Tea Party

[Controlled Chaos]

Take that up with United States Department of Education, the National Science Foundation, and the European Research Council. A professional degree is not the same as a PhD.

And Jenks never said it was...nor did he say to call him Dr or anything else. He simply said he has a doctorate, which he does, and to minimalize that in anyway is as direct of an insult as calling