Gainesville Tea Party Packs Tower Road Library
They did not come to protest anything, but to build an organization. That was the purpose of the Gainesville Tea Party, namesake of the nationwide movement of previously unaffiliated Americans who are revolting against our unprecedented deficits and policies that are perceived as wrong-headed and irresponsible. According to my head count, there were 87 people present, and the organizers told me that a lot of people who came to the first meeting were not here this time. And this meeting was twice as big.
The meeting was called to order by Karianne Wilkins, whose first order of business was to lay the framework of an orderly meeting, loosely based on Roberts Rules. Next was a reading of the mission statement: “To educate, organize and mobilize our fellow citizens so we can elect future representatives who will support and defend the US Constitution and secure public policy consistent with our core values of Fiscal Responsibility, Limited Government, and Free Markets.” Next, she presented a flow chart that described how this would be accomplished through community service, education, and events. The first special event is called “Kickoff to Judgment Day 2010″. This will take place on Saturday, February 6, and will be hosted by Gainesville Target Range. There will be more details as that time draws near. In the meantime, there is a Facebook page for the event, as well as for the Gainesville Tea party group, as well as a web site.
There was also a guest speaker, Tom Hayes-Morrison, who presented a preview of some material that would help arm people with information to share with friends and neighbors about the Health Care Plan in Congress and about Cap and Trade. At the end there was an initial installment of a DVD series to be used as part of a study group, but this followed some lively discussion that was both diverse and orderly.
There were Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and Independents at the meeting, and although there was some disagreement about the role of third parties, everyone seemed to just want to work together to accomplish the goals in the mission statement.
I had the opportunity to participate, and I did get to speak, but I was not the first person to urge this group to get involved in our local elections. Indeed, these people are pretty hot to do something, so if you are already a candidate for an upcoming election, want to be a candidate, or want to help a candidate, you should plan on being a part of this group. If you are in favor of Cap and Trade, the Health Care Plan, and bigger government and more spending, there are probably better uses of your time.
The next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, January 30th, at the Tower Road Library from 10am to noon. Since the meeting room was overflowing, a larger site is being sought, so stay tuned to their website or this one for further information.
