Then & Now:
The Draft Clark Movement Explodes – Part II

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The Draft Clark Movement Explodes: Part II

“That was one of the best half-hours of my life.” – Jill Squire
“The 800-lb gorillia is on the move. The NEXT PHASE has begun” – Cheryl Lahr
“The Summer of Clark” – Rob Stephens

Welcome back to “Then and Now.” In the last installment we read the transcript of Gen. Clark’s interview with Tim Russert on June 15, 2003. I called it an “explosion” in the movement.

Here are some numbers:

The WesleyClark2004 Yahoo! group, which was the only game in town at the time, opened that day with 179 members. By the end of the day the membership was 204, an increase of 25. By midnight the following Wednesday, membership had grown by a net of 67 new members, reaching the 246 member mark. The month of June closed with 288 members.

From June 1 through June 14, the group saw an average of 41.1 messages per day. From June 15 through June 30, the daily average was 168.4, reaching a high-water mark of 229 on June 23. There hadn’t been a single day with over 100 messages prior to June 15.

Prior to June 15, the goal of the two major Draft Clark organizations, DraftWesleyClark.com and DraftClark2004.com, was recruiting new supporters. The trick after June 15 was managing all the new people who wanted to get involved. Further, the first truly national set of MeetUps occurred just three weeks later, on July 7, as the number of people signing up for MeetUps similarly exploded. By June 24, registrants had exceeded 2000, a growth of over 1500 in nine days. By July 3, the number was over 3000. Furthermore, 83 cities had “converted” – the term for reaching the threshold to qualify for a meeting I was one of the 16 or 17 people who attended the first Denver meeting and joined the Yahoo! group that evening.

Within 6 ½ hours of the first broadcast, over 1000 new “please run” letters had been posted at DraftWesleyClark.com.

The interview set a time frame – “about two months.” That would have taken us to August 15. We began to point to mid-August as the target for announcement, and our anticipation, edginess, nervousness…and hope…grew almost daily.

Enough on the numbers. Let’s hear what some people at the time had to say about this interview. The comments all come from the WesleyClark2004 Yahoo! group.

The “Then and Now” Team

Stan Davis with Florence Upson

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At 9:04 in D.C., John H. wrote:

Hey! If anyone is watching Meet the Press, please let me know what happens!

We don't get it in DC til 90 minutes from now, but... it's all over the country, starting now!

JGrant113, who had joined at 7:49 a.m. that morning, was the first to comment after the show, at 9:57:

Hey...Just finished watching Meet the Press. Gen. Clark looked great! I've never participated in any campaigns, or have ever gotten involved with politics, but after aggravating myself with the "antics" of the current administration, I feel it's time to get involved. As a totally liberal Democrat, I have a feeling that General Clark may just be what the Democratic Party and the Nation needs to get this country back to the way it was. Right now, he's got my support.

Jill Squire replied:

Excellent. Sign up for the Meet Up.

Next was Marla Bowers:

DraftWesleyClark.com got a lotta free press.......AND!!!!! the General is seriously considering running for president!! YEAH

They even played part of the radio ad.......General had the SMILE on his face........says you're doing GREAT work!!

Followed by Elisabeth/Graham67:

Well guys, I think you've been noticed. ;-)

John Hlinko still hadn't seen it at 10:09, but his DraftWesleyClark.com was experiencing much activity, especially the “please run” letters:

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've been going nuts here in DC, since we don't get Meet the Press for another 20 minutes. But... yes indeed, was pushing this big time the last few days, hoping it would come through, didn't wanna say for sure, keeping fingers crossed, and... whoo hoo!!!

FYI, sign-ups are jumping -- big time! :D

Ah, can't wait to watch this!!! Wanna see what the General says!!!

Marla Bowers noted the explosion of letters at John’s site:

YOU SHOULD SEE THE LETTERS!!....I just took a quick look, but there was too many new ones to count!...and the show has just been over for 10 minutes!!!!!

It's gonna happen.......January 2005 is going be President Clark !!

Marla...... who has been up all night whelping a litter ( I show dogs )

I hope one of the boys is a top notch show dog....If so I have already decided to call him (my Kennel name's) Commander in Chief...call name *Wesley*

Carol Smith/Miami_Lorac to John:

Congratulations!

