Over 215,000 people gathered to attend the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear, which goes to show that rational people still exist in America these days.

An estimated 215,000 people gathered in Washington D.C. over the weekend to attend Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert’s Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.

That’s right, 215,000.

While it may seem crazy that a rally hosted by two comedians would draw such a large turnout, the reason is very, shall we say, rational.

It’s clear that Americans are fed up with all the partisan bickering that’s going on these days. It’s hard to turn on a television and flip through the channels without finding some heated political debate going on.

In many ways, the political culture in America has gotten even nastier in the last few years. While politics has always been a dirty business, activists from across the country are now taking it up a notch. 

Between the loose accusations of racism and sporadic head stomping at political events, it’s clear that extremists from both the left and the right are in control of political dialogue in the country.

This past weekend’s rally goes to show there are still plenty of rational people left in this country who are tired of all the extremism. Despite the footage from the cable news programs, average Americans are still in the middle. We don’t have to choose between far right and far left. It’s OK to be moderate.

In comparison, the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear blew Glenn Beck’s rally out of the water. Beck’s Rally to Restore Honor, which he hosted on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial exactly 47 years after Martin Luther King delivered his famous speech, was attended by fewer than 100,000 people.

The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear’s attendance numbers go to show that Americans are tired of all the partisan attacks and the constant bickering. Plus, it proves that it’s OK to tell a joke once in a while, which many activists, journalists and politicos seem to forget these days.

The above editorial is the consensus opinion of the Daily Kent Stater editorial board.