What the headline says. Now is the time for "liberals," "progressives," "lefties," whatever you want to call us, to take up arms. Literally.

The sad truth is, Republicans and their mouth-breathing tea-bagging base don't respect us... because they don't fear us. That's why, no matter how large our numbers, they continue to laugh off our concerns. See, the only thing these bullies understand is force, and as long as they believe that we don't have "the guts" to use it, they'll continue to not only ignore our demands, but to threaten us with violence if we don't quietly acquiesce.

But imagine if instead of merely carrying banners and signs and legitimate grievances, 70,000 protesters were to converge on the Wisconsin State Capitol proudly and openly carrying rifles and shotguns and pistols and other patriotic symbols of American manhood? Now that might finally earn our side a little respect... and what respect we didn't earn, we'd at least be in a position to take.

Honestly... think Gov. Walker would be so insulting and intransigent if he knew his office was surrounded by 70,000 angry, well-armed, Second-Amendment-remedying patriots? I don't think so.

Now don't get me wrong: This is not a call to violence. As the righties frequently point out, gun ownership is not only a fundamental constitutional right but our patriotic duty, as is its very public display. Indeed, nothing could be more democratic, nay, more American, than to strap on your bandoliers, fling a rifle over your shoulder, and head down to the seat of government to let your elected officials know what you really think of their policies. "Extremism in the defense of liberty," and all that.

And, if the pro-gun commenters in the threads on my anti-gun posts are to be believed, nothing makes you safer than carrying a firearm. So by extension, wouldn't everybody on both sides of the conflict in Madison be safer if the protesters were as armed as the Capitol Police?

So come on my fellow liberals, let's all go out and buy ourselves some good ol' American, union made firearms, if only to send a message to those on the right that we take this fight seriously. And even if we don't ultimately prevail in Wisconsin, no doubt the mere prospect of a heavily armed American left might finally win us some of that enhanced gun control legislation for which we've long been fighting.