catscradle

Sunday I took the lightrail downtown to check out the DNC activity as the delegates and protesters had their first full day in the city of Denver. When we first got there, the feeling was laid back. Everyone, including all of the protesters, were very polite. The only tension came from the police force and as the day progressed the more the tension mounted. You can find them everywhere in full riot gear and armed to the teeth. You can also catch secret service roaming about talking into their sleeves. Yeah, they seriously really do that.

( Check out the pictures beneath the cut tag )

I'll be going back down there tomorrow to join the Procession for the Future Puppet March sponsored by the Alliance for Real Democracy, Tent State and various other groups. If I'm not arrested, I'll post more pics...

DNC News of the Day

Police ready to control riots at DNC - I get that crowd control and security is needed at any large event, but I was a bit dismayed by, "DPD policy is to arrest, book and jail protesters instead of issuing them tickets". Um, shouldn't that say rioting protesters or protesters in violation of their permits? The whole feel of the article is anti First Amendment. What about also being there to protect the rights of the people to lawfully assemble and voice their opinion? Denver police have a long history of unlawfully arresting protesters and keeping illegal files on people that go to rallies. When Mayor Hickenlooper took office he released the files and made the police stop the practice. People attending peaceful protests found themselves linked to violent organizations they had no connection with.

In other news, the people of Denver would like the folks back in the eastern states to know it does not snow 12 months out of the year. Usually. Snow in the forecast for DNC in August? Grasshoppers more likely - unfortunately with the algae problem we're having right now, grasshoppers and swarms of other bugs are not off the table. The people of Denver would also like to let the East coast know we have the running water and indoor plumbing. Thanks.

Speaking of the algae fiasco that may disrupt the Olympics DNC, here are some pics of the problem:



I believe that is the sewer sucker. I thought it would look more impressively threatening than it does. Looks more like a pontoon boat with a pump.



Here's a closeup of the algae that is threatening Denver's beautification project. This disrespectful algae is everywhere there is water right now.



This is what the lake normally looks like.



This is what it would look like on Saturn. Note the moon of Titan in the skyline.

Finally, I bet you're all wondering what's on the menu for the delegates at the convention. I'm not sure if it's on the scale of the G8 12 course fantasy meals, but it at least has health on the agenda: Denver Grilled For Restrictive DNC Food Guidelines. If they really wanted to give them the Colorado experience, they'd have them hike up Mt Evans with a pack of trail mix.

More as is comes in...

(A special thanks to sandiaheights for providing the icon and the scaled down pics! Thanks, babe!)