The 100 Most Hated People in America

Happy New Year America. If you think like me, you ranked #7* on the list of most hated Americans. What is #7? Why, the tea party of course! No one seems to get that “we” are an “ungroup,” and not a party at all. I accidentally stumbled upon it yesterday as I sat staring down the new year with total ambivalence, dreaming about winning the HGTV dream home in Stowe, Vermont as a way to erase the pain of having to face another year exactly in the same place we were one year ago. I am so unprepared for 2011 emotionally that I couldn’t even focus to write this blog yesterday, though I was determined to feel that I was doing something (anything) productive.

So back to my fantasy of imagining my new home awarded me by HGTV’s David Bromstad or Candice Olsen—I decided to google Stowe, Vermont to see if I would be living near Ben and Jerry or Clooney and Crosby. Before the word “conservative” tumbled off my keypad, I was quickly bombarded with enraged blog posts, article analysis and comments using language I had been taught that you never write lest you want to see it published on the front page of the New York Times. Where are Frank Capra and Irving Berlin when we need them?

The standards of decorum and a tendency toward kindness have all but disappeared in this country. For all of the writers I truly appreciate, there are thousands more who poison respectful discourse with a typing tongue that contradicts their very assertion that they operate from intelligent reason and I from irrational assumption. In fact, the many blog posts I scanned before throwing up my arms in frustration contained no substance at all and were filled with more expletives than college level words. The one thing these angry blogmobs lack is any specific argument to back up the justification for their rage. I find it so hard to believe that for all I watch and read that any of these folks could actually watch, read and truly know anything about the people they attack outside of what they hear from friends who tell them how to feel, believe and think.

Maybe next year, the Tea Party will be #1. I’ll consider the position at #1 a sure sign of “progress” in the right direction. As for 2012? My dream ticket taking today as a snapshot would be the three “Rs”—Ryan (#39), Rubio (#24) and Romney (#23) but only if he promises not to try that healthcare thing again. For press secretary, I’d love to see Michelle Malkin (#6) and when she is out sick, Dennis Miller (not on the list—yet!)

*to find the article, google “100 Americans the Left hates Most”

The Face of the Tea Party and Civil War II

I’ve said to myself, but not here until today, that we are going to have a civil war in this country.

I believe the shot heard ‘round the world came on the Monday after health"care" passed. Americans—including those who innocently trusted and believed that our president’s campaign promise to “fundamentally change America” meant that the “old” way of doing business, hiding things from the people, having lobbyists make policy, spending exhorbitant amounts of money and taxing unfairly and corruption—believed that things were going to change for the better. It was all so carefully packaged in a man who looked like the perfect candidate. The election of this dynamic handsome, married, young father of two who just happened to be black and was voted in not because of the color of his skin but because of his extraordinairy power to use the English language to at one time say exactly what he was going to do but make it look to the average American like it was all so moderate, was brilliantly executed. I did not vote for this president. But my no vote for him had nothing to do with the color of his skin. My no vote came from paying close attention to what he said along with his voting record and, for me, cemented in is relationships, of which there were far too many, to ever make me believe that he was the best choice for our country. I didn’t feel John McCain, was the best choice either. But as usual, when faced with only two choices in recent years, you go with the one that will do less harm to the country.

Before President Obama began systematically dismantling our republic a little more than one year ago, I held my children out of school on election day. I had no idea what was coming. But I accepted that if this is what the American people wanted, let’s give him a shot. And, regardless of disagreeing with his policies, I watched the entire inauguration with my children to show them the only good thing that I could say about the day. I told them, that with the election of this first black president, there will be no way that anyone can ever call America a racist nation. He was overwhelmingly elected by the American people. Of course, I was wrong—not about the legitimacy of his election. I was wrong that racism would end in America.

Americans can argue what taxing unfairly is and we can argue what things NEED to be kept from the public to protect our national security—such as our military strategy, but any American this week, who cannot now see what our president meant to do to our country, is not colorblind, they are just blind.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American hero. If I were alive during his time, I would have joined hands and walked with those who supported him. I would have not eaten in a restaurant that didn’t allow a fellow American to join me in. I wouldn’t’ have taken a segregated bus. I have spent my whole life being respectful to people of all colors, all faiths, all beliefs, even when they differ from mine. However, when they differ from mine, I have asked “why?” Sometimes they can explain. Sometimes, they can’t. And sometimes, they just don’t respond at all. Today, when I ask or challenge anyone, I am called every name in the book. I never could have imagined that half a century later, the very beneficiaries of the civil rights movement would turn their ire towards people who believed in and who supported its original mission. People like me.

I never imagined in our “colorblind” society that it would be my family who would be fighting for the same civil rights Martin Luther King, Jr. championed. And worse, as we were fighting for them, be called the names from all of the groups I sought to uplift, help, support and respect my entire life.

I am a caucasion, blonde haired, blue eyed, married mother of four young boys. Recently, on Facebook, I came across one of my former entertainment industry associates, whom I admired, promoted, championed, praised, adored, respected and revered. He happens to look like me. Actually, he resembles and sounds like Anderson Cooper but without the white hair. I hadn’t seen his posts in quite a while. I gave up responding last year when I, as a brand new Facebook member, dared to get involved in a discussion about the town hall meetings and Joe Lieberman, etc. Within minutes, my comments were drawn and quartered and I was called the same tired names that pass as proper language in every circle but mine.

