Welcome To The Cage

"LADIES AND gentlemen, please remove your shoes for inspection.' The command booms out over the thousands of people queued up on Causeway Street, waiting to enter the FleetCenter for the first session of the 2004 Democratic National Convention.

'Ladies and gentlemen, please be prepared to present your dental records.'

Vermin Supreme, long-time political-protest gadfly, pauses for a moment, then brings the bullhorn back to his lips.

'Please be prepared for a full-body-cavity rectal search. Remember, it is in the name of national security, and is part of your Patriot Act...'"

The Boston Phoenix reports from the Convention.