With pedestrian barriers and bleachers popping up downtown along Pennsylvania Avenue, the activist listserv over at counter-inaugural.org pumping out daily announcements for buses, trainings, and protests, and Black Tie & Boots tickets running as high as $2,000 a pop on Craigslist, the preparations for President Bush’s second inauguration are reaching a new high.

If you missed it, our December 15 post on the inauguration includes a basic rundown of what to expect in the way of protests, balls, and security. As we noted in our morning roundup, the Post ran a story today about the wide variety of protests now being planned.

Meanwhile, the N.Y. Times bemoans (ironically?) the fate of Bush fundraisers priced out of the party:

Roughly 90 people under age 40 each raised at least $50,000 for Mr. Bush. Though they were effective fund-raisers, some say they cannot afford to spend endless amounts on politics.

“I worked hard on this and I want to celebrate like everyone else, but at a certain point you have to draw the line,” Mr. Wine said. “I don’t know that that’s where we want to invest our money right now.”

Also today, the D.C. AOL CityGuide has posted their inauguration information page. Information about the parade and ceremony is available on the official inaugural website. The photo is a detail of an $8 inaugural key chain offered by the GOP.