Free Republic at Martha's Vineyard---Hillary Freep

When we first got there, I checked out the line. It wasn't that long. But people were holding strange cardboard squares that said funny things like "500," "600," etc. These squares bore no relation to the number of people in line. Someone explained that they represented the number of tickets. Oh. But it didn't seem that these ghost ticket holders ever showed up. ??? Never mind . . .

There were two women near the door to the bookstore holding antiwar signs. They said "Hillary: Why did you vote for an unjust war?" That was fine. They were on the bookstore side of the street and we were on the other side. But then the police decided all protesters had to be together across the street from the bookstore. So we had lefties right in the middle of us, confusing the message.

Then one really obnoxious character decided to be the first one the people in cars saw as they passed the bookstore. Clever of her. At a fast glance it looked like an 8-person pro-Hillary demonstration, instead of 5 freepers who had broken their cookies to get there and 3 left-wing nutcases.

I thought the two groups should have been kept in separate places, but the cops did not agree with me. Thus we were all smooshed together.

We got about half and half positive and negative feedback, I would say. The Vineyard is pretty liberal. One man said, "You must be from Nantucket." So if you're planning a vacation on a Cape Cod island, make it Nantucket, not the Vineyard. We got the usual single digits, thumbs-down, and thumps-up.

It was a polite, intelligent crowd, and Martha's Vineyard is a beautiful, quaint island.

We spotted the Creamsicle-colored pantsuit with capri-length pants as the Fashion Victim exited the store, and gave her some resounding boos that completely downed out any cheers from others.

A fine finale for the last book signing. What was that slogan again? Oh yeah, We Are Everywhere.

From Tuesday's Vineyard Gazette:

Hillary Clinton's Book Signing Draws a Good-Humored Crowd

By ALEXIS TONTI

At 7:30 Saturday morning, the line of people waiting for tickets for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's book signing had become so unwieldy that the police department asked the Bunch of Grapes, which had been scheduled to open at nine, to let people in early. An hour later, 300 people had received their tickets, and still the line at the bookstore snaked around the inside perimeter of the first floor, out the door and up Centre street. The late arrivals who thought they would be early took the change in stride. The senator, they were told, would sign 1,000 copies of her memoir, Living History.

They were also told that they must have a book to receive a number; that two copies would be the limit per person, and that, no, they would not be able to take photographs of Mrs. Clinton. The much-anticipated event was the 30th and last book signing for the senator, who since June has toured from New York to California and back again.

By the time ticketholders returned that afternoon, the sky had changed into a flat gray expanse and the humidity remained high. Only the first 250 people had been told to line up at three, but that didn't stop the rest from staking their places. They had come on early boats from the Cape and Nantucket, and even from towns as far as Franklin, but mostly they came from the Island. (Although, as store employee Avia Moore said, there was also a fair number of Islanders who, hoping to avoid traffic, called throughout the day to ask when the event would be over.) Many read as they waited, while others speculated whether they would have a moment to talk with the senator.

"Once this gets going, it's going to be fast," an employee warned. "We're told she can do 600 in an hour. That's one book every six seconds."

"I think Hillary Clinton is the epitome of the new first lady," said Mary Grantham, one of those holding a nuber [Assume they meant 'number'!] in the 800s. "She redefined that role for the 21st century and beyond. She's quite a woman, and quite a role model."

Store manager Ann Bassett handed out placards, dividing the line into 100-person segments. With good humor, the higher numbers kept pushing back to make room for those in the middle. One man, who had been third in line, quietly exchanged his ticket with a woman, weak from chemotherapy, who was resting on a bench in front of Cafe Moxie. He then disappeared up the street.

Also near the front, Edgartown resident Stacy Hall agonized over how to inscribe her recently published children's book, which she had brought as a gift for the senator. "I'm psyched to give her a little piece of Martha's Vineyard to take home," Ms. Hall said.

"As a teacher, I think her advocacy for children is terrific," she added. "If I have the chance, I would tell her that she makes courageous decisions all the time. I'm sure a thousand people tell her that a day, but I'd say it anyway."

"I'm just here to keep her calm," said Isabel Engley, who gave her friend's arm a squeeze. "Although I've met Hillary before. I took her around the Camp Ground one year."

Those Island connections, forged over the years when Mrs. Clinton and her husband vacationed here, were renewed more than once during the event. (When Ms. Engley reintroduced herself, Mrs. Clinton said she hoped to visit the Tabernacle to see the restoration.) When the senator first arrived, relaxed in a coral pantsuit, she said how great it was to be back on the Island. And despite the brisk signing pace, she remained gracious throughout, shaking hands and responding to well wishers. She answered questions about health care, reminisced with fellow Wellesley alumnae and asked many of the children if they were looking forward to the fair.

Downstairs, Ruth Stiller, served lemonade to patrons on their way out. "I used to do all of the book signings," she said, as an assistant poured another batch into the cut glass bowl. "But now there are so many events that I only do the really special ones."