I folded and just began to take the safe route and talk about my son’s latest pair of shoes or talk about what movie I had just seen. After many months went on and I saw more and more discussions, I began to argue with facts again. Each time, I was usually the only voice of dissention. I was labeled a name caller for using political terms to label policy while their name calling focused on a presumed party, color of my skin, or worse a sexual practice I must engage in for having these views.

As I reflect on this tumultuous time we are living in, I see so clearly now what is going to happen in America. I can’t believe I’m going to say this. I can hear them calling me a white supremacist already—and by “they” I do not mean people of color. I mean they as the radicals of all colors, including mine, who seek to extinguish me, my family and my culture forever.

Because of the color of my skin, what I have to say about what is happening to my country is meritless, I have no civil rights. I have to prove every day that I am NOT a racist, NOT a homophobe, NOT a radical. Look at what the media does to the tea party? They show the overweight men and women with the oversized t-shirts and black socks. They show the handmade signs, with crudely written (and often misspelled) exclamations—which by the way should be used as proof of grass roots to counter Nancy Pelosi’s despicable “astroturf” slur. Most of these patriots, whether they be silly looking, dressed like Paul Revere, have bad hair or be sitting in a fold up chair, holding a constitution, are American patriots. They DO look like me, my mom and dad, But it isn’t the point. It shouldn’t MATTER what color any American’s skin is who seeks to have their voice heard. We are supposed to be living in the afterglow of Martin Luthur King’s dream . We are, in fact, living in a culturally divided nightmare. And it has been brought on by those who protest the loudes—the far left, who wants to “care” for the “meek” as long as the meek don’t say “NO” to the handouts.

It is one year after the historic tea party movement began. This movement continues to grow as more and more Americans see where our country is headed. Our first black president was duly elected by a majority of ALL Americans. The problem is, he wasn’t the RIGHT president for America. Perhaps our next president will be both conservative AND black. I don’t need to wonder how that victory would be celebrated. We all know. He would be labeled another pejorative term by the far left. They’ve called Oprah Winfrey, Colin Powell, Condoleeza Rice and others the same name.

My argument prior to today when someone called the tea party “an all white group” would be to knee jerk defend against it. I have come to realize BECAUSE of what the left has done, that I was indoctrinated into becoming an apologist for the color of my own skin from the time I entered grade school until now. As a true colorblind American, I don’t count how many of each KIND of human beings are outraged at what is happening in our country. I’m just glad they’re outraged.

This disgusting assault on my culture, my race and my American heritage is not what Martin Luthur King wanted. The progressives on facebook today in my friends lists who have comment after comment applauded that literally CALL for me (meaning anyone in the tea party or who is conservative) to be killed, and at the same time talks about how violent I am is evil.

To close this topic today, I want to go on record with a very sincere statement. I watch Glenn Beck almost daily. I wish I had every one of his broadcasts on dvd. They are a history lesson and I am so thankful that he is alive to be the Paul Revere of broadcasting. He is a modern day hero to me. He has helped wake people up to what is happening with facts, data, history lessons, documentaries and whenever he can, the very words for all of us to SEE uttered and used by those who work in and around our government., and most notably, the White House. People who don’t watch Glenn Beck don’t have the faintest idea who he is and how brave he is. The burden he must be under in doing what he does every day is tremendous. I cannot imagine being so articulate and passionate with so little anger day in and day out with what he must go through off the air, May I not hear the words “fairness doctrine” ever again. God bless Glenn Beck and keep him safe so he may continue to remind us who we are.

And to my president. Barack Obama. I did not vote for you. But I do not hate you. You are an intelligent, handsome, well spoken, unflappable man with an unbelievable smile. You have a beautiful wife, a loving mother in law and two beautiful daughters. You are an example to the black community of fidelity and good parenting from everything I have seen. I commend you for all of these things. The first lady, regardless of her views, has also exhibited grace and dignity in office. I believe you are both sincere. But as an American, I also believe that through your own actions and because of those who have influenced you and continue to surround you, that your views are the antithesis of American ideals and that your desire is to erode and eventually extinguish the constitution upon which our nation was founded. It makes me extremely sad for I was filled with hope too. I was hoping that you might do what the majority of people who elected you thought you would do—change Washington—not the country. You will be an important part of American history. You will be remembered but it won’t be for the healthcare bill. You will be remembered as the president who took America too far left and became the very catalyst for our need to restore the republic and drastically reform the government. I sincerely wish that you and your family are safe from harm. My fear is that those who want to harm you will come not from the right as the far left media would like to perpetuate but actually from the left who feel you haven’t gone far enough. Editors Note: As I publish this blog today, MSNBC, Rachel Maddow, in an extensive promo campaign that seeks to compare the tea party movement to Timothy McVeigh, is airing this week on April 19th—it is just one example in a long line of disgusting attempts to frighten peaceful, liberty loving, fiscally conservative people into staying inside and shutting up. It will fail.

