Got back yesterday from a long weekend down in the People’s Republic of Austin, where we were attending a wedding. The state capital is awash in Kerry-Edwards stickers, which is no surprise, but we had the great misfortune to be staying in a hotel in which some state labor union was holding its convention. There were Kerry placards, stickers, t-shirts, you name it, everywhere. I love going to Austin, mostly to eat (I’ve decided it’s impossible to get a bad meal there), but you have to have a pretty high tolerance level for the conspicuous bohemianism, which many Austin folks wear as a rather too precious badge of pride. Austin’s the kind of place where they throw grim-sounding independent feminist film festivals that screen grimace-worthy crap with plots described on the poster as (I’m not making this up): “An Iowa housewife discovers her Guatemalan roots and political voice.”
All of which is to tell you how truly countercultural the Young Conservatives of Texas (Austin chapter, ah reckon) were this past Saturday. We were driving on Congress downtown, when we saw about 12 college student types standing on a streetcorner waving signs and placards. “Oh great,” I thought, “is this Lone Star Lesbians for Mumia?” No, it was the YCT! When I saw the hand-lettered sign reading “BUSH: SAVING YOUR A** WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT” — I leaned on the horn, and my wife rolled down the window to whoop and holler support. Those Austin YCT’ers deserve a big shout-out from The Corner, too.