This is really just an extended comment but given the importance of these town hall meetings I thought I had better diary it. Representative Speier was originally scheduled to hold a town meeting this coming Sunday at 11 a.m. in Seal Cove, the neighborhood where I live. the meeting has been moved to Farralone view elementary school in Montara at the same time, just a few miles away. I won't be able to walk to it but I certainly plan to attend.
I hope that many Bay Area activists will turn up to this meeting. There is plenty of room which is why the event was moved. We can expect the wing nuts to show up in force. We have to be prepared. Below the fold I'll talk about my plans.
I think that by and large we have been far too respectful of the idiots who oppose single-payer health care. We should confront them directly and encourage politicians to speak the truth: the opposition is nothing but fools, idiots, and ideologues. There is no point in talking to them. They don't have minds to change.
The evil ones try to pretend that our nation's founders did not want government provided health care. Health care in the 18th century was not a major expense. It was nothing like what we have today. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that if Jefferson, Franklin, Washington, Hamilton, Adams, and all the rest were around today they would be major backers of protecting our nation's welfare.
The best thing we can do at these meetings is provoke the opposition into doing things for which they can be arrested. It is also important that these little termites be photographed and identified so that we can turn them into poster boys for our campaign. I urge everyone to bring cameras or camera equipped cell phones to the meeting. Those of you who are fans of YouTube might take video but my main goal is to make sure that the neighbors of these cretins seeing that they are out trying to prevent their own families from getting health care.
Bring provocative signs, where provocative T-shirts and get in the face is of those who are trying to disrupt the meetings and let them know they are not welcome. I prefer to do it with humor and I'm already writing some material that I will use on Sunday when a tried to interrupt us. Clearly these people were dropped on their heads as children and never received health care.
As for our representative, we don't have to get up in her face about anything. She is with us on health care. The message we need to send to her is to tell her colleagues that any Democrat who opposes single-payer health care will be primary and that we, Californians, will be strongly funding their opponents. That's millions of dollars that will be used to defeat these dinosaurs. Every single one of them with no exceptions. Even if it means a Republican gets a seat for two years. Our majority is robust and he is time for us to clean house. We can defeat at least a dozen of these dinosaurs just by using our progressive muscle. It is up to locals to provide the primary challengers and independence for the general election if necessary. But let it be known that our progressive community will rise up and funded these efforts as we did to elect a president who is betraying us.
This is the message we want her to carry back to Washington. Not some calm buyout lead to please please please give us a little bit of token healthcare. It is single-payer or nothing. We prefer that Obama's plan and in total failure than to get something so corrupt as what is on the table now. If we progressives defeat this bill than they will have to make concessions in our direction to get something passed. Progressive representatives are holding strong we now have dozens of sworn pledges not not to pass any healthcare without single-payer.
I don't know of any CoastSide gathering before or after the meeting. I would be happy to meet with other activists at the conclusion of the meeting at a nearby coffee shop to plan future moves if anyone is interested.
I have not yet had the time to design any free healthcare T-shirt and poster art to put up on my website for you to download and use. I hope to get something up Thursday, circumstances permitting. Please share your views in the comments and by e-mail, if you wish. This is just one town hall in a solid blue area so I'm not going to ask for any recommendations. The diary title should attract those who live in the area and this diary is largely irrelevant to everyone else.