Obama Inauguration Expected to Pack Area Hotels

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap_travel/20081110/ap_tr_ge/travel_brief_inauguration

WASHINGTON – Tickets to balls and other events related to the Jan. 20 presidential inauguration will be hard to come by, but you can always join the crowds along the parade route, and Washington tourism officials say it's not impossible to find a place to stay.

Hundreds of thousands of people always gather along Pennsylvania Avenue to watch the procession from the Capitol to the White House after the swearing-in ceremony. You'll likely see marching bands and floats no matter where you stand, but you're not guaranteed a glimpse of the president and his family. Only bleacher seats require tickets.

The Monday holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day falls on Jan. 19, the day before the inauguration, which will also add to the crowds.

Be prepared for cold weather. According to Weather Underground's Trip Planner, since 1993, temperatures on Jan. 20 in Washington have run from an average low of 27 to an average high of 39. The temperature dipped below freezing in 11 of the past 16 years, and only once did it go as high as 60.

I went to Bush's Ricky Martin concert on the Mall in 2001 and froze my nuts off. Also, we didn't get anywhere near Bush.

That said, this is history. I will probably drag my kids to whatever event they have on the Mall so they can remember it growing up. A few hours of cold and misery will be worth it.

WashingToneLocian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I went to Bush's Ricky Martin concert on the Mall
> in 2001 and froze my nuts off. Also, we didn't get
> anywhere near Bush.
>
> That said, this is history. I will probably drag
> my kids to whatever event they have on the Mall so
> they can remember it growing up. A few hours of
> cold and misery will be worth it.


I feel sorry for your kids!LOL

The article also says

"On some Web sites like Craigslist, individuals are offering space in private apartments and homes.",

How do you Grid a Lock?

WashingToneLocian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I went to Bush's Ricky Martin concert on the Mall
> in 2001 and froze my nuts off. Also, we didn't get
> anywhere near Bush.
>
> That said, this is history. I will probably drag
> my kids to whatever event they have on the Mall so
> they can remember it growing up. A few hours of
> cold and misery will be worth it.

Why did you have your balls out? Oh, yeah, it was a Ricky Martin concert....

Lurker. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The article also says
>
> "On some Web sites like Craigslist, individuals
> are offering space in private apartments and
> homes.",

I've already thought about renting out my basement and guest bedroom. Not sure if I will, but it seems like a nice quick way to pick up a grand or so for a couple nights.

I just don't like renting out space to strangers. But if the price is right, maybe I will.

I have a 20-month-old daughter and my wife likes her privacy. So no renting out space on inauguration day, despite being a mile from the Vienna station.

WashingToneLocian Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I went to Bush's Ricky Martin concert on the Mall
> in 2001 and froze my nuts off. Also, we didn't get
> anywhere near Bush.
>
> That said, this is history. I will probably drag
> my kids to whatever event they have on the Mall so
> they can remember it growing up. A few hours of
> cold and misery will be worth it.


You're lucky Ricky Martin didn't get near your bush.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081111/ap_on_go_co/inauguration_tickets

WASHINGTON – The senator overseeing Barack Obama's swearing-in ceremony said Monday she's writing to Internet sites like eBay asking them not to sell scalped inauguration tickets. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., also said she's crafting a bill that would make a federal crime of selling tickets to the historic event Jan. 20.

Feinstein, who chairs the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, said she foresees overwhelming demand for the 240,000 available tickets and has heard reports they may be sold for as much as $40,000 online.

Ha, looks like they're preparing for 3 to 4 million people to show up for the inaugaration.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/17/AR2008111703672.html

That's fuckin' crazy!!

Guess I won't be setting foot near metro that day...

It's not an Inauguration...it's a CORONATION!

I read the number could be in excess of 5 million on AP. How is everybody going to get into DC?

Yeah, and there were a million people at the million man march. I would be surprised if one mill show.

we all seem to be forgetting that the thing will be held in the middle of the coldest time of year here, outdoors... expect the expectations to be downgraded as people take actual facts into account.

