remember always!

[Oilwellian]

11. It was very difficult to determine at first

A lot of people didn't attend the rally but were waiting on the perimeters to join the march. There were huge groups everywhere but not all together. Once the march began and everyone began gathering on the street, it was a little easier to determine just how large it was. Rough estimate...between 150,000 - 200,000.

It seemed the only arrests being made were those brave enough to jump the barriers at the base of the Capitol steps. I saw at least 4 people do this but there could have been more. It was hard to see from my vantage point.

It was such a thrill to suddenly find myself so close to Cindy. She's such a sweetheart. Thanks for the recommend. :D

[jillan]

12. Thanks so much for the pictures and the report!

Not much on the news as expected, and I
have been wondering how things went today.

[ClayZ]

15. Yay, Bravo! K and R

:bounce: :patriot: :woohoo:

[JohnnyRingo]

16. K&R....Great pix, thanx for posting!!

Not only of high quality, but interesting composition too.
I enjoyed surfing thru all of them. Santa must have had the suit already and made the sign around it.....at least it was cool there.

I had to save those pix of the Kesey-like bus...."San Francisco Values"


Thanx again

[MelissaB]

18. Beautifully done!

Thank you!

[RestoreGore]

20. Thank you for these pictures and for being there

[onecent]

21. Thanks for sharing these wonderful pictures.

[livvy]

22. Great pictures of a great march! I'll post my pictures soon...just got home.

We were more in the middle of the marchers, so we didn't get to see the vets. It was hard for us to tell how many marchers were there. We guestimated about 100,000, but you probably have a better idea since you were at the front.
Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed the pictures!