Finally, I know that it is the desire of the far left in this country to either incite and or orchestrate someone on the right to commit an act of violence. This would discredit the angry electorate and create the very “crisis” government needs to push for total control of America. And for that, my prayers are with the people. Don’t fall for it. Don’t do it. Think of Martin Luthur King, Jr. Think of Abraham Lincoln. Think of Ghandi. Weather permitting, I will attend my 2^nd tea party demonstration today on the capitol steps in Austin, Texas. I am proud to attend with my husband and children as we watch freedom loving people get off of the couch, and stand up to the endless bullying we have faced since the silent, tolerant majority said loudly “Enough” and “Don’t tread on me!”

The Awakening

Having been absent from blog and broadcast media for a few weeks, I am grateful for the inspiration to write today. After a bout with insomnia this past week, and futile attempts to bring on drowsiness (instead of outrage) while flipping through various media sources on computer and cathode ray screen, I am still awake, but strangely not fatigued.

Today, as I dropped my son off at kindergarten, I pondered a few things in the quiet solitude of the morning. This time, when three out of our four children are still asleep and the grey skies above provided a calming and contemplative mood, I contemplated this.

The more I live, the more I learn, the less I know, and the more I wish I had more time to learn!

A couple of years ago, having uprooted our family from one state to another and living in complete uncertainty, we followed Oprah Winfrey’s book recommendation and read with great understanding and resonance, Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth. We also took the 10 week course she pioneered on Skype, which was groundbreaking at the time. Without going too “deep” into the mind of Eckhart Tolle, we both loved this book.

I don’t think Oprah Winfrey would agree with the kind of awakening we are experiencing now. But there is certainly not only an awakening of the spirit but also of the very depth of soul, which lay so dormant in so many of us for so long. My once mute voice now literally cries out to be free again. It is a palpable shout of “let freedom ring!” I remember well, the wonderful analogy Eckhart Tolle shared of two ducks in the water. They have a squabble and they flap their wings ferociously and then settle back down to continue swimming in the water. He used this analogy to show that with “presence” we can disagree and separate the person from the problem and not malign them in the process–for they “know not what they do.”

When I think of what I see on television in regards to Americans, who in growing number are reconnecting to the idea of what America IS, I think of this story. The tea party movement is perhaps one of the most pure examples of the duck story. It isn’t a monolithic group. It isn’t a group at all. It is a random and synchronous awakening of a spirit that flies in formation, yes, but does not seek to eliminate any bird. United on a direction, but with diverse ideas on how to get there, the more they flap their wings, the more hunters below try to single them out and pick them off one by one.

As we go forward, the flaps will get louder and louder and the other birds will peck, pluck and bite. But if we remain present, calm and resolute, perhaps one day we will all swim together again in a pristine pool without getting caught in the weeds.

From Log Cabin to Muddy Waters

I hope that anyone paying attention appreciates this little diddy.


Abraham Lincoln was a poor, motherless (at the age of 9) grandson of a murdered (by an Indian—excuse me “native American”) grandfather and the son of a father who raised himself. Lincoln received no formal education and taught himself through books. Oh the unfairness of life! By all accounts, Lincoln shouldn’t have survived. There was no free healthcare, no compulsory school, no parents to love him through his development from child into a man and no national Honor society scholarship (which is now going to be awarded on the basis of economic status OVER scholarly achievement). Someone from CPS should have rescued him. He was such a victim. This is just one example of the mindless drivel Lincoln was able to write with a substandard home school education.


Fellow-citizens, we cannot escape history. We of this Congress and this administration, will be remembered in spite of ourselves. No personal significance, or insignificance, can spare one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass, will light us down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation. We say we are for the Union. The world will not forget that we say this. We know how to save the Union. The world knows we do know how to save it. We -- even we here -- hold the power, and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom to the slave, we assure freedom to the free -- honorable alike in what we give, and what we preserve. We shall nobly save, or meanly lose, the last best hope of earth. Other means may succeed; this could not fail. The way is plain, peaceful, generous, just -- a way which, if followed, the world will forever applaud, and God must forever bless.


Oh, but those scholarly people in Washington, D. C. today! So noble, so evolved, so civilized, so full of honor. Just look at how far we’ve come—from Reagan not removing his jacket in the Oval office to Clinton removing his pants. From a government designed to have its powers lended by us to a government who seizes power from us. And from brief stays in office to now employ for decades (inexplicably) by Californians, a representative like Maxine Waters who said some very interesting things just three days ago.


I don't remember the show and I don't remember the exact quote. What I remember is this. Waters wore a patriotic robin's egg blue jacket over a black silk shirt. With the capitol steps behind her, aided by an ever willing MSNBC anchor, she decried the racist, homophobic epithets hurled at our dignified congressional representatives as an aggregious assault on our honorable public servants.


And then, this “dignified” pillar of moral propriety used the words “Tea Baggers” to attribute the blame to the Tea Party movement. There was no follow up question challenging Ms. Waters language. (Kids, this is a really good time to major in journalism!)


I wonder, I just wonder, what would Lincoln say?


I also wonder this. Having had to turn off the television today as the stories and myths grow so predictably surrounding the most grass roots group in America in modern day history, I have become almost this cynical. I would like to pose a question to the media. But first, some facts.


