Out for a walk

My wife and I went out for a walk along the river here in our part of Kiev. We had watched something of the Court hearing on TV but left while it was on to go walk. It was nice to get away from it for awhile. But we saw enough to know that Yanukovych’s people want to delay things. The reason of course is that Yuschenko’s power comes from the crowds on the street and the fact that they will mobilize. But these people aren’t getting paid to be there even those whose companies closed to support the revolution. Will these people be able to stay for another week? Another two weeks? I don’t know but it seems to me that a point will be reached where they will have to go back to work to be able to live. I think that is what Yanukovych’s people are delaying for.

Just as we walked out the door, we passed three guys on their way somewhere with a radio. That radio was on the station broadcasting the hearing.

And there was no one to speak of out there. Usually there are people walking along the river every night though not as many as in the warm months. But tonight it was dead. And the grocery store we went into was dead. No one was there. Maybe they were listening to the hearing. Maybe they were down at Maidan, the square. They weren’t walking along the river with us.

That is one thing that might just come from this that would be an extra good thing. These people might get the idea that democracy requires people to be involved. They are involved now and in a big way. It would be nice for that to be an extra present from this revolution.

When we were down on the square on Saturday, the Parliament session was taking place. It was being televised and the screens at the square were showing it. To be there watching was like being at a stadium with a large crowd watching a football game. One deputy would say something and a cheer would go up as if someone had scored. Then there would be silence for awhile and another cheer would go up after something else was said. Score! When the final vote was tallied, they cheered loudly. (The Rada had voted censure of the Central Election Commission result.) A very interesting thing. Isn’t that the way democracy should work and isn’t that the kind of involvement that ought to be in democracies?

If the lid doesn’t come off here, I think the Rada will be a big winner. There was a sense that people thought it a legitimate thing. They paid attention to it as if it were. Maybe it will have come into its own by the time this is over.