...also saw the sponsored link Draft Wesley Clark when I did a Google search for "Meet the Press" just now.

Debby Burroughs weighed in:

Sure sounds like he's gonna do it...great show. No statements like earlier ones that he's denying more than confirming--says he will certainly have to consider running! Can't imagine Bush speaking off the cuff for 30 minutes with such a vast amount of knowledge and ideas and no bullets to guide him.

And added:

The letters are still rolling in, with the exception of 2 of those Freeps, the consensus is overwhelming. The American public is hungry for someone to lead them honestly and fairly and with intelligence and no agendas other than love for country and doing the right thing.

John H. posted half-way into the show:

Hey, in a lot of the country, Meet the Press still hasn't aired, and in others it is going to repeat later, so... TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW TO WATCH IT!

Elisabeth reported that MeetUp numbers were also exploding:

OMG, meetup numbers jumped from 572 to 601 in a half-hour!
And commented on the letters:
I'm reading all the letters...this is just amazing!

Dakotah Burns/MisterIgnatiusReilly weighed in:

This is by far one of the most exciting things, if not the most exciting thing, that has happened since the movement started. Every time he was given a chance, Clark gave the indication that he was most likely planning on running. And notice his language.......for the past few months, he's been saying "I'm not a candidate, I'm not a member of a political party"....and today he said "I have not been a candidate, I have not been a member of a political party." Not to mention the fact that DraftWesleyClark.com got HUGE press. Now is the time to really push Meetup. Funny, just yesterday I was getting flack from people who wouldn't sign up for Meetup because he "had given no indication that he was running" and was "draining attention from the declared candidates"...well, for those people, this was a huge step towards getting their support.

Adam/PoliticalAuthenticity:

Yeah, Clark looked absolutely wonderful. That balance of strength and confidence with compassion and wisdom, and his adherence to the basic fair and just principles of our country, is so appealing. His failure to take the Democratic side, even though he is clearly a Dem, was a brilliant way of getting the attention and paving the way for future support of moderate Republicans. But I think Clark, while he is moderate in some ways, may be more liberal than it seems in other domestic issues.

Yes, the Nation would warm to him immediately, and then look back over to Bush and think, "What a joker". He just FEELS right, he is what has been missing for the last few years.

Al_Saiz had joined at 9:27 a.m.:

The General is the only viable alternative to the current administration, he brings what no other candidate brings - Stature, Integrity, Dedication to the wellbeing of this Nation...he is the first potential candidate that has sparked a sense of possibilities that I haven't felt since I worked for the RFK campaign. This possible candidacy is very exciting.

Next up was Rosemary/Theatro46 (joined at 9:30)

Hi,

I'm new here because I didn't know any sites existed until the general appeared on Meet The Press this morning. He was great! He's been my candidate for months now. Thanks for having this site for us Clark-A-Maniacs :)

Marla Bowers counted the letters:

I counted all the letters that came in the first 1 hour and 20 minutes and came up with 298 ........Not bad considering there's still a huge # of the middle-age to older population that do not have computers in their home.

Stirling Newberry's review:

Executive summary

Meet the Press:

1. General Clark handled himself very well, fielding tough questions on gays in the military and taxes with ease. He also managed to hit the important themes that will counter the current political atmosphere, both personal and political.
2. The General more than tipped his hat to the efforts of the Draft Clark movement, the DraftWesleyClark.com [and DraftClark2004.com] site got a mention - and I notice that John was ready for the people coming onto the site with a well baited hook to join the movement. Good work John, and thanks again to Kos for letting us use the site. It should get us a boost that we need going into the meetup season.
3. He has also joined the ranks of "contenders", including Joe Biden, who is also considering a run. Russert even said that he would not be invited back until he declared. So he's getting the message from both inside and outside that he's seen as Presidential.

Marla updated the letter count:

It's 8:50 am here ( meet the press ended at 7:00) ....I've counted 427 new letters so far.......

Jill Squire/Jilulu88 joined in:

I have to tell all of you that I haven't felt this good in YEARS! That was one of the best half hours of my life. I was feeling a little disheartened by the dem who was talking about the DNC and soldiers with stories. But today proved that Clark can pull it off. I can't wait for the first debate.

