Thursday, April 16, 2009

NYC Tea Party.



Notes from the NYC Tea Party
Today I attended the NYC Tea Party at City Hall. There were easily several thousand people there (13,000). While I have witnessed countless protests, this was the first I ever participated in. Below are some quick notes and pictures from the experience :[sorry, they are not in any particular order].


I was not alone:
Although I had planned to go with a friend, I ended up attending alone. Once there I easily mingled with so many people who share my disgust with the wasteful spending, outrageous and and punitive taxes and the general incompetence of government today. I was very surprised to find so many people who , like me, were participating in a protest for the first time.

Come on, make some noise!
As one who has witnessed many left wing protests, I have to say, we Tea Partiers need to open up a little more. Yeah, people hollered here and there, but that loud rhythmic chant that lefties make simply was not there. Even I took a little time before I started hollering. We need to get past this.




Signage:
There were some clever signs there. My favorite read “Tea Parties Today, Tar and Feathers Tomorrow”! There were way too many T.E.A (Taxed Enough Already) signs.

Race:
No surprise that the crowd was predominately white. I was surprised by the large number of Hispanics and Asians. From where I as standing (way in the back, sorry got there late) I could only count 12 blacks including myself, with the majority being female (8 Females, 4 Males). Come on brothers and sisters, we have to do better than that.

Speakers:
Clearly the best ones were the everyday folks that got plucked from the crowd. These people seem to have the exact words to describe the emotions of the day. The scheduled speakers and MC seemed to be trying to pump up the crowd rather than expressing any real sentiment. Newt Gingrich got the biggest reception. In NYC? Who would have thought?

Class and Age:
What ever was lacking in racial diversity was clearly made up in economic and age diversity. There were upper income white collar types easily mingling with middle class blue collar types. Ages ran the gambit from teens to seniors. I was surprised by the large number of middle class house wife types. They seemed to be the most active, waving signs and chanting.

Liberal photogs:
There were quite a number of liberal photographers there. You could pick them out like pepper grains in the salt shaker. They had that whole anti Globalization protester look about them, plus they seemed removed from the event. I did not have to worry about them snapping my picture, because the last thing a liberal would want would be to showcase blacks at a predominately conservative rally.

Things I did not get:
There was a small group of Obama supporters who were against all the spending but still supported Obama. They seem to blame Congress but not the President, go figure. The layout of the protest was also a mystery to me. City Hall in NYC sits on its own block. The stage could have been set in the park and the protesters could have ringed the park. Instead, the stage and half the protesters were on one side of Broadway and another batch of protesters were on the other side. Seemed like a huge disconnect. There was a lone guy there with a sign that equated gay marriage with the fair tax, I am still scratching my head over that one.

Thank goodness, no corny costumes!
At liberal protests, you cannot swing a cat without hitting some clown in some crazy get up. Thankfully there were precious few there. There was a dude in an Uncle Sam costume and shorts (it was freezing too) and someone with some kind of face paint way up front (I could not tell what it was, I left my glasses at home).

From the masses comes the one:
This is a quick thought I had about the Tea Parties in general. There is clearly an anti government-same-old-same sentiment out there in America. Anyone who can clearly voice it and tap into the strong emotions tied into it, could easily unite these Tea Parties into a solid mass movement. Such an individual would be a juggernaut come 2012. Now wouldn't that be Change? One of us, the ordinary, leading our great nation and ushering in the return of common sense.

So now what?
The main feeling I am left with after my first Tea Party is, now what? Where do we go from here? The ball is clearly in government’s court. Does it follow the media’s lead and dismiss this these Tea Parties as nothing more than Astroturf or does the government heed the voice of the people and halt in its march to madness? Stay tuned.

12 comments:

Ron B said...

I was not able to attend the Tea Party here in Atlanta but I had the same question. Now What?

We both know the answer to the question about the government. They will be dismissive. But like you stated if these protest are united across the country it will create a massive Congressional Change!

JMK said...

I wasn't able to attend (worked that day) but I was heartened to see (1) so many people there and (2) the MSM forced to do "damage control" in some cases even haranging protesters with lines like, "You know you'd be eligible for..."

It's also noteworthy that the government chose that day to release the DHS report that slimed Conservatives, Libertarians, veterans and those who believed in smaller government as "Right-wing extremists."

What next?

Not much UNLESS the people vote the spendthrifts out in 2010...and they're NOT all Democratic!

Conservatives have to be honest about this and recognize that G W Bush was as Keynesian as Richard Nixon or his own Dad, which is to say, about as Keynesian as LBJ and Jimmy Carter.

The reckless overspending, the bailouts and the "non-stimulating stimulus packages" began with the Bush administration. Conservatives need to get our own house in order. We must realize that a Rockefeller-wing Republican is as bad as a Liberal Democrat...a Christie Todd Whitman or a John McCain is nearly as bad as a Barney frank or a Ted Kennedy.

Clifton B said...

Ron B:

Totally agree with you on the government being dismissive. However, Ms. Napolitano's bogus report makes it clear that advancing the Tea Party message is going to be treated like domestic terrorism.

Clifton B said...

Hey JMK;

1. Yeah the media is doing damage control. They are going to follow the memo from JournoList if it kills them.
2. Ms. Napolitano's "report" was no accident. It was a message to all of us, what awaits should we continue to push forward with opposing big government.
3. GW Bush, certainly shares blame for cracking open the public purse. Had he stood strongly on the side of free markets, the Democrats would never have been able to easily move us toward socialism.
4. Finally, you are correct that the RINO wing is every bit as damaging as the Democrats themselves. Case in point the three RINOs who voted for the simulus package.

JMK said...

The good news today is that DHS report has proved to be incredibly embarassing.

Napolitano herself, had to come out and backtrack.

The first lines in that report clearly stated there is no evidence of any of this, no indication of a threat from the Right, it's just something, some in government came up with.

According to the DHS definition of a "Right-wing extremist", ALL of America's Founders would be "rabid Right-wing extremists" and the U.S. Constitution (the Bill of Rights was written specifically to LIMIT government action) would be an "extremist document."

The Constitution is on our side.

Gary said...

Great as always!

Sounds like, other than logistics, NYC had it going on!

Great report.

It makes you wonder just what will happen, as NYC isn't exactly Ft Worth, Texas on the old conservative scale! If the natives up THERE are restless, then Obama is done.

El Cerdo Ignatius said...

I wish my fellow Canadians could dig up some righteous indignation and stage a Tea Party style protest. Americans certainly know how to make their voices heard when things in government get out of hand.

Thanks for the great firsthand report.

Clifton B said...

JMK:

I could not agree more, that is why I labeled her a clown!

Clifton B said...

Gary:

When I found out the official NYPD totals I was floored! There is hope that American will not sleep walk into Socialism!

Clifton B said...

El Cerdo;

Hey Northern Neighbor, I do believe Canadians have it in them. Once the proper spark is set, they too will stand up!

49er16 said...

Wait! You attended a Tea Party? I thought only white racists attented the tea parties?

Anways thanks for the great posts. I discovered your blog today, and it already has me hooked.

Clifton B said...

Hey 49er16:

Thanks for stopping by, glad you like the blog and don't tell Jeanine Garofalo I was at the Tea Party, it might make her "limbic brain" explode!

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