If Someone Burns Down My Fiddle, I'm Gonna Lose It

 

SAN ANGELO, TX — Fiddlestrings Bar & Patio, a Top 3 watering hole in San Angelo at 3301 Arden Rd., has become the target of online vitriol after it announced a promotion called “MAGA Mondays.”

MAGA is the slogan for the campaign of President Donald Trump and it stands for Make America Great Again. This didn’t sit well with a vocal group on social media.

Tessa Sanchez seemed to kick off the Fiddlestring’s bashing on Facebook with “BAN FIDDLE. IF YOU CONTINUE TO GO TO THIS BAR, delete me and block me back.” She tagged Four R Broadcasting program director for Mix 106.1 and Lonestar 92.9 FM Corey “CMO” Driscoll and 47 others. The comments became heated when one commenter, Chrissie Creech, announced that MAGA Mondays convinced her to patronize Fiddlestring’s more.

Faced down with virtue signaling from other posters in the thread, Creech seemed to walk back her MAGA support. “[E]very small business doesn’t have to agree with me. I still support them…”

Driscoll had posted a screen shot of an earlier Creech post in support for “MAGA.”

“It’s just nice to know where people stand,” he replied.

Driscoll in an interview Tuesday afternoon said he didn’t intend his words written in response to Creech to be taken as a threat. He said his radio station was fairly neutral ground in the political landscape, even though Driscoll identified himself as a liberal who thought Fiddlestring’s “MAGA” promotion was clumsy.

Driscoll’s employee, Gary Lara, Jr., who goes by the handle D.J. Dr. Dollaz during afternoon drive times on Mix 106 quickly disavowed his association with Fiddlestring’s, “because they don’t pay me,” he wrote. Driscoll said the remark was not because Fiddlestrings stiffed him for his off-hours DJ services. Instead, he was cut because, as Lara later explained, his “crowd wasn’t their style.”

Self-appointed community organizer Ailyn Barboza, who spent 5 minutes in a profanity-laced rage during what she claimed was a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest on Sunday in San Angelo, weighed in. She posted two Fiddlestring’s Facebook announcements, one describing MAGA Mondays and the other revised post, without the Trumpism, to shame Fiddlestring’s for changing the promotion to “American Made Mondays.”

“Only posting this for anyone who didn’t see it before they changed it,” she stated.

The reaction was fierce, loaded with the left’s cancel culture in full force. “I guess we know where our local KKK chapter meets up,” noted Sabrina Palacios.

The protests arising out of the video of the Minneapolis police actions against George Floyd, an African-American, that led to his death, have further divided the country, and now the city, into pro- and anti-Trump camps making even a casual cultural reference a wrong move.

Mike Harris, who purchased Fiddlesting’s in 2016, was not amused, but he was particularly concerned when messages came in with threats to burn his bar down or to harm his employees. To Harris, “MAGA” was a popular culture reference, not a political statement. How quickly “MAGA” became toxic in San Angelo took both Harris and Fiddlestring’s bar manager of 16.5 years, Deirdre Allen, by surprise.

“We make promotions every season,” explained Allen. “Texas Tuesdays, You Call It Thursdays, Wet Wednesdays,” she said. MAGA Mondays was a variation on Texas Tuesdays where drink specials revolve around Texas-made beer and whiskey. The MAGA Mondays would showcase American spirits.

“Proudly American beer,” Harris added.

“Look, I’m not going to apologize for anything, but we did change the name to American Made Mondays because I’m in the bar business, not the political business. We cater to all political parties and beliefs. I just don’t want someone to feel like we were endorsing anything or that anyone is unwelcome here,” he said.

Harris, who spent most of his life as a welder in the oil field, started working at Fiddlestring’s even before Deirdre as a part-time bartender. He welded most of the fencing around the famous backyard that became Fiddlestring’s cash cow when the City passed the indoor smoking ban a decade ago. You can still smoke outside, and Fiddlestring’s has the largest smoking area of all San Angelo bars, and it is even situated around an in-ground pool.

