But most of these people at the town hall meeting were not representing some far right wing group or some insurance company backed group...I'm sure those are out there, but many of these people are regular Americans who are angry about the degree the government has (or is wanting to) inject itself into their lives and into private sectors.
If you believe that, ...you better not enter into any real estate deals involving bridges in Brooklyn.

We need government and we need rational debate, but we also must hold our senators accountable and make sure the government works for us.
You can't have rational debate, when one side refuses to even permit discussion.
Right now the pendulum has swung left of the majority of the country, and they are hearing discontent with some of these ideas. Remember, America was founded on principles of limited government...people broke away from oppression, overbearing governments and religious persecution. Thats the foundation of the country, may left wingers want that to change to a greater degree than the average person.
what I find rather interesting is the way the right manipulates the truly ignorant & stupid in your society. They know that stupid only lasts so long... then people start coming out of the stupor... so what have they done as people began to arise from their slumber, and began to feel tremendous amounts of anger... they steer the anger towards the side that's trying to repair the mess the people were angry over to begin with.
Yes, the public has a right to be angry and to want to engage in an "armed revolt" against the government,
...but that was the government of 8 years ago. You no longer have that government. Nov 2, 2008 changed all that.
If you didn't have an "armed revolt" under Bush, ...you sure as heck can't find any justification for it now.
The republicans have found a way to tap into the buildup of immense guilt & anger felt by those who cheered Bush on, as he led them over the cliff, ...and they're giving them an artificial outlet to release it. It's truly ironic that it was their policies that built up the anger to begin with, ...and now they're unleashing it on their opponents.
The time for them to do something about that anger was 8 years ago. Now is not the time for anger & rebellion.
Now is the time for calm, rational discussion, and problem solving strategies.
240, your right about the political pendulum swinging. Obama, Pelosi and the democrats are strongly pushing traditionally known left wing agendas (even though Obama is trying to put a lot of polish on them to make it sound good) I think many people are angry...just as they were angry at Bush in his 2nd term. Obama is smart, he knows his first year in office is when a president can make the most changes. No doubt his agenda is incredibly aggressive (I just wish it was more centrist with less spending)
Had the previous administration not tanked the economy worldwide, there wouldn't be a need for such aggression.
I have no doubt his policies will become more centrist, with less spending, as the economy starts to regain traction.