**Pictures from Kerry Rally in Pittsburgh** (image heavy, 56k-watch out)

[One Taste]

Who knows, there might be some DUers in these! Here's the stage from where I started out, a couple rows back. I eventually moved up. :thumbsup: :)



Rusted Root performed a couple songs...they were okay, but really just time filler while the other 20,000 people got in.;)



PA is KERRY COUNTRY! oh, and security guys



County Chief Exec. Dan Onorato



First female Lt. Governor of PA, Catherine Baker Knoll



City Councilman...forget his name. :/ Got the crowd riled up.



I think this was the head of the Democratic Party in Pittsburgh? Maybe? It's been a long day.



Candidate running for office representing CMU/Univ. Pittsburgh area.



Candidate for Auditor General, Jack Wagner



I really don't remember who this was? A couple of them ran together.



U.S. Senate candidate Joe Hoeffel



President of CMU College Democrats



Ladies and gentleman...Ted Danson!



He had a really good short speech on the environment. Talked about how his dad was a Republican back when Republicans cared about the environment and conservation.



Former Pittsburgh Steeler running back Franco Harris



Bon Jovi sure rocked the crowd. Knows how to put on a show. His wife and kids were standing next to me for this portion. :)















Congressman Mike Doyle, introducing the next President and First Lady..



Starting to make their way out..



The man of the hour.



And Teresa..



John loving it!



John, Doyle, and Teresa



John and Doyle working the crowd.



Best picture of the night



John rolling up the sleaves, ready to get down to business.



Teresa introducing John. This was funny as John distracted both her and the crowd by talking to someone from the crowd and catching a hockey jersey with YALE on the front and KERRY 04 onthe back. "I'll wait," she said. :)



John taking the mic, really seems to love doing this kind of thing.



Kerry giving his stump speech. Teresa in the background watching.



Right after I shook John's hand twice. :) Look at the people mobbing him! A lot of politicians just shake a couple hands in the first row and move on. Not Kerry. After shaking my hand once he sort of jumped up and leaned into the crowd to get to people a couple rows back. What he leaned on happened to be my friends mom! Had her hat knocked right off her head and sort of got smothered by John's torso! :D Afterwards she said, "He is MUCH better looking in person! Wow! He sure is thin!"

[eriffle]

1. Wow

Wish I would have made the drive up from Morgantown. Looked like a heck of a concert with Rusted Root and Bon Jovi let alone getting to see John Kerry. I'm waiting to hear the RW say, Kerry married Teresa so he could carry PA.

[frank frankly]

3. I work in that aluminum building!!!

you can see my office

HOW COOL IS THAT>>>????!?!?!??

:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:
:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:
:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:

[snowbear]

2. Incredible photos!

Thanks for sharing them!!! :hug:

[question everything]

4. Wow! Up close and personal

Wonderful photos. And the patience to sit through all the "warm up" speeches...

[One Taste]

6. sit?!!!?

You mean stand!:D 1:30-7:30 baby

[liberalnurse]

10. Pittsburgh really knows how to have a rally!

You can feel the enthusiasm and drive! Fantastic.....


Thanks for sharing. Ita almost like being there with you.:loveya:

[PittLib]

5. Awesome pics!

I am so jealous ... I wanted to be there terribly - but alas, I had to work. Thank you for sharing. I've been scouring DU for hours trying to find word on the rally - and nothing. Finally - and it was great to see everything. Very exciting. Did you know how many people?

On edit: The first person needing identified is Pittsburgh city Councilman Sala Udin, and the second is city Controller Tom Flaherty.

[One Taste]

7. KDKA reported 20,000

I heard WTAE reported around 10k, I'd say KDKA's estimate is more accurate. From what I've heard the two lines (which were 6-10 people thick) stretched all the way from the point the metal detectors were at up by the Engineering building back through a few blocks in Oakland. :bounce:

[Carla in Ca]

8. Those are some of the best photos I have ever seen

I went through them 3 times. Thanks so much!:thumbsup:

[One Taste]

11. Thanks for the feedback!

Always good to have. It started getting ridiculous when Kerry came to shake hands...so many people fighting for a chance.

