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Tuesday, January 13, 2009 12:00 AM

Criticisms, political pressure and Barack Obama

The president-elect's advisors respond to the firestorm created by Sunday's remarks on Guantanamo, illustrating the value of criticizing Obama when he deserves it.

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  • Tuesday, January 13, 2009 10:39 AM

    @Gordon Ginsberg

    "A march needs to be massive and halt traffic during business hours."

    Nonsense. All you ever achieve by disrupting traffic is annoyed drivers (even drivers who aren't disrupted are sympathetic to the drivers). Effective marches need to be serious. The media have to pay attention if the march is composed of people who take it seriously, as opposed to simply appearing to be there because it's a nice day for a walk. It also helps if the marchers are different from the perceived "normal" marchers (essentially, students and middle-aged protesters who simply go because they love protesting). People marching down the street in suits and dresses get more attention. Stunts and costumes simply make the entire march seem like a parade in which people are there to have fun, not protest. If you take a look at pictures of old civil rights marches, people aren't casually dressed and laughing and having a good time. There are no people dressed oddly. They are dead serious and dressed as if they are going to an important event - which they are. Blocking traffic won't work - the focus will be on the traffic jam, with a brief mention (at best) of what the entire protest was about.

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