Rally To Restore Sanity's Roots: "You Never See Moderates Take To The Streets" (VIDEO)

For the next couple of weeks, we'll be celebrating the upcoming Rally To Restore Sanity/March To Keep Fear Alive by highlighting the ways The Daily Show and The Colbert Report have long advocated for reasonableness. You're invited to take part! Remember a "moment of sanity" that was dear to you? Send me an email and tell me about it!

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Reader Joshua Feldman sends along a reminder of this April 13, 2005 interview between Jon Stewart and John P. Avlon, author of Independent Nation, which called for the return of a dynamic form of centrism (not, I gather, to be confused with the bipartisanship-sauce junkies that currently huddle together inside the Beltway). Did the interview leave an impression on Stewart? Well, for one thing, he does refers to Avlon's book as his "raison d'etre." And Avlon compliments The Daily Show as an institution that resists extremes.

I am wary of discussions like this, because they often stray into moments of false equivalency. But you'll want to stick around to hear Stewart joke, for the first time, about the idea of a protest, populated by reasonable people: "You never see moderates say, 'Let's take to the streets and shout, be reasonable!'" To Stewart's mind, it was difficult to rally people around that sort of "passion." I guess he's going to find out whether it can be done first hand.

WATCH:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
John P. Avlon
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Rally to Restore Sanity

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Comments

[underoath]

05:34 AM on 10/30/2010

John Mccain has never been a moderate

[Dr Carol LaBra]

11:30 AM on 10/15/2010

The real reason Stewart and Colbert and their friend O´Reilly have organized this drunken party is to keep everyone away from performing political actions on the local level which have been planed by the October 31st Coalition de International. EVERYBODY STAY HOME AND DO YOUR PART WITH CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE! Nobody needs to go more than 20 miles in any direction from where you live to protest the manufacture of weapons of mass destruction plants that exist in your own neighborhood. Going to any capital to protest the orders of any Fuhrer is nothing but an exercise in meaningless and impotent political masturbation if you then return home to enjoy obeying those orders.

For further information on the actions that are being organized in your own community go to the following links:

http://bramin.wordpress.com/page/2/

http://www.governmentcontractswon.com/department/defense/broome_county_ny_new_york.asp

Or do a google for what defense contractors there are in your area to see how desperately serious this is.

[Dr Carol LaBra]

11:41 AM on 10/15/2010

Or as Leonard Cohen said, ¨FIRST WE TAKE MANHATTAN AND THEN WE TAKE BERLIN!¨

Although even that was stolen from the original cry of , ¨Lover, first we take Israel! Then we take Palestine and then we will have the world desperately begging to fall...into our awaiting and open arms!¨

[319]

11:30 PM on 10/14/2010

The crowds will be huge... the speakers intelligent... and the truth shall prevail.

[StPeteDave]

09:37 PM on 10/14/2010

Jon Stewart did a great interview with Terry Gross for NPR. http://current.com/1knlv4c

Kind of ironic they won't let staffers attend, must be trying to be objective.

[HarpoSnarx]

07:58 PM on 10/14/2010

Oh BOTH sides huh?

[Franky Four Fingers]

07:21 PM on 10/14/2010

As much as I love Jon Stewart and Colbert and their rally, I can't help but be disappointed that so many people are traveling such distances to be a part of a rally which is pretty much comparing right-winged fanaticism with left-winged activism. I am glad people want to make a change but you can do a lot more by volunteering in your own neighborhoods.

I know a ton of people who are traveling from NYC to DC to participate in the rally but never bother to respond to any of the invitations I send them to participate in local events. Makes me wonder if these young crowds looking to participate in the rally are really serious about change or are just looking for some entertainment?

[StPeteDave]

09:26 PM on 10/14/2010

Can't imagine why someone flagged this post, it's a perfectly reasonable post. I don't agree with it, I can't go to this event, I wish I could. I believe that sometimes when you are being entertained, you can learn something too. This was not an abusive post, shame on the person that marked it that way.

[Franky Four Fingers]

11:07 AM on 10/15/2010

There are people in HuffPo who are worse than right-wingers at accepting viewpoints which differ from theirs. I don't even know why this "Flag as Abusive" button is available on HuffPo? I don't think the website keeps track of or ban people who get way too many flags or users who flag people randomly without any purpose. Its physically impossible to track something like this so why keep it?