[One Taste]

9. Oh by the by, my left ear is still ringing..

you can see those giant speakers in a couple of those pics! :evilfrown: :evilgrin:

[One Taste]

12. A side note...

If anyone finds any pictures of the whole crowd from the rally, please post a link here. That was the one thing that was really impossible to get from my vantage point.:)

[blueblitzkrieg]

13. You got to see Bon Jovi AND the next president of the USA.

Lucky! Thanks for sharing these pics.

[jean]

14. there's a Kerry rally here - MN - today. They say the 'gates open' at

4:30 pm.

Do you have advice as to when we should get there and when Kerry might actually appear - this is at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

[One Taste]

16. Well..

Security should be a little more organized since it's an indoor venue.

Todays rally was supposed to open at 3pm, with Kerry speaking around 4:30 or so. It ended up opening at 4:30pm (by opening I mean that's when the people at the front of the line got in. It took a LONG time to get everyone else in -- actually a poster on here said that not everybody even got in, and after a while security just gave up with the metal detectors???), and Kerry spoke at 6:30pm.

I got there with my friend and his mom at 1:30pm, and we got to be at the front of one of the two giant lines. It was tough just standing there for 3 hours, but the people around us were nice and the weather was good. By 2:15-2:30, the line was further back than I could see.

So it all depends on how close you want to be relative to how long you're willing to wait. :shrug:

The warm-up speakers and such lasted about an hour and a half. So if they're on schedule in MN, Kerry should be speaking around 6pm I would guess.

[jean]

18. thanks so much for your great pix and for filling me in!

[friesianrider]

15. Pennsylvania IS Kerry Country!!!!!

Out near Harrisburg, here!!

That one of Teresa and the Pres looking out to the left is great!

BTW, where was this at (CMU?)?

[One Taste]

17. CMU = Carnegie Mellon University

I should've specified that. It was at The Mall at CMU campus, which is their big open grassy area. Very nice venue, but I fear for the grass after 15k people trampling all over it.

[JI7]

19. wow

i love the ones with him and teresa together. and that last one showing the back of kerry looks so up close and personal .

[cheshire]

20. Wonderful pics Thank you.

[arewenotdemo]

21. Glad to see Franco Harris

is NOT a Repuke after all! (he was listed as one in another thread)

[One Taste]

22. that list is BS

from what I've read of it.

[NoPasaran]

23. Great pics!

I went to CMU a long time ago. It's nice to see the place again.

[newyawker99]

24. Great pics!!

Thanks for sharing them. :bounce:

[CityHall]

25. You must have been right next to me

I was at basically that same angle, about two people to the left of you. Were you right near the girl who was jumping up and down over Jon Bon Jovi? In fact, I think I see my hand at the left of that last picture. Now I feel better about forgetting my camera, thanks.

[One Taste]

26. Yeah I think I remember that girl

She somehow ended up almost in front of me by the time Kerry came to shake hands. I was in a bright blue jacket..my friends mom was up against the railing -- short italian woman with one of the blue "John Kerry" trucker hats they were selling before the rally.

[One Taste]

27. Now that I think of it, I was right next to

two female volunteers that were handing out signs and t-shirts. They were on my left.

[Lori Price CLG]

28. Mike Rectenwald and I attended that rally! We were only a few...

feet from the stage.
I think Senator Kerry could hear the comments Mike was yelling, such as "imprison Bush!!" and "Put 'em behind bars, in a cell across from Saddam Hussein!" etc..!!

My comment, when Kerry talked about Bush letting bin Laden escape? "Bush *did* 9-11!!"

:)-Lori Price
http://www.legitgov.org/

[One Taste]

29. "imprison Bush!!" and "Put 'em behind bars, in a cell across from Saddam"

I heard that.:) That was when Kerry said he wished everyone could hear some of the suggestions he was getting, but he was glad some of these people didn't have a mic right?