Photos of Sanity

Some snapshots from Saturday's Rally to Restore Sanity/Rally to Keep the Fear Alive Rally, along with the text of Jon Stewart's closing speech.

I can’t control what people think this was.  I can only tell you my intentions.   This was not a rally to ridicule people of faith or people of activism or to look down our noses at the heartland or passionate argument or to suggest that times are not difficult and that we have nothing to fear.  They are and we do.  But we live now in hard times, not end times.  And we can have animus and not be enemies.

But unfortunately one of our main tools in delineating the two broke.  The country’s 24 hour political pundit perpetual panic conflictinator did not cause our problems but its existence makes solving them that much harder.  The press can hold its magnifying up to our problems bringing them into focus, illuminating issues heretofore unseen or they can use that magnifying glass to light ants on fire and then perhaps host a week of shows on the sudden, unexpected dangerous flaming ant epidemic.

Ridin' the Love Train: Sanity Has Been Restored

by Christine Wilkinson

I may not have much cash in my bank account, but today I am endorphin rich. I may actually be an endorphin millionaire as I am still riding high from yesterday’s Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert Rally to Restore Sanity/Fear on the DC mall. The day cost us only the Metro fare ($12 round trip for 2) as we were once again practical and thought ahead to pack a backpack with drinks and plenty of food. I almost felt guilty as the people sardined in around us kept saying that they wished they had planned ahead, too. (Well… read my blog people!:-). My friend Amy and her husband Paul did us a major solid by watching our daughter all day long, so not only was the Rally an utter blast, but I had almost forgotten how good it is to get out with my fun-loving spouse. I felt in my twenties again.

Good Morning: It's Sanity Day!

Sanity and Fear are here! And what weather we will have to rally on the mall: It will sunny and in the lower 60's. Not bad at all when you're in close proximity to tens of thousands of other people.

What's the rally about? It's about America, about how we view ourselves, about the things that divide and unite us. Here's how Jon Stewart expressed the difference between Republicans and Democrats: "Republicans love America. They just seem to hate about 50 percent of the people who live in it. Democrats love this country, they just somehow wish it were a different country."

If you're a bit uncertain about the when's and where's of this event, here are some links to help you figure out what Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are up to:

DCist has a handy guide of the various goings on, along with a list of do's and don'ts about what to bring.

You can view a schedule of events on the Washington Post's website.

TBD has a rally guide that also includes information on getting to and from the event.

We'll see you on the mall!

Is It News? Colbert, Stewart Cancel DC Rallies Due to Bedbugs

This just in: Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have canceled their October 30th rallies in Washington, DC because of "the clear and present bedbug epidemic in the nation's capital." Speaking for both Comedy Central stars, Stephen Colbert said, "When I titled my rally March to Keep the Fear Alive, it certainly wasn't my intention to actually scare the pants off everyone by bringing them to bedbug central." Colbert added in an uncharacteristically somber tone, "I'm scared, too."

Bedbug incidents have been increasing in Washington, DC over the past weeks, with reports coming in of bedbug sightings in neighborhoods and even government buildings. "There's no hiding from this threat," Colbert said.

Arianna Huffington, who was going to provide free bus transportation from New York to Washington, agreed with Stewart and Colbert's decision: "It's not just the cost of having to de-bug the buses afterward, but it would be wrong to subject people to this scourge."

Bill O'Reilly, host of The O'Reilly Factor, said, "I always knew that deep down Stewart and especially Colbert were chicken. Glenn Beck brought in thousands and Colbert and Stewart are just yellow-bellied wimps, running for the hills."

Is It News? by Bill Adler is All Life Is Local's humor column.

Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert Rallies Coming to DC: Expect Gridlock and the Wrath of God

On October 30th, Washington, DC will be treated to --or tormented by, depending on your perspective-- competing demonstrations by Comedy Central's Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. (Did we need to include "Comedy Central" in the description of Stewart and Colbert? Does anyone on the planet not know who they are?)

These demonstrations will be a satire of --or homage to, again depending on your point of view-- Glenn Beck's August 28th Restoring Honor to America Rally at the Lincoln Memorial.