ANOTHER OPINION: All Nevadans are nervous about deficit spending

The Tea Party Express is rolling across the country for its second tour, and if Nevada crowds are any indication, the number of people attending these events will only increase by the time the Express stops in Orlando, Fla., next month.

The Express made three stops in Nevada on Tuesday and then heads to Carson City today for its fourth and final visit in the Silver State.

Nevadans, like many other Americans, are nervous about the future and rightfully so.

The debt keeps increasing by the billions with no end in sight, and not one person in Washington, D.C., can give an intelligent analysis or even a guess on how much extra spending from a government-run health care will add to the country's deficit.

But judging from the Nevada rallies and in particular the one in Fallon, this concern is not a Red or Blue issue. Nevadans are proud, fiercely independent people who consider themselves mavericks more so than John McCain or Sarah Palin. Nevadans have a love of country and are frustrated by what they see occurring 2,500 miles away.

This frustration is directed at both parties. The nation's insatiable thirst for spending began during the Bush presidency and has extended to the current Obama administration.

We had out-of-control spending as Congress financed two wars while decreasing taxes.

Last autumn's bailout cost billions of dollars, and as we learned afterward, there was very little accountability from both the government and the financial institutions that received the money.

Since that time, we have had more bailouts and more spending and more unaccountability.

This spending reminds us of the frowning little boy who pulls out his empty pockets, shrugs and says "I don't know" when asked about his missing money.

Washington politicians must hear the voices of those who attend these Tea Party rallies, which are attracting people of both major and minor political parties, and many cultures and ethnic diversities.

Washington, aren't you listening to your citizens?

If not, it is time to tune them in rather than out.