Fears of violent protests against summit prove unfounded

CALGARY, Alberta -- More than 2,000 demonstrators marched in the rain shouting "Free the people, not the market" and "G-8, shut it down!" Thursday as the Group of Eight closed out a summit that was free of the kind of violence that left a protester dead last year.

The leaders at the secluded summit in western Canada never heard the protesters, who were half a continent away in the capital of Ottawa.

The summit was held in the Rocky Mountain resort of Kananaskis, about 65 miles west of Calgary, because its secluded setting made it impossible for protesters to get close, avoiding a repeat of violent protests at last year's meeting in Genoa, Italy.

"Each protest is becoming more and more impotent," grumbled a protester in Ottawa who gave only his first name, Dennis.