When the teleconference opened at 4:55 Wednesday afternoon, the cameras first gave attention to the results of yesterday's vote.
ARTICLE XXV. RESOLUTION: AN APOLOGY TO THE WORLD
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 3,009,071
NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 1,595,809
NUMBER OF "NAY" VOTES: 1,413,262
Since only 53% of the voters agreed with the resolution, it was apparent that many citizens believed in America's position as a world leader and global superpower. Only a thin majority of voters were comfortable with what might be perceived as weakness if the United States apologized to the world. If this resolution were to be passed into law, the panel of common citizens working on the final version of the legislation would have to word it with meticulous care.
The frenzied activity continued unabated as O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members worked around the clock preparing for next Tuesday's interim election. Everyone hoped for a massive voter turn-out, which would be a show of support for what the revolutionists were trying to achieve. The 'Rebellion of '08' couldn't be considered a success until - or unless - the preponderance of American voters ultimately stood behind it.
TV stations around the country were reporting that the O.U.T.R.A.G.E. 'headquarters' had been located in a warehouse just outside of Roswell, New Mexico. A news team from Santa Fe was on its way to try and confirm that rumor. A newspaper in Seattle, Washington reported the 'headquarters' was near Barrow, Alaska, where severe weather conditions might have easily hampered transmission of last Thursday's telecast. Commentators all had their opinions as to the secret location; many assumed it to be in inaccessible places. Op-Ed pages carried letters-to-the-Editor from people expressing fears about the ultimate O.U.T.R.A.G.E. purpose.
Today's on-camera activities were limited to a "man-in-the-street" kind of format, where clusters of O.U.T.R.A.G.E. people were interviewed as to what they were doing and how they felt this massive undertaking of recovering the U.S. government was proceeding. Most remarks were positive and casual. A few O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members became very emotional on camera, and one young woman even broke down in tears, questioning if there could have been "any other way" to affect the reforms they believed were necessary to keep America strong and stable.
The stock markets, of course, were in complete disarray ever since the initial explosions on January 17. Many of America's largest publicly-traded corporations were either not operating at all, or were operating only at disjointed local or regional levels. Shimmering glass towers that once were the 'international headquarters' of companies like Ford, General Motors, GE, Exxon-Mobil, and thousands of other big-name companies had been reduced to mountains of scrap, some still smoldering from the bombs that destroyed them forty-two days ago.
Trying to pull all this back together was a daunting task. Even with its tens of thousands of members, O.U.T.R.A.G.E. could not complete its mission without the support and cooperation of millions more Americans. Because communications were so sporadic and divided, it was difficult to bring people together. It was hard to even get a feel, or put a pulse on, the mood of America. People were still going about their daily duties, feeding their children and doing their jobs. But some psychiatrists were reporting a flood of new patients experiencing deep, desolate depression and severe bouts of fear and uncertainty.
Churches across America were seeing throngs of new faces; many churches were conducting services daily. Soup kitchens and rescue missions were serving more people whose homes or jobs had been destroyed as a result of the bombings. Those millions of middle-class and upper-middle-class Americans who always believed their lives to be secure, stable, orderly and untouched by financial loss or social disruption suddenly found themselves without money, food, jobs, or status.
The camera approached the table where Colin Powell and John McCain sat with a small group of former White House staff members. Having all worked for George Bush and Dick Cheney, these people were experiencing a lot of trauma, and Powell and McCain appeared to be trying to console and counsel them.
Powell turned to the camera, and made a very concise statement: "Folks, tomorrow is the sixth Thursday since America was struck by an internal revolution. Tomorrow we will have a public statement. Please encourage all your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and relatives to join you for tomorrow's viewing." He turned away from the camera and rejoined his meeting.
Without warning, the screens across America suddenly went black after displaying the familair two-line message. The next telecast would begin at 4:55 P.M. EST tomorrow.
ARTICLE XXV. RESOLUTION: AN APOLOGY TO THE WORLD
TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST: 3,009,071
NUMBER OF "YEA" VOTES: 1,595,809
NUMBER OF "NAY" VOTES: 1,413,262
Since only 53% of the voters agreed with the resolution, it was apparent that many citizens believed in America's position as a world leader and global superpower. Only a thin majority of voters were comfortable with what might be perceived as weakness if the United States apologized to the world. If this resolution were to be passed into law, the panel of common citizens working on the final version of the legislation would have to word it with meticulous care.
The frenzied activity continued unabated as O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members worked around the clock preparing for next Tuesday's interim election. Everyone hoped for a massive voter turn-out, which would be a show of support for what the revolutionists were trying to achieve. The 'Rebellion of '08' couldn't be considered a success until - or unless - the preponderance of American voters ultimately stood behind it.
TV stations around the country were reporting that the O.U.T.R.A.G.E. 'headquarters' had been located in a warehouse just outside of Roswell, New Mexico. A news team from Santa Fe was on its way to try and confirm that rumor. A newspaper in Seattle, Washington reported the 'headquarters' was near Barrow, Alaska, where severe weather conditions might have easily hampered transmission of last Thursday's telecast. Commentators all had their opinions as to the secret location; many assumed it to be in inaccessible places. Op-Ed pages carried letters-to-the-Editor from people expressing fears about the ultimate O.U.T.R.A.G.E. purpose.
Today's on-camera activities were limited to a "man-in-the-street" kind of format, where clusters of O.U.T.R.A.G.E. people were interviewed as to what they were doing and how they felt this massive undertaking of recovering the U.S. government was proceeding. Most remarks were positive and casual. A few O.U.T.R.A.G.E. members became very emotional on camera, and one young woman even broke down in tears, questioning if there could have been "any other way" to affect the reforms they believed were necessary to keep America strong and stable.
The stock markets, of course, were in complete disarray ever since the initial explosions on January 17. Many of America's largest publicly-traded corporations were either not operating at all, or were operating only at disjointed local or regional levels. Shimmering glass towers that once were the 'international headquarters' of companies like Ford, General Motors, GE, Exxon-Mobil, and thousands of other big-name companies had been reduced to mountains of scrap, some still smoldering from the bombs that destroyed them forty-two days ago.
Trying to pull all this back together was a daunting task. Even with its tens of thousands of members, O.U.T.R.A.G.E. could not complete its mission without the support and cooperation of millions more Americans. Because communications were so sporadic and divided, it was difficult to bring people together. It was hard to even get a feel, or put a pulse on, the mood of America. People were still going about their daily duties, feeding their children and doing their jobs. But some psychiatrists were reporting a flood of new patients experiencing deep, desolate depression and severe bouts of fear and uncertainty.
Churches across America were seeing throngs of new faces; many churches were conducting services daily. Soup kitchens and rescue missions were serving more people whose homes or jobs had been destroyed as a result of the bombings. Those millions of middle-class and upper-middle-class Americans who always believed their lives to be secure, stable, orderly and untouched by financial loss or social disruption suddenly found themselves without money, food, jobs, or status.
The camera approached the table where Colin Powell and John McCain sat with a small group of former White House staff members. Having all worked for George Bush and Dick Cheney, these people were experiencing a lot of trauma, and Powell and McCain appeared to be trying to console and counsel them.
Powell turned to the camera, and made a very concise statement: "Folks, tomorrow is the sixth Thursday since America was struck by an internal revolution. Tomorrow we will have a public statement. Please encourage all your friends, neighbors, co-workers, and relatives to join you for tomorrow's viewing." He turned away from the camera and rejoined his meeting.
Without warning, the screens across America suddenly went black after displaying the familair two-line message. The next telecast would begin at 4:55 P.M. EST tomorrow.
posted by Bushwacker! at 7:35 AM
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