Texas Tea - Toeing the Line in San Antonio

San Antonio, Texas -- A lot of people showed up at the Alamo for the tax day protest. On Wednesday, the New York Times reported that roughly 1,000 people gathered here for the so-called tea party, but the crowd was much bigger than that. Really. Probably more like 5,000.

Several dozen people hoisted homemade placards ("THIS LAND IS OUR LAND -- NOT YOURS"; "LEFT-DEM TRAITORS!"). Naked tea bags hung from their hats and glasses and earlobes. When conservative speechmakers said words like "guns," "tyranny," and "freedom," the crowd erupted in howls and the tea bags swung around and sometimes hit them in the face.

The crowd here was excited to see the live broadcast of the Glenn Beck Show. Beck is the suddenly popular Fox News commentator who, depending on who you ask, is either the symptom or the salvation of a sick society. "He don't sugar coat the truth," Jim White, a native south Texan said. "Oh my god, oh my god, there he is! I love Glenn Beck!" a woman in a U.S. Marine Corps t-shirt yelled as she ran towards the cable news celebrity.

On-air, Beck has the rough finish and amateur authority of a country preacher. Even the show's audio effect -- slightly echoey -- is hypnotizing. What also makes the Glenn Beck Show such mesmerizing television is its stunning lack of coherence. Apart from blanket distrust for power, little ties one Beck opinion to the next.

The tea party-goers projected a similar unfocused rage.

Terri Hall spoke out against the Trans-Texas Corridor. She said it served "the interests of private corporations and an over-bearing government." She called the toll road a "road to tyranny."

"I'm here because I'm mad," Amanda Teeter said. Teeter "fled Marxism once" when she left England. Before that, she lived in Zimbabwe/Rhodesia and believes that "America is going the way Zimbabwe went." I asked if she was exaggerating. "No," she said, "we are going to be just like Zimbabwe," where inflation this year reached an estimated 89 sextillion percent. Sound crazy? The Governor of South Carolina, who didn't even grow up there, said the same thing.

AM Radio host Alan McManus, broadcasting from the protest, said that Texas congressman Charlie Gonzalez (D-San Antonio) called the tea party a negative gathering. The crowd booed. "Well don't just prove him right by booing!" McManus pleaded.

Across the street from the Alamo, a Christian group called the Great News Network set up a Prayer Station. Volunteers asked passersby if they could pray for their needs, be they physical, financial, or whatever. Nearby, a man's sign said, "WE'RE NOT DRINKING THE KOOL-AID." Next to that one, a neon pink poster: "I ♥ FOX NEWS."

Ted Nugent was Glenn Beck's special guest on Tax Day. The rocker and activist talked about guns and, when Beck cut to commercials, played the opening lick of "Cat Scratch Fever" a few times. When Nugent talked about how much he likes his guns ("They told me not to bring a gun today, so I said 'Fine, I won't bring a gun...'") the crowd cheered. A man standing next to me turned to his friend and said, "It's a good thing there's no metal detectors here today."

Beck reminded the crowd several times, to tepid applause, that the tea party was a non-violent gathering. The host has made recent news for, among sillier things, sermonizing some kind of violent uprising. At the Alamo, where Nugent told the crowd to "take a breath of the blood in the air," Beck's sudden pacificism was a major downer.

After the show, Beck and Nugent took the stage again. Nugent's speech was the best. He told the crowd that it had to fight a curse. But the curse is not Barack Obama or Democratic tyranny, he said (the man in the "Tyranny Response Team" t-shirt notwithstanding). The curse, Nugent said passionately, is American apathy. And the way out of apathy is activism and voter mobilization and other things that sounded a lot like community organizing. Nugent closed with a Texas-sized reminder about getting involved in the democratic process: "Because you can't do this in France! You can't do this in California!"

Towards the end of the event, Glen Pollard was standing near a memorial to the men who died at the Alamo, some of whom, he said, were his relatives. He came to the tea party to protest the government.

"The people have to do something about the nation. The government isn't gonna do anything about it," Pollard said, his friendly eyes shining bright beneath a big cowboy hat. "The people here today, we are the huge impact, we are the beginning," he said.

