WHITE RIVER VALLEY — The country witnessed shameful events during the Town Hall meetings in August.

Mobs shouted down speakers in attempts to be heard. Some carried signs saying the Public Option is socialism, which it isn't.

Other signs referred to President Obama as a "Jungle Bunny" or pictured him as Hitler, which reveal the low IQ of many in the mob.

Signs warned of what Moose-Killer Palin called "Death Panels" to euthanize the elderly. There were signs printed with such pitifully pithy observations as "Down With Obamacare" and "Socialized Medicine Is Communism." Some even demanded, "Give Me Back My America" and accused the Obama Administration of assaulting our Constitution!

Where were these worthies when the Bush/Cheney thugs were suspending Habeas Corpus and Posse Comitatus, passing such laws as the Patriot Act and Military Commissions Act, and giving dictatorial power to the president?

At some meetings people openly carried weapons. I saw one man with a sign that said "Come And Take It!" meaning the assault rifle he had on his shoulder.

Another had pistol in a side holster and an assault rifle on his shoulder. There are people who believe the Obama Administration is going to suspend the Second Amendment and take all guns from law abiding citizens. There has been no such thing being done by the present administration. It was the Bushians who seized the power to take everyones' weapons.

I saw signs that incorrectly quoted part of a letter Thomas Jefferson wrote, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." One that really stood out. It stated in large red letters "START A REVOLUTION!" Way to go, dude.

I encountered a lot of that during the social unrest of the 1960s and early '70s.

Social unrest is a polite way of saying that our country was in a revolution. The Detroit riots, the Watts Riots in Los Angeles were revolutions. Campuses were in revolt. Thousands ran through Chicago streets during Days of Rage and the Democratic Party convention, breaking windows, overturning and burning cars, until someone noticed that it was having no affect whatsoever. The Vietnam War was raging and the American People were tired and sick of the war and the losses of our finest. Many who went to fight when their country called came home and protested the war with their own organization, Vietnam Veterans Against the War. A protest by combat veterans could have been loud, but it was controlled revolution. They made their message heard by silently marching to stop that damned war.

The Beatles answered the call for revolution;

You say you want a revolution/Well, you know/We all want to change the world/You tell me that it's evolution/Well, you know/We all want to change the world/But when you talk about destruction/Don't you know that you can count me out/Don't you know it's gonna be all right/You say you got a real solution/Well, you know/We'd all love to see the plan/ You ask me for a contribution/Well, you know/We're doing what we can/But when you want money/for people with minds that hate/All I can tell is brother you have to wait/Don't you know it's gonna be all right/You say you'll change the constitution/Well, you know/We all want to change your head/You tell me it's the institution/ Well, you know/You better free your mind instead/But if you go carrying pictures of chairman Mao/You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow/Don't you know it's gonna be all right.

I end my column with a call to act like Americans and reject the irrational acts of the clueless.

Question authority. It's the American way.

-

Budd Saunders has an M.A. in History from the University of Arkansas where he lectured the history of Western Civilization.

Opinion, Pages 4 on 10/08/2009

Comments

To report abuse or misuse of this area please hit the "Suggest Removal" link in the comment to alert our online managers.

Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.