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Monday, August 15, 2011

The 2011 Ames Straw Poll Photo Tour, Vol. 2

Volume 1

Ames 2011 23 Wind Turbine Blade

In the first post, I mentioned the large presence of “green” energy advocacy groups. A blade from a wind turbine was on display to be signed by attendees and was very popular. I won’t get into the financial follies of windmills generating electricity, but please note that the politicians from Iowa all made a pilgrimage to sign the blade in front of the press.

Ames 2011 24 Food Line

Food lines dominated the back lot. You had to cut your way through them to get anywhere. Notice all the NRA caps. Multiple times I was stopped and asked where the NRA tent was because I was wearing one.

Ames 2011 25 McCotter Ice Cream Truck

McCotter’s area got next to no attention except for those of us who realized there were no lines to get Bomb Pops from the ice cream truck. Oh did that taste good on a sunny day!

Ames 2011 26 Thaddeus McCotter Volunteers

I felt bad about the lack of traffic and support there. McCotter can be a very funny guy but not many people know him. Hardly anyone stopped by to look at his literature.

Ames 2011 27 Santorum Tents

Santorum’s tents were always jumping. Having a decent band didn’t hurt at all and I was pleased to hear some covers of Buddy Holly songs.

Ames 2011 28 Guns SUV Freedom Sign

This sign had people stopping to take pictures of it. It summed up the feelings of the crowd pretty well.

Ames 2011 29 FairTax Tent 1

The back of the FairTax tent. I’d gotten separated from everyone from the bus very quickly and was looking for my father there. That’s the penalty for having one’s eye in the viewfinder most of the time. There was a constant flow of people through the tent.

Ames 2011 30 Tea Party Patriots Stage

The FairTax tent adjoined the Tea Party Patriots’ stage and associated tents. It was a nice setup that was almost completely ignored by the crowds.

Ames 2011 31 Bagpiper

I don’t know if Santorum was going for the Scottish American vote or if the bagpiper was just there. There was no smell of haggis being grilled, so that can’t be the reason he came. Though I did hear the hot dogs tasted like haggis.

Ames 2011 32 FairTax Tent 2

A lot of families visited the FairTax tent, just like four years ago.

Ames 2011 33 Media Interview

The media was everywhere interviewing people and chasing candidates. Little did I know I’d end up on camera twice later on in the day.

Ames 2011 34 FairTax Tent 3

A lot of animated discussions and occasional argument over the FairTax took place. At first it looked like a bad location compared to last time, but it turned out to be a great spot.

Ames 2011 35 Mid-South Tea Party Singer

Next door, a gospel singer failed to get much of an audience at the Tea Party stage. It was a preview of things to come as even inviting people to speak from passersby fell flat.

Ames 2011 36 Segway Mounted Police

The police presence was widespread. I still can’t take Segway scooters seriously even if police officers are on them. How can you command respect when you look so dorky?

Ames 2011 37 TV Trucks

The media outnumbered the cops by wide margin. An amazing amount of television trucks were present.

Ames 2011 35 Satellite Dishes

I kept waiting for a bird or two to be roasted by the microwaves, but that never happened so I had to settle for this shot of the satellite uplink dishes.

To be continued…

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