Harris and Allen said they never stopped paying the Fiddlestring’s staff during the COVID-19 shutdown that happened March 20. Now barely open at only a 25 percent capacity for a little over a week, they are concerned about the blowback from the Monday promotion.

“This was all about making America strong, coming back strong after the COVID,” Harris said. “This was not about alienation.”

“I’ve never kicked anyone out of here for wearing a ‘Feel the Bern’ t-shirt,” Allen added.

The headline is inspired by Fiddlestring’s patron Tresur Davidson. “If someone burns down Fiddle, I’m gonna lose my sh—. By far my favorite bar in San Angelo,” she wrote on Facebook.

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Oh no, not another person's personal opinion. And here I thought I woke up in a free America, with Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of a Haircut. It shouldn't even matter, it's been declared by our dear leader that "MAGA loves the black people".

It's no different than the time folks rallied around GAWDS chicken at chik fil a, let the fringe right rally around GAWDS honky tonk, no one cares.

CGM5, Tue, 06/02/2020 - 18:57

Hitler's Brown Shirts spewed their hatred about anyone that didn't follow them like sheep. They would threaten, attack and try to silence anyone that believed differently than they did.
Sound familiar???

CGM5, Tue, 06/02/2020 - 19:17

If someone would do a little research before spewing their hate they would discover the KKK's close association with the democratic party. To spell it out, many if not most of the members were democrats.

That little history lesson is pointless when you consider that the parties switched platforms throughout the 20th century. Now the KKK is staunchly Republican.

"I have equal amounts of antipathy for donkeys & elephants, but if a person fails to see that the simpleton-in-chief is a horrible person, then they probably are too."

"That little history lesson is pointless when you consider that the parties switched platforms throughout the 20th century. Now the KKK is staunchly Republican."

Double bravos.

wDougL, Tue, 06/02/2020 - 20:07

... I learned a long time ago that if you spend a lot of time on Facebook... the diehard Facebookers will start all sorts of crap and drama ... and it doesn't matter if you are a business that has a Facebook account to be in touch with the local citizens and try to advertise and drum up more business with hopes of becoming a place for the "In-Crowd " or if you are just an individual that wants an outlet on the world wide web to socialize with the locals ... to make friends and acquaintances... there is always a group of haters that are going to ruin the experience. I was once someone that spent hours and hours a week on Facebook. I even had a large following and a lot of so called friends on Facebook... and then ... the political picture in America started changing... and the diehard Facebookers became people that would start rumors and drama and people that got offended because others had a difference of opinion on certain topics than the status quo! Now ... my opinion of Facebook is ... it's a waste of time and not worth spending even one minute of time on! Facebook is nothing more than a way for people to occupy their lives... that they are not happy about! So ... I'm not surprised by this article. There are more productive ways to let the people know that you have a business and would like for the citizens in the area to support your business!

Executive Orders silencing Twitter and such, gasing and attacking peaceful protesters for a photo op, threating to unleash the power of the US Army on American citizens. Is it 1933?

I have equal amounts of antipathy for donkeys & elephants, but if a person fails to see that the simpleton-in-chief is a horrible person, then they probably are too.

CGM5, Tue, 06/02/2020 - 20:45

Do you even bother to watch, read or listen to any news or do you get all your info from liberal websites? Twitter is the one doing the silencing, they just got called out on it. As far as peaceful protesters.. that's a damn joke.
George Floyd was murdered as far as I'm concerned and his murderer should tried as such. The meaning of the protests may have started out because of that but have since been left in the trash because of the violence and thieves that have joined them. Most liberals, when you try and reason with them stick their fingers in their ears, stamp their feet and start chanting na na na na na.
Is that who you are?

He got caught in his own web of lies, and has a tantrum. So he decides to try to change the rules.

He got pissed at the disclaimer they put on his tweet. Turn off Judge Pirro and do your own research. I listen to all sides and make my own mind. Even when the right wing starts to gooose step and chant "jews will not replace us".

