Sheer calumny.
Today my wife and I attended a No Kings rally in a red district, in a red county, in a red state. It exceeded my expectations.
There were 3,000 plus of us there. Mostly it seemed the protestors were well informed, whether it be what was dictated in their signs, or their conversations.
They were upset by the out of control ICE activity, and lack of empathy. The monstrous intent of future LGBTQ legislation, and treatment of those people. The Epstein files. The personal usage of the DOJ as a weapon. The financial struggles being created when promises were made to reverse them. The abusive, racist, misogynistic language used in their speeches. The tariffs.
The hypocrisy.
Ad Infinitum.
What did I see today at the "No Kings" rally?
I saw educated and patriotic protest signs.
I saw veterans of multiple wars walking about with signs of disgust at the current state of affairs of the military they fought for and with.
I saw people in inflatable T-Rex, purple dinosaur, dachsund, teddy bear, shark, and unicorn costumes. I saw a hilarious dancing chicken, and a Trump baby. I saw an ornate Godzilla costume that was either top flight construction, or very pricy.
There was a man walking about with an acoustic guitar that had a sign taped to it that said "This Machine Destroys Facism", playing beautifully rendered tunes.
Another man was playing the bongos.
There was a person with a powerful machine shooting thousands of bubbles into the air as they stood on the opposite side of the street, a pretty good crowd of their own there. The bubbles caught the steady breeze and danced across Parker Road creating a soft flicker of reflective light and iridescence.
People of all ages were gathering with their children, their dogs, friends and family. Friendly conversations covering their beliefs and their sadness. I saw the smiles that grew from being with people who believed that this is supposed to be a place where we all love one another. They were all showing the ample traffic their signs, their smiles, and their shouts for some change.
What was the reacton?
It was 99 percent positive.
There were honking horns, some folks with signs of their own. Shouts of "No Kings!", as well as thanks, cheers, and many other words of support. One woman was crying and mouthing “thank you” as her car drove by. A little girl was making a thumb and forefinger heart sign to us as a woman shouted from the crowd "We're doing this for you, sweetheart!"
Multiple cars drove by playing "FDT", and one was blasting Bob Dylan's Times They are a changin'.
Some people drove back around to honk and shout support 3 and 4 times. Repeat supporters, as it were.
There were peace signs being thrown up, and fists being raised through sun roofs.
That was the reaction.
There was no violence here. There was no extremism here. There was no hate here.
This is what the first amendment of this country is all about, and we showed out to use it. To get our message across, to hold a mirror up to those in charge that are not representing most of us in any form or fashion.
So call it whatever you want. Call it whatever they want you to believe it is.
It was peaceful protest.
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