I know this isn’t exactly news since the Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear was in 2010, but as we close out 2012 in the wake of continued political ‘hyperbole’, fiscal cliff insanity, continued gun violence (and apparently learning nothing from it), and what seems like growing irrational discourse in the US, I thought that I would share my experience and a bunch of photos in the hopes that sarcasm to respond to lunacy mixed with small moments of sincere engagement dominate discourse instead of … well… what we normally see.
The Rally to Restore Sanity
On September 16, 2010 my partner and I were watching the Daily Show when Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert announced the Rally to Restore Sanity &/or March to Keep Fear Alive.
So, with a well-worded memo to our Dean requesting funds to travel (it was an educational opportunity… and my Dean was awesome about this kind of thing) and having to take four well-behaved college students (i.e., the ‘educational’ experience 
), and much enthusiasm we headed to DC.
Stewart encouraged everyone to make signs and so I tried to photograph as many as possible while the students interviewed people to find out why they were there, where they were from, and if they’d ever been to a rally before. The majority had not been to a rally before, they were from all over the US — many traveling just for the rally. And while some were only there for the spectacle, the majority also said they felt like it was something that … was more.
It was a funny day, a friendly day, and a day where a couple of hundred thousand people decided that being reasonable probably wasn’t so bad. These are my pictures of the day — the people, the signs, and the costumes that stuck out.
So, this was my day at the Rally to Restore Sanity — I also encourage you to check out the footage from the day, but especially Jon Stewart’s speech — it was a really good summary of what I think lots of people were thinking.
Enjoy the pictures!
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- I like that :)
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- In particular, I love the guy sucking down the cigarette :)
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- I love these two ladies — could they look more … middle class and holding these two particular signs… loved it.
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- but let’s not overlook the very serious consequences of allowing certain obstinately disingenuous individuals to influence policy and culture
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- Oh, Christine O’Donnell :)
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- Everyone remembers Christine O’Donnell, right?
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- The best political ad ever… for all of the wrong reasons.
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- All of the particular cause signs were interesting — beyond the occasion, people talking about what interested them.
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- Love using hyperbole ironically
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- “Balanced” often = bullshit.
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- If only everyone (liberals and conservatives) understood that!
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- Orange you glad you’re not a communist? LMAO
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- Great message.
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- There were lots of these types of signs — I liked them.
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- AMEN!
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- I’m a public school teacher. I will teach your children racial, sexual, and religious tolerance… .there were a whole gaggle of teachers there
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- With this picture, it’s not just the sign, but the woman holding it, the capital in the background… love it.
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- Stop bitching, start a revolution
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- … Yeah and it still is.
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- Facts are not decided by how many believe them. Truth is not determined by how loudly you shout… I LOVE this one!
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- Love the combination in one simple hat :)
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- Financial Graphs at a Rally… Awesome
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- I want you to stop drawing Hitler mustaches on everyone
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- as if we thought that would really happen (but how awesome would it have been?)
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- Could they be more awesome?
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- The random costumes were great … Halloween weekend?
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- Everyone remember the arguments about “real America” during the 2008 election?
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- Why did the independent sit on the fence?
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- It all depends on who you hate
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- Hmmmm… anyone spot the public employee? :) :)
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- Everyone remembers Christine O’Donnell, right? Yeah, there’s a few of her
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- I just thought the two things made for a nice chuckle
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- Make love not tea
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- Elect a real minority
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- Will for for sanity
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- Anyone have a Momma Grizzly in the house?
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- Say no to trickle down economics :)
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- Adopt a conservative… I loved these folks :) There were quite a few GOP types with these kinds of signs … it was cool to see.
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- What’s not to love about the people who dressed up for the rally?
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- Ewww … bad mental image ;)
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- Cognitive Bias + Wrong Information = Tea Party
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- Boehner, ya never looked so good
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- The squirrel was on the fence, we stopped and were looking around… before we knew it it was on top of the fence — we moved on.
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- :) People were seriously lovely that day … for as many people as were there, for as crowded as it was … people were very cool.
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- How awesome is this guy? I love the paper he’s holding and how it just… yeah doesn’t fit his look :)
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- than making Jesus a politician
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- The media was also well-critiqued in the signs
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- These were just great signs. All of these folks were together, so I thought it made a very cool collection.
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- I like this kid’s mom :)
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- Sometimes the irony wasn’t in the sign, but the combination :) :)
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- If you noticed a few signs with grammar or spelling messages, remember to how badly some of the Tea Party signs on the media were…
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- The multi-message sign :)
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- Clearly a local rally attender — love the bike and hat combo
