Wrangler Dani

The Tea Party, that is.

In the spirit of disclaimers/full disclosure/unbiased journalism, I have to admit that I did not go to a Tea Party yesterday.  I wanted to, but got called into work, then called out of work and it all worked together to not work out.  Feel free to judge this post accordingly.  Also, I’ve been fighting against writing this all day, as I hate making enemies or getting people whom I love worked up at me, and I’d really rather we all just got along and sang kum-bah-ya and kept our great jobs and loved our President.

But we don’t live in that kind of a time, it seems.  Our country is in unrest whether we like it or not, and there is a growing sense that we either take sides and stand for something, or stand back and lose everything.  In the spirit of standing up for something, I have no choice but to say that I am SO PROUD of all the Tea-Partiers who showed up around the country, with their kids, their ideals and their home-made signs in tow.

It’s disturbing to me that we have so quickly forgotten that Obama did not win by a landslide by any means, and that the freedom of speech and debate in the public square is essential to our rights as Americans.  It’s OK, even good, for us to challenge legislative action we don’t agree with.  After all, is this not a Republic, by the People, for the People? If we are not the “People” referred to in our Constitution, then who is?

The US Government has grown to bloated, unhealthy levels, in many people’s opinion (including yours truly).  The legislators who were voted into office on promises of caring for working people and protecting the American dream have slowly turned away from those promises, in favor of socialistic ideals and the pull of the “in-crowd”.  We’ve spent enough money in the last few months to put my grandkids in significant debt, and it’s understandable that voters are frustrated and want a say in all this.  It bothers me that honest, hard-working Americans are so marginalized by their own people.  This is not an extravagant desire, to want to be heard and exercise their “inalienable rights”. Why is it considered “Right-Wing Extremism” when the middle-class, that government promises to protect, rises up and demands their freedoms back?

I’d just like to point out that there was no looting at these Tea Parties.  No bashing in of cop cars like in the Prop. 8 protests a while back (which got almost constant media attention). There were no obscenities, although opposers of the Tea Parties tried to demoralize with vulgar sexual innuendo. (Which, as a side note, what does it mean for our society when we can’t even use a historic and patriotic call to action without becoming open targets for disgusting innuendo? Is nothing innocent or sacred anymore?)

I know that this video has been circulating the Internet, and you’ll probably automatically discount it because I picked one from the O’Reilly Factor.  But please watch. Ask yourself if it’s possible that so many thousands of people all across the country could really be rich, ill-informed elitists, or if it might just be that our freedoms really are under attack.  Are we OK with a country who only accepts First Amendment Rights for those who agree with us? Are we OK with the minimalization and marginalizing of ordinary folk with respectful opinions?

I’m not even going to get into all the reasons why I agree with most Tea Partiers.  This video made me cry for much different reasons.  I saw a Press that has been corrupted and a people who are continually cast aside because they had the foolhardiness to believe that they still have a voice that matters in this Democracy.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sENW0OU576U&hl=en&fs=1]