Town hall Mobs

Written by Sang Jung



Freedom of Speech is one of the most valued principles of America. It is exercised in town hall meetings, and is symbolized as such.

That’s a far cry from what has been happening at recent town halls, where angry protesters — some of them, with no apparent sense of irony, shouting “This is America!” — have been drowning out, and in some cases threatening, members of Congress trying to talk about health reform.

Some commentators have tried to play down the mob aspect of these scenes, likening the campaign against health reform to the campaign against Social Security privatization back in 2005. But there’s no comparison. I’ve gone through many news reports from 2005, and while anti-privatization activists were sometimes raucous and rude, I can’t find any examples of congressmen shouted down, congressmen hanged in effigy, congressmen surrounded and followed by taunting crowds.

And I can’t find any counterpart to the death threats at least one congressman has received.
So this is something new and ugly. What’s behind it?

It’s well-heeled interest groups are helping to organize the town hall mobs. Key organizers include two Astroturf (fake grass-roots) organizations: FreedomWorks, run by the former House majority leader Dick Armey, and a new organization called Conservatives for Patients’ Rights.

The latter group, by the way, is run by Rick Scott, the former head of Columbia/HCA, a for-profit hospital chain. Mr. Scott was forced out of that job amid a fraud investigation; the company eventually pleaded guilty to charges of overbilling state and federal health plans, paying $1.7 billion — yes, that’s “billion” — in fines. You can’t make this stuff up.

But while the organizers are as crass as they come, for the most part, the protesters appear to be genuinely angry. The question is what are they angry about?

Let me make it perfectly clear. These mobs are not angry about anti-privatization, socialism, and government-run healthcare. They do not care about the deficit and government spending. America, currently, incorporates elements of socialism like Medicaid and Social Security. The same programs if touched would create a massive national hissy fit. As for anti-privatization, how can they be all “free market” when a few months ago they were assailing Wall Street, and preaching about the good ol’ values from Main Street.



The most raucous members of these mobs always cite the woes of the $1.3 trillion dollar deficit and the increase in government spending. Yes, they will have to pay for it later on. But how has this been any different from any other time, administration, or point in modern American history. And most Americans, view the national deficit as an abstract idea. These mobs don’t care about the deficit. If they did they would have been just as angry about the funding for the Iraq war and the greater war on terrorism.

What these mobs are angry about is change. Real change. They’re scare that their lives will change. They’re scared that the social order they’re used to will change. They’re scared that the old values they hold dear will change. To these mobs, Change is bitter medicine.

But as our mothers use to say: medicine is bitter. But it’s good for you. And so is Change.

Town hall Mobs

Written by Sang Jung



Freedom of Speech is one of the most valued principles of America. It is exercised in town hall meetings, and is symbolized as such.

That’s a far cry from what has been happening at recent town halls, where angry protesters — some of them, with no apparent sense of irony, shouting “This is America!” — have been drowning out, and in some cases threatening, members of Congress trying to talk about health reform.

Some commentators have tried to play down the mob aspect of these scenes, likening the campaign against health reform to the campaign against Social Security privatization back in 2005. But there’s no comparison. I’ve gone through many news reports from 2005, and while anti-privatization activists were sometimes raucous and rude, I can’t find any examples of congressmen shouted down, congressmen hanged in effigy, congressmen surrounded and followed by taunting crowds.

And I can’t find any counterpart to the death threats at least one congressman has received.
So this is something new and ugly. What’s behind it?

It’s well-heeled interest groups are helping to organize the town hall mobs. Key organizers include two Astroturf (fake grass-roots) organizations: FreedomWorks, run by the former House majority leader Dick Armey, and a new organization called Conservatives for Patients’ Rights.

The latter group, by the way, is run by Rick Scott, the former head of Columbia/HCA, a for-profit hospital chain. Mr. Scott was forced out of that job amid a fraud investigation; the company eventually pleaded guilty to charges of overbilling state and federal health plans, paying $1.7 billion — yes, that’s “billion” — in fines. You can’t make this stuff up.

But while the organizers are as crass as they come, for the most part, the protesters appear to be genuinely angry. The question is what are they angry about?

Let me make it perfectly clear. These mobs are not angry about anti-privatization, socialism, and government-run healthcare. They do not care about the deficit and government spending. America, currently, incorporates elements of socialism like Medicaid and Social Security. The same programs if touched would create a massive national hissy fit. As for anti-privatization, how can they be all “free market” when a few months ago they were assailing Wall Street, and preaching about the good ol’ values from Main Street.



The most raucous members of these mobs always cite the woes of the $1.3 trillion dollar deficit and the increase in government spending. Yes, they will have to pay for it later on. But how has this been any different from any other time, administration, or point in modern American history. And most Americans, view the national deficit as an abstract idea. These mobs don’t care about the deficit. If they did they would have been just as angry about the funding for the Iraq war and the greater war on terrorism.

What these mobs are angry about is change. Real change. They’re scare that their lives will change. They’re scared that the social order they’re used to will change. They’re scared that the old values they hold dear will change. To these mobs, Change is bitter medicine.

But as our mothers use to say: medicine is bitter. But it’s good for you. And so is Change.