"will strongly regulate", "or close them down", "if they continue to silence conservative voices". Trump's own words, not spoken words, it was one of his tweets, sent as Rome burns.

Wabo73, Tue, 06/02/2020 - 22:15

Ok if someone tries hope opener shots them dead then when they go to court it’s not guilty all 12 you think frank carter wants to post a guy 24 hours a day there? All these rioting and looting punks want to start that here fine get ready to get shot pos punks

When Obama's voting base were walking around for eight years saying "I hope you have some change", I don't remember many conservatives falling into the colicky disposition much of the Left has over "MAGA", though I entirely love that the mere mention of this simple, innocent phrase or acronym can throw all the right indignant assholes into fits of uncontrollable angst.

For most people "outrage" is but a fleeting emotion. To the Leftist, it's a lifestyle.

I saw a bumper sticker earlier today which read: STRAIGHT CONSERVATIVE CHRISTIAN GUN OWNER HOW ELSE CAN I PISS YOU OFF TODAY?

As are situations with any snowflakes, meltdowns are inevitable.

So if you have a MAGA night you are racist and the KKK HQ? People have you lost your minds? If you don't like what they do, don't go there. Why are we allowing these idiots to tell us what we can do or believe. I don't think a MAGA hat is racist, it's a political statement. Just like that strange Obama O logo, I guess if you don't agree with the Obama agenda you are racist? So tired of the Libtards and there BS.

Constitutional rights of free speech to everyone regardless of your political position it’s not about black lives matter or blue lives matter. So those crybabies who want to control everybody get over it and grow up

MAGA is what they should of left the name for Mondays. If citizens do not like the name then don't go there. If they changed the name for Tuesdays to Titty Tuesdays everyone would show up especially the men if they thought they were really going to see someones' breast. The USA has always been great because of our freedoms that other countries do not have. I am sick of people trying to find something to bitch about that has nothing to do with them. How about taking care of your on business, your jobs, your family and leave everyone else alone.

I think someone else is playing her fiddle since a there's a lot of burning around...fever, rage, dumpsters, businesses. Great job on walking back the MAGA Monday name, though; I loathe the term MAGA because of the implications that we were not great to start with. Do we not live in the Great State of Texas? Regardless of who thinks they're in charge, front-line workers in the pandemic, patient citizens who helped to flatten the curve (in other states), and the protests prove we are great, the greatest democracy in the world. We also know we are flawed; humans are, you know. So let's pull up our socks and each do some good for someone else. Also, please feel free to vilify me, because I don't care and I am not notified and I don't look back.

hexi, Wed, 06/03/2020 - 11:16

Labeling Fiddlestrings a kkk hangout is grounds for a libel/slander lawsuit.
Not sure which one, libel or slander, but I think you can sue if the sole intention was to damage ones livlihood by false statements.

hexi, Thu, 06/04/2020 - 13:15

The perpetrator of a hate crime targets a victim merely because he or she belongs to a certain social group, usually defined by race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, or political affiliation.

So, Fiddlestrings advertises a "MAGA Monday" drink special and all the snowflakes have a complete meltdown?? If you don't like the slogan, don't go to that particular bar that night. Maybe our snowflake compatriots are just feeling a little bit left out. Well, the smart thing to do would be to maybe ASK the owner or manager to come up with an alternative night for you people that get your feelings hurt so easily......maybe like "Snowflake Sunday. We all know that snowflakes don't go to church because they are so busy scouring the internet to attack the next person or business that doesn't agree with them, so that could be their night. Or, maybe snowflakes could have the middle of the week and Fiddlestrings could call it "Witless Wednesday"! See how that works snowflakes? You sit down with the people you are vilifying and have a conversation about how we can make things better for you. Oh, that's right.....you're not interested in sharing the planet with people who don't think/act/meltdown like you. So to all of you snowflakes, I raise a tall finger to you!

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