Our current government is staffed and surrounded with, not only radicals, but corruption—Barney Frank (who still has a job despite bankrupting Fannie Mae), Chris Dodd (but at least he’s leaving), Tim Geitner (who can’t compute his taxes but may now control the entire U.S. economy), Charlie Rangel (tax fraud), Nancy Pelosi (fraud on every level from her accusations of the CIA to “we need to pass the bill to know what’s in it” to her “let them eat cake” stroll through the protestors to show them her power), ACORN, SEIU, Jeremiah Wright, William Ayers, Van Jones (self-avowed communist) Anita “I most often turn to Mao” Dunn, Valerie Jarrett (Van Jones watcher and admirer) and Eric Holder, who in my view, is dangerous to our country in ways that we will sustain for years to come because of his belief that America is, "for the most part, a nation of cowards." And then there are David Axelrod and Rom Emmanuel. No words needed to qualify their many attributes. The American people know their tactics.


Here’s the question. Is it conceivable that with all of the above people surrounding our president that our president, “who always has a plan” instructed anyone to pay off some poor SEIU or former ACORN schlubs to get to the front of the line where the cameras were to scream comments out to set up the tea party? As I write this (and as I have shut off the television, I'm going with what I've seen SO FAR). I see a lot of video from a congressman's POV. But I see no footage or interviews of the witnesses of these perpetrators who have caused two of the three major news channels to perpetuate as truth a sudden pattern exclusively on the RIGHT to react to last weekend's vote with violence.

In the day of video cell phones, where is the audio or video? Where are the interviews right after it happened of bystanders who were next to these people? After all, the cameras were there, right? Having been to the first (modern day) tea party in San Antonio, Texas on April 15th 2009, I am certain that if someone would have done this then, the deafening boos and shouts to “shut up” would have overpowered anyone who did this. So I'm just sayin'—where are the interviews of those in the crowd who WITNESSED what happened?


As for the brick with a note being hurled through a window with “conservative” quotes scrawled on a piece of paper, is it not conceivable that the same thing COULD be happening in this type of ditch and run attack? If you want to discredit a movement, just write a note that neatly packages that it's a crazy RIGHT wing radical, right? It all seems so Murder She Wrote. Again, NOT saying it CAN'T happen but I want to know MORE.


And here is the third thing which I have not heard anyone suggest—of course I thought of this after I wrote this blog yesterday afternoon and then awoke in the middle of the night kicking myself for not mentioning it before I hit the "publish" button—what IF these attacks are actually being perpetrated by the far LEFT who believes the bill didn't go far ENOUGH? Has anyone pondered this possibility?


The above is all so cynical but we are living in times where we are not being told the truth on any level in our government and for the most part, our media. To me, this all smacks of a political distortion to distract the American people from keeping their eye on the ball.


Here is what I’m saying before anyone labels me a conspiracy theorist or apologist for kooks! I do NOT believe that there are NOT random kooks who attend and infiltrate ANY good group. I do not condone violence of any kind. The crazies exist on the bell curve of the human behavior spectrum. However, the recent fervor of "threats" without substantial proof that automatically assumes that it is exclusively from the RIGHT warrants some sort of investigation. The sudden overnight wall to wall coverage immediately after THIS vote vexes me.


Ronald Reagan (a conservative!) was the president in my lifetime who was actually almost assassinated. President Bush received constant death threats, impeachment threats and calls for imprisonment for war crimes for almost his entire presidency. I received a Chinese Menu Christmas card one year insulting President Bush from a former, well known producer friends who I once viewed as a mentor—it just made my heart sink. The media NEVER gave so much of actual death threats, protests and parades the coverage a few nasty phonecalls and stupid people hurling WORDS, not bombs are getting. Where is the investigative reporting? Joe “the plumber,” upon innocently being thrust into an impromptu encounter with candidate Obama, was investigated and maligned by the media as to whether he was even a plumber simply for illustrating that President Obama was a wealth redistribution advocate because of Obama’s OWN answer to his question.


Fair and balanced means that if the media is going to investigate an innocent American citizen, then I expect an investigation into these "allegedly" crazy people who hurl rocks and shout at congressmen. The camera’s POV ONLY showed the congressman’s reaction and NOT the person who did it that he was pointing his finger at. It also didn’t show any protestors “booing” which is inconceivable to me, knowing FIRST HAND what the tea party stands for. So WHO are they? Show me. What groups do these random hecklers and hurlers really belong to and how did they find themselves at the front of the line at this particular tea party march? It's too convenient for me to just buy it. Isn’t that a fair question? At the same time, if these people are for real and growing in number, then a responsible journalist needs to get to the bottom of it. As proponents of free speech rights, shouldn't the media seek to protect the free speech of expose these people so we can prevent them from dragging down a a patriotic, pro America group? I don't see it, but in my lifetime, I have certainly seen the media do the same for those who are against the country.


Journlism is dead in America. Corruption is alive and well. Americans have a right to know the WHOLE truth and as Paul Harvey always said—“the rest of the story.”

Palin's Practically Perfect (Tea) Party Presentation

If anyone doubts the power of the tea party movement, they didn't really listen to Sarah Palin's carefully crafted speech last night. I watched it twice before writing this post.