The mood remained festive outside despite the few masked protesters, who had gathered across the streets with signs held high. "You made it!" one woman shouted as people emerged. Everyone had a story to tell of a moment with the senator and a conversation shared.

When the thousandth book had been signed, at 6:30 p.m., Mrs. Clinton stayed a few minutes to thank the store's employees. As a parting gift, they gave her a canvas tote full of books, including The Cemetery Yew by Cynthia Riggs, Evidence of Things Unseen by Marianne Wiggins and Sexual Healing by Jill Nelson.

(I can't figure if that last pic is of a male or female, which somehow seems appropriate for a Hillary sycophant)

I finally had a few minutes of quiet time to spare, so I’ll add my recollection of this event here.

The key to this “road trip” was how to get onto Martha’s Vineyard. Race Bannon advised that traffic on the bridges to Cape Cod was sure to add hours to the trip. For a while, we discussed hitting the Cape the night before and taking the Woods Hole ferry the next day. The alternative was to take a ferry that launched from some point prior to the backups. New Bedford seems the likely choice, but the more we looked at the Rhode Island-Vineyard Fast Ferry from Quonset Point, the more I liked that option. It seemed that the total time for driving and the ferry ride was shortest using the Quonset Point ferry. Adult fare is $48 round trip. It’s fairly easy to find. Just follow the directions to Quonset State Airport.

Ultimately, Race went up the night before and bunked at an old USMC buddy’s place. I decided that firebrand and I had to make it a “day trip” for a couple of reasons.

The critical step was not to miss the 1 PM ferry. So I left EARLY to be at firebrand’s at 8 am. Hitting a bit of traffic, I called ahead and announced my ETA was 8:15 to 8:30 am. Well it cleared up, I breezed through the tunnel and up the West Side Highway and arrived at 8:05 am. We struck out for Rhode Island with the plan that we’d minimize our stops. If we had extra time, we’ll spend it near the ferry and have lunch.

It’s a three hour trip to the ferry, but it passed like minutes because we spent the time talking about any number of things Free Republic. I decide to wear my “COMMUNITY SERVICE LITTER PATROL” t-shirt. That’s what it says on the back of a bright orange shirt. On the front, over the left breast, it says “PAROLEE” in smaller letters. In bigger letters on the front it also says, “FORMER CLINTON D.O.J. US ATTORNEY”. I tried to act casual when we stopped at the Welcome Center in Rhode Island for a pit stop and a map.

Quonset Point and the ferry are about 25 minutes beyond the Rhode Island border. The signs are that great, so look for the airport signs. We arrived at about 11:30 am. Parking was easy and close, though on grass. This ferry route had only been in operation about eight weeks when we used it.

Talking to the crew, an Indian tribe owns the ferry and leases it out. It had been used in Bostonian, Long Island and New Jersey. It was launched in 1995.

The terminal is a temporary building. It reminds you of the sales office you see on a development before the model homes go in. Folding chairs, air conditioning and a TV tuned to MSNBC comprise the waiting room. Tickets are sold from a folding table. The “dock” is two large barges moored in an “L” shape. Not bad, workable, but definitely “temporary”.

We ultimately boarded the ferry and it left 15 minutes behind schedule. We dumped our “luggage” in a designated area on the first deck and went up one where firebrand found us a “one sided” booth. We took that rather than monopolize a booth with two benches. The table came in handy because we had one sign that needed to be made. And I made two more, “Who’s Watching Bill?” and “When The Going Gets Tough, Hillary Vacations.” The later was a shot at how parts on NY state were still blacked out and she’s “Outta Town”.

The ferry travels a ways south to get to the coast, and then along the coast to a bit, so you see a lot of pretty shoreline. There are many, many sailboats, boaters, yachts and commercial vessels passing by. The ferry is a trip in itself.

Race called and reported that he’d probably be late because his ferry terminal’s parking lot was full and the bus trip to the alternate lot would make him miss his intended run. Turns out that he made the ferry and arrived at the book store about 10-15 minutes after we did.

Arriving in Oak Bluffs, we scoped out our options. Many 11 passenger vans labeled “TAXI” waited in the small parking lot by the dock. We found out that it would be only $6 for two, so we went with “YOUR TAXI”. The bus would have been $4.

We shared the van with an Asian lady in a straw hat and some minor luggage. I asked the driver if there were lines at the book store yet. He didn’t know about the signing so I explained. He explained how the Clinton’s presence pretty much screws up traffic at times. Our travelling companion knew of the signing and when it started. She seemed a Hillary fan. I didn’t see her reaction, but she was quiet after we told the driver that this was her 30th US book signing (35 overall), but that she made only 3 family funerals from 911.

Since we were a little early and Vineyard Haven is small, I decided to get off at “The Black Dog”. Bought a t-shirt and a coffee cup. Satan was going to work today in a Black Dog t-shirt.

