wweek.com readers speak on…“Hundreds attend Portland’s Rally for Sanity,” Oct. 30, 2010
“I’m still looking for the WW pictures of the 6,000 or so tea party patriots who turned out at Pioneer Courthouse Square at a REAL rally on April 15th, 2009. Must have missed them.” —Victoria Taft
“…Your statement ‘a REAL rally’ smacks of a middle-school argument. ‘My rally was real, while yours wasn’t.’ What makes a rally real? This was a group of people with a message, just like your rally. It was just as real as your rally.
It’s snarky comments like yours that prove the point of this rally. You’ve denigrated politics to a middle-school name-calling contest and frankly, it denigrates our political system.
People like me—37 years old, working a job, raising children, taking care of my house and yard, commuting to work, buying groceries, etc.—are just too busy trying to get by in life to go to any rallies. When I see tea party rallies with a bunch of senior citizens (with ample free time), I know that isn’t the majority opinion of America. Most people in the middle are simply too busy trying to keep up with life to be able to attend rallies of any sort.” —Stockguy
“Both sides of the political spectrum have made asses of themselves with the way they demonize the other side. The idiots on the right who call President Obama a closet Muslim or a communist are just as bad as the idiots on the left who think George W Bush should be tried for war crimes. You have to be a complete moron to be in either of these extreme factions.” —Melinda C
“Victoria, your comment embodies the reason this rally was necessary. No political group or movement has the right to claim that they are ‘real’ and others are not. Yesterday’s rally was a call to action, albeit a somewhat muted action, in the face of those who only consider a collective political gathering a ‘rally’ if the time and space are used to denigrate the rest of America because their views differ. The Portland Rally to Restore Sanity was a wonderful mix of non-partisan speakers who gave informed talks about Oregon’s initiative process, the use of fear and Othering in the campaign process, local movements for political action, etc. But, more than anything the rally was a call for moderation in politics, which is sorely needed. The event was not only attended by ‘liberals’ and would have completely missed the point if it were. You should have been there, we would have loved to have shown you what a ‘different’ rally looks like.” —Tania
“These photos only show white people. Was this a Klan rally? I thought the left was all about diversity….
…Why does it take comedians to explain and promote the left’s message?” —Andy From Beaverton
