Takin' it to the streets.

"Takin' it to the Streets" was the first Doobie Brothers album and single to feature Michael McDonald. It's significance was it took the band from it's power bass trio beginnings to include more keyboards.  It was also the first step in the band's journey from arena rock to county fairs. "Takin' it to the streets" is also the 2011 theme for 99ers. Here's hoping "takin' to the streets" is more successful for the 99ers.

Takin' it to the streets is necessary for the 99ers for many reasons, of which I will list two:

The previous strategy of fax/phone/email bombardment failed to produce significant press coverage or legislative debate.  The phone/email/fax rallies with the "One Nation" rally and other regional marches helped get the solitary unproductive Senate vote for TierV Simply put, doing more of the same will produce more non-results.  This is not a reflection on the efforts, dedication, judgement or commitment of the various people and groups responsible for all the efforts for the 99ers in 2010. Unfortunately these talented dedicated advocates produced a product with no tangible results. Remember Betamax and Prodigy? It happens.

As a rather long aside, before I leave 2010 I want to send a great big wet kiss to Ed Schultz. After putting HCR front and center daily on his shows, Ed was asked to take up the cause of the 99ers.  He stuck his neck out, said yes and became our strongest media advocate. The results were unwelcome, but without his efforts I think many would have no idea what it means to be a 99er. Love you, Big Ed, keep on telling the truth. Please forgive my digression.

Logic may be a rare commodity in the 112th Congress.  For example Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) a Tea Party freshman this past Sunday on "Meet The Press". As part of a roundtable discussing the ramifications of the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Labrador was asked about gun control.

MR. GREGORY:  ...a, a view about the guns, the debate here.

REP. LABRADOR:  We have to be careful of this debate a little bit. Washington, D.C., last week had seven murders, and they have some of the most--strictest gun laws in, in the United States.  So I don't know that it's the gun laws that are going to make the differences.  It's the responsibility that each individual has to, to carry guns safely.  And, and, you know, there's still a question about law enforcement.  This man was known to be deranged, and he was also known to have already said some things about certain officials in town.  So where was law enforcement?  And we need to ask those questions.

I'm not sure what Labrador's inference was about law enforcement, but it appears that in the same thought on defending the 2nd Amendment he wants to limit the 1st Amendment.  I realize consistency is not the strength of Teapublicans but shouldn't the entire Bill of Rights be equal in the same statement? It is unreasonable to think that faxes, email (logic?) etc will sway this inconsistent thought process.

It's time for 99ers to take the debate (as if) for TierV beyond the logic of the head and speak to the emotion of the heart. It's time to go beyond well intentioned but marginally successful conventional methods. It's time for takin' it to the streets.

TierV to survive.