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| Former 4th ID Sgt Perplexes 150,000 Strong DC Antiwar Parade |
| 2005-09-27 |
| This past weekend, tens of thousands of protesters against the war in Iraq -- some chanting that President Bush was a liar, a criminal and a killer -- marched through the streets of Washington past the White House. Talk about raining on their parade. Marching 50 yards ahead of the demonstrators -- holding up a sign that said "Freedom is Not Free" -- was Ryan Ponder, 25, a former sergeant in the 4th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army who until last year was fighting in Iraq. "At one point, the anti-war protesters got so upset that he was marching ahead of them -- and was the first person that onlookers saw -- that they stopped the whole 150,000-person march so that he would get farther ahead of them," said one onlooker, a Capitol Hill staffer who asked not to be identified. "But he stopped, too," he added. "He truly is like the man who stood in front of the tanks in [China's] Tiananmen Square in 1989, unafraid to stare down a much more powerful force." We reached Mr. Ponder yesterday at the Capitol Hill office of Rep. Chris Cannon, Utah Republican, where he is an intern hoping to climb the ladder. Mr. Ponder said he was proud to have marched, calling it his "patriotic duty." Asked whether he had any close calls with a far deadlier enemy -- the Islamic insurgents in Iraq -- he said: "Of course I did. That's what happened when you're fighting a war." |
| Posted by:Captain America |
| #18 May I now snicker quietly about all those following him, or will it be called Schadenfreude again? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-09-27 21:04 |
| #17 hear, hear |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-09-27 17:43 |
| #16 One man with courage makes a majority. |
| Posted by: Mike 2005-09-27 17:34 |
| #15 bronze star |
| Posted by: Uninetle Hupating2229 2005-09-27 17:24 |
| #14 "I would like to see this "number" of diverse interest groups (Save the whales, Code Pink, Screw the Joos, etc.) go over to Iraq and conduct a protest in the Anbar Providence." Great idea!! If American freedoms aren't worth dying for, they can stay, too. |
| Posted by: Danielle 2005-09-27 11:31 |
| #13 Folks, we should all realize by now that moonbats aren't good at numbers (or facts for that matter). I would like to see this "number" of diverse interest groups (Save the whales, Code Pink, Screw the Joos, etc.) go over to Iraq and conduct a protest in the Anbar Providence. Ever see headless protesters? |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-09-27 10:50 |
| #12 |
| Posted by: mmurray821 2005-09-27 09:51 |
| #11 Million |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-09-27 09:48 |
| #10 The numbers were |
| Posted by: Elmereng Pheating4146 2005-09-27 09:19 |
| #9 interesting reading the comments about parade size. Interesting because we all just assume the MSM won't give us an accurate assessment and turn to the blogs to get real reporting on the parade, who was in it and what they said in their speeches. After the MSM dismal performance in New Orleans, I don't see how they are going to survive. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-09-27 09:00 |
| #8 smart boy, just got himself elected! Deserves it too, braving those crazy moonbats. Most are the harmless species, but there are always rabid ones present when they fly in formation. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-09-27 08:56 |
| #7 I was there and I don't think there was 100,000. I would estimate that it was only 20-30,000 on the parade route. Then again, not everyone marched I'm sure or made all the way to the finish where I was at. I have pics at my site. keep scrolling. http://stupidrandomthoughts.blogspot.com/ |
| Posted by: JackAssFestival 2005-09-27 08:32 |
| #6 Good for him. Great idea and excellent execution. As an aside, numbers don't mean shite when there are things you have to do to survive. It wouldn't be the first time thousands were completely wrong. |
| Posted by: MunkarKat 2005-09-27 08:29 |
| #5 (d'oh... clicked the button too quick) There were far more people, stretched over a far longer area that day than in any photo I've seen so far. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2005-09-27 08:19 |
| #4 I've been part of march of close to 90,000 before. It was leaving FedEx field on opening day. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2005-09-27 08:18 |
| #3 I've looked damn hard for photos showing these allegedly huge crowds, and I find... nothing. Only a couple of photos on Yahoo of the crowd at the Ellipse at the height of the demonstration; about 18,000 people altogether. These idiots are trying to manufacture a legend, at least in their own minds; some moron on Kos this weekend had even talked himself all the way up to 500,000. |
| Posted by: Dave D. 2005-09-27 08:17 |
| #2 Yesterday it was 100,000; today it's 150,000. Next week it'll be 250,000. Yesterday the 'Burg linked to a photo showing less than 20,000. Anybody seen a picture of 100,000? |
| Posted by: Bobby 2005-09-27 07:24 |
| #1 This is what it's going to take!!! I wish I could have been there with him!!These people have to be stopped!! This march was funded by FRAUDING the people of hurricain katrina to boot. KUDO'S Ryan!!!!!!!!!! |
| Posted by: ARMYGUY 2005-09-27 07:22 |