Regarding Bear Flag Rebel's "Tsunami Warning":

San Diego's Republicans have an upcoming opportunity to join and help shape the local manifestation of the national grassroots "Tea Party" movement.  The "John and Ken" tax revolt protest in Fullerton was a follow-on to the first round of "Tea Party" events, which draw on the metaphor of the Boston Tea Party.

The movement had its beginning when CNBC's Rick Santelli made his now-famous "Chicago Tea Party" comments from the floor of the Chicago Merchantile Exchange.



Conservative and libertarian activists ran with the metaphor and planning began, using online venues such as Facebook and Twitter, for the first "Tea Party" events, which occurred on and around February 27.  Michelle Malkin, one of the Tea Party sponsors, has written extensively in her blog about the movement.  An excellent review of its brief history to date (which you won't find in the mainstream media) and the principles behind it can be found on her site here.  Malkin summarizes the Tea Party spirit in one word:  "Enough!"

Enough. In a word, that is the message of disgusted taxpayers fed up with the confiscatory policies of both parties in Washington. George Bush pre-socialized the economy with billion-dollar bailouts of the financial and auto industries. Barack Obama is pouring billions more down those sinkholes. The camel's back isn't just broken. His neck and four legs have all snapped, too.

Enough. Last Friday, thousands of Americans turned out to protest reckless government spending in the pork-laden stimulus package, the earmark-clogged budget bill, the massive mortgage entitlement program, and taxpayer-funded corporate rescues. Contrary to false left-wing blog smears that the hastily-planned impromptu events were "Astro-turfed," the crowds were packed with first-time grass-roots activists. They were people with families and day jobs whose usual definition of "community organizing" involves neighborhood yard sales or their kids' soccer matches. They were members of the silent majority who decided to be silent no more.

Enough. These "Tea Party" protests spanned the sunny Santa Monica pier to the icy streets of Chicago and Cleveland to rain-drenched Atlanta, overflowing grounds of the St. Louis Gateway Arch, massive crowds in Greenville, S.C., several hundred each in New York City and Washington, D.C., and all points in between. Like those who demonstrated before them in Seattle, Denver, Mesa, Arizona, and Overland Park, Kansas two weeks ago, the Tea Party participants held homemade signs that said it all: "Your mortgage is not my problem;" "Liberty: All the stimulus we need; "No taxation without deliberation."

The speed and scope with which they mobilized were due not to nefarious outside conspiracists, but to social networking websites Facebook and Twitter (where a burgeoning network called Top Conservatives on Twitter became the central clearinghouse for information). Planning for a new wave of demonstrations on April 15 has begun at www.taxdayteaparty.com.

Enough. While they take to the streets politically, untold numbers of America's wealth producers are going on strike financially. Dr. Helen Smith, a Knoxville forensic pathologist and political blogger, dubbed the phenomenon "Going Galt" last fall. It's a reference to the famed Ayn Rand novel, "Atlas Shrugged," in which protagonist John Galt leads the entrepreneur class to cease productive activities in order to starve the government of revenue. (Not coincidentally, Rand's novel sales are up and John Galt references punctuated many of the Tea Party demonstrations.)

The next major round of events in this spontaneous but rapidly organizing movement is the Tax Day Tea Party being held on or about April 15.  Click on the link in the previous sentence to find out more about the nationwide plans, including links to events in all 50 states.  News, updates and commentary also can be found by following the #teaparty hashtag on Twitter.

San Diego's Tax Day Tea Party event is being organized by San Diegans, not John & Ken.  It will be held exactly one month from today, on Saturday, April 11, with follow-on events on the 15th:

SAN DIEGO TAX DAY TEA PARTY
April 11th
11:00 am - Noon
Spanish Landing Park
(West Basin on N. Harbor Dr. across the street from the airport)
Map & info: http://www.portofsandiego.org/spanish-landing-park.html

Those interested are strongly encouraged to join the Southern California Tax Revolt group on Facebook for updates on this event.  RSVP on Facebook for the San Diego event here.

San Diego's Republicans should plan to show up at and participate in this rally.  We need to surf the tsunami rather than be drowned by it.  After all, San Diegans are known for their surfing skills.