I am fortunate in that I live in the great Republic of Texas. I find it informative to occasionally compare Texas and California. Each are large states, with long coast lines and good harbors, and a large ethnic diversity in their population. Texas is financially sound, California is a basket case. I like to say our politicians are just as corrupt but they are much more competent.

You are correct Tort reform and some modifications to insurance regulations would substantially improve what we have now. Which just happens to be pretty darn good.

Have a great day Citizen.

Actually the first demonstration to protest the bailouts was in Seattle, on Feb. 16, of this year. Then Rick Santelli’s gave his “rant heard round the world” on CNBC on Feb. 19. During which he called for a “Chicago Tea Party” on the Fourth of July. but angry taxpayers weren’t willing to wait until July. Soon, tea-party protests were appearing in one city after another, drawing at first hundreds, and then thousands, to marches in cities from Orlando to Kansas City to Cincinnati.

On March 15, national Federal Income Tax Day, the Tea Party Movement was born. When at 300 locations in all 50 states will hold rallies — dubbed “tea parties” — to protest higher taxes and out-of-control government spending. There is no political party behind these rallies, no grand right-wing conspiracy, not even a 501(c) group like MoveOn.org. (I got all this from the Wall Street Journal – URL http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123975867505519363.html.

These are the folks the President and Congress ignored and the left called racist Teabaggers.

Congress began considering the Cap and Trade (Carbon Tax Bill,) and the protests and rallies multiplied, most were now smaller and more local than before. But by the end of the month Congress passed its infamous Cap and Trade Legislation, another trillion dollars we do not have, and this time it was passed without any representatives even reading the thing.

Immediately on the heels of Cap and Trade they began to consider a massive and total overhaul of the nation’s health care system. All through June and July there were hundreds of Tea Parties all over the country and at the offices of elected officials. You can google these yourself; try “Cap and Trade” “Tea Parties” There were Tea Parties on the Fourth of July but they were generally overshadowed by the traditional parades and fireworks displays with which this holiday is celebrated. Now Congress and the President noticed that the folks were upset and accused the Republicans of Astroturfing. Pelosi called the citizens un-American and the President told them to ‘Shut Up.’

Now August is almost over and many Congress Critters (This is pretty mild rhetoric) have heard from their constituents. The health care debate has gone from making sure everybody has health care, which they do, to cutting cost, which it won’t, to castigating the greedy insurance companies. I think it a bit extreme to destroy and rebuild our nation’s health system just to teach the Insurance companies a lesson. But I digress. The Tea Party folks have gone from being racists, to being ignorant Nazis, and are now puppets of the hated Insurance industry. That is pretty good for only six months of community organizing, don’t you think?

I have only responded to the first of your assertions, i.e. I have talked to several hundred of the many tens of thousands, I believe their intent is to save the nation from tyranny, their sources are the same as any person who has access to the internet.

Now how about you sharing with me information about the pharmaceutical and insurance lobby puppet masters, the names of some of their pseudo groups, and the ads that misinform and mislead?

Thank you very much.
Regards Sam

“Fairly reasonable” is certainly what we all should be striving to achieve at the very least, rather than wasting our time in name calling anyone on the basis of thoughts passed along in an effort to have dialogue and reach creative solutions we are all capable. Sharing information without distain for the fact that another has not somehow experienced all that we have ourselves has to find its way back into conversation. Aggression typically is met with the same and so it is up to us to step a bit above that with an ear to listen and expectation to be heard as well.

I have heard the name calling ( “Mr. Congress Critter” )criticisms. reminders to duty and generalities to save us from Socialism. These are not solutions. They are fear and trembling pleas that have no substance on which to put any ideas into the debate. Unfortunately, the screaming, name calling and theatrics become the message and any solutions that have been or might have been offered are too often lost in the shuffle and retorts.

“Unfortunately, many of our elected leaders think they know better than those who elect them, elitist, or they refuse to listen to the messages being delivered.” This is where we have to maintain our communication with those who ARE elected as our representatives of OUR government. WE are that government. THEY are merely our representatives. NOT a representative of a political party, which much too often gets priority over the public good.

My thanks for your good wishes and efforts to maintain a civil discourse.

Thanks too, for your contribution Janet. I will look at the WSJ on line, since I do not have the funds to subscribe. Tort reform always sounds like a good start for me. How is that going now… since those efforts were four years ago and before the mess we have inherited from the past eight? Perhaps we should keep bringing it to the front of discussions if it is still working!

Keep sharing your peace.

One of the great things about ‘Rights’ is that you do not have to justify them when they are exercised. We all have the right to speak, we are not required to speak the truth or speak rationally. We also are not required to explain why we wish to speak. The same is true concerning the right to bear arms. The man with the weapon was making a political point, his possessing a firearm at that event was an exercise in free speech. The fact that it made some at the rally uncomfortable is an indication that it was an effective exercise in political dialog. Some may have felt intimidated. I have spoken to three who were there and they were not. In fact they said they supported the armed man’s exercise in Liberty.

I agree with you that we are losing our respect for one another and consequently the free exchange of ideas is being inhibited. We have witnessed multiple shout downs of speakers who represent unpopular views at most or all of our major universities. I am sure you objected to the storming of the podium when the Minute Men were invited to speak at some campus, and that you would have jumped right up and defended Ann Colter from the pie throwing thugs when she was the speaker. Mr. Horowitz has just written an entire book about such lynch mob activities. Perhaps you think only those with whom you disagree should not be allowed to be unpleasant?

The citizens at the Town Hall meetings have been presenting proposals and ideas. The ones I hear often is “Mr. Congress Critter, please confine your activities to those enumerated powers allowed to you by the Constitution.” “We insist that you be as fiscally responsible with the public treasure as we our with our household funds.” “We do not want our nation to be a socialist country!” You could hear the same messages if you listen. Unfortunately, many of our elected leaders think they know better than those who elect them, elitist, or they refuse to listen to the messages being delivered.

I wish you peace and tranquil discourse on this the 233rd year of our glorious revolution.
Sam

These radicals seem to yell the loudest when their agenda is debated, while waving the flag of socialism or worse. It is hypocracy, one would think.