Posted on 09/14/2009 9:38:02 AM PDT by STARWISE
I have been doing some research analyzing photos and crowd data to try and ascertain the crowd size of the 9/12/09 Tea Party protests (which I blogged on here). It seems the best, most recent reference point is President Obamas inauguration, which was estimated at 1.8-2.0 million people.
If you look at the pictures from last Januarys Inauguration it looks at first glance like the Obama crowds dwarfed the Tea Party crowds.
The Tea Party Crowds did not extend back the Washington Monument (there were other events on the Mall yesterday).
On the flip side, the inauguration is a controlled, seated event. It has a uniform density of people sitting in chairs spread out on the mall. Here is a map showing the areas and capacity of people for inaugurations using an aerial view of the Mall:
(Links to USA Today graphic - can't be posted here)
(H/T Moderate Middle) What is clear in the inauguration model is that people are restricted in their movements and are assigned locations with specific capacity numbers. Now look at the Tea Party Pics, especially around the reflecting pool which shows a capacity of 240,000 in the inauguration model.
These two great shots (from someone willing and able to climb a light pole) show how there is no consistent density as with the laid out seating of an inauguration. Moreover, if you look at the inauguration model, the crowd does not spill out into the streets on the side, up the hill on the sides, etc. It also doesnt go under the trees on each side of the Mall. The Tea Party crowds were thick through all these areas.
In my opinion the crowd was over 1 million. Maybe well over 1 million. But it is hard to compare a crowd in evenly spaced seats in a much more restricted lay out to a crowd of varying density spilling out into every crevice and corner in front of the Capitol.
Given the high density and greater extent of taking over the open ground I think it is very possible the unadvertised Tea Party without any big name draws competed well with the largest inauguration crowd in recent memory.
It easily surpassed the inauguration crowds of all the other Presidents in recent memory. And that is saying something.
Update: Hopefully this answers Allah Pundits queries.
Update: Another good picture showing how the crowds are much more compact than during inaugurations:
Note how far people expanded left and right into the trees up to the Capitol building itself. I walked this part of the crowd and it was packed.
Update: This is a great collection of photos, and notice how dense the crowd is out into the distance of each and every one. It was a huge crowd. It was a respectful crowd. It was an intense crowd. The media and liberals can only down play this by denying the gathering storm is coming.
~~PING!
Awesome! Just awesome!
http://constitutionallyspeaking.wordpress.com/2009/09/12/conservative-patriots-v-government-trough-feeders/
This is a telling comparison...
It would be interesting to compare pictures of the aftermath on the Mall after 9/12 to the aftermath of the coronation (oops, that would be inauguration).
Thanks!
Congressman Billybob
Latest article, "A Million People Prove that NPR Doesn't Count"
~~PING!
Logical argument in the article regarding the controlled security situation for the crowds for the Immaculation vs the laxer security/open area infiltration by the masses.
#4
Tks
Update: Media credibility plunges to new low; Aerial Views added: D.C. Police close roads to buses, people on foot; estimate 1.2 million; ABC cant count..912 Party On Patriots!! (Video - with footage from MSNBC, CNN, AP)
If you ask me, it looks like the Obamination Inauguration photo looks photoshopped with the front crowd being copied and pasted beyond the reflection pool all the way down the street.
After the inaugeration, DC Metro put out ridership numbers for the day. Have we seen ridership numbers for Saturday yet?
Very nice Starwise!
Thanks StarWise.
Pigs!
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