Teabags

Has anyone else noticed that "teabag" rhymes with "fleabag"? Just sayin' is all.

I thought I'd do my patriotic duty today and at least drive by a couple of Teabag Parties. It took some doing to find them. The official Republican party web site wasn't much help, but after some digging and googling I found the Official Tax Day Tea Party web site. It claimed to provide locations and directions, so I checked out the opportunities on the Eastside of Seattle. The first turned out to be at an apartment complex, so I skipped that. The second try advised me that "We were not able to locate the address," but did provide a couple of possible intersections, albeit with an incorrect zip code.

An errand took me near the one of the intersections, so I went there first. A lonely American flag marked the spot, but I didn't see any partying. I turned up a driveway and found 8-10 people huddled around an ice cream stand. At the foot of the driveway, a couple of guys were taking names. For all I know, they were writing down the license plate numbers of suspicious cars like mine, which still has its Obama/Biden and Save NOLA bumper stickers.

The next intersection I went to -- at Avondale and Union Hill -- turned out to be where the action was. Around 30-50 protesters occupied all four corners waving signs like the one that said "Keep Government Out Of The Free Market." Um, didn't we try that once? Didn't that get us where we are today? Well, I suppose that high principle can't stoop to answer such prosaic questions.

Now, 30-50 conservatives -- none of whom dressed as an Indian, possibly out of sensitivity to the numerous Western Washington tribes -- may or may not sound like a lot, but in fact it's pretty lame turnout. Once the bastion of Western Washington Republicans, Seattle's Eastside now trends inexorably blue. The party goers commandeered one of the busiest intersections in the Puget Sound: Thousands of cars pass through it every day; few of the drivers will find a place to park so that they can join the Teabag Party. Twenty years ago, the demonstrators may well have clogged the intersection...

While looking for Teabag Party locations, I stumbled upon this gem: georgewbushstore.com. It has everything from "Thank You, President Bush" bumper stickers (I haven't seen one yet) to a limited edition commemorative cigar (not Cuban, I assume). I'm going to go out on a limb and say that there hasn't been a run on this merchandise...

Susannah Powers: The art of convenience...

Citizen K. is off to NYC today. On Friday, my son and I are going to a Yankees game in the afternoon and a Mets game at night. Saturday, we have tix for West Side Story.

Just A Song: Joan Baez and Paul Robeson sing "Joe Hill."

Fighting Javelinas everywhere say "Give us back our good name!". Here, the Texas A & I Fighting Javelinas marching band plays the best fight song ever, "Jalisco":