From there we headed a block or so to the ferry dock at Vineyard Haven to perhaps meet Race or perhaps to get our bearings. Turns out that the bookstore is a hundred yards across the Stop and Shop parking lot, through a narrow, sandy alley. So we went to the bookstore.

A crowd of about 100 “Lookie Lous” awaited the train wreck called Hillary. Since the “sidewalk” on our side of the narrow street was painted hash marks about three feet wide on the asphalt and the police were trying to keep people out of traffic, we set up behind the “sidewalk”, on the sand, at the end of the alley. We were second or third deep, but we could be seen. It was more important that we didn’t block pedestrian traffic. Of course the “me first, screw you” attitude of her fans didn’t stop them from hogging the sidewalk and making people walk in traffic.

Had a big science fair sized sign, “Hillary’s Priorities, Book Signig$ 30, 911 Family Funerals 3”.

Also had a “Winnie The Pooh For Prez” sign. I taped a second foamcore to it that I folded “up” and then let fall when I got some one’s attention. What you got was a “second verse” underneath that read, “No Pants, Caught With Some Honey”. People realized the parallel to Bill Clinton and laughed.

When I started with the Satan mask, the sign was “Sold My Soul To Hillary” and “Hell Yes Hillary Knew”.

Race arrived shortly after we did. His ferry docked a 100 yards from the store. He set up on the left and I set up on the right side of the alley. Meantime firebrand checked in with the police.

I had a small karioke machine that I also planned to use as a PA system. The street was so narrow that I decided a PA system was overkill. We did play all the Hillary Soundtrack songs. In fact, I had one tape that repeated the Blues Brother’s rendition of “Stand By Your Man” over and over. That came in handy later.

We did our thing for a while. They Hillary unexpectedly arrived and walked about 30 yards to the store. Why she didn’t stop directly in front, I don’t know. We booed her like we were NYC police and firemen.

Most of the crowd on our side of the street dispersed quickly after her arrival. It slowly built back up to half it’s original size over the course of the afternoon as people waited for her to leave.

We really only had three people to contend with, a black gentleman, a white foul mouth girly man and a female “history teacher”.

The first guy dropped a bunch of snide comments our way, so I started up a conversation with a Freeper on how the DNC have screwed all the black Democrats that sought leadership positions. He remarked, “Leave race out of this”, but later he had no problem shouting about “Dixiecrats”. Over time, it was less shouting and more dialogue and we were able to discuss things in a normal voice. I do think that we shifted his belief in the GOP and Dixiecrats. Ever one of the Dixiecrats went home to the Democrats after 1948 and Strom didn’t move over to the GOP till 1964-65 or so. Most Democrats take it as an article of faith that they all became Republicans. We just stood our ground. Mentioning that George Wallace, Lester Maddox and Bull Conner were all Democrats helps.

The foul mouthed girlyman couldn’t control himself. He’d lose a point in an argument and he’d go off screaming “assholes”, only to return. Race pretty much cleaned his clock with logically replies to emotional arguments.

The last problem child was a Hillary Cheerleader. Other than “Hurray for Hillary”, she had no message. I’d stand by her in the devil outfit and the “Winnie For Prez – No Pants, Caught With Some Honey” sign. That FORCED her to HIDE her “President Clinton” sign. She was too embarrassed by the parallel. I’d point at her and her sign and then to my sign. People would laugh at her and her sign.

Ultimately, she ran away front one of my signs. The one that read, “Clinton Springer ‘04”. You’d think it was garlic and she was a vampire. I offered it to her as a souvenir, laid it at her feet and she literally fled.

We had about four single finger salutes, which we countered with a chant of “Mean Spirited, Arrogant, Condescending Liberal”. Of course the “compassionate liberals ” found comfort in the mean spirited phrase the evil businessman in the silk suit said to the poor, desperate, hopelessly unemployed woman in that Bruce Hornsby song. You know the phrase. “Get a job.” So looking down on the unemployed and blaming them for their state is now OK by liberals?

ElectricStrawberry and BostonianRightist arrived shortly after Race. Carrying American flags, they were easy to identify. BostonianRightist wore the Rodham Hussein costume and did a landoffice business posing for photos. Great way to meet babes.

We did get a fair number of people who literally applauded us as they went by, or came up and thanked us. That’s par for the course. Happens every time we do this. Those people will be out with a sign next time. They’ve seen it done and know they are not alone.

The line to the store disappeared. We figured it was surely over and that Hillary had to have slipped away out the back. All was quiet on the Western front. But we stayed and talked between ourselves and with people passing by. Suddenly there is activity across the street. Not loud, not that obvious, but directions are being given and people are being moved. Hillary emerges and we boo her again. We would have been down the alley and unaware of her departure if she had waited 60 seconds.

With that, we picked up our gear and made our way back to the Oak Bluffs ferry dock and the way home.

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