Speaking of lies - Usually I dislike the writings of D.D. McNicoll but every now and then he pops out a cracker, like this one [paragraphs added] from today's copy of The Australian:
Tonight's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade in Sydney will, as usual, attract a large and enthusiastic crowd - and doubtless various media will report tomorrow that "almost 500,000 people lined the route." It is a nonsense claim made year after year despite all the evidence it is incorrect.
Five hundred thousand people is more than commute into the city each workday. The military precision needed to move 100,000 spectators in and out of the Olympic Stadium should have ended the Mardi Gras nonsense, but last year organisers claimed a crowd of 400,000.
The route is 2km long. Assuming 2 people per metre, each line of people behind the barricades gives 4,000 along the route.
To get 400,000 you would need lines of people packed 50 deep on either side of the road.
Around 30,000 will be there tonight.
Just to show I can do maths too, if we packed people onto the footpaths such that each person occupied just 30cm of space, 50 people deep would require a sidewalk of 15 metres! Slightly larger than Sydney proffers.
UPDATE - organisers claim 550,000 people turned out to watch the parade :-)
9:28:12 PM 
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