Last night, I watched nervously, hoping she wouldn't mispronounce a word, be grammatically incorrect, or lose her place on the typed pages on the podium. In recent weeks, after watching her utter the word "uncomfortableness" on O'Reilly and hearing her use the words "common sense conservative solutions" repeatedly, I began to wonder if in fact, her vocabulary was too limited for prime time, even though I am in alignment with most of her principles and agree wholeheartedly with what she stands for.

I must note here that CNN may have not intentionally planned to show Sarah Palin in a positive light, but this time, they did not make the mistake of pretending that the tea party movement was "unimportant" or "irrelevant." They actually provided more fair and balanced coverage than Fox. Geraldo Rivera never stopped talking over the introduction that Andrew Breitbart gave prior to her speech. I would have liked to have heard that. Even the camera angles and color saturation on Fox were not as good as on CNN. So bravo to CNN for their excellent camera work and for getting out of the way so Palin could be heard.

I also appreciated CNN's pre-speech coverage. Unfortunately, no matter how hard the anchor tried to minimize the tea partiers as "socialist" calling radicals, those on both sides of his split screen shut down the spin with facts. It was refreshing to see. MSNBC was too busy airing their latest tabloid "lock up" show and of course, ignored the speech completely. But I'm sure their famous trio is busy pulling out any sound bytes that will make Palin look inarticulate, like a religious freak or an uneducated bimbo. She did use the word "distrust" instead of "mistrust" so look for that to be run again and again and again on Monday evening. Let me think like an MSNBC producer—they'll likely air the "blowing the kiss" to the serviceman in the audience, and they'll likely show her "tear up" when she commended the audience for their work and mentioned special needs children, and for good measure, they'll probably laugh off the audience standing up when, predictably, the host mentions "President Palin." Oh, and I can't forget when she asks "how's that hopey, changey stuff working out for ya now?" Of course, they'll say that she can't even pronounce hope and change, failing to see that the "yolk's" on them. But let's see what happens tomorrow on the cable news outlets—my favorite sport to watch.

Today, before writing, I decided to watch the speech again with my 12 year old son. He didn't make it through the whole thing; his DSI was getting cold. BUT he did make one very astute observation. "Mom," he said. "She sounds like your neighbor, like someone you can trust. She doesn't talk down to people." I love that children find it so easy to spot genuine when so many jaded adults, with their preconceived ideas of what a "leader" should be, fail to understand that the reason Palin resonates with so many is expressly because she does not TRY to dazzle us with her brilliance. She is an action oriented, simple talking, morally consistent, idea driven, accidental hero to the millions of heretofore silent Americans who have watched for years as our country has been taken over by wolves in sheep's clothing on both sides of the aisle.

When the far left uses the ridiculous rhetoric to malign the entire tea party movement as "Obama" haters, questioning "where were these people when George W. Bush was in office?" what they fail to understand is that we were already losing faith in our government during that time, but what put us over the edge was when this president spent more in his first month in office than all other presidents in U.S. History COMBINED.

We began bubbling over when our president said "no" lobbyists and then hired them, when he promised complete transparency, and when we saw Barney Frank on tape say nothing was wrong with Fannie and Freddie. Probably nothing was worse then watching Timothy Geitner, who didn't pay his own taxes, be touted as the BEST qualified person in America to become our Secretary of the Treasury. This man can throw me in jail if I don't pay my taxes but he's in charge of the entire U.S. Treasury! It's an outrage. If that isn't enough to take an already frustrated electorate a reason to simultaneous shout "someone's going to need to throw a tea party," then the far left will never be able to handle the truth. I said those very words in my own living room last February and attended the first tea party on April 15, 2009. What a difference a year can make! I don't expect that in 2010, Newsweek and Life will be able to ignore the mass crowds that are sure to march on Washington as real hope and change greets our "let them eat cake" congress.

Palin's speech began with a Happy Birthday to President Reagan. It was quintessential Palin throughout a 45 minute or so appeal to the movement to stay focussed on objectives. I wish I could be Palin's speech writer. I feel that she gave an overall good speech but that it repeated many of the buzz phrases and talking points we have already heard. I was hoping she would get more specific about strategy. However, the three greatest moments in her speech (in my opinion), were when she said "we need a Commander in Chief not a professor of law at the lecturn, " when she said emphatically that the tea party movement did NOT need a leader because it was from the people, and when she smartly said that the GOP would be WISE to absorb the tea party—instead of saying that the tea party should absorb the GOP.

I was impressed by this because I feel that Palin is now (by circumstance) too famous to be the default leader of this grass roots movement and would diminish the "we the people" every day American foundation that the tea party springs from. Her acknowledgement of this as well, certainly cemented my belief that she is authentic, says what she means and means what she says. Finally, she clarified that the tea party is not an extension of the Republican party but, is in fact, going to have a huge influence over who win elections, regardless of party. That needed to be stated. We tea partiers have a good memory and we know which republicans came out right away for the tea partiers and which ones maligned both Palin and the movement for a good part of 2009.

I'm looking foward to seeing how this all plays out. I really believe Rush Limbaugh is wrong when he says that we tea partiers are "splitting the party" which will fail like the Ross Perot split election did years ago unless we join "them." What I feel in the air is that the Republicans are going to be forced to revert to the true conservative principles they USED to have or face strong opposition from a non-partisan tea party that will continue to endorse new candidates and vote the status quo out—no matter what that little letter indicates next to their name.

