Saturday, August 22, 2009

Irony Curtain

I recently watched video of a town hall meeting in Tampa, Florida.

Apparently, the meeting place held only a few hundred people, but several hundred showed up. Those who were in the hall, unable to fit into the room, began shouting over the speaker. They chanted, "Hear our voice! Hear our voice!" (It probably should have been voiceS, plural, but we'll let that slide.) Because they were disrupting the meeting, security officials came over and closed the doors. This really enraged the people in the hall, and they began to beat on the doors. "Let us in!" When security came back out and told them that they were keeping the doors closed, the room was over-capacity, and they were disrupting the meeting, you could hear several comments. "This is a public meeting!" "Why can't we come in?!" And then a plaintive....

"We only want to hear what is going on!"

Protester Maybe I'm missing something here, but how can you hear what is going on when you and several dozen other yahoos are shouting so loudly that you are drowning out the person who is speaking? I just love that poor pitiful me attitude, where these folks stomp on others' right to speak their minds and then get all pissy when they get called on their own rude behavior. These people squawk about their First Amendment rights being violated after violating that same right of others so thoroughly that the poor First Amendment has to take the morning-after Walk of Shame, hungover, with smeared mascara, its panties stuffed in its purse.

I don't consider going to town hall meetings and making your voice heard to be un-American. On the contrary, I think it is our right as well as a privilege, and I also feel it is our civic duty as concerned citizens. However, I consider shouting down your opponent to be rude and uncivilized. For God's sake, it reminds me of shouting matches with an ex, in which no one was listening, no one was being heard, and things didn't stop until someone was physically pushed, or locked themselves away in another room, or took off in their car just to get the hell away from that toxic atmosphere and all the freakin' shouting. Health care is too important an issue to just shout at the opposition until they can't take it anymore and want to hop in the car and speed away. It is no longer discussion, it is not civil discourse, it is not problem-solving...it is intimidation, pure and simple, designed to silence the opposition, to shout them into submission.

Add to that the distinct lack of accurate information, a high level of paranoia, and a missing compassion gene, and you've got a pretty nasty stew. Just out of curiosity, I'd love to know how many of the most vociferous anti-health care reform protesters have health insurance of their own. Hmmm.

I applaud Congressman Barney Frank for saying “Enough is enough” and giving it right back to a woman who, at a recent town hall meeting, played the Nazi card…to a man who is both a homosexual and a Jew. Way to go, lady, and thank you, Congressman Frank, for the spectacular smackdown. It made my day, and I hope I get to use your phrase “arguing with you would be like arguing with a dining room table” at some point in my life.

Fair warning: I'm not done with the health care thing yet, not by a long shot. And it’s starting to make me very very angry….

Life on Mars

12 comments:

  1. Careful, I know from experience that warning someone that you are getting angry only incites more of the lame-ass behavior. That has been proven lately with anti-Obama rhetoric.

    Love the Congressman Barney Frank retort :o)

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  2. Actually, that whole Barney Frank town hall was packed full of him smacking down those imbeciles. I especially loved the bit when some gomer accused Frank and the government of "keeping secrets," and Barney responded with "Sir, I've not had a secret in twenty-one years."

    The man is a master.

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  3. AAAAMen...AAAAMEN...amen amen.... Glory to Beth in the highest...(not to much praise?)

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  4. Beth is not done.
    Be afraid. Be very afraid. It's gonna get good!
    >=]
    I'm ready to start applauding you now!

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  5. Are these the same people that attended the tea parties?

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  6. << And it’s starting to make me very very angry >>

    Same here!!!!!

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  7. Amen! I think that it's time for the rest of us to make it clear to all of these shouting voices that there is no room for ignorance, misinformation, and down right lies in a discussion that is truly about life and death issues for millions of people. Barney Frank is a welcome breath of fresh air in the health care debate.

    I love this line: These people squawk about their First Amendment rights being violated after violating that same right of others so thoroughly that the poor First Amendment has to take the morning-after Walk of Shame, hungover, with smeared mascara, its panties stuffed in its purse.

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  8. Hi Beth,
    I think a good portion of these folks who are shouting are deliberately trying to drown out the debate. To debate is American. To prevent discourse ... well, ironically, that just smacks of the kind of behavior these shouting lunatics attribute to others!
    Best,
    Marty

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  9. Love Barney Frank! More of them need to stand up and do this.

    Another great post!

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  10. Oh Beth..I do love you and all your retorts etc. I sure would be afraid very afraid when you really get going !! (By the way since I started my silly wee blog my Sister Sarah has been peeping in on the ones mentioned on my side bar and says to tell you she thinks you are great, and she dosn't say that lightly !!)

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  11. While I am not a fan of Barney Frank I did get quite a kick out of his replies to the folks. I was actually laughing out loud! I'll say this, the man has a pair of brass ones and you just have to respect that. LOL

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  12. there was a teabagging booth at the town fair i just went to with mr. mischief, protesting taxes of all things. we never got around to asking them if they had ever been teabagged or if they had any good tips on techniques for a good teabagging.

    the irony is that the tax base of the city enable them to have the fair in the first place, allowing them to protest the existence of said taxes.....

    i just dont get it.

    xxalainaxx

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I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you?