In the Weeds, with Matthew Gallaway: The Protest Garden @1:45 PM
I arrived in Pittsburgh last Friday night at 11 p.m., or exactly 12 hours later than I had anticipated when I booked the flight a few weeks earlier. (Hey, that a.m./p.m. thing can be tricky!) This meant I couldn't join my friend Jennifer at the G-20 protest downtown, which after much internal debate (but before I realized my mistake), I decided I was looking forward to. After all—questions of political efficacy aside—who but the cold-hearted and dull-minded doesn't love the traveling carnival that is a great protest march? I was also curious to know whether there would be a contingent of non-heterosexuals. As everyone knows, they are essential to the success of such affairs. READ MORE 7
G20 Photos: Where the Right and the Left Meet (And Also Don't) @12:09 PM
Yes, I am totally obsessed with the G20! I mean, how amazing, on all sorts of levels. And what I love about the protests in this country is that there are fun places where the right and the left meet. Although: the anarchists make the birthers and the truthers look like wusses, honestly, because when was the last time a birther had to breathe teargas? (Just picturing Orly Taitz getting riot-copped is making my whole morning, honestly.) But both sides are strongly anti-bailout, and anti-big government. Also, both sides love their favorite TV shows. But both sides share even more. READ MORE 30
Good Luck, Pittsburgh! @8:55 AM
The G20—to be "the world's main economic governing council," according to Gordon Brown, did you know that? Yes, it is the secret world financial government, Libertarians, awake and take heed!—begins today and poor Pittsburgh is braced. Our thoughts will be with the unfortunately-named Banana Republic. You know, I want to break their windows usually whenever I walk by one, just because, gah, fug. Give me a correlation between rampant consumerism, world economics, bad fashion and the environmental disaster of international shipping and I'll trash that place myself. What were we talking about? Oh yeah, good luck, Picksburgh! Also good luck with your global warming, world leaders. 21
The Pittsburgh G20 Photo Gallery: Starbucks, Bus Haters, Buddha, Jesus, Arctic Foxes, Children Ready To Die @12:00 PM
Beautiful downtown Pittsburgh is preparing for the G20 onslaught in every way imaginable. We will also get to see, unfortunately, how the protests on the left are as scattershot and inchoate as this summer's town hall protests have been from the right. This here, for instance, is the kind of sophisticated commentary about Sarah Palin, arctic wolves, or foxes, or whatever, and also international super-prisons hat is actually coherent when you are high but makes you look like a huge moronic spaz in public while you are coming down. READ MORE 23
On The Front Lines In Pittsburgh @9:20 AM
Local shopkeepers address the possibility of violent protests during the upcoming G20 summit: "At Enrico Biscotti, Lagattuta expects the best but understands the potential for disruption. He said he isn't worried and expects his locally made cookies to appeal to everyone. 'If a protester wants to spray somebody with cat urine, come and get a cookie first,' he said. 'Everybody needs a cookie.'" Very true! 9
The Pittsburgh G20 Dance Party Video @1:00 PM
The G20 convenes in Pittsburgh on Thursday, and the kids are getting ready! I don't know, I'd still rather the college students burned something down, but I guess I will take extensively choreographed dance numbers. 6