During the opening of Palin's speech last night, I was so nervous for her, not wanting her to fail. But when I watched it again today, I had the ability (knowing how it all turned out) to fully appreciate her speech. It was not as smooth and polished as her fiery convention speech. She stumbled a bit and probably stalled a bit at the beginning with a little too much "I'm proud to be an American." It's hard not to be nervous when every single thing you say is apt to be used against you. She has managed, for the most part, to stay on message. She went so far as to say that she will be supporting third party candidates and some others in hotly contested primaries.

We all know that she is going to tour with John McCain. While I do not support that, I can understand why she is going to do so. In her book, Going Rogue, Palin NEVER says a harsh word about John McCain. He, during the vitriol expoused by the media, never blasted the media BUT he also never maligned her. I believe that Palin is a bit like George W. Bush in this way. She turns the other cheek and gives the benefit of the doubt to those who don't give her an overt reason to believe that they are her enemy. And though, John McCain, passively threw her under the bus by omission, he has never publically demeaned her in any way. And so, I believe she will support him out of friendship and probably because, were it not for him, she would not find herself in this position of power today. However, in light of his comments on Don't Ask, Don't Tell, I think she would be wise to withdraw her support. McCain is just so inconsistent and, other than being a true American hero, I don't feel he is sincere in much of what he says and does.

As I said earlier, she is supporting Governor Perry instead of the more independent Debra Medina, whom I think is probably a Scott Brown kind of candidate. I think it is a fair question to ask Palin "why" is she not throwing her support toward the "renegade" and "rogue" candidate. However, knowing what I know about Perry after researching him a bit and how WELL Texas is indeed running as I celebrate 3 years of living here, it makes pretty good sense that Palin is supporting him. She did govern Alaska through principle centered decisions over ideology. She does profess to support great ideas (even if on balance, not ALL of the ideas are "perfect") and clearly says that we can't agree with EVERY decision candidates make. I agree with her position that faith needs to be placed on ideas above the people who serve, as they are fallible. Still, the question of not supporting Medina is one I would like answered.

Palin emerged last night as the powerful communicator we have seen before. She, of course, publically stated that her $100,000 fee goes straight to the Tea Party PAC. Now, if Fox News will just let her be the analyst they hired her for instead of repeating campaign interviews, Palin might be successful there as well! Looking forward to seeing what the pundits think on Monday!

Strange Brew—Tea Party Controversy!

Oh so predictable and so unfortunate! On the eve of the first national Tea Party Convention set for later this month, we now have a storm brewing over the founder's integrity. Apparently, this stems from him forming a "for profit" organization and charging guests upward of $500 to attend. Two prominent conservative policitians have backed out but the steadfast Sarah Palin is vowing to continue to be the keynote speaker (at least at press time). How will the drama end?

As this is my second post, and I've had a few days to think about my new foray into the blog-0-sphere, I want to proactively state that my blogs are going to be based on two "O"s—Osmosis and Opinion. As a mother of 4 young boys, it is not my intention to spend 12 hours a day researching, fact checking, wordsmithing, creating extensive bibliographies of support for my claims, remembering everyone's name involved in the stories, nor finding really big collegiate words to prove how academically gifted I am. I often have to write and dash—in the real world, there are diapers to be changed and dinner to be made. And I think I want to be REAL, REFRESHING and REFLECT how the "average" American with a lot on their plate FEELS without having to censor those feelings for fear of not having written a "practically perfect in every way" paragraph.

I will surely dangle participles, mangle a "syll—aaaable" as a past president once said, and probably err in punctuation as well. I may even hit "post" in mid-sentence. When my book Eats, Shoots, and Leaves (I haven't figured out how to underline a book title here yet!) is not nearby and I can't reach for my thesaurus, I may be redundant with both adjectives and transitions. But I hope as time goes on, practice will improve my witicisms and that brevity will replace what, for now, will be some lengthy starter blogs! I also hope to improve on digression—which I have just done once again! Sorry, it comes with age.

Okay, back to the topic—we were discussing the tea party controversy! I consider myself a founding tea partier, meaning I have BEEN to a tea party—the first tea party. I did not jump on the bus and attend them all summer long. But I watched with admiration as the movement grew. Before anyone knew what they were, how they would be received, before Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman became outspoken supporters, there were many naysayers. Some of these people have now become the tea party's fair weather friends after sitting back and watching what these brave, every day Americans endured all spring and summer long last year to emerge as a REAL and persuasive force in this country. Now these former naysayers are not only excited to throw tea in the harbor but they want to take the helm of the ship too.

I remain for now, a supporter of Sarah Palin, though I have witnessed as of late some things that give me pause. I will write a blog about the "whys" later. However, that being said, I noted immediately when she was named as the keynote for this first event in 2010, that it did not serve the tea party to have at its center, a "famous" person BECAUSE it may become future fodder for the far left to increase their discrediting of this movement as NOT grass roots or "from" the people. To the uneducated, this lapse in judgment will provide the very thin shred of evidence that somehow this has always been a "well funded machine" if someone like Palin, who is NOW a rock star, is seen as its leader. It is a shame to me that this noble group of American citizens like myself has begun to allow the Republican party to lay claim that "they were always with the tea party people." I know from being there that it was Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity and VERY few others at its humble debut in April 2009. Governor Rick Perry did attend the tea party in Austin where he made his now infamous "we can secede" speech—did you know he didn't actually say "Texas could secede?" but you know how the media spin goes. But most Republicans wrote off the tea partiers as "crazy, white, racist, middle aged, angry, uneducated, extremists." By the way, I will admit that I said Texas could secede at the tea party I attended in San Antonio, while being interviewed by college students doing a documentary on the historic event. Of course, I said it in jest. My words were something like "if it gets too crazy here, Texas can always secede" but if I run for office someday, you can bet that this clip will be shown in a political ad to discredit my intelligence and/or mental stability.

