Columbus

SO I HAD some time today in my little weekend jaunt, so I went to check out what hopefully might be the last large protest by the New York-based WGAE writers.

It was a nice sunny day, and not too cold. So the conditions for the 250 or so picketers wasn't quite as dire as they've been.

(Every weather station in New York is trumpeting the ARCTIC BLAST! that's coming Sunday. Heh. I forgot they did that. Seriously, they're big about the Arctic Blast here. That's one above "cold front from Canada.")

If you've never seen the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle, it's an interesting location for a picket, chock full of multiple layers of symbolism.

First of all, the statue of Columbus, which you can see in the background of one of the pictures, is the point where official distances to and from New York are measured.

(Heh heh, geography geek, heh heh.)

So I guess you could say this was right in the heart of New York. Then there's that hoary old idea of Columbus and the New World, and what has this whole messy, endless, maddening thing been over but this new world we're all experiencing together -- the great, uncharted internet?

The building itself holds the New York offices for CNN, which is trenchant when you consider the sometimes suspiciously pro-conglom coverage the 3 month old walkout has garnered.

See? Multiple entry points.

Watching the pickets shuffle by, the other thing you realize is that even with hundreds of people, there is simply nothing human-scaled about the location. All that glass and steel, and the statuary across the way -- the way the tower shoots up and catches the brilliant midday sun. It is so very, very big, that even two hundred fifty people marching around can't help but look very, very small.

I walked the line for a short while in solidarity -- didn't really see anyone I knew, and didn't really talk to many people.

I kept working up the courage to say something to someone, but just didn't. See? I do have a bit of the Canadian in me, after all. At least I didn't apologize to a lamppost.

I saw Andy Samberg and Rachel Dratch from SNL. Didn't take their picture because hey, they weren't there about the whole picture taking thing. There were writers from Late Show and Writers with strollers. Writers with Jaunty Hats and writers who came in costume. There were baby writers and grizzled veterans who look like they'd worked with Edward R. Murrow and Sid Caesar -- who maybe remember when TV was from New York, and live.

Oh, and Michael Moore.

I did take his picture because, you know...it's not like he's camera shy. It was good to see him out there, though.



The mood, overall, seemed positive, and cautiously upbeat. There was laughter, but a lot of weariness, too. It didn't take a lot of intuition to pick up on the general feeling that it would be really super if this was the last time they had to walk around in a big circle like a dinkus.

Especially with the ARCTIC! BLAST! on its way.

I wished a few people Good Luck on the big meetings tomorrow night. The New York meeting takes place at the Crowne Plaza, not far from where I'm staying.

If I pick up a disturbance in the Force, like a million souls suddenly cried out at once and were silenced -- I'll let you know.