Second Annual Tea Party Demonstration At The State Capitol

It's April 15th, and you know what day it is! Yes, it's time once again to cover the Big Tea Party Demonstration on the State Capitol's west steps!

I saw the first signs that something was up long before I approached the Capitol on foot. Not far from my workplace I saw several men wearing camouflage pants, and one fellow wearing a camouflage outfit (with a bright blue beret). At first I feared Camouflage might be the New Black, but at the demonstration itself, there was little evidence of it (unless I was surrounded by folks in Camouflage and just didn't see them at all in the mottling of sun and shade on the Capitol grounds).

I saw no evidence of Guns (but didn't really look for them either).

Last year, the (primarily white suburban) crowd seemed to skew Unusually Old and Freakishly Fat. In July, my emphasis on the Circus Fat angle caught the attention of the Sacramento Bee, which published a portion of a blogpost, which, in turn, triggered some irritated commentary, no doubt from insulted parties.

In defense, I acknowledged that I, as a graying middle-aged man, met the minimum medical qualifications to be categorized as Obese. Hey, I know Fat! But I also knew some these folks hadn't faced serious dietary discipline in forty years. If folks had been this Fat in the American Revolution, they wouldn't have been able to find horses strong enough to bear their weight. Heck, maybe even Clydesdales would have buckled under the pressure.








This year, the (primarily white suburban) crowd skewed Older-Than-Average. Nevertheless, there were many more younger people, so it seemed much more like a normal cross-section of Suburban America: like an older version of a crowd at a ball game, maybe. The Freakishly Fat were either many fewer in number (no more than in the average population), or had brought their own lawn chairs and thus (literally) had a lower profile.

The demonstration this year seemed to be much better organized than last year. There were many more lawn chairs this year than last year, indicating that people had thought more carefully about their physical needs for the long afternoon in the sun. Last year, probably to their regret, they eagerly waddled out the door before thinking about where they were going to sit, and ended up weary and with aching feet. This year, they learned from their experiences.

Left: The Norcal Tea Party Patriots were doing a brisk business in T-Shirts, and related paraphernalia.
Stands had been erected where one could purchase food, or T-Shirts, or little Salvation-Army-style Liberty Bells, or other patriotic trinkets.














When I first arrived, I took note of the candidates tables on the north side of the State Capitol. These had been absent last year (2009 not being a major election year, of course). This was another sign of improved organization.

Nevertheless, the crowd seemed more sedate, and less agitated, than last year. I interpreted the change to have resulted from the addition of younger, less-politically-minded people to the audience. The closer to normal the crowd gets, the more people want pet each other's dogs, or pose for photos with the crowd patrol cops on horseback.

In addition, the crowd seemed smaller than last year: maybe something like 10 to 20% smaller. Last year, this demonstration was actively-promoted by national FOX News, and some of their luminaries were actually present at the demonstration. This year, FOX News didn't seem to be present, and without that unequalled promotional machinery at work, there was less of a draw.

I collected some campaign literature, of course. At one point, I passed a woman who was handing out literature 'for the other side' (meaning Progressives). I identified myself as a 'friend' and she said "you don't know what it's been like out here today! People here have no idea that Obama is the farthest thing from being a Socialist!" She was talking to an unusually well-dressed and well-groomed man with a white beard and a very smooth demeanor (clearly someone who worked in the State Capitol, or had some connection to Power, who identified himself as 'Bruce Lee') who stated that 'there are extremists on both sides, of course.' Left Bloggers like myself recognize that kind of rhetoric as being Classic Village nonsense: the steel chain that continues to bind media coverage in this great nation of ours. The two of us countered that the Right has been much more Extreme these days, and he said 'some would say so.' Just then, I recognized Jerry Frink, local Progressive gadfly and activist, and urged her to talk to him, but before we departed we shared a moment marvelling over the Well-Dressed Man. "It's amazing how many resources the Other Side gets," she said. "Progressives don't get jack!" Ain't that the truth!

The speakers spoke. Two Jumbotrons helped the crowd see the speakers. I believe Talk Radio folks Armstrong and Getty were there, plus an actor in a 19th-Century military uniform who identified himself as 'General John Fremont, first Governor of California'. Several folks sang, as well.

After awhile, I walked over to the bank to get some money (it's expensive living in Obama's Socialist Amerika, especially on April 15th). On my return trip, I passed the candidates tables again.

Left: Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Chambers.

Omigod, who should I run into but Bill Chambers! As you know, I have a great fondness for the 135 capable, but amazingly-diverse candidates (such as myself) who ran for Governor in the 2003 California Gubernatorial Recall Election. Bill Chambers was one of these folks!

"Didn't you run in 2003?" I asked. He replied "2003, AND 2006, AND this year too!" I asked him whether he was from down south (meaning the LA area), and he replied that he had been born there, but had been living in Auburn since 1998. The 2003 election campaign was so crazy, I barely had time to talk to many of the candidates; even those candidates who, like Bill Chambers, were local.

In any event, I wish Bill well on his campaign for the 2010 Republican gubernatorial nomination. You have to admire anyone who stops yelling at his television long enough to start walking the arduous trail that actually leads to winning an election!


Left: Candidate Suzanne Jones for the State Assembly, District 5 (Roger Niello's seat) seems to be deliberately affecting a Sarah Palin look. She already had the rimless bifocal thing going, and with just a few clothing and hair changes - Voila!

In his opening remarks, one of the speakers addressed the audience with "Hello, fellow Racists!" The audience knowingly laughed at the speaker's cheeky sarcasm. Tea Partiers, like other Republicans, regard Democratic charges of racism as canards used to squelch open discussion of society's problems. (Myself, I regard the charges as often accurate - white suburbanites can sometimes be thoughtlessly racist without quite being aware of it).
Anti-abortion activists campaigned as well.





This poster didn't make much sense to me - Bushies with Hitler mustaches....
... until I saw this poster.








Children were more-in-evidence this year than last year.




The Proud Patriotic Poodle's red-white-and-blue bunting fell into disarray when the Labrador Retriever came too close.