So, there isn't much of a story here, but I thought I'd diary it because it provoked at least a few questions on the part of myself and others.
If you check my email, you'll note that I am currently at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Amherst is a beautiful place, and next to it is Hadley, which is also real nice except for the whole massive strip mall down Rt-9. Anyways, I was walking to lunch when I saw this incredibly fascinating thing: the College Republicans were setting up on the Campus Center steps. In fact, they even had the local CBS affilaite (3-Springfield) interviewing them (why Sinclair Broadcasting's ABC WGGB-40 wasn't in attendance, I have no idea, but CBS3 only started doing news recently after forming so Springfield would have a CBS station, so they're a little desperate for news). Anyways, the CBS3 cameras were there, so I'm thinking they're doing some pro-war thing. Nothing too exciting there, as if we haven't seen that before. So, I go to lunch. If you're wondering what I had for lunch, I had a pita.
After lunch, I happen to walk back and realize that this was not your average rally. This was a pro-Walmart rally. Yes, a pro-Walmart rally. Now, it is important to give a little background behind this. The aforementioend Hadley strip mall area could be soon adding a Walmart superstore (to replace their current Walmart store) somewhere on that area. Now, the people of Hadley have been fighting this thing, and based on the signatures I've seen for the pro-Walmart expansion petition put inside the Hadley store (don't blame me, they have a Subway, and it's next to the Barnes & Noble), the signatures have mostly been questions about how or when they will manipulate their employees next. If there are any other Amherst/Hadley/Northampton Kossacks on here, any more illumination of this whole thing would help.
Meanwhile, heading back to UMass, I only caught the end of the speech. The pro-Walmart rally had attracted about 50 people, mostly people who were not at all pro-Walmart (my personal favorite was afterwards, when I thought aloud "What logic is there to be pro-Walmart?" and a girl walking by me said "None."). I think there may have been heckling too, but I wasn't close enough to hear, but this caused the older-looking man who was speaking to talk about how the other side could hold their rallies, and they wouldn't heckle. At this point, I wanted to shout "Tell that to Tom DeLay", but I wasn't sure if anyone would know what I was talking about.
So, the rally ended, but the questions remain. There are actually people who are willing to go out and support an organization that does not give health care, crushes unions, and sells things at low prices because they keep the prices on everything else low? Furthermore, these same people talk about shipping all the illegal immigrants back, some of them who probably work at Walmart for the same horrible wages? Of course, these are the same people who are completely hypocritical about the Bible, and even Leviticus, where they draw most of their stuff, so it's in their blood.