Lets see...where do I start...maybe with apologizing to my apolitical wife for linking in her facebook account these thoughts. Secondly, let me apologize to those I have offended in the past and those I am about to... ;o)

A rather cautious estimate of the tea party crowds puts it at more than 300,000 Americans who took some time in the middle of their work week to be a part of a history-based and historical gathering. Too bad the MSM decided it was not worth their time. I suppose if there were cars overturned, or flags burned, or political figures being torched in effigy, or Molotov cocktails, or police barricades, or police in riot gear, or police on horses, or windows broken or paid political activists in need of baths...maybe then they might have shown up (or joined in). Instead, buses came, cars filled parking lots, flags were worn, carried and saluted, police were nodded to and thanked. Large crowds carried signs whose themes mainly focused on questionable bailouts, out-of-control spending, mortgaging the futures of our children, and high taxes as they peacefully listened to an array of speakers who shared their concerns. Although a few politicians and media personalities did appear they generally played second fiddle to the common man or woman.

Of course, we had the always-informed Nancy Pelosi poo poo the gatherings as rich-white-guy catered events as she mocked and belittled the obvious grassroots in attendance as "astro-turf".

And yeah, we had Janeane Garofalo teaming with Keith Olbermann referring to the attendees as stupid and obviously nothing but a bunch of racists.

We had a CNN reporter not liking the reasoned answer she was getting from a father holding his young son in one arm, turn a supposed interview into an agenda driven shouting match and when losing that too turning to her camera and blaming the result on Fox News. Pretty funny stuff.

Over 12,500 people (police estimate) got together at one Tea Party that was put together by a 20-something unknown kid via the internet in liberal New York and the New York Times felt that deserved a page 6 mention. Pretty telling, that same edition had a story about a protest in Afghanistan with a dozen people on page 1.

The major networks made quick mention and moved on...and so it goes. But yes, yes there was Fox News who made the awful mistake of recognizing that 300,000 people gathering in 600+ locations across the country as something newsworthy.

It is also telling that, like CNN scouring the crowd to find someone with a sign they could exploit the message of in a way that would reflect badly on the Tea Partiers, that if you go to left-wing sites with articles about the Partiers they too will have a picture of one lone sign carrier with some message THEY wish to brand the get-together with. I suggest you read a couple hundred or so signs before you do your own branding.

And right here we have some chortling in amusement at the silly tea partiers and their Johnny-come-lately protest. Pointing fingers and castigating them for not coming out during the last administration while parroting the unfounded characterizations of the MSM and some left-wing politicians. I guess the chortlers forget that many of us showed our feelings by not coming out during the last couple elections or by coming out for alternative candidates (maybe even THEIRS). They also don't want to open their eyes and see that the deficit that is currently being built is more than 3 times that of Bush and thats only if you want to believe Obama. If you want to believe the CBO it is much larger than that. And sorry, you don't "inherit" a budget. So yes conditions are very different. I understand how it may suit some agenda to blame it on something it is not, but in the end straw men are made of straw.

So in spite of many on the left and their cooperative media attempting to characterize the event as something THEY wanted to project it to be, in reality the Tea Parties successfully brought a bunch of very different people together to vent some very real concerns and maybe...just maybe it can make a difference. Maybe, some will see that we really, really do not want to be pulled down the road of socialism. Most of us agree with Winston Churchill and feel history has done nothing but validate him:

"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries."

Why accept bringing everyone down when there is the possibility of bringing most up? NOTHING has brought up the worlds standard of living more than U.S. style capitialism. Why jeopardize that? Maybe some will see that it is important for us to be able to work hard, keep most of what we earn, and decide on our own charities. Maybe some will come to know what we know; that a dollar immediately becomes about 50 cents when it is filtered through the government. The government really does little well and has proven that big time lately. Why would we want to give it more? What makes you think it could run an automobile company better that people in that industry?

Ok probably, enough said. You don't have to agree but do offer the courtesy of acknowledging OUR right to protest and OUR right to think and feel maybe a bit different about things than you do... Or don't, but I have to tell you the hate-filled lies and accusations of some and the pomposity of others will only cause us to be more stalwart in our beliefs and more actively persuasive in our efforts to convince. You also may want to take away something else from the Tea Partiers, you can have 300,000 people get together and still come off looking like grown-ups. I heard most even cleaned up after themselves. What a concept.

Maybe one last thing...a quote that I was reminded of by a recent conversation...Henry Morganthau was Secretary of the Treasury under Franklin Delano Roosevelt (You know, FDR's, Tim Geitner) and at the end of FDR's second term (You know, 8 years into the depression) he was addressing the House Ways and Means committee and he made the statement:
"We are spending more money than we have ever spent before and it DOES NOT WORK! I want to see this country prosperous. I want to see people get jobs. We have NEVER made good on our promises. I say after eight years of this administration we have just as much unemployment as when we started and an enormous debt to boot."