It's almost like you are the ones you've been waiting for, I said. He nodded and went on. "But the government can't ever fix it...I swear, if things don't get better, than I'm gonna run for office myself."

I asked Pollard what would happen if he ran for election and won. Would he still be Glenn Pollard, or would he be part of the government?

"Well...," he paused, searching. "I hadn't thought about it like that. Maybe we ought to give the government a new name."

Comments

[pontesisto]

How about a protest against the credit card companies and banks who are raising interest rates whenever they feel like it? We should be marching and holding "Tea Parties" in front of their offices. Maybe we can call them "Usury Parties" instead. The banks are behaving much worse than the government in this case. Most of our taxes have not gone up at all but our interest rates have sky rocketed!
If you would like to help pressure Congress to pass a credit card bill of rights please join our voting bloc at:
http://votingbloc.org/Credit_Card_Rights.php

[LMPE]

"We won't drink the Kool-Aid"

What do you want to bet that a lot of these baboons drink a lot of gross pseudo-beverages like Kool-Aid but probably don't drink much - if any - healthy beverages like...oh, I don't know...TEA?!

I hope that England thanks us for taking that cretin who attended the event.

[Briarrose2b]

Bio
I do not understand why a difference of opinion makes one a racist. I come from a family of white, black and asian and military and with different opinions some are Dems & some are Republicans. We respect our differences and fine common ground. But it seems most people want to marginalize one side. Resulting in insults and hate. The Tea parties were to let Congress take notice that we do not agree with spending without even reading a bill & to the wild spending on pork projects. To let the Dem's know that even that they have the majority in Congress that it is not acceptable not to listen to their constituants and act like the school yard bully.. Also it goes for the Republicans.

For those who say where were you when President Bush was in office. I was here also disagreeing to the spending policies and the war.
America is big enough to listen to all who have a
opinion on policies. And I know that we can not be that closed minded to think that only ones opinion is right .
We are born with these rights and should use them with regard and graciousness without rancor .
I do believe we all love America if we could only try to treat each other in a reasonable way.

Congress needs to take notice " That we the people" are watching.

[1differentdrummer]

Shouldn't Texans be demostrating against Trans Texas Corridor? transtexas­corridor.b­logspot.co­m

[woodsywizz]

I saw an overhead photo of the "crowd", the sign-toters that planned this. There were less than 300. I'm serious. So we're not really talking thousands, we're barely talking hundreds, and more accurately "dozens".
If a few people showed up, I almost did too (to take pictures & interview) but I got the time wrong.
It's so hard to care about the antics of people who are this misinformed and mob-like angry. They're unwilling to actually inform themselves, reacting to 'leaders' who are dangerous megalomaniacs.
This has been played over and over for centuries. Rabble. Rouser. Repression. Anger. Rabble.
That's what the Fox MSM group wants to do; foment rebellion. There's good money in it.

[makarovowner]

You did not go. I was at the Salem Oregon Capital. Proud to be there with other common citizens. This tea party was attended by 3 of our State Representatives and 2 radio stations. The crowd was almost quiet, not a mob. It was NOT hate filled. This was a protest of high taxation that is current and pending as our State Representatives told us. And let me tell you a little something that was explained to the people who did show up. Out of 170 million dollars that was to create 3000 jobs in OUR State, 17 were created. They painted door trim! replaced light bulbs! where is the money?! the jobs?! Oregon has no sales tax, we vote it down and our government officials dont like it. They wish to tax everything from bird seed to well water OUR State Representative told us. Also what an honor it was to finally see we the PEOPLE show up, they dont hear from us often, in any real numbers. So, this is not rebellion, rage, hatred, rascial, white, black, blue, or other color. Your information is from tv, radio, you get what they tell you. You dont care to get involved, if you dont know what your talking about find out for yourself. look into issues first hand. I did. How dare you question any other citizen to exercise thier right to make thier opinion known to thier government, our goverment, we the PEOPLE. Good day.

[HST]

Pssst it was quiet becuase so FEW people attended-LOL!

[HST]

So the draft dodging wannabe Ted Nugent wanted to bring his guns? Why, were there any small defenseless animals nearby?

[Vyvjala]

Yeah, there were 1000 squirrels.­..........­..........­...includi­ng beck.

[Rogan]

pow!

