Billy the Kid and the Town Hall Meeting

RUIDOSO, NEW MEXICO.  I write from a small mountain town in Lincoln County, New Mexico where, not just for the sake of tourism, we revere America’s most colorful good-natured juvenile delinquent, Billy the Kid.   Offering a weak hero-energy to this dubious mascot, Sheriff Pat Garrett hardly provides a viable counter-balance, perhaps because the circumstances of his shooting the unsuspecting Billy lie outside the honorable sheriff mythos and the Code of the West.  The Kid never had a chance, and besides, Garrett, a Republican, later ran for office as a Democrat.  We’re just not that into him.  I tend to think that perhaps Pat Garrett’s legacy is the county’s current anti-government posture and its glorification of Billy.  Indeed, our reputation is such that Paul Harvey once noted wryly, “If you want to get away with murder, go to Lincoln County, New Mexico.” 

Despite this political backdrop, our town hall meeting was mercifully spared the guns and swastikas of the six o’clock news.  I didn’t really expect such nonsense; our collective persona derives from the proud ranching descendents of Old West pioneers and Snowbird Texans.  As Republican Americans, our citizens believe themselves to be dignified, well-informed patriots faithfully absorbing the rhetoric of their ministers and Fox News.  They truly want the best for America . . . no taxes and lots of guns.  Only a few months ago, a rancher wielding a gun chased an investigating deputy from his property, and that was the end of the matter.  The Constitution begins and ends with the Second Amendment and to hell with the rest of those pesky stinking “laws.”  Among themselves they sneer at the ACLU, talk smack about the “fruits and nuts” of California, call MLK Day “N*gger Day” and drawl, “Good RIDDANCE to Ted Kennedy!”  These are my friends, neighbors, and loved ones.  The rest of us, my friend Joyce says, are “lone blueberries in a sea of tomato soup.”

So, there in the town hall meeting, the crowd cheered as a sign reading “Uphold the Constitution” floated by, as if this was their exclusive motto. Well . . . uphold the Second Amendment, but the SIXTH? For eight years I’ve listened to the same people growling viciously, “F*ck’em, those sand-n*ggers don’t DESERVE due process – just let ME put a bullet through their damn heads, I’LL DO IT!”  Habeas corpus be damned. (Billy would be proud – after all, he’s said to have killed one man for each of his 21 years . . . but only because he had to.)  To these otherwise lovely people, torture is a no-brainer aspect of black and white justice dispensed and legitimized by the virtue of common sense. The vigilante-cowboy trumps a government perceived not as by and for the people, but by and for politicians whose collection of complicated mumbo-jumbo laws and technicalities makes money for lawyers and prevents “obvious” justice and “true freedom.”  I’ve listened to this constellation of arguments my whole life, mistaking it for harmless cultural posturing.  It’s very much not.

With their claps and boos, my neighbors showed their political colors . . . mostly the reds of danger, anger, and blood sport.  The VERY uptight lady next to me clutched the entire 1000-page health bill liberally splashed with yellow highlighter.  A former county commissioner, she explained that she’d read ALL of it and had marked her concerns.  I commended her and she pursed a smug smile in response.  I have to admit, I haven’t done such due diligence.  Like her, I listen to those I trust and I believe logic to be on my side . . . but at least she’s read the bill.  She gushed on about her latest tea-party until a woman ahead revealed a “Single Payer Only” sign pinned to her back.  “TREE-HUGGER!” the Tea-bagger hissed, clutching the bill more closely to her thin bosom.  (I imagine her leaving her house, trying to decide whether to bring the health bill or a rifle, but too scrawny to carry both.) As my own leanings became clear, I expected her to say something mean.  But, no - we sat with our arms brushing one another, each cheering our own cause, and she graciously refrained from clobbering me with her bill. 