I remember broadcasts following the first tea parties where both Newt Gingrich AND Karl Rove dismissed the tea partiers as a fringe movement and said that they were a "small" portion of the population. CNN and MSNBC didn't even mention the tea parties and when covering them later in the week, completely maligned the people as "Nazi" freaks or "nutjobs.". LIFE Magazine and all of the "year in review" issues of 2009 magazines didn't even feature a single photograph of this historic movement. This now makes me wonder what was NOT in my elementary school history textbooks. Anyone who does NOT see the media bias as of 2009, literally has their head in east and west coast sand. To see how suddenly things have changed just strengthens the resolve in those of us who are watching our government and media representatives for any signs of integrity—I can say that I haven't truly found anyone I can FULLY count on yet. But I have been watching certain programs that have been very consistent and have also been reading books written by and/or endorsed by people who SEEM worthy of my trust so far. Time will tell.

Now, I can't speak to why the founder for this convention made this group a "for profit" organization but on the surface, I don't see what the issue is here. If you're going to attend a convention, there are costs involved. If this "real" American citizen has given his time, effort and creativity to organizing a mass group of people, I don't see where the problem is in him making a profit. After all, if we support capitalism, creating jobs and employing Americans is a good thing, right?

I don't know where this notion that it is distasteful to earn money has come from. Everyone who has been a president in recent memory is WEALTHY yet runs on being the "common man." C'mon, America. This is ridiculous. We all know they're rich, privileged, Ivy Leage educate, upper class, connected. We know the white house is bought and paid for—that's WHY we're outraged. However, that doesn't mean that someone who legitimately starts something from nothing should not earn a buck for it, do we? That's the spirit of entrepreneurialism. My gosh, for all of the torture inflicted on you for standing up to our tyrannical government, you SHOULD be paid for your trouble. You don't expect the Obama administration to support the tea party movement with government grants, do you? Naw, that's only if you're a running a mosque funneling funds into Pakistan training camps—note, that is a joke, Ariana!

Next, much has been made about Sarah Palin receiving upwards of $125,000 to speak at this event. Again, how much do Bill Clinton and Barack Obama get paid at fundraising dinners? My understanding—call me naive—is that Sarah Palin is channeling much of her profits from both her book and speaking engagements into a PAC that will be used to effect change in Washington. Where is the conflict of interest here?

Lastly, as for Michelle Bachman (and the other representative's) decision to back out, I don't know enough here to know what I don't know. Perhaps there is a statute that forbids sitting leaders to attend for-profit rallies in Tennesse. It is probably purely political and that brings me back to integrity. Motives are being scrutinized by Americans. If this backout was done to get elected in 2010, we the people aren't going to buy it. But if it was for purely altruistic or noble reasons, then we will support it. The one thing I know is this. The enemies of the tea party movement are always looking for reasons to divide and discredit this group. But they can't. We are the silent majority. And we wait. We watch Nancy Pelosi threaten to stuff our mouths full of cake and we just can't wait for November 2010 when finally, we can feed it to her on her way out the door. She can give part of that cake to Barbara Boxer and Maxine Waters. Nancy should love this—after all, it's redistribution.

This tea party convention controversy is a lot of tempest in a pot of tea.

This group is unique and is the party of LIMITED GOVERNMENT. The leadership needs to come from within and should be led by an almost reluctant or unknown outsider—someone like a Captain "Sully"—an accidental hero. I also believe that values need to trump ideology and that religious dogma and abortion views have no place in this new party OF THE PEOPLE. Americans are tired of BOTH majority parties. It does not serve the Tea Party movement to align itself with either one. As a tea party attendee, the reason we went was to communicate en masse to the U.S. Government that "we the people" are tired of them not understanding that they work for US on BOTH sides of the aisle.

Editor's Note: You remember the days when you were asked to write "two pages" double spaced and you couldn't figure out how to fill up the page? I don't have those days. I have SO much on my mind, I could write a book in a week if were able to lock myself in a hotel room. But I make a promise that for blogging purposes, I am really, really going to try to get concise. It goes against my philosophy that if you can't say it in a few words, it probably needs to be restated simpler! But for now, the venting continues. I'll hit my stride. Just be thankful I didn't author the healthcare bill—it might be 3,000 pages! :) Off to have some Earl Grey.

The Eagle has Landed!

Well, after having been bottled up for years working in the entertainment industry and realizing just how far left most of my former co-workers were and still are, I am vent—uring out and starting my own blog. The name of this blog "No Tread Threads" was originally going to be the name of a personalized blue jean line that I wanted to market to the tea party movement. I came up with this idea after feeling that many Americans, such as myself, felt muted and silenced for having conservative/traditional values.

