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Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
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The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear was a political rally led by Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show of Comedy Central fame, on October 30, 2010 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The rally was intended to contrast with the more radical and crazed rallies put on by the Tea Party, and more specifically Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally. It was a resounding success, drawing "well over 200,000 people."[1]
Background[edit]
Originally, Stephen Colbert was going to have a satirical counter-rally, called the March to Keep Fear Alive, in the same place at the same time. Later on it was "revealed" that Stephen hadn't gotten a permit, so he and Jon merged their rallies into one and titled it the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.
The rally drew a large crowd and had a number of guest speakers and performers, among them The Roots, John Legend, Adam Savage, Jamie Hyneman, Don Novello, Ozzy Osbourne, Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam, the O'Jays, Kid Rock, and Sheryl Crow.
The overall theme was of rational concern (sanity) vs. crazed panic (fear), with Jon Stewart representing the sanity side and Stephen Colbert acting as the fear side. Throughout the rally, Colbert nagged Stewart about fears and threats, but was "defeated" by the chanting crowd, whereupon Stewart gave a speech about the importance of not letting fear and panic take control.