I’d arrived 2 ½ hours early to save a seat for a friend.  Our convention center tried to crush 500+ people into their smallest 200-person room, but since Senator Tom Udall was 45 minutes late, they expanded the room, added another 10 rows of chairs, and still left people standing.  Names were drawn, five at a time, and the citizens lined up to speak their minds, such as they were.

 “IF HEALTH CARE IS MANDATED BY THE FEDS, STATES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS WILL PAY!”

"DEMOCRATS HAVE HINDERED REFORM FOR SOCIAL SECURITY!”

I scribbled copious notes amid the mooing boos.  A woman lamented the high cost of insurance to small businesses and asked: “At the age of 65, I finally qualified for Medicare to resolve chronic conditions I’ve had all my life.  Why can’t we have insurance before we’re 65?”  Everyone started to cheer, which seemed a bit weird, because wouldn’t that mean broadening Medicare for all, in a single-payer kind of way?  One fellow rudely yelled: “GET A JOB!” clearly annoyed by self-employed small business owners, loafing about, irresponsibly following their entrepreneurial bliss.  The cheering faltered, then altogether aborted in an awkward “Oh! Uh, uh-oh, I mean . . . BOOooo” fade-out.   (They hate it when we trick them into cheering for things that make sense.)

“TORT REFORM WITH A CAP ON PUNITIVE DAMAGES!”

A retired doctor explained that between May and October the Medicaid budget runs out and he is never paid for those months.  He added, “You have 400B in promises and only 16B, and that won’t cover it!”  The crowd went wild, sneering at the “no increase to the deficit” claim by Senator Udall.

Several people wanted the bill to be divided into smaller pieces than the 1000-page version, and one man suggested prioritizing it according to the changes that would save the most money.  At the slightest hint of cogent thought, my Teabagger waved her yellow bill up over her head with both hands, shouting, “A THOU-SAND PAGES, A THOU-SAND PAGES . . . I’VE READ EVERY ONE OF THEM!”

Senator Udall supported a public option.  Our spirited blueberry applause sounded comparatively puny amid the vigorous boos.  

One guy groused that Arlan Spector said at a recent NM gathering that healthcare will be decided in DC rather than by the people in town halls.  Senator Udall didn’t seem to know whether Senator Spector had been in New Mexico, but he couldn’t prove it on the spot, and some twisted viral email probably won that argument.   (I later found a non-NM quote where Senator Spector said that health care protestors don’t represent America and mustn’t be allowed to dominate the scene and influence policy.) Interesting paraphrase, mister.

God FORBID that “illegals” might receive care, (because of course, it’s apparently better that THOSE people cough “their” swine flu onto the rest of us or bleed into our soil than that we show any inconvenient  Samaritan compassion. If they drop dead around us, no doubt we’ll hear objections to the cost of burying them!)  A squeaky clean, horn-rimmed, polyester Baptist minister wanted to rename the health bill, “H1N1” because “it will open the door to abortion.”

He asked Senator Udall to commit to signing on with the health plan if it is passed.  The senator immediately agreed, and the crowd exploded into sarcastic skepticism.  “AH, Yeah, RIGHT – SURE - BOO!” they yelled.  (Who raised these people?)  “Congress should go on the same health insurance as the rest of the country!” The senator explained the menu of options offered to federal employees, and said that the plan called for the same menu to be available to all.  (more jeers)  “NO IT DOESN’T – I’VE READ IT – A THOU-SAND PAGES!”

Senator Udall explained the need to prevent pharmaceuticals from slightly changing patents to gain an extra five years before a drug goes generic.  (actual applause for the senator) The next guy asked why NM wanted him to inventory his guns, then there was an energy question, and the room erupted into a Palin oil chant:  “DRILL BABY DRILL!”  I rooted in my bag for an Excedrin.