This is nuts! People should stay at home in their own state and watch it in HD on television. Our DC area is already a gridlock mess many days of the week. We darn sure don't need several million more people coming into town. And what's the chance that overcrowded streets/hotels/restaurants are going to be filled with calm, civilized people? Fat chance.

Very few people in attendance will even see or hear Obama, so what's historical about standing around in massive crowds, in the middle of winter, in WashDC? Will be sitting ducks for local street criminals.

Regarding renting out your home: What idiot would give complete stranger(s) the keys to your home -- no matter how much money you can charge? Shows a total lack of respect for your home and your family. Disgusting!

GoAway Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is nuts! People should stay at home in their
> own state and watch it in HD on television. Our
> DC area is already a gridlock mess many days of
> the week. We darn sure don't need several million
> more people coming into town. And what's the
> chance that overcrowded streets/hotels/restaurants
> are going to be filled with calm, civilized
> people? Fat chance.
>
> Very few people in attendance will even see or
> hear Obama, so what's historical about standing
> around in massive crowds, in the middle of winter,
> in WashDC? Will be sitting ducks for local street
> criminals.
>
> Regarding renting out your home: What idiot would
> give complete stranger(s) the keys to your home --
> no matter how much money you can charge? Shows a
> total lack of respect for your home and your
> family. Disgusting!


Dumbass.

I went to Reagan's funeral procession along Constitution Ave. Sure, I was far enough back that I could barely see the casket, but it was a historical moment and I wanted to be there for it.

What do you mean about the steets, hotels and restaurants not being filled with civilized people? Are you suggesting all those uppity and ignorant blacks are going to be uncivilized? You aren't supposed to be overtly racist anymore, hasn't your grand master told you that recently?

As for renting out your house, I'm getting ready to do just that. I'm moving all of my valuables and personal items into storage, and I'm going to make $5,000 in a week, or $2,500 for two or three nights. If you already own rental properties it isn't such a big deal. I own a ski condo and a beach condo, and several long-term rental properties in DC.

Ever heard of a security deposit? I'm going to ask for a $5,000 security deposit. Even at my ski condo in Aspen, I've never been "burned" for more than $500 in damages or cleaning fees. Plus, I have the ability to do credit checks and won't rent to people with anything below a 750 FICO. (I'm guessing that puts you in the not-rentable category.)

Expect anarchy! Le Poo will hit Le Fan! Deja Vu....
"Come on Baby! We gonna get some action!

Answer Man: Kindness Turned Brutality

By John Kelly
Post
Monday, April 25, 2005; C11

Do you remember Human Kindness Day? I remember very clearly my father driving us in the car through D.C. when a cop came up to our car and said, "Roll up your windows and lock your doors. It's Human Kindness Day." Whenever I bring it up to others who lived here in the '70s, I get blank looks.

Jenny Pike, Silver Spring

The milk of human kindness: Cool and sweet it may be, but left out in the hot sun it soon turns sour. And so too with Human Kindness Day.

The first HKD was April 22, 1972, and was officially known as Roberta Flack Human Kindness Day. The event was designed to honor the singer, who had attended Howard University and been a fixture at Mr. Henry's nightclub.

It was organized by a nonprofit arts education group called Compared to What, with the support of the D.C. government and the National Park Service.

The inaugural event went off without a hitch, with about 25,000 people gathering on the Washington Monument Grounds to hear Roberta Flack sing. The following year, comedian and social activist Dick Gregory was the honoree, and more than 35,000 people gathered for a five-hour concert at the Sylvan Theater.

By 1974, Human Kindness Day had gotten even bigger. Nina Simone was the honoree, and scheduled musical performers included Herbie Hancock and the Pointer Sisters .