[fromdnorth]

10:09 PM on 10/14/2010

Life is not so compartmentalized that to be entertained for a political purpose is a bad thing... People in this age can "multitask"... Politics can be fun, otherwise why do it?

There is a subtile device by baggers to suggest "don't do what we do, it is not a good thing"...

That attitude was put to the US Blacks in the 60s... Don't protest, it looks bad... Yes it does, but for whom...

If Baggers want to fight, bring it on... but we should not give up real estate and move out of the neighbourhood to make them feel good...

[Franky Four Fingers]

11:04 AM on 10/15/2010

I didn't say that people can't seek entertainment while they are participating in a social cause. In fact, I think its great that Jon Stewart and Colbert are working to get our youth motivated to participate in bringing about social change.

My point was that there are thousands who have signed up to participate in this rally. Stewart's viewers are mostly the younger crowd - between 20-35 years old. However, I don't see as many young people participating in local events. In fact, most discussions or political/social group meetings that I attend in the city are full of mostly older people who sometimes have wonderful stories of participating in protest marches for the past 4 decades. Almost all the folks I know who are going for the rally are very passionate liberals but can't seem to find enough time even during the weekends in between their weekend brunches and art get togethers to participate in the community.

I've even asked a few people I know, why they are willing to travel over 4 hours each way in trains and buses to be at the rally but not find even 1 hour to volunteer within the city and there is never really an answer other than - I like JS!

[circusfifthfloor]

05:58 PM on 10/14/2010

I truly thought that after akk these years, the trolls would evolve into something better, and smarter. Goodness, they are getting worse.....I guess it's pretty easy to keep those key-boards dry in the shallow end of the gene pool.....CFF

[Whinger]

05:50 PM on 10/14/2010

Waiting for moderates to take to the streets may be like waiting for the Mashiach!

[AbstractImp]

05:28 PM on 10/14/2010

When moderates take to the streets,
you have revolution: South Korea.

When the army refuses to fire on its own citizens,
corrupt power falls.

[irishgramm]

05:25 PM on 10/14/2010

This interview was done in 2005, I wonder what this guy would be saying about John McCains' political "transformation" today!!!!!!! Think he is probably agast at the way John McCain has become the antithesis of what he once was. And it has gotten worse, substantially worse!!! I just saw the Town Hall on MTV with the President, and I am always amazed at his fairness, and tolerance even when he is dealing with veiled attacks and calming the fears and frustrations people have with the current political climate. I simply could not keep my cool anywhere close to how he handles these situations, it's just remarkable how he does it. Let's hope the "center" gets out and votes and puts some sanity back in this election, cause right now it seems like Crazy Town, USA out there!!!!!!

[axt113]

06:55 PM on 10/14/2010

I think Jon himself was demoralized seeing how far McCain was willing to go, he used to have great respect for McCain

[Knowbetter]

05:09 PM on 10/14/2010

If ya can't run with the big dogs, stay on the fence.

Pick a side.

[axt113]

06:57 PM on 10/14/2010

No, what we need is to get back to a point where both parties may disagree, but they can work with each other to come to an agreement that benefits the country, that won;t happen if we remain so polarized

[Horus45]

10:50 AM on 10/16/2010

Won't happen with the current crop of "Conservatives" in congress.
Every time we plea for sanity they just get crazier!

[enhara]

05:03 PM on 10/14/2010

sucking up is neither independent nor healthy

[jnratliff]

04:58 PM on 10/14/2010

I know this would be tough to get done but!
We could stop the big money chase if we quit electing representatives.
We could appoint reps on a 2 year basis, without any campaigns, no ads no chasing the money around no more parties we could end all the dirty dealing and back stabbing.
How can we do that you say?
Appoint people by lottery. Put the names of the people in an age group of say 30 to 65 in your district into a barrel and draw a name.
That person represents his district for 2 years and then you draw another name from the barrel.
You do your duty as a part of your community (not as a carpet bagger that only came to your district to get elected) and go back to your former life.
No lifelong job, no retirement.
It could not possibly be worse than what we have now.
You know when we get you or your neighbor there that you will try to do a good job.
We could make America the real shining star!

[professor]

04:57 PM on 10/14/2010

The motto under the "Be Moderate, Agree with Me!" slogan:

"Radical problems demand moderate solutions."

[SwimUpstream]

04:49 PM on 10/14/2010

Only 2 stoowart articles on the front page today. HP is slipping