Traveling from DC to St. Louis to Seattle today, I had some time to mull over the events yesterday in DC. From our meetings with Sen. Maria Cantwell and Rep. Rick Larsen, to the rousing cheers, chants, and singing in front of the Capitol and in the long lines waiting to get into the legislative office buildings to petition for redress of grievances (a la First Amendment), one thing was clear: Americans, like all humans, want to be free and the "Tea Party Movement" is not dissipating one whit. One man called out in frustration, upon hearing of the Republican health care bill, "Just leave us alone!!" Some in the press are calling this attitude "anti-government," which makes me chuckle because these folks are far from being anarchist. We here in the Seattle area know what real anarchists look like and how they behave, but there were no broken windows or toppled radio towers in the Capitol yesterday. What these new peaceful protesters want is liberty to pursue happiness, i.e. property in some form or another. They want to be able to use their talents and ideas to work, create, innovate, and compete, with the goal of providing for themselves and their families and leaving America better off than they found it. That's all. Is it so difficult to understand? 

For 'progressives,' this idea is the antithesis of their goals. 'Progressives' (I put it in quotes because really they are socialists, and as a trained linguist I much prefer to call things by the most precise terminology available) do not believe in liberty; they believe that government knows what's best for you, and that they can do a better job with your money than you can (even though history and common sense tell us that is impossible). This is how they justify government-run charity, an oxymoron if ever I heard one; how can forced confiscation of your hard-earned money be 'charitable'? Taxpayer-funded 'charity' robs the giver twice; it robs her of her property and it robs her of the proven benefits of being unselfish. It also robs the intended recipient, who does not make the connection that this 'charity' came at the expense and sacrifice of someone else on his behalf, and thus does not feel blessed but entitled. Worse, much of said property is lost to the pockets of the governmental middlemen. What a waste. Here in Washington, Tax Freedom Day this year came on August 17, a full month later than last year...meaning well over half of our earned money in Snohomish County was taken by various levels of government. And we're surprised our businesses are having trouble staying afloat? 

In our county, we are losing the educational battle; most of our neighbors do not understand the simple principles I have described above. They continue to vote for higher and higher taxes, without realizing that this means bigger government, fewer jobs...and the inevitable result of less freedom. We have our work cut out for us. We must lay it out, in plain and simple language, again and again to our neighbors and friends. It is a time of clarity. Freedom or statism. Liberty or tyranny. The good news is, across the country we have millions of new conservative activists who are saying, "Just tell me what to do, and I will AMAZE you!"  Find them on SmartGirlPolitics.ning.com, AsAMom.ning.com, and in your local meetup.com conservative groups. 

Do not give up. We must press forward and defeat the progressives in this battle of ideas.  In Reagan's words when asked about his foreign policy strategy, "We win. They lose."