Some wag put up a poll in the group:

Enter your vote today! A new poll has been created for the wesleyclark2004 group:

Which candidate is best suited to defeat Bush in 2004?

• Gen. Wesley Clark
• General Wesley Clark
• Wesley Clark, General
• Wesley Clark, Gen.
• Wesley Clark, Supreme Allied Commander

John H. commented on the letter count:

Yep, and…a few hundred other folks have put their emails into the "updates" box on the top left (for folks who want to keep abreast of the campaign, but might not necessarily feel strong enough to send a letter --yet).

Please keep evangelizing for the Meet the Press appearence, and *for now* while it is hot, please point people in particular to DraftWesleyClark.com. We've got the radio ad posted there, we'll be posting the transcript, and we are getting supporters up the wazoo. Let's leverage this in a big, big way right now, while we can.

And MeetUp numbers are now at 656. Yowza.

Thanks to Josh, Stirling, Jason, Susan, and everyone who really helped to make this happen. (I'm working on 3 hours sleep, so apologies if I've spaced on thanking anyone else).

John, on the poll:

Now THAT is pretty damned brilliant. ;)

Speaking of MeetUps, Jill wrote:

This may not seem like a huge achievement to all of you in the big cities, but Portland Maine is a town on 60K people. I now have 5 absolute attendees for my MeetUp. I'm still working but I can't believe it is real just yet.

Adam/PoliticalAuthenticity (6/12):

I joined just a few days ago, and what timing to see Clark on Meet the Press -- confirmed my support for him. In case there are any Virginians out there, I started a group title VA4Clark2004 that will help us discuss more local issues pertaining to Clark. It is brand new, so a blank slate waiting to be filled.

Stirling to Jill:

One of the reasons we've been pushing the cities number - for example, it is in John's press release that US News picked up, and it has figured prominently in push mailings - is because it shows the breadth of the real support for Clark. Jill and Dakotah have both been working hard - and their work has paid off.

One of my favorite obscure Baseball stats is OCP - Opportunities Conversion Percentage. Basically, how what percentage of possible runs did a hitter turn into runs. The General has put a bunch of people on base. John has advanced them.

Now, as Jill has, we have to bring them home.

More on the letters from Marla, and other matters:

Well according to my calculations, Gen. Clark has just been elected the next President of the USA ;-).....OK.... so my math is a little fuzzy!

3 hours after MTP I've counted 630 new letters...including the one from Australia!

Amazing what happens, when the General gives an *almost* I'm running statement on a weekend show.

I almost fell off my chair laughing when I read part of this one letter..."...Except for my father, I have never begged for anything from another man, for you, I will make an exception...hopefully you will run... " :-0
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John.....since the General will be in DC at the Dem convention on Tuesday, do you not think it would be a good time to present him with the 'since NH' letters.....and to be a good press story maybe it should be a Republican for Clark person ( Josh??) give him the letters.?????

And I assume you have already thought of contacting Judy Woodruff with the reaction and #'s of the MTP interview.......should make for a good Monday on Inside Politics.
Elisabeth at 2:05 p.m. Eastern, on MeetUp numbers, just about 90 minutes after John posted the 656 number:
729 Members!!

Adam/PoliticalAuthenticity, to JGrant113 way at the top of the thread:

This point:

"I've never participated in any campaigns, or have ever gotten involved with politics, but after aggravating myself with the "antics" of the current Administration, I feel it's time to get involved." <

This is a big point. As frustrated as many of us are, what Bush is doing is calling to arms those with integrity and compassion who have NEVER been involved in politics to fight against him. A growing army is rising now, shaking people out of their political slumber, and this could change the involvement of citizens in this country (which usually benefits Dems). Howard Dean has capitalized on this thus far, and Wesley Clark will do the same (and perhaps the two could join forces on one ticket).

So have faith, and know that great things usually happen in RESPONSE to things that are wrong, and we may find in this respect that Bush is the best thing to have happened to our country -- because of the reaction against him that only he could have created.

Newbie (12:13 p.m.) Charity_2U/PoetY2K entered:

Hello everyone,

Up until today, I thought John Kerry would be our best chance to beat Bush in 2004.

I've always thought Wesley Clark would make a terrific veep, until I watched him this morning on MTP.

I never knew about his aspiration of being president. For this reason I had assigned him to be veep.

