Where there's smoke...

I considered myself, at least for a short time, a tea party activist. This is largely because my very first overtly political act was to attend an anti-tax rally in the spring of 2009. Since then I've attended one organized tea party event as well as protested, with a loosely organized band of activists, the passage of the health care reform abortion.

I say that this was for a short time mostly because I don't join any group or cause as a rule. I've been a Libertarian for nearly thirty years yet have never been a member of the Libertarian party. It's just not in my nature to join things. I couldn't tell you if my four year stint in the Marine Corps was merely anomaly or catalyst for this aversion.

From what I can tell, this is the case for most of the early participants in the tea party movement. These were people awakening to political activism because they had simply had enough of the lies and drunken spending sprees that are a staple of Washington politics. These were libertarians, independents and moderates who felt that the eight years spend fest of "compassionate conservatism" under Bush the younger, combined with the thinly veiled socialism of the current administration, warranted a call to action. While this remains the case in general, the movement has steadily been co-opted by disaffected conservatives who share, at least in part, the disgust of these other political neophytes.

While my acceptance of the movement is tepid at best, specifically because of the moralizing and selective application of liberty championed by some of the speakers at these rallies, my support of the movement grows with each attempt by the administration and its mouthpiece, the mainstream media, to demonize its participants. Clearly the movement is having an affect on directing the discussion. If this were not the case, we wouldn't have the ministry of truth and other agents of big brother so aggressively attempting to silence this growing voice of the people.

Return of the Neanderthal

I count myself among the millions of Americans who opposed the health care "reform" bill from inception to passage and remain an ardent supporter of the forces which would repeal this abomination. However, I do not now, nor will I ever, condone violence against the perpetrators of this criminal legislation.

Don't get me wrong, I believe that violence has been done against liberty in the name of "reform". However, that is violence against an ideal and does not warrant physical aggression as a response. In fact, the threats and vandalism thus far targeting those involved in passing this legislation have, in fact, harmed the campaign of those of us who recognize that this bill is an assault on freedom.

Such is the nature of political activism. Ignorance knows no political boundaries and those ill equipped to reason out the consequences of their actions in advance will be doomed to commit them to the detriment of their crusade. Despite the fact that their actions reflect poorly on my cause, I remain certain that its goal is just: returning the constitution to its appropriate place at the helm of our republic.

Recollections of my early forays into political activism

My recent trip to our nation's capital was not without it's reassurances that ignorance and stupidity remain among our nation's great pastimes. Having only recently begun attending anything remotely political, the experience has served to reinforce my understanding that few people truly grasp what freedom means.

As with the prior events, this spectacle was populated with many people touting their religious zeal, descrying the exercise of personal freedom vis-a-vis the choice to prematurely end pregnancy, and speaking out about their unique ownership of citizenship as it relates to immigration. One prime example of all that is despicable about conservatives repeatedly insisted that Hispanics, there to protest for immigration "reform", return to their home. The fact that they may have been born in this country seemed to escape her.

On the opposite side of the coin were those who, instructing us that we were ill-informed, sought every opportunity to silence our voices while screaming about first amendment rights when others attempted to respond in kind. I always marvel at how arrogant liberals are, insisting that only they are smart enough to understand what is necessary despite the obvious flaws in their "logic".

Why is it so difficult for people to see their own hypocrisy? Each side, liberal and conservative, claims the moral high ground of individual liberty while attempting to squelch the rights of those they oppose. Am I really one of the few who understands this?

I did spend an hour or so engaged in a great conversation with a fellow Marine Corps veteran who found that he and I agreed a great deal on what freedom meant, though he had never considered himself a libertarian. I suppose there is some hope for us yet.