Today's protest march from the Capitol to downtown St. Paul involved some 12,000-15,000 marchers — and probably half of those have been around for a long time, protesting a variety of injustices, and often since the Vietnam War.

Although many of the rally groups were relatively new — Somalis protesting Ethiopian occupation, Ethiopians protesting "the Tyrant" who runs Ethiopia, Latinos protesting American immigration laws, Palestinians protecting Israeli occupation, Colombians protesting death squads, Dakota Indians protesting the violation of Indian treaties, Ron Paul and Ralph Nader activists handing out leaflets, Code Pink anti-war activists, Obama supporters, and one brave woman who carried a sign that urged, "Victory — Let Our Soldiers Win" — there were also some old stand-bys: the socialist workers, the anarchists with their red-and-black flags, a scattering of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. And all over Capitol Hill, there were older people shaking hands and slapping backs, telling and retelling old anti-war stories.