ROCHELLE RATNER

BUTTONS

"Unfortunately, we can't stop an anarchist from getting a button."

                                               August 18, 2004

                                           —MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG,
                                             on a program to distribute buttons
                                             to "peaceful political activists" during
                                             the Republican National Convention

She asks for a button, please. She promises to keep her voice down. Promises not to embarrass them. She asks for two buttons. Her winter coat, you see, it doesn't have any buttons left. Sure, she knows it's 85˚ out. She can also tell time. She knows the conventioneers will leave and it will be winter and the shelters that are staying open now to keep her off the streets will have their doors locked. She asks for three buttons, please. Maybe she can present more buttons and get more discounts. What if she wants to see Rent, like the republicans? Oh, that's in midtown. Tony and Tina keep her out of midtown. But really she needs to be where the crowds are. She thinks, just maybe, some kind-hearted republican might give her a dime. A dime doesn't go very far these days. Maybe she can tear off the pin part and suck on a button, you know, like people who used to smoke sometimes walk around with straws in their mouths. She used to be able to purchase cigarettes, not just these butts she finds on the dirty ground. She thinks, if she keeps her eyes on the ground, she might find more buttons.