Eric and I went to the Tax Day Tea Party in Oklahoma City on April 15, and both of us were shocked by how many people attended. We recently discussed the wisdom of having the second round of these on Independence Day - I think we both were of the opinion that the sympbolism was great, but worried that few would show considering it's the biggest summer holiday and most people tend to spend time at the lake, with family and friends, and so forth. 

We were wrong. 

From the pictures here, it looks like the crowd was slightly smaller, but it still extends all the way back to the derrick and beyond. When one considers that almost no media attention was given to the Independence Day events, this is astonishing, at least to me, someone who participated in the first one, someone who is fully behind the movement and what it stands for (lower taxes, a huge reduction in Federal spending, not saddling future generations with untenable debt, etc). 

My friend Jennifer called me yesterday and asked for a slogan to put on a placard for the Miami-OK Tea Party (all I could come up with was "If you want your ihneritance sooner than later, support Obamacare," which explains that I'm not a seasoned protester nor someone who can jam fivewords together for a slogan, unless they are "Get Out Of The Way." Pithy I ain't. 

I was surprised, simply because if small town like Miami-OK were having Tea Parties (admittedly in an ultra-Conservative-and-happily-so state like Oklahoma), then that likely meant hundreds of other towns were having them as well. 

It might be wishful thinking (with me, very likely), but the reaction to Sarah Palin's resignation combined with the success of the Tea Parties across the country on Independence Day, a perfect storm is brewing. Eric and I talked about where the Tea Party movement is going, and while I won't speak for him, my concern is that the bulk of people who care about it are not politicallyy experienced, and so many have limited time to dedicate to "it," whatever "it" is. 

Fact is, Tea Party people are fed up with TPTB in Washington, especially the GOP. I expect the Donkeys to betray what I think is right, but GOPer leaders have failed beyond anything I could ever have imagined. I doubt anyone knows where the Tea Party movement is going, but I know when people I like - Newt Gingrich - try to latch onto it, it's not going to work. Once you've appeared in an MMGW commercial with Nancy Pelosi, your credibility among Conservatives is shot. 

In short, the majority of the country describes itself as either Conservative or Moderate, while about a quarter are self-described Liberal. In the piece I posted earlier today about Palin, I get the sense that the country is dividing itself among Elites and Commoners, and nothing illustrates the Commoner approach to politics and government than the Tea Parties, and no star politician better exemplifies the Commoner's history and values than Sarah Palin. 

There is a vaccuum of leadership, and the Tea Parties are the symbol. It needs a leader - I don't care who it is, but it must be someone who has not previously sold out Commoners in a shallow attempt to pander, only to join Commoners in an equally shallow attempt to bandwagon. 

With almost no publicity, no news coverage and sparse organization, the Independence Day Tea Parties demonstrate that people are getting fed up. Now, the question: what are we going to do about it? 

A million-smacker question indeed.