Let me back up a bit. Last year, I was "just" a stay-at-home mom living in Austin, raising 4 boys. I will never forget the day I said to my oldest son, after it became painfully clear that our new government was rapidly putting us on a path counter to what the republic stood for, that we were going to need to throw a "tea party." I said we needed to have an "Austin Tea Party." I never imagined that a few days later, Glenn Beck would announce the founding of the 9/12 network and state that "We Surround Them." He asked Americans to send in their photos and answer the core values to see if we agreed. Those photos are in a mosaic behind his desk. When he said those words, I finally felt that I was not alone.

I sent my picture and answered the 9/12 values questions at the website—no small feat because I don't even know how to do that sort of thing. Somehow I was successful. I must have been one of the first members of this historic group. I am very proud to be a member. I am also delighted that because I jumped at the chance to get involved, I was able to secure the name "LibertyMom" for my screen name. It says exactly how I feel. A few weeks later, people all over the country began joining the 9/12 project and then it was announced that REAL tea parties were actually going to take place across America. I couldn't believe it. I had NEVER ever been politically involved, engaged or otherwise even interested. Up until the 9/12 project, it seemed that everyone was asleep at the wheel. Americans were too busy being fed their daily dose of un-reality television. I was not. I was engaged and flipping eagerly between FOX, CNN, and trying to even stomach MSNBC which I could not BELIEVE was even considered a legitimate news network. I could see this so clearly. I began reading Common Sense and The 5,000 Year Leap. I started 1984 but got so depressed at how closely it fit what was happening now that I put it down. I ordered 25 pocket constitutions from The Heritage Foundation and gave them to my 4 children. I offered the rest to my neighbors and left a basket on my doorstep for two days. Not many took them so I gave them to a group I knew would appreciate them—the Boy Scouts of America.

Shortly after joining this group, actual tea party events began cropping up in major cities in America. I did not consider going until Glenn Beck announced that he would be at the Alamo. My husband's great great uncles fought and died at the Alamo and I felt that this would be a significant historic event. So on April 15th, my husband, myself and our four boys went to the Alamo for the first Tea Party. I was so nervous. I did not know what to expect. We had a room at the historic Menger Hotel. We got there as Ted Nugent walked in. Glenn Beck was there too. I wrote him a personal note and gave it to reception. Our room had a balcony overlooking the plaza. We made t-shirts that were bright orange with an image of Alice's Tea Party." None of our neighbors came. We felt that we might be "crazy." That is until we got there. Everyone wanted that shirt. The restaurants on the river walk served free iced tea in honor of the day's event and everyone was SO nice. There was a palpable energy in the air that something was beginning. All kinds of people were there. Everyone we talked to had NEVER been to a political demonstration before. The streets were FULL of ALL kinds of people, young, old, an international crowd but MOST were middle class families like ourselves. Everyone wanted our t-shirt. To watch that event live and then watch part of it from our balcony and see that CNN and MSNBC were not even COVERING it live was such an eye opener for us. Later, when Jeanine Garafalo made her unbelievable remarks about "racist, ignorant tea baggers" along with Nancy Pelosi's "astroturf" and "well funded corporate" comments, I knew I would never be asleep again.

So back to the jeans—after the year we had, and watching the health "care" and I use that term loosely, debate and the cap and trade and the lobbyists and the speeches and the spin, I said to my husband that I feel so unable to be HEARD. I was in Los Angeles. My dad was fighting cancer and a white van drives by with these words in large letters across the back window. "Pelosi, you're going down in 2010. Can you hear me now?" I couldn't believe someone in California had that kind of courage. I decided that something that ALL Americans could wear would be a really nice way for people of EVERY type to VOICE their opinion.

Since most conservatives don't shop at Barney's or Neiman's, I wanted to create an affordable blue jean with beautiful embroidery or bejeweling that had sayings on them relating to what Americans were feeling. For example, if a customer bought a jean that said "Don't tread on CA," the funds would be channeled into a PAC that was designed to help Californians elect people who would replace Barbara Boxer, Nancy Pelosi, Maxine Waters and any other progressive radicals running the now bankrupt state. "Taxed Enough Already” would of course be a great jean to wear to a tea party. I wanted the proceeds to go to PACS across the country. My goal was going to be to market these jeans that were affordable to people who wanted to wear their feelings on their "sleeves" so to speak.

After several weeks of attempting to figure out the "how" of this great idea, I don't think I have the resources, and certainly not the funds to pull this off. The designs, I have. The sayings, oh, I have some GREAT ones. But, that little thing called distribution—that one eludes me. If anyone out there wants to help me make this happen, I could use a partner. Hmmm. I can bake! Maybe, I can make tea-cakes with sayings instead. Or maybe this little thing I call No Tread Threads will have to be my VOICE. Okay, for all of the experienced bloggers who are probably poised to slam me, yes, I am already aware that when you group the letters together for this blog, it spells Not Read Threads—yep, I get it. Hopefully, people will read. Even if they don't, if I don't begin putting my thoughts down somewhere to counter the vitriol espoused from the other side, I might really become the "nutjob" that I'm already apparently accused of being simply for having conservative, traditional values and views.