It is a Tale Told by an Idiot, Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing

Shakespeare's line from Macbeth could have been used to describe yesterday's Obama rally in Madison, WI:

According to UW-Madison Police, more than 26,500 people showed up for the rally, making it Obama's largest since the campaign. Most packed into the mall on what turned into a crisp fall night, standing shoulder-to-shoulder from Memorial Library to Park Street, while others spilled up Bascom Hill.

They held signs that read "Moving America Forward," while every so often someone would yell out, "Obama, we love you."

Emily Lawless, a UW-Madison junior from Lakeville, Minn., waited in line five and a half hours for the chance to see the president live.

"You're not going to remember your accounting class when you're 40, but you'll definitely remember this," she said.

Enthusiastic, but will they vote?

But the thrill of seeing the president doesn't necessarily translate into supporting Democratic candidates during a midterm election. Even Lawless admitted she would likely not vote. "It's too much work with the absentee ballot," she said.

Most experts agree the Democratic drop-off has come from the liberal, typically younger, wing of the party, which seems disillusioned with the leaders those voters helped put into office.

History tells us that Obama will be lucky if even 25% of the people who showed up bother to vote. Candidates chase the youth vote every election cycle and every cycle most of them stay home.

By the way the line from Macbeth that precedes the line in the post title is this:

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more...

Shakespeare was a prophet.