hurrumph...Open Letter to Rocky
Reprinted with permission
Dear Rocky,
Before the dust settles completely on the anti-bush rally, I want to make you aware of some problems -technical and philosophical - that Wednesday’s rally presented. I am writing while they are still fresh in my mind.
As you know, I was on the organizing committee for the “rally†last spring. In fact I took a lot of heat for the lack of publicity for that event. I was not on the publicity committee, but stuck my nose into that subject after seeing what was going on. I arranged for the Ruby Chacon artwork and the production of flyers, posters and PSA’s both in English and Spanish. I did what I could to help, and did so to my regret.
Whether due to the incompetence of the committee, the resolute efforts of pro-Bush infiltration, government suppression, or a combination of all three, the fact was that not one PSA was ever aired and not a single press notice was published! In addition, members of the committee claimed they had posted thousands of flyers at the University, in Sugarhouse and across the Avenues. No such postings ever occurred.
I am certain that were it not for your participation and your hard work in the promotion of the rally this Wednesday that the result would have been much the same. It was your passion and dedication that made the rally a success. The press would have ignored the event had it not have been for your involvement. The notice and praise you have received is well deserved.
The committee “We the People for Peace and Justice†was essentially the same as the people who have organized the last three rallies. I believe that you and I share a suspicion of “Coalition Politics†- especially when each group in a coalition insists on its own disparate agenda. The result was a fragmented message that could not be embraced by the entire audience.
While some speakers, WWII veteran Doug Wildforester in particular, expressed views that were welcome and needed; others alienated large segments of the audience. Tom Goldsmith did an excellent job in handling a sprawling program that was too long.
The sound system was not adequate for the crowd. This is the third time that this has happened. Why can’t the City and County Building have its own sound system? It could be used to augment sound for the Art festivals, Jazz Festivals and Living Traditions festival and other public events. In New England they sometimes hold town meetings in public squares. Perhaps the system could find some use in emergencies under homeland security? Also for rallies. Talk to the Art Council or Performance Audio and find out what it would cost to do it right…. something permanently available that low budget democracy can afford.
If you are planning on continuing your campaign against Bush and the War, I would hope you might look for another sponsor or another format.
Teddy Roosevelt called the office of the Presidency: “The Bully Pulpit.†The Mayor’s office has been your bully pulpit, and it is likely that you will not command the same attention once you have become a member of the congregation. None of your announced successors seems much interested in speaking out on national issues…and I might add that none of them speaks to me.
Best regards,
Gerald McDonough
PS: The Mantra of Bush
The “Scientific Theory†is a theory and no more.
Medicine’s too expensive just to waste upon the poor.
The air is clear, the earth is flat, and God is on his throne.
And if you get the Bird Flu, well so long, you’re on your own!
