Barack Obama Rally. Bloomington, IN 4-30-08 (pix heavy- dial-up warning)

RainDog

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Wed Apr-30-08 11:56 PM
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Barack Obama Rally. Bloomington, IN 4-30-08 (pix heavy- dial-up warning)

Edited on Thu May-01-08 12:08 AM by RainDog

I just returned from a day of volunteering for the Obama campaign. He held a rally at Assembly Hall, the basketball arena on Indiana University's campus. We had to show up four hours before the rally began...then the rally started late. When I arrived at the venue, people were already standing in line to get in.

The national campaign first met up with volunteers. They were both professional and yet strangely devoid of republi-helmet hair. The Obama Indiana Campaign (insert the correct official title here) below.

The campaign said an important thing to us volunteers. Because we chose to come out to help this candidate, our behavior mattered. We effectively joined the campaign and if we acted like jerks, we reflected badly on the candidate. No confrontations with disruptors. No insults if someone starts insulting you... for some reason my mind drifted to DU...

Local organizers divided volunteers among about 10 team captains. We had more than 160 volunteers of all ages and I think it was four "ethnicities." I immediately saw a work friend I like very much. He and I always share musical finds. After we got set up, we had a long wait. Oh captain, my captain on the left.

The security included about four different groups. A policewoman was at the area where I was assigned to work. She regularly works the arena. She told me the venue seats 17,000 people (when set up as for a basketball game.) The doors to the venue opened at around 6 and people who had waited at least a couple of hours came flying up the ramp of the bldg to the upper level.

All ages, races, tastes... it was a blast to see all the different people. I took some pictures as ppl showed up, and at the time the rally began. While we were waiting, someone got a couple of giant beach balls going around the arena and a wave made a few rounds.

Baron Hill is the representative for this area. He supports Obama.

The rally was scheduled to start at 8pm. Some people had stood in line since 4. But people kept coming once the doors opened at 6. And coming. I went out to the policewoman and asked her how many people she thought were there. 12,000, she said immediately. I was surprised at that number. But people were on the floor of the court, and I couldn't see all the seats filling up sometimes because I was volunteering at a door.

Barack took the stage after Hill's introduction.

There were people on the floor behind the podium and as audience. they took up about half the court. Then the media set ups took up the other half. After he started speaking, people were still coming to the event.

The arena opened the balcony, though they had hoped to be able to keep it closed. Obama filled that hall and the mood was positive, joyful, sometimes, because here was future. -- The way beyond this horrific Bush kleptocracy incompetency.

Obama discussed his candidacy platform. Out of Iraq by '09 - with wisdom. Affordable college programs (no doubt a crowd pleaser.) He talked about personal responsibility, as a citizen of this country, to be a part of the process that makes progress beyond these last years.

After the rally I walked around a bit and came upon a poor man who had been so overwhelmed by this moment of Obamamania. He looked strangely familiar. hmmmm.