There was a nice turnout downtown for the demonstration and as a speaker mentioned there hasn't been that many people in the townhall square since 1992 (when Denmark won the European Cup). I only took a handful of pictures, because there wasn't really anything to take pictures of besides people standing around freezing their asses off.

There were four speakers at the event and although the daughter of Iraqi refugees was quite eloquent and passionate in her speech the most informative speech was held by a woman, who had recently visited Iraq. She told of the appalling conditions and how they most certainly would only get worse if the country is attacked. If the power generators were to be bombed (which they usually are during attacks) the waterworks will stop working and people won't be able to get clean water. And if the country is attacked Saddam will stop delivering food to the 7 million people, who have no other income than the food given to them by the government.

The sanctions against Iraq already mean that the country is desperately in need of medicin and medical supplies and an attack would most certainly mean that more people would need medical help, but not be able to get it.
And as she told of what she had seen she also mentioned the European and American doctors and volunteers, who have tried to make a difference in Iraq for years. They've lobbied for a change in the sanctions, but apparently the US and Britain keeps voting against changes, so the sanctions remain the same. They've tried to let the public know about these terrible conditions, but nobody has cared the least about Iraq until recently, so all pleas for help have fallen on deaf ears.

Now, I don't know a lot about politics or what the rules are for invading a country, but I haven't yet heard any reasonable arguments for bombing this already miserable country to smithereens. It just seems to lack any perspective to just attack, try to kill Saddam, and then assume everything will be swell and keen. Obviously, everybody would like it if Saddam got put in a jail cell for the rest of his life and could the UN and America help with that I think most Iraqis would be eternally grateful. But if Iraq is attacked, invaded, and carpet bombed I think you'll be hard pressed to find any gratitude coming from a people, who are innocent and has nothing to do with this conflict.

I watched The Contender tonight and the conflict this fictional President has on his hands is not quite as serious as the one Bush is faced with. In the movie the Vice President has died and the President now has to choose a new one. His choices are basically limited to Grissom from CSI and Joan Allen and because of an incident, which is vaguely reminiscent of the Chappaquiddick scandal (Good senator, but a bad date. You know what I'm saying, folks?) Grissom is kicked to the curb and the rest of the movie is basically about trying to get Joan Allen approved for Vice President.

The story has a lot of references to McCarthy and the Lewinsky scandal and a lot of other shady parts of American political history. But the real kicker is watching Gary Oldman as a real scumbag and Jeff Bridges as a charming son-of-a-bitch, who just happens to be President. Bridges has a couple of scenes, where he is in public functions and in those he is charming and professional, but the scenes where he is just talking to his advisors and other politicians are what makes the movie really entertaining. When the door to the Oval Office is closed Bridges walks around in sweats and tries to stump the White House chef by ordering things like shark sandwiches. He plays bowling and curses like a longshoreman and is generally very unstateman-like, which is very funny. Several times it's actually like The Dude showered, shaved, and got elected to office. An illusion kept live by the fact that Sam Elliott hangs around the Oval as well.

The movie is in the same vain as Primary Colors i.e. if you have any dirt in your past it will most definitely be dug up if you're fool hearted enough to attempt a career in politics. The story has twists and turns and is complicated enough that you'll want to hang around to find out, who actually gets the job. But it's the acting that'll make you want to watch it a second time.