British protests in context

This week, something like 110,000 people marched through London, protesting for “peace,” chanting “All we are saying is give Saddam a chance,” and other nonsense. To put that into perspective, there were 400,000 pro-hunting protestors last year in central London — the biggest demonstration in British history.
On the day of the demonstration, I happened to be in London on business, and the protestors marched near my hotel. They were an exceedingly polite crowd, as they were mainly rural folk who didn’t want the lucrative sport of fox hunting banned (Mad Cow Disease had already impoverished the countryside). There were no childish demonstrations that I could see, and everyone was mostly dressed in traditional hunting tweeds, except for the three ladies who were topless except for strategically placed pro-hunting stickers and their open jackets. (No, I will not give you a link to the pictures.)
So while there are plenty of Britons who are in favor of a Saddamite restoration, it’s worth remembering that fox hunting really gets their national blood moving.