Re: [Politics_CurrentEvents_Group] Beck Claims Half Million At Rally

You don't want to think so but it is hugely successful and I heard the number may be greater.

On Sat, Aug 28, 2010 at 5:02 PM, Sheep&Goatlady <springcreek@bentonrea.com> wrote:

I do not thnk so,,

----- Original Message -----
From: "Gary" <garyrumor2@yahoo.com>
To: <Politics_CurrentEvents_Group@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:30 AM
Subject: [Politics_CurrentEvents_Group] Beck Claims Half Million At Rally

Beck Claims Half Million At Rally

The Tea Party seems to be at a point where it can draw a crowd equivalent to
the Anti-War movement. That means they are no longer just astroturf. They
have a constituency and will be able to win elections. The recent Republican
primaries in Florida and Alaska show the right has clout. By driving old
school middle of the road Republicans like Charlie Christ right out of the
party and giving a dark horse like Miller in Alaska a real chance, they are
flexing their new found populist muscle.
Who are these people. They are mostly white older middle class or formerly
middle class who feel that they have lost the country to a radical elite
bent on enforcing equality for minorities on their backs.
Some of them are the white working classes who we should have on our side.
They have been suckered in by nativist rhetoric that proposes that by
closing the borders and kicking out illegal aliens their jobs will be
protected. This is patently wrongheaded. The jobs are lost due to
outsourcing by capitalists seeking the cheapest labor they can find and
often as not that is China. The illegals are for the most part doing jobs
that American citizens don't want, dirty back breaking jobs and low pay
service jobs where they compete with high school kids.
Others, like the Christan Fundamentalists have used social issues to attract
people and get them to go against their economic interests. They play upon
peoples emotional attachment to babies and the family and claim that the
left with its pro-abortion and pro-gay stances is threatening their core
values. Adding the wrath of a punishing deity who can send their souls to
hell to suffer, and these believers become the fodder for right wing
demagogues who know how to push those buttons.
Then there are the libertarians, anti government and anti tax but pro
capitalism. They seem to think that the only purpose of government is to
defend the borders and enforce contracts. This group is the most like the
left in that they have clear ideologies and positions on social issues that
often we can agree with but their economic positions are an anathema. Giving
corporations free rein is going back to the days of the robber barons.

Here is a report from CNN

Washington (CNN) - Large crowds rallied by conservative talk show host Glenn
Beck, among them the Tea Party faithful, descended Saturday where the Rev.
Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech exactly
47 years ago.

People filled the park by the reflecting pool in front of the Lincoln
Memorial in the shadows and echoes of the most pivotal civil rights address
in America's history.

Some of those who marched with King said Beck had usurped the day for his
own political gain. The Rev. Jesse Jackson told CNN that Beck was mimicking
King and "humiliating the tradition."

Other civil rights activists planned to gather nearby with the Rev. Al
Sharpton and his National Action Network and march to the site of the future
Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial, just a few blocks from the
Lincoln Memorial. It's possible participants in both events could cross
paths.

Beck, a hero to many conservative voters across the country, said, however,
that the rally is nonpolitical and its mission is to honor American troops.

He struck a spiritual tone in his opening remarks at the rally, which began
shortly after 10 a.m. with the national anthem.

"America today begins to turn back to God," he told the crowd, which covered
the upper steps of the Lincoln Memorial, as well as a large area around the
speakers' stage.

"I have just gotten word from the media that there are over 1,000 people
here today," Beck said sarcastically.

"We are humbled that you are here," he said. "The reflecting pool holds
about 200,000 people. This field back here holds about 250- to 300,000
people. They are not only full here, they're full in that field, they're
full behind me, and they are now across the street approaching the
Washington Monument."

Tea Party activists from across the country are attending the event. Former
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, a Fox News contributor, spoke to the crowd just
after 10:30 a.m.

Palin said she came to speak not about politics but as the mother of a
soldier. She said America's men and women in uniform exemplified the virtues
and values of America.

"Say what you want to say about me, but I raised a combat vet and you can't
take that away from me," she said to a crowd that broke out in chants of
"U.S.A! U.S.A!"

Sue Maliszewski of Phoenix, New York, described herself as not conservative
but someone who feels that her beliefs are no longer reflected in
government.

"I believe that we are dysfunctional as a country," she said.

"I believe it's hopeless unless we get back to our roots," Maliszewski
added. "And that means our faith, and it means, reorganize our time. We have
been so busy earning a living and raising our children that we have let
different small groups overpower our opinions. And we're here to . reclaim
what's wonderful about this country."

"Whites don't own Abraham Lincoln. Blacks don't own Martin Luther King.
Those are American icons, American ideas, and we should just talk about
character, and that's really what this event is about. It's about honoring
character," Beck said.

CNN's Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report."

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