We say "scheduled" because there were problems from the start. Organizers had trouble getting the sound system to work because spectators were sitting on the equipment. The Pointer Sisters finally started performing about 5 p.m. but walked off during their second number because fans had swarmed onto the stage, threatening it with collapse.

The Post reported that about 55,000 people attended Human Kindness Day III and that 24 people were arrested on assault and robbery charges -- which might have suggested that the bloom was off the rose.

But plans were made for Human Kindness Day IV, May 10, 1975. Stevie Wonder was the main attraction, scheduled to close a show that included performances by Graham Central Station and other bands.

The crowd was huge, an estimated 125,000 people stretching from the Washington Monument west to 17th Street NW. There were sporadic assaults early in the day, but the real violence didn't start until after Stevie Wonder's performance.

A 22-year-old man from Vienna was standing near the base of the monument when a group of men grabbed his wallet. He gave chase and was struck in the mouth with a club. An 18-year-old from Annapolis was jumped by a group of 20 teenagers who beat him and threw bottles at him until he was able to run to an ambulance. The worst injury was to Steven Laine , who was stabbed in his right eye while cutting across the Mall on his way home from work at the Department of Agriculture.

"I said, 'Help me,' and there was no response," Laine told a Post reporter from his hospital bed.

By the time it was over, there had been about 500 robberies and 600 injuries, and 150 people were treated at hospitals.

Kenneth Donovan was a 26-year-old U.S. Park Police officer who had recently joined the department's mounted unit. Seated atop a black thoroughbred horse called War Courier, he had a good view of Human Kindness Day's descent into chaos.

"People were blindly grabbing handbags," he remembered in an interview last week. "It got to be a thing to grab open a woman's blouse and rip it and run."

Police officers watched from the top of the Washington Monument as roving bands of youths attacked spectators and, according to The Post, "broke up and formed to attack again, often stampeding the crowd before them like tightly packed sheep."

Park Police considered laying down a tear gas barrage to clear the Washington Monument grounds but decided against it, fearing the rioters would spill into downtown.

Donovan said the reason law enforcement officers spent so much time watching the mayhem as opposed to stopping it was because of a deal that had been struck with the event's organizers: Security was to be provided by 800 armband-wearing volunteer marshals. The police had agreed not to interfere.

He said that back then, a police presence was seen by many as a provocation. "When they were trying to have rallies to celebrate anything, the presence of police was looked at as being a negative factor," he said.

A later investigation revealed not only that 800 volunteer marshals would not have been enough but also that a mere 262 had showed up.

"You can't really take a large crowd that size and more or less advertise that there is just no police protection," Officer Donovan said.

The city was bruised by the racial aspect to the violence: Most of the victims were white; most of the assailants black. D.C. officials worried about the upcoming Bicentennial and announced a moratorium on big pop concerts on the Mall.

Kenneth Donovan is still a mounted officer with the Park Police, and he still remembers Human Kindness Day. "I had been trained for years to protect the public," he said. To be told not to protect them stuck in his craw.

If only it hadn't been called Human Kindness Day. As a reader wrote in to Post columnist Bill Gold : "So much for kindness. I don't want to be around on Human Cruelty Day."

Sounds like the story of the time the Cranberries played a free mall concert on a school day back in 95, and half the kids in the area showed up, someone stole that annoying singer's guitar before the end of the second show. It got shut down and I think I remember the band running off to safety and the crowd swarming the stage.


good times.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 11/19/2008 01:58AM by RESton Peace.

Bob Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> GoAway Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> As for renting out your house, I'm getting ready
> to do just that. I'm moving all of my valuables
> and personal items into storage, and I'm going to
> make $5,000 in a week, or $2,500 for two or three
> nights.
>
> Ever heard of a security deposit? I'm going to
> ask for a $5,000 security deposit. Plus, I
> have the ability to do credit checks and won't
> rent to people with anything below a 750 FICO.
> (I'm guessing that puts you in the not-rentable
> category.)

$5000 grand for a week? What type of place do you own?