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we - my teenage son and i - went to the Kerry rally in warren michigan today. the doors opened at 4, and Kerry was scheduled to speak at 6:45. we got there around 5, and the line was looooong! thousands of people there - all crazy about John Kerry! it was heartening, to say the least. anyway- we stood in line for about 2 hours, mostly stood, sometimes moved...and then, when we were fairly close to the door, people started walking by saying that the doors were closed, and no one else was getting in.
well, i couldn't believe that, there were still so many of us standing outside in the cold. we saw Kerry's helicoptor circle, and then not land... everyone was talking about it, trying to figure out what the hell was going on, as it was now after the time that he was supposed to start. so, we over heard a policeman say that they had made room for 3000 more, and we would be going in.
when we went in the door, no one asked for our tickets, and there was no metal detector or bag checking ... hmmm... i thought. they herded us all into a gym - obviously not the place Kerry was going to be speaking there were speakers, over which we could hear the faint music of bon jovi. i overheard someone ask what was going to happen in the gym, and the guy said he couldn't say anything because of security.
cool, i thought! they are going to bring Kerry in here. i scoped the room, trying to figure out where he would come in, so we could position ourselves accordingly. well, sure enough we saw some secret service guys come out of the locker rooms, and moved thru the crowd in that direction. next thing you know, John Kerry comes into the room, and the room went crazy! we were so smooshed, but we had our hands out - i knew i wasn't going to see him speak, but damn i was gonna shake his hand! and i did! as did my son - he got a great shake! being over 6' tall and having long arms helps in a situation like that. i watched the handshake over the top of my head, and i'm quite sure that my son got "the full handshake treatment." i was most pleased that at his first ever political event, he hit pay dirt! ;-)
anyway, Kerry said that he had to go give his speech - or something like that - nothing he said could have been heard in that room - everyone was too busy cheering and chanting and clapping. anyone who says that people only support Kerry because they don't like bush is full of it. these people love the man!
he blew us kisses, raised his arms to mad cheering, and then left.
the feeling i came away with - Kerry is not going to disappoint people. i mean, it may seem obvious that a politician would hesitate to leave voters who had been standing in line for hours (and it got cold!) out of the building, but he obviously heard that there were lots of ticket holders still waiting to get in - he checked it out himself, and adjusted his plans to make what accomodation he could to make it worth the effort it took to come and see him. i was well pleased - true i did not get to hear him speak, but we got closer to him than we would have otherwise, and got the desirable and much sought handshake! it really is rather cool to shake hands with the next president of the united states. cooler still that my teen son did! he can't wait to go to school in his new Kerry t-shirt tomorrow, and talk about his experience tonight as his current event.
we did leave before he gave his speech - i didn't drive 60 miles through rush hour traffic to hear him over speakers whilst standing in a gymnasium (plus, we missed the inevitable parking lot gridlock) - so i can only talk about how he looked, and how the crowd loved him. he looks great! much better close up, in person than on the television. i hadn't realized that he was such an attractive man! and he definately displayed a certain sparkle. we, the audience, were assured that Kerry cares about us, and that he was disappointed that we were disappointed - yes, even tho he couldn't say a word that could be heard, he conveyed all that.
he did good! i've had my reservations about Kerry in the past. after the debates, i was most assuredly a full fledged supporter. after tonight, i am looking forward with enthusiasm to pulling the lever (or touching the screen, or whatever it is we do in my district) for John Kerry! taking the time to take care of us instead of closing the door in our faces, shaking my sons hand, thereby making this one of my most memorable and special political events ever, and really, just being so fantastic for 5 minutes or so with people that would vote for him no matter what... well, it was just wonderful, and i was well pleased.
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