[RNprogressive]

The crowds at the Alamo were large because it is FIESTA week in San Antonio and people come by the hundreds of thousands from all over Texas and the US to San Antonio for this 10 day period. Fox knew exactly what it was doing to hold the event at the Alamo which is the epicenter of Fiesta and downtown San Antonio. A few hundred protesters near the cameras with signs etc and then the normal Fiesta curious on lookers in the background makes it look larger than it really was. This is full scale propoganda and they should be called on it. This is not to say that San Antonio does not have more than its' share of illogical religiously driven gun toting cretins. Having just moved from there I hated that these people pollute our nation with their backward ideas. God/Jesus would never have approved of the hate and vile bigotry in their hearts. Plus they are ignorant of the political and economic realities Bush Co placed us in. Really scary for our country.

[makarovowner]

Wow, oh mightyer than tho. This is quite a way to think of your fellow Americans. We are pollution? Let me guess, you support the constitution and bill of rights only for the parts that you particularly like. The rest are disposable? As far as the religion goes he would not approve of your comments here either, and I see your comments as vile. Is this the way you truely feel about your neighbors and countrymen. Your so called progressive ideals will only last short term and will make the rest of us slaves in a socialist government. Green=pomp and popular, and at this time offers no solutions currently to real issues. Disassembleing the constitution for your own ideals will tear down the rest of our cherished documents which give us our freedom and you yours to be and say what you wish. The right wing is no more dangerous than the left. There are criminals and potential terrorists on both sides. As far as gun toters, yes we love our weapons, no we will not give them up, no one has the right to take them or make laws to take our rights from us. I will not give up any freedom for your vaulted ideal and propaganda of saftey.

[SharpDressedMan]

Theatrics and melodrama won't get us out of this mess. Nor will failed policies like less spending and lower taxes. Herbert Hoover tried that and plunged the country into deep depression. After decimating the country for 4 years, FDR was elected and had his hands full. He steered the country in a corrective course. Let President Obama do the same.

Btw, why is FoxNews (media) directly involved in organizing political rallies? That's unconstitutional.

[makarovowner]

Spending and lower taxes = theatrics. Well, let me ask you something. If you borrowed more money than you could ever repay would you go bankrupt? would it not occur to a person to live within thier means and not make agreements they could not fullfill and that repayment of a loan is your duty? In this case Obama is borrowing so much money your great grand children will have to repay it. Is that ok with you? Have you never thought of financial responsibility? should we not hold our government to be responsible with the money we support them with thru taxation?

[SharpDressedMan]

What goes for the government is not always suitable for households and visa versa. It's one of the differences between macro and micro economics.

Yes it makes sense to borrow to create jobs. That worked after the Great Depression.

The alternative is worse.

[easarsfield]

what rock have you been under the past 8 years???

Bush managed to take the $128 billion surplus left over from the clinton years and turned it into a record deficit, and you are blaming Obama and the left? When Bush entered office, our national debt was $5.6 trillion, and he managed to increase it to $11.3 trillion. Bush may have 'cut' federal taxes, but he also cut federal grants to states which forced many states to raise their taxes.

We should expect our government to be responsible with our tax dollars. But if you want to be angry with someone over how your money is being spent, it should be directed towards Bush & Co.

You need to stop watching Fox News.

[OpalSky42]

I can just see the ghosts of those who died at the Alamo watching and saying "WTF? We died for this group of whiners?"

[jsgaetano]

So much for Beck's "9-12 Project". Looks like he isn't really about bringing America together after all.

His phony tears were in vain.

[BlackJAC]

The gops don't consider blue states to be "America" to begin with.

[jsgaetano]

Yeah, I figured his goal was more about getting everyone to support the Goopers than it was about getting everyone on the same side.

[Cruiserbruiser]

How silly. Do you think that just because a State is "blue" that only Democrats or liberals live there? Northern CA is mostly GOP, so is E. OR and E. WA. I'm a libertarian and I think the color designation of States is stupid and divisive!

[CitizenJ]

Wow. This has got to be some kind of joke.

[MajorKong]

When a major news network rents The Alamo for your demonstration you can hardly call yourselves "grass roots" or "spontaneous" at that point.

[Cruiserbruiser]

If you believe that Kong, I say drink some more koolaid!