I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
Before John McCain and Sarah Palin’s rally on Saturday night, the Democratic Party of New Mexico and others protested at Civic Plaza, on the corner of 3rd and Tijeras, well out of sight of the long line for those waiting to enter the McCain rally.
Three elected officials spoke at the event. Albuquerque city councilwoman Debbie O’Malley was up first and gave an at times sarcastic speech about Palin’s experience — or lack thereof according to O’Malley. The city councilor recounted her own elected experience, then said, "How can that experience possibly compete with the former mayor of Wasilla?"
Her most cutting line was a parody of a Palin line at the Republican vice presidential candidate’s speech. "There is a difference between Dick Cheney and Sarah Palin," O’Malley said. "Lipstick."
State Senator Dede Feldman followed and said watching the Republican National Convention was like "going through the looking glass," referring to Lewis Carroll’s famous book Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There. Feldman also read from Carroll’s famous nonsense poem Jabberwocky, and compared what the Republicans said at the RNC to the poem.
State Senator Linda Lopez was the final speaker and led the crowd in a call and response, asking the crowd, "Eight more years?" and the crowd yelled back: "No!"
After the official Democratic party of New Mexico protest wound down, the protesters walked a block over until they were across the street from the line of McCain supporters leading into the convention center. Obama protesters chanted constantly, while the line of Republican-supporters chanted "USA! USA!" for about 30 seconds. Other than some sophomoric insults yelled from both sides, there were no real confrontations.
The somewhat busy street between the two groups seemed to dissipate a lot of the tension that could have been present. The police did not seem to be worried about any possibilities of violence; less than half a dozen police officers were between the two groups.
