I'm afraid a perfect storm is brewing. Not by rational conservatives who may not be happy with Obama or what he's doing but who accept that the Democrats are in power.
I'm talking about teabaggers, racists, KKK, neo-Nazis, abortion activists, birthers, deathers, fundamental religious zealots, the "want our country back" screamers and NRA devotees who have been steadily whipped into a frenzy.
This perfect storm involves rightwing crazies, guns, ammo, and the new GOP meme.
They bought into the ridiculous lie that Obama's going to take all their guns away, so they've armed themselves to the teeth and stocked up on ammo. My daughter and I were in Dick's Sporting Goods last week buying something for her team. There were large notes taped to the checkout lane saying something to the effect of:
Due to unusual demand, purchases of ammunition are limited to 2 boxes per customer.
(I'm sure this isn't the exact wording or purchase limitations; I don't even know if it's sold by the "box." All I know is, it meant lots of f#cked up right wingers are arming to the teeth.)
As I was leaving the store, here's what I was thinking: All these people who've bought guns and ammo -- lots and lots of guns and ammo -- they want to use this stuff they just spent a lot of money on! I can't picture a rightwinger glued to Glenn Beck and Limbaugh, surrounded by pictures of "Obama as Hitler" taking his newly purchases guns and ammo and boxing them away in a far corner of the attic. No, he's itching to use all this newly acquired stuff.
And Michelle Bachmann wants her constituents "armed and dangerous." And they're saying it's time to water the tree of liberty.
So, it's into this volatile environment that the GOP is beginning its new meme:
Can you believe the Democrats are actually considering passing healthcare reform without our support? Without your support? Evil Pelosi and ObamaHitler are just laughing at you!! They don't care what you think! The nerve of them! What are you going to do about it?
Instead of focusing on a debate of the actual pro's and con's of healthcare reform, they're distorting the political process, as Rachel Maddow so cleverly demonstrated.
This worries me. Does it worry you?