I was struck by how very nice the crowd was. Perhaps this is why our crowd is smaller than the tea party crowd - we are really not all that angry about this issue. We are passionate, I believe, but we aren't mad down to our core. Honestly, I think we have all the moral high ground to be angry to our bones - it should make everyone mad as hell that innocent Americans are suffering and dying in the disgraceful lottery that passes for a health care "system" in this country. We should all be trembling with rage at the injustice of it. But even those of us passionate enough to make it down to the Capitol today were not angry.
A gal behind me tapped me and politely asked if I had any gum or breath mints. She said she had had a flavorful lunch.
I noticed how very diverse we were. This group was even more diverse than many pro-Obama events I attended which were much more likely to be majority African-American affairs. This group was young, old, black, white, gay, straight, and everything in between.
Larry Pelligrini, bless his heart, who served as the MC, was the most direct. He said, and I paraphrase, "if you are a birther or a tea bagger or whatever you are out there, if you like the status quo, fine. Be aware that probably you will have your small claims denied and when you have a large claim, you will be kicked out of your plan. But if that's what you want, fine. But please don't get in the way of those who have nothing." Wow. That was our tirade against the tea baggers. Really, it was so sweet.
So. Wow. I hardly know what to say. Those of us who really have a right to be hopping mad - dare I say - mad enough to spit - so mad we can't see straight - at a corrupt and unjust system are just amazingly reasonable. This didn't feel much like storming the barricade. I felt cozy and self-righteous, but I don't know if this is going to cut it.
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