Chicago Tea Party

So I was there, and like a schmoron I forgot to bring a camera.



I must say, for the fact that this was a grassroots movement with about a week to get organized, the turnout was quite encouraging. There were at least 300, maybe closer to 400 in participation. Hats off to Smart Girl Politics, #DontGo, Americans for Tax Reform, the HeartlandInstitute, American Spectator Magazine and anyone else involved with the planning.

I was nervous walking to Daley plaza before the event, because it didn't seem that I was bumping into anyone else headed to the teaparty along the way. However Daley plaza was pretty crowded when I arrived and more people filed in before we began the march. All of the local news networks were on hand.

Tony Perica was there, and it appeared that a few of the protesters were giving him a little grief for trying to get in on the act. I for one was glad to see some elected officials out showing support for the event. Some self appointed leader started shouting "Don't Tread On Me!" at the cameras, which was a little annoying, but my worst fears, that some true racist nutcases would show up to intermingle with the rest of the protesters, were soon allayed. I groaned when I saw one or two posters of Obama with a Hitler mustache--if anything was going to make it on the news, that would be it--but by and large, it was a bunch of sensible, peaceful conservatives who were outraged by the Porkulus bill.

We marched down Dearborn to Wacker, and over to Michigan. As we neared Michigan I turned around and saw that the marchers stretched back along Wacker as far as the eye could see. We ended up in front of Tribune Tower, where more cameras and reporters awaited us. Someone from #Dontgo grabbed a megaphone and launched into a speech that, among other things made it pretty clear to Perica & co. that Republicans are not going to get a pass if they don't stand up against Obama's socialist agenda. There was also "Sam Adams," resplendant in powered wig and colonial garb, who provided some comic relief as well.

All in all, I feel that the event was a success. We definitely got noticed, and when multiplied by the dozens of other cities that held tea parties today, I think it amounts to a not insignificant shot across the bow of the SS Obama. The important thing is to make sure that the momentum continues to build rather than ebb. And to that end, I hope the planners make the most of the time between now and the July 4th event to make sure the next tea party is conducted on a much more massive scale, with far greater turnout.

Special kudos to Chicago's Finest. The police in our escort were outstanding. At no point were things tense, and the cops were always polite and courteous. They knew they weren't being forced to escort the usual radical crazies they get stuck with at these sorts of events, and you could generally tell that they were in agreement with us even if they weren't allowed to say anything. The police really made the event all the more enjoyable.

Here's looking at July.

The Panicker-in-Chief

Dick Morris nails it.

Congress Got Back

Big Guv is back with a vengeance, sayeth Boehner, in what is probably the biggest understatement since the August 24, 79 AD weather forcast for Pompei called for "dense atmospheric conditions."

Letting Democrats run government is like putting Charles Manson in charge of a daycare center.

Anything goes

Today, President Obama hosted "dozens of leaders" in a brainstorming session to come up with solutions for "solving" this current fiscal crisis.

Which for me, begs the question: what the hell have you and your advisers been doing for the last month, Mr. President? You mean to tell me your team couldn't think of anything? This inspires a ton of confidence.

Also of note: these "leaders" were generally members of Congress or "community leaders"--In other words, the group that passed this pork bill and the group directly benefiting from it. Great. I'm sure they'll have a lot of new and innovative ideas.

Congratulations, America. You wanted youth and excitement and you're going to get it. You voted for the teenager without a lick of experience or a ghost of a clue what he's doing, and now we all get to suffer for your stupidity.

I for one am sick and tired of this blather about how "smart" the American people are. It appears at the moment that at least 52% voters in this country are damned naive and stupid. They bought a lot of idealistic sounding fluff over a boring acerbic curmudgeon with a ton of experience, and it looks like my great grandchildren will be picking up the bill.

This is the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life.

Hamster on a Piano

Yngwie.

I wish I could do this. Wear leather pants and no shirt, I mean.

It could happen!

Listening to a recent archive of Reason To Believe's Creation Update program. Fazale Rana PhD is discussing a current initiative in the field of Synthetic Biology to create "artificial life." The team of scientists aim to map out a synthetic genome and put it into a cell without DNA to create "microplasm labotoreum", an organism that currently doesn't exist in nature. At first blush it sound like something for moral concern, but in effect what they're doing is taking parts from a very basic organism, throwing out the non-essentials, and reassembling the parts to form a new, simple organism. It's like ripping apart a lawnmower engine, taken out the parts that are unnecessary, and rebuilding a lawnmower that you hope will work. Which is not to say that what these scientists are doing is not remarkable--as it turns out, this lifeform they are looking to make still requires a mindblowingly large gene sequence.

Rana couldn't avoid mentioning the irony that some of the brightest scientists in the world have spent years working on this project, which they're not even sure will work, and yet nontheists are unquestioningly willing to extend the benefit of the doubt to blind unguided random processes bringing life about.