The Quiet Conservative August 8, 2009
Turning the Grindstone
Things are heating up in the health care debate. Congressmen coming home to their districts from
Washington are facing alarmed citizens who are concerned that the push for nationalized health care
will mean the loss of freedom, prosperity, and possibly their lives. This is a serious miscalculation on
the part of the far left that thought America was so anesthetized into apathy that their progress on
tearing down the nation could go on virtually unnoticed and unopposed. The solution for these
congressmen? Hold town hall meetings stacked with their supporters, employ union thugs to rough up
the citizens, lock the doors to keep their constituents out, and leave quickly and blame the Republicans.
Nancy Pelosi has given out the taking points. The protesters are Republican plants. They are
organized. They carry swastikas into the meetings. Congressman Baird from the state of Washington
has called the activity according to an article on Drudge: "What we're seeing right now is close to
Brown Shirt tactics," Baird, D-Vancouver, said in a phone interview. "I mean that very seriously."
While seniors and people with disabilities are upset, they are now Nazis according to the left.
In this modern age, however, the availability of digital video that can be uploaded instantly to Youtube
is uncovering the true tactics of the left. At Russ Carnahan's Town Hall in St. Louis, the people were
locked out but union supporters were snuck in through a side entrance. It was caught on video and
posted. For the Tampa thugfest hosted by Congressperson Castor the union thugs were shown on
video roughing up a man and shutting the doors. Another video showed an elderly man with his
special needs son in a wheel chair. He knows the bill may very well mean the death of his son. He's
upset. Would you stand for a politician's lies in that case? He isn't a union plant, an Acorn employee,
or a 'community activist.' Another video out there shows a man being beaten by SEIU union thugs.
The police arrive and arrest the punks. At least they haven't co opted the local police yet.
It is interesting to note, however, that while they have not been able to suppress the videos being
posted, Youtube had stopped the counters on views and limited the number of responses allowed to
the mid three hundreds, this is with the videos linked to the Drudge Report! If they cannot ban the
videos, they will try and minimize their perceived impact. This began the night of August 7th and
continued for much of August 8th. The counter is operating again but there is no telling what the
accurate count of views truly was, or how accurate the count now is moving forward.
It isn't just the official government Marxists doing the pushing both literally and figuratively, (Of the
eight cosponsors of the health care bill, 6 are members of the CPC- the Socialists in Congress.) There
is an AARP video out there where the AARP officials came to give their propaganda, and when their
own AARP members wanted to object, the officials cut off the microphones and walked out with the
mikes in hand. It seems the silent majority isn't silent anymore and it is rattling the people that thought
they were in charge and had the right to be in charge.
This brings me to a story told by Benjamin Franklin called "Turning the Grindstone." I thought about
it as it illustrates perfectly our modern political condition seen through the eyes of one of our Founding
Fathers:
Turning the Grindstone
When I was a little boy, I remember, one cold winter's morning I was accosted by a smiling man with
an axe on his shoulder. "My pretty boy," said he, "has your father a grindstone?"
"Yes sir," said I.
"You are a fine little fellow," said he "will you let me grind my axe upon it?"
Pleased with the compliment of "fine little fellow," "Oh yes, sir," I answered: "it is down in the shop."
"And will you, my man," said he, patting me on the head, "get me a little hot water?"
How could I refuse? I ran, and soon brought a kettleful.
"How old are you? and what's your name?" continued he, without waiting for a reply; "I am sure you
are one of the finest lads that ever I have seen: will you just turn a few minutes for me?"
Tickled with the flattery, like a little fool, I went to work, and bitterly did I rue the day. It was a new
axe, and I toiled and tugged till I was almost tired to death. The school-bell rang, and I could not get
away; my hands were blistered, and the axe was not half ground. At length, however, it was
sharpened, and the man turned to me with, "Now, you little rascal, you've played truant, scud to
school or you'll rue it!"
"Alas!" thought I, "it is hard enough to turn a grindstone this cold day, but now to be called a rascal
is too much."
It sank deep in my mind, and often have I thought of it since. When I see a merchant
over-polite to his customers, begging them to take a little brandy, and throwing his goods on
the counter, thinks I, That man has an axe to grind. When I see a man flattering the people,
making great professions of attachment to liberty, who is in private life a tyrant, methinks,
Look out good people! that fellow would set you turning grindstones. When I see a man
hoisted into office by party spirit, without a single qualification to render him either respectable
or useful,-- alas! methinks, deluded people, you are doomed for a season to turn the grindstone
for a booby.
Human nature has not changed. They spoke flattering words. They spoke of "Hope" and "Change."
We are turning the grindstone now, and being called rascals while we do it.