If you've been following the news lately, you've probably heard about the behavior at some of the town hall meetings held by members of Congress.  Many of these meetings have featured shouting, and a few have required a police presence.  This has led some Democratic members of Congress to criticize the behavior of protesters, while mischaracterizing their reasons for participating. 

     To hear some Democrats tell it, no one should be upset about healthcare reform, except for insurance companies.  If someone does oppose the plan, then that means they must be affiliated with the insurance companies.  They must be nothing but marionettes having their strings pulled by their puppet masters.  After all, the Democrats and the government are trying to save us from ourselves, since they are the only ones capable of making things better.  If anyone disagrees, then they must be with the enemy (aka the insurance companies).

     If you don't believe it, just listen to all the references to "astroturf" being made by Democrats.  According to the liberal, big-government politicians, opposition to the healthcare bill must have been organized by the insurance companies.  There's no way citizens could legitimately be angry about a bill that would give healthcare to individuals by spending at least $1 trillion, expanding government, raising taxes, and laying the groundwork for a single-payer system.  If you like big-government, what's not to love?

     Those who denigrate the participation by conservative activists know that individuals are concerned, and in many cases, quite angry.  Rather than use this outpouring of participation as a barometer to gage the feelings of a vast number of their constituents, they minimize their opinions by describing them as tools of greedy special interests. 

     On August 26, 2009, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse will hold a town hall meeting at the Johnston Senior Center.  I will be attending this meeting, and I can assure Democrats that I haven't been given any talking points or questions to ask.  I'm concerned about increasing the size of government, raising taxes, and instituting a single-payer system.  It might be unfathomable to some Democrats that there are actually citizens who care about their country.  Let's show up at local town hall meetings to show them how closely we're following this bill, and how much we care about the country's future.