The Bleeding Ear: Tea Party Pictures

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Tea Party Pictures

Well, it's over ... or has it only just begun? Is it begun or began? Shifting thoughts is a flight of ideas ... flight of ideas is a classic sign of bipolar disorder, manic episode. Am I manic? But I digress...

yesterday was my first protest. I guess I am no longer a virgin protester anymore. Quite the experience. I got there about 4pm (the official start time of the tea party) and police/security had already stopped letting people into the plaza. Supposedly, from information on the web, Jones Plaza has official capacity of 5000 people. After that the fire marshall closes it. My only guess is that there must have been over 5000 people there because I could not get onto the plaza.

However, the sidewalks were just as packed. Everywhere I turned people stood shoulder to shoulder, some with placards and signs, listening to the speakers and cheering. Businessmen in suits and ties and women in skirts and blouses stood side by side with rednecks in overalls holding misspelled posters. This was definitely not a one-party, one-socioeconomic class group of protesters.

Eventually my wife and son came to see what all the ruckus was about. By that time people had started to leave, and it was easier to move around the plaza and listen to the speakers. Many people had children holding posters. Organizers passed out petition lists to take roll and set up tables to sell shirts and bumper stickers. Entrepreneurs sold tea bags or buttons.

All in all, a wonderful experience, and hopefully the beginning of continued discontent. Yesterday's tea parties were the rumbles before the earthquake. Three men on the light rail heading towards the protest had a conversation about the tea party and one said,

"the American Revolution started with the Boston Tea Party and escalated to violence in the name of American liberty and values. These tea parties are the equivalent of the Boston, but are Americans ready to take the next step if necessary?"