A local doctor began sensibly enough: “there are no controls in your plan – 80% of this will depend on your Health and Human Services department.” A little applause, his ego swelled exponentially, and his voice rose as he launched a dramatic pontification: “You’re just going to fix this with more BULLSHIT – we’re being DECEIVED, and our CONGRESSMEN (Bingaman and Teague) don’t even have the BALLS to come and TALK to us!”  The little dose of pith intoxicated the crowd into wild cheers and under the heady limelight, the doctor scampered up and down the aisles asking if people wanted his phone number . . . apparently channeling his inner Billy the Kid.

My friend muttered:  “I can’t tell what they want – these people are all veterans, teachers, and seniors, and THEY already HAVE government-funded healthcare!”

My former math teacher, a generational rancher and lifelong family friend approaching 70, approached the mike.  A well-known good-ol’-boy, he objected to squeezing a tax increase from struggling small businesses to pay for health reform, then segued straight from reason to drawling sarcasm and pseudo-good-natured ridicule. “The public option is supposed to keep insurance companies HONEST?  Now I’m just an old rancher, who used to be a schoolteacher, and I taught MATH, and you folks are trying to say that you’ve got 14 insurance companies and you want to add one public option.  Now by my math, that makes 15 companies – but how in the world is one more supposed to keep anyone HONEST?”(wild unbridled applause) REALLY - Mr. T?  Fourteen apples plus one orange equals fifteen apples? 

In the end, although gracious, Senator Udall failed to zap the fallacies with a laser gun of logic.  He held his own, but gained little ground.  I felt somehow older, wiser, and sad that my beloved community casts such a rough and cynical shadow impervious to logic and intellectual integrity.

It’s been a few weeks since our town hall.  Our “balanced” newspaper spun some yarn about how the courageous citizens of Ruidoso put the shifty Senator Udall in his place and were far too wily to be taken in by his insidious liberal propaganda.  Last week, someone spit on a man for having an Obama bumper sticker in the grocery store parking lot.  (Note to Self:  stock sanitary wipes in car since my own bumper sticker says, “I like Obama, but is America Ready for a President with Brains?”) 

I wonder whether Ruidoso will want to secede into the sunset along with Texas, our mother-ship.  After all, it tracks that TRUE Americans will want to give up and rid themselves of . . . America. With Billy the Kid as the local hero, anything’s possible.

Comments

[iblogleft]

"I felt somehow older, wiser, and sad that my beloved community casts such a rough and cynical shadow impervious to logic and intellectual integrity.­"

200 million of us are wondering where logic and intellectual integrity has gone.

[K.J. Dwyer - Huffpost Blogger]

Susan,

Great piece. I felt like I was there in the room with you. There's something in your narrative that a camcorder could never capture. What's the word . . . sense? Yeah, I think that's it. The YouTube videos just document the Town Hall nonsense -- dins of rabble rousing peppered with blather -- but your piece put it into context. It was like reading a Norman Rockwell painting (if that makes any sense).

So, so happy to read you on these hallowed pages once again. Great work.

[Susan L. Travis - Huffpost Blogger]

Hi, KJ - well thank you!! I appreciate your reply - It's good to see YOU here - there you are with 70 fans and NOT POSTING ENOUGH HERE! You need to KJ - you'd be featured regularly.

For anyone else reading this, check out KJ's posts - his insights are spot-on and well-worth the read. Perhaps some day we can collaborate, eh, KJ?

[Susan L. Travis - Huffpost Blogger]

PS - KJ - it's been ONE YEAR AGO YESTERDAY since you posted here. Consider this an intervention, and post more often! It'll be cathartic for you and edifying for the rest of us!! WRITE!

[ruidosogal]

Excellent piece, Susan. I attended this Town Hall and you were right on in the details.
Love your style!

[anna1liese]

Three cheers, Susan, for the spirited blueberry applause! May such applause stand up and be heard across the country. I join the chorus of blueberry applause and stand with you!

[Sheraber]

Well Susan (aka Dr. Travis), you realize that you are following in "The Kid's" footsteps by being a rebel-rous­er...or, is it rabble-rouser? I am definitely a FAN of your colorful yet cutting style!