Back from the fest

My friend Dave and I left early this morning for the 2 hour trek up to Baraboo. Our destination: Fighting Bob Fest 2005.

Along the way, we stopped at the gas station for a few necessities, and I ran into Rep. Dave Obey who was scheduled to speak later in the morning. We had a short conversation, and he talked about working in DC this past week on the hurricane relief package as ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee.

We got to the fest around 10 and got registered. Upon scoring some seats in the grandstand, we were treated to the first speaker of the day, my old boss Sen. Russ Feingold. His speech focused a lot on the Iraq war, which is currently being overshadowed by the disaster on the Gulf Coast. Feingold reminded the attendees not to let this administration off the hook on Iraq. He also pushed for reform of the Patriot Act so that terrorism can be combatted without sacrificing our civil liberties. The Senate has passed a bill that would do that, but it stands in stark contrast to the one passed by the House which would essentially leave the bill as is. Feingold is urging people to contact their Senators and sign on to this petition to help make this reform happen.

The next speaker was Obey who spoke elloquently about the late Gaylord Nelson, and the history of progressive thought in Wisconsin. He also spoke out about the Bush Administration's incompetence when it comes to managing government, and fighting what he called "the dumbest war since the War of 1812."

After that, we walked around and perused the grounds. Representatives from groups like the Sierra Club, and Amnesty International were there, and 92.1 The Mic was doing a remote broadcast. Then it was time for a Jamaican chicken sandwich and a seat in the shade. It was a rather hot day as those who attended can attest.

Overall, I enjoyed the experience. The country needs more events like these, and not just so the regular activists have a place to go to get motivated. It's important, because many people are becoming disaffected with this government. They are the ones that need to hear alternative ideas, and know that they too can be involved in changing the status quo. Only then will America see the emergence of a new progressive era.