Apathy, homeless, little else outside Mahaffey

ST. PETERSBURG -- A few detours, a large police presence, and thousands of feet of barricade surrounding the newly renovated Mahaffey Theatre have interrupted daily life in the downtown area as preparations continue for tonight's presidential debate.

Joggers and cyclists, forced away from the waterfront, are now sharing a stretch of road with the homeless as they continue to their ongoing sidewalk protest.

Well-groomed reporters have begun to funnel from the arriving local news vans.

Hundreds of people, many displaying national media credentials around their necks, usher to and from the theater, thumbing feverishly at BlackBerry's and cell phones, maintaining constant contact as showtime draws near.

Citizens, meanwhile, are relegated to outside the barricades, where a small smattering has started to arrive on the corner of First Street and Fourth Avenue S. Some are curiosity seekers. They don't have to look far.

On the corner, a man dressed as Abraham Lincoln slips a business card in his jacket, behind the "Vote for Lincoln" button pinned to his black topcoat. The same man exchanges business cards and debates the meaning of faith with an older man dressed in a blue blazer and khaki pants.

"I know you sir," he tells the fake Abe. "I know your background."

Down the street and clad in her trademark white-and-silver sequins, local protester "Princess Yahweh" tows a toy unicorn atop a makeshift skateboard, campaigning against balding men and dark forces. News crews, approaching her for an interview, quickly retreat.

Curiously absent this afternoon, however, are protesters and college students, said 26-year-old Andrew Yadzyn, a recent University of South Florida graduate.

"To see the lack of young people really is a surprise," said Yadzyn, pointing toward the nearby USF St. Petersburg campus. "There's a college campus less than a mile away."

Fielding several calls while sipping a large coffee drink from a nearby Starbucks, Yadzyn is trying to get friends to join him for the scheduled Ron Paul rally later this afternoon. He's offering to by them dinner.

"I want people to get enlightened," he said. "Or, at least have an opinion."

-- Casey Cora, Times staff writer

Comments

Its not apathy, its debate exhaustion. Thank God even the leftwing protestors have gotten tired of it.

[Brian Kern]

Today I learned that the Republican Youtube Candidate Debate was being hosted in Saint Petersburg - my home town. I knew the debate was to be in Florida, but I hadn't heard where until this morning.

`How interesting!`, thought I, `I might have a chance to watch the debate in person!` Even though I'm registered unaffiliated, I'm a fan of political proceedings, and I keep pace with election news in an effort to better know and understand the candidates that are on offer during the next general election cycle.

I did some research and found that the debate was to be held at the Mahaffey Theater. I checked the website's calendar of events, but found no mention of the debate at all. I thought this unusual, so I called the Box Office. No answer. I called the Executive Offices - no answer there, either.

As it happens I live less than twenty minutes away from the site of the debate, so after work I drove down to see what was going on. Instead of canddiates, I found police. Instead of an open political process, I found barricades.

Florida was chosen as the site for this debate partly to flatter us; as a state, we wield great influence in the electoral college, and our primary dates have recently been moved up. The Republican candidates have come to Florida to please us, to show they care, to connect with the voters. After all, this has been a battleground state more often than not in recent election cycles; it pays to make a good impression.

Despite my home city being chosen as the venue, I cannot attend this political function. If I want to ask a candidate a question, I have to submit it through YouTube, and hope that CNN and the rest of the mainstream journalists, who are running the selection process, choose to include my comment. I will not have a chance to see the candidates unless I do so online or through my television. They are visiting my home town, but I have exactly the same access to them as if they held this debate in Switzerland.

Rather than bring the American people close to hand to hear them directly, our Republican political hopefuls have shut themselves inside a media enclave several blocks deep. That the tower is digital rather than ivory makes little difference to those of us on the outside; once again we are excluded from the workings of the process.

I thought about going downtown to stand by the barricades in the hopes of catching the attention of a candidate. Perhaps Guliani would walk close enough that he could see me wave to him, or maybe Romney would stop to answer a question. Perhaps McCain would tell me something about his plans for the future of this nation. I'd even settle for Ron Paul at this point -- just bring someone over to the fence-line and let them say hello! I'm a citizen, a voter, an active participant in the process -- I want to know more -- I want to meet my candidates and learn their stances on the issue, I want to shake their hands and let them answer my questions -- I want to be involved!

Yet outside the fence I sit.

The debate is in my town. I am a voter, a citizen, a participant in the system. Yet the only people our candidates will meet with tonight are the media. They won't even have much of a chance to see my beautiful city, let alone listen to any of its people.

I have rarely been more disappointed.

I had thought to watch the debates tonight, but now I feel like there's no point. I've been reminded exactly how much concern our candidates have for the people of this nation. That we work here, live here, grow here, and die here is not enough cause to be heard.

don't feel so bad brian, you can still watch our dignified presidential candidates answer a questions from a snowman on TV.

[mike]

The candidates only care about what special interest groups are donating the most and which one are giving free trips, etc.,,They also want votes of course...but they really don't care about us regular people...The candidates are all wealthy...why would they care about us?

It was very simple to attend the debate. All it took was a little research. The event was listed on the Republican Party of Florida website for several months and had an area where you could sign-up to attend the debate. CNN also needed volunteers for the event. Several USF students took advantage of the opportunity to help out prior to the debate and all were able to sit in the audience. Governor Romney played football at 11am on Wednesday in Flora Whylie Park (formerly North Shore park), and anyone could play. Rudy Giuliani and Senator McCain attended public events at Midtown Sundries and Parkside Grille. All these events were listed in the SP Times. It just takes a little research as opposed to whining.