"Never before have so few with so much promised to take away so much from so many and then laugh their asses off as the so many with so little vote for the so few with so much." A James Pence Quote
"American Politics, a sport for the rich and enslavement for the rest of us." A James Pence Quote
Barack Obama inherited one of the biggest messes in the history of the
United States of America. Two wars and a collapsed economy, just to
mention a few. When Barack Obama was running for President he said
change wouldn't come easy and he would need help. So what have we done
to help him and cover his back? I ask this question because I've
watched the progressive community allow the Tea Party folks to own the
streets and take over the Town-Hall meetings during the spring, summer
and fall of 2009. I was on the streets and at Town-Hall meetings to see
this first hand. Not only did I see it, Mike Watt and I shot photos and
videos of these events and Richard Dillon wrote about them eloquently.
When I saw, in April, 2009 what was going on in my hometown, Elizabethtown, Kentucky with the Tea Party folks,I issued a warning that these folks are serious. Then in May, 2009 when I shot video of John Conyers saying:"What
kind of Healthcare are we going to get?" I'm here to predict you get
the kind of healthcare you deserve, not the kind you ought to have, not
the kind that you want, but it's all going to depend on you." I understood what he meant. He meant that it was going to be a fight. A fight for the streets and for the Town-Halls. During the dog days of August, 2009 Ali Vilshi and the CNN Express started their CNN Express Health Care tour.
CNN Riding
on the CNN Express, we are driving from Atlanta, Georgia, all the way
to Des Moines, Iowa. Along the way we are going to stop in the
heartland of America and simply let the people tell their own story.
What currently works for Americans' heath care coverage? What is in
drastic need of change? How will the proposed government plan actually
affect people's lives?
When Ali Vilshi arrived in Paducah, Kentucky, one of the most conservative cities in the USA. We were there with our cameras and camcorders.
Never mind it was a 350 mile round trip. Never mind we weren't getting
paid. It was a matter of respect. It was a matter of standing our
ground, as progressives, in a Red, Red state. September 2, 2009 Congressman John Yarmuth held a Health Care Town-Hall meeting,
in Louisville. As bloggers Mike Watt and I had a press passes to shoot photos and video of the event. Congressman John Yarmuth did a
great job, but it was obvious to everyone attending, that the
progressive community decided to stay home and allow the Tea Party
folks to outnumber them at the meeting. September 5, 2009 the Tea Party Express held a rally in Louisville, Kentucky and this is part of what I had to say:
Saturday
September 5, 2009 the Tea Party Express arrived right smack dab in the
middle of Kentucky's most progressive city, Louisville, Kentucky. The
home of progressive Congressman John Yarmuth. This was not a
surprise visit by the Tea Party Express. The progressive community knew
about it and made a decision to stay at home and not counter this
event. One could reasonably assume the Louisville progressive community
is OK with folks coming in to their city and calling Barack Obama a
Communist, Marxist or Muslim and signs like this about their Congressman John Yarmuth and allowing Right Wing Radio and Fox News Commentator Mark Williams to spew his venom unchallenged. Read more.
So if you've read this diary to this point. I suspect you may be asking what's the point? The point is this: "It's time to shit or get off the pot." I'm
tired of listening to whiny ass progressives with all their excuses
and their willingness to blame everyone else for the situation we're
in. I'm tired of hearing my so called progressive friends saying: "I
can't go to that rally, because I might make somebody mad at me", "It's
too cold to go out and carry a sign", "It's supposed to rain tomorrow"
"Oh it's too hot for a protest rally", "It's not important to counter
protest the Tea Party folks, Hell their just Astroturf, "Go to a
protest rally are you kidding me?" Sure the Tea Party folks are
Astroturf, but they are on the streets and in the Town-Halls and that's
more than I can say about the progressive community. Yes I'm from a
Red state, yes I live in rural Kentucky, yes much of the so called
progressive community looks down their nose at folks like me, yes my
writing leaves a lot to be desired, and yes my conscience is clear,
because I've done everything within my power to fight for what I
believe in. Have you? I'll let my record speak for it self. What does
your record have to say? If you've still reading, you may be
thinking that I'm pissed at my progressive brothers and sisters. I'm
not pissed. I'm just disappointed. I love my progressive brothers and
sisters. I know what we are capable of doing. I see the potential and
to ignore our potential and what we are capable of doing and sit back
and watch without bringing it to the progressive community's attention,
is simply not an option for me. So by what authority do I make this call for progressives to take back the streets and the Town-Halls. Our record is our authority
and below is a partial look at our record for 2009. And just for the
record we didn't do it for money, because there was none. We did it
because we believed it was the right thing to do.
2010 is going to be a fight. I hope you're ready for it, because this dumb ass, red neck, progressive hillbilly is. Health permitting and if the creeks don't rise my 71 year old ass will be out on the streets fighting for what I believe in. See ya on the streets.
