ANOTHER TEA PARTY PROTEST IN SANTA BARBARA:

With cries of “Repeal, recall, revolt!” several hundred demonstrators took to downtown Santa Barbara’s streets Saturday to protest big government and big spending.

“I’m here because I’m worried about the direction our country is going,” said Anita Dwyer, a Lompoc resident.

Billed as Santa Barbara’s “Big, Cool Tea Party,” the gathering attracted people from as far away as Oregon as taxpayers turned out to voice their discontent over the way President Obama and Congress are handling the U.S. economy, with increased taxes and spending. Sacramento was singled out for its share of criticism, too. . . . The event, sponsored by Santa Barbara County Tea Party, was one of hundreds of similar demonstrations taking place across the country. The tax revolts are based on the 1773 Boston Tea Party in which a group of colonists dumped more than 300 cases of English tea into Boston Harbor as a protest against British taxation. The British responded with several harsh measures that united the colonists in their quest for independence and foreshadowed the Revolutionary War.

Lots more Santa Barbara photos in this gallery. Also, there’s lots of tea party information here and here.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Here’s a picture of rock star Lloyd Marcus at the Santa Barbara protest, taken by Helene Bidwell. He’s the author of this Tea Party anthem.