We need a candidate who has a strong back ground on security. Sept. 11 brought this home to us.

Wesley Clark is a man who people, including moderate GOPs, can get behind.

He has years of military experience as well as experience in leadership.

He headed the NATO forces during the war in Yugoslav which means he knows how to work with other countries. He doesn't have to imagine the horrors of war, since he knows about it firsthand. I liked what he said on MTP about war being the last resort.

We need a leader who we can trust on domestic and security issues.

I believe members of our armed forces as well as their families will trust him because of his background.

I disagreed with Clark about one thing. He said he has plenty of time to decide. He doesn't have time; so he should decide now.

I hope every Democrat group as well as moderate republicans get behind him.

We need an army to beat Bush in 2004.

Denver’s Cheryl Lahr/WClark04/WorkITn04:

The 800lb gorilla is on the move...

THANKS SO MUCH TO THIS GROUP OF CLARK SUPPORTERS - YOU ARE SOME AWESOME FOLKS and I can't wait to see you on the official campaign trail!

As you can see...nothing is going to be the same from here on out!

...the NEXT PHASE has begun...

... and you thought you all were busy before! :-) !!

Marla Bowers had been updating the letter count at DraftWesleyClark.com:

At 4 hours after MTP......862 new letters.....many are from Republicans! ;-).....oh! and one is from a State Senator ( WA-D).

John Hlinko gave a status report:

Astonishingly, hours after Meet the Press has aired in most places -- DraftWesleyClark.com is STILL getting new letters at a torrid pace.

This hit today has enabled this movement to take a quantum leap forward. And stay tuned -- more is coming. DraftWesleyClark.com is on a pace today to engage THOUSANDS of new supporters. In one day. That is astonishing. First and foremost, it is a testament to General Clark himself. People know quality when they see it -- and they saw it today in General Clark.

But it is also a testament to the people of this movement. A huge one. In nine weeks, we've used the power of the Net to build a national movement -- from scratch. We haven't spent millions. We've barely spent thousands. But we've worked hard, we've stayed focused, and we've helped to shape this into an intensely compelling story, a story with great appeal to reporters and supporters alike. A story whose final chapter might well read, "The first Internet movement to launch a Presidency."

We've gotten covered by dozens of newspapers, by radio stations, TV, by CNN, and today... on "Meet the Press" -- the longest running show in TV history, and more importantly, one of the most respected. How much would we have paid to reach the audience we have through all this earned media? Certainly hundreds of thousands. Possibly millions. But because we've stayed focused, and because we've properly conveyed the passion and creativity of this scrappy little movement -- we've gotten it for a thousandth of what the big boys would've paid.

Pat yourself on the back. Take a minute to think about all we've accomplished together. But then take the rest of the day -- and work like hell to accomplish even more. ;)

Jane (Jay) Bowen/fauxterp still hadn't seen the show:

I feel like I missed the big ship coming in! I was on my way to the beach at 9 this morning and just got the laptop hooked up to see what was up. I am blown away. As much of a beach bum as I am, I can hardly wait to get home and look at the tape.

Great job and this should make getting Meet Up number up a whole lot easier. This is just so exciting and energizing. This will be the first time in a long while that I can put heart and soul into a candidate.

Gonna have a beach beverage to celebrate!

The transcript was up. John wrote:

Pass this transcript around to your 10,000 closest friends. Like now. Right now. Do not pass go, do not take $200 -- SPREAD THE WORD!

This shows that: 1) We are now playing in the big leagues; 2) General Clark is well aware of us (and thinks of us as "amazing"); and 3) This draft can succeed.

We can talk about ourselves til we're blue in the face -- but when Tim Russert and General Clark are talking about us on national television... in glowing terms... THAT is something that will bring new people into this movement.

SPREAD THE WORD!!!

Gene Downs (joined at 2:59 p.m.) must have like what he learned, 'cause he became a regular:

I saw just a minute of Press the Meat this morning. Will it air again? I have the transcript, but I'd like to see the man in action.

I like to know more about the General's views - everything I've seen so far has been very, well, general. Has anybody got a good source for info?

John Norton/DygMyDog (joined at 2:47 p.m.) joined in:

Hello all

I am an active duty Marine musician in Washington, DC, and have been watching with interest the General's war analysis on CNN over the past months.

This morning, however, I finally hear on Meet the Press some of his positions/opinions (thanks to draftwesleyclark.com and the other draft sites for further info!).....I must say that I've rarely seen a potential candidate who has filled me with such optimism.

I really do hope he will get our message, and run.

I would like to attend a MeetUp, but I must look into my political rights as a Marine, just to keep everything on the up-and-up.

Best Regards

GySgt John Norton

Dukester105/CWBarron65 (joined 5/5, but hadn't posted in a while, if at all):

Thank you John, sportsbabe (?) and all the others so dedicated to this amazing Grassroots movement. Since I have signed up to all 3 websites and the auto forward of the posts from this Yahoo Group, I have bought my DWC hat and email friends, family and radical Right-wingers (to their great annoyance ;) ). Thank you from extremely hot Arizona.

Gen. Clark could not have had a more perfect performance on Meet The Press. He articulated is views and handled Tim Russert's hot potato questions superbly.

FYI to those that missed MTP this morning, the show is rebroadcast on CNBC two more times in my area, as they say, check your local listing. Also, clips from the show are on the MTP site.

Susan Putney wrote:

It's amazing what kind of response the appearance is having. Meet the Press also contacted DraftClark2004 late last week about our efforts in advance of the show and to discuss the DraftClark2004 website and how the two sites were connected. I explained that all THREE sites were working closely together to develop an infrastructure to encourage the General to run with each site providing a smorgasbord of information on General Clark and how to get involved. I also updated Meet the Press on our New Hampshire activities and accomplishments.

Several hours ago, we had more than 1000 unique hits today on http://DraftClark2004.com since his appearance so it seems like potential Clark supporters are doing their homework and liking what they're seeing.

All the parties on both draftclark2004 and draftwesleyclark worked together to write, produce and pay for the spots. Only one of the two involved websites was up and running at the time the spots ran so only one could be highlighted. Otherwise we would have highlighted both sites since the teams from each were intimately involved in the creation and funding process.

When everybody pulls together, anything is possible with all sites reaping the rewards of the General's eloquent appearance.

Marla updated her letter count:

Well I counted the 1,000th letter at 6 - 1/2 hours post MTP.. and those are just the letters we can read on site....I would guess there are as many more on the "don't show on site" form......

This has been such a great day!!

John...are you working on Larry King next???? ;-)

Dakotah Burns/MisterIgnatiusReilly’'s Inbox was crammed:

Whoa... my e-mail seriously nearly crashed today. I just spent the last half hour trying to salvage it. New Messages- 102. This "Meet the Press" event works on so many different levels. First, the obvious effect, which is the huge amount of new supporters generated from the appearance. Then, the effect of the subsequent stories on the event itself will generate another wave of supporters. After that, you can take into account the huge amount of new recruiters we have as a result of this wave. And in addition to all of that, all these new supporters/recruiters will hopefully help increase donations, giving us a chance to continue our laser advertising, which will then help us to generate even more news stories ourselves, thereby starting the cycle all over again.

ALSO- We are well on our way to passing John Edwards on Meetup. We only need 50 more sign ups, which is only a fraction of how many sign ups we've already received today. Hopefully, by the time many of you read this it will have already happened. I'm actually glad to hear that Clark may wait a month or two before he announces, because if we can pass Kerry before then (which I'm positive we will), it will really add to the news story that it was accomplished without a penny or a second spent campaigning on Clark's part.

Brent Blackaby, at 7:17 p.m. EDT:

Hey everyone,

What a great day it has been! DraftClark2004.com has received almost 1500 visitors since Meet the Press aired. Some of the comments being left by people are inspiring. Looks like we've hit a chord with the American public! Congratulations to everyone involved in the movement, but we can't stop. Let's capitalize on the latest momentum by reaching out and getting even more people to join us!

Looking forward to even bigger successes in the days ahead.

Susan Putney finally got to see the show:

I'm grinning from ear to ear at the General's comments. If he doesn't run now, I'd be very surprised.

His eloquence and knowledge brought me into this movement and his eloquence and knowledge continue to inspire me to jump through hoops to help make this draft a reality.

Sigout noticed Clark's reaction to the ad included on the show:

Maybe my perception was a little off because I was happy to see Clark doing so well on T\MTP, but it really did seem to me that he was emotionally reacting to the ads and the websites. He was moved. It was very touching.

Then the next day:

Rob S. then praised the websites and put out some numbers:

You guys with the Draft Clark websites are really doing great. The Summer of Clark (the effort to gather supporters of Clark during this summer to compel him to enter the race) seems to be very strong at this point.

I was concerned earlier this week about whether the quotas for membership could be reached (1,000 members in the Clark Meet-Up and 400 members of this group) by July 1, 2003. However, it is looking a lot better after the surge following General Clark's appearance on Meet the Press.

Also, in his Meet the Press interview, Clark indicated that he would have to consider running and that he would give it two months of thought. Therefore, congratulations again to the people with the Draft Clark websites and let's rally to make this truly the Summer of Clark and get him into the race with a strong show of grassroots of support. So remember to send the e-mail's to your friends, post fliers, send letters to local Democratic officials, or do whatever else you can think of to grow the Clark network.

In addition, it appears that this Clark group is prematurely gathering support from other Democratic candidate's supporters (Dean) who, I guess, are positioning to have Wesley Clark select their candidate for the Vice-President position on the 2004 ticket.

Amanda (Amy) Propes posted her story from "Meet the Press":

Just FYI- after drilling my (Republican) family yesterday to watch MTP, as of today I've converted every conservative one of them! Only for Clark, of course. And now they will be "campaigning" to enlist others as well. I've been preaching to them for months, but only the General himself could convince them.

To John (and many others): THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for all your hardwork! Your enthusiasm and positive energy have really made this effort fun and you're absolutely right -- "Politics shouldn't be boring". (Even during those "I thought he was gonna announce" times) I have had the privilege of watching all of this unfold and will never forget this remarkable experience! I say this now because I think soon we'll all be bantering on the official, official ;) Clark 2004 message boards, and don't want to forget to says "Thanks!" Amy

Brent Blackaby thanked Rob:

Thanks! This has definitely been a great team effort... and I like the idea of "The Summer of Clark". That has a great ring to it.

Let's keep it going! Keep spreading the word, keeping talking up Clark, and if/when you're ready, consider making a donation of your financial support to help fund some broader outreach efforts.

Cheers,
Brent

Kilo502003, who had joined the previous afternoon, on the interview:

Yes it was a very good performance and as far as I could see there was no acting within. Carville stressed that attacks must be responded to immediately and at the same time make sure you get your own message out. It was fairly effective once before. Having read many of the letters from the " draft " site I was impressed at the sincerity and enthusiasm Gen. Clark generated from the MTP interview. I believe that sincerity and a strong message was what generated so much activity. If Gen. Clark should decide to run it would transform not only the 2004 campaign, but hopefully the political landscape.

Denyse Rackel chimed in in response to Amy:

I too have been forwarding lots of information to several people that are in my circle that have been Bush supporters. However, seeing that the General may enter the race... they are switching gears. Hope is springing up within the Democratic circles too... as he is someone that actually has a GREAT chance to beat Dubya... I believe he is the one..... Denyse

Debby Burroughs had been reading letters:

I just spent about 30 minutes scanning recent letters to General Clark, generated by his appearance yesterday. There are common themes repeated over and over, namely that until they saw this interview, no one had hope that the current candidates could win, or govern any differently, many state they are losing/have lost hope for their country, they are afraid--now THAT's a powerful word--of the current administration having 4 more years after the changes that have been made, and that General Clark was the first leader that most had seen or heard in a long time who inspired these people to write, to beg, to volunteer to help in any way, to donate money....HOW AWESOME and inspiring those letters are to read. He just couldn't possibly turn away from those requests.

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Well, I have to say that re-reading these excited and exciting comments put me right back where I was at the time. Although I hadn’t yet joined the Yahoo! group, I felt exactly the same way. I remember watching the show and yelling at my cat something about divine solid waste matter. Although I had become interested in Gen. Clark as a potential presidential candidate, I firmly committed myself to the prospect on that day.

…

These are some of the comments made by ClarkRooters at the time. If your personal reactions weren’t included, tell us how YOU felt when you saw it over three years ago. Send your comments to sdavis8585@msn.com and I’ll include them in the next installment of “Then and Now.”

The “Then and Now” team,

Stan Davis and Florence Upson