A few months ago we visited our National Mall in DC and when we got on the Metro we noticed that there was an extraordinary amount of passengers aboard the train. We were soon to learn from conversations overheard that there was going to be a peace march from the National Mall to the Pentagon. The streets of DC were loaded with food vendors and button hawkers; the Mall truly had a carnival atmosphere. Two buttons in particular caught my eye, one was the ever pervasive peace symbol and the other was a mug shot of Che Guevara.
My wife asked a woman who the guest speakers were and this bubble eyed peacenik with perfect teeth said, “Susan Sarandon, Jane Fonda—of course—and Sean Penn.” I then quipped, “Was Forrest Gump there, did he speak?” This young lady gave me a look that could have killed.
There was also a police presence that could not have gone unnoticed; they were in the air circling in a helicopter, on horse back, and standing around observing the passersby. I had a sizeable backpack on that was loaded with a dynamite lunch my wife had made us, so when I walked by the police and Secret Service they paid me special attention. I stayed clear of the White House for that reason. I did not want to be tackled and have our cheese and pimento sandwiches mashed.
We ate our lunch in a sculpture garden near a huge monument to the wheel eraser. Remember them? They had a pink wheel at one end, and a bristle broom at the other. It was a great place to sit and feed sparrows the crust from my sandwich. In 10,000 years when our civilization is dust, what will archaeologist say of our time? I know what they will say; they will say that we “had an apparent propensity to err and worshipped our mistakes.”
At the end of the day we were swept down the Metro escalator by a crowd of weary peaceniks heading for the appropriate train. As we descended into the bowels of DC, a few enthusiasts for cut ‘n’ run began to sing John Lennon’s song, “Give Peace a Chance.” To our left a couple joined in, but soon it was evident that no one really cared, and the song washed out in mid-chorus:
"All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give [it a rest, shut-up, and go home]… "
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