We held our rally for healthcare and the public option at lunchtime, outside the Jackson Federal Building where both Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray have their Seattle offices.

Turnout was good: about 100 people, I'd say. We had about half-a-dozen speakers over 45 minutes. A cameraman from King–5 covered it, but I can't find anything on their website. A handful of people went upstairs to the senators' offices and delivered 291 pages of petitions.

One concrete suggestion that I came away with is to write a handwritten letter to the senators advocating for healthcare reform. Handwritten letters carry more weight than printed letters or calls and much more weight than emails.

Do it soon. If July slips away without significant progress on legislation, it will get watered down.

The news came halfway through the rally that Regence BlueShield are raising premiums by 17%. It was not well received.

I took a pile of photos. The best ones are at Picasa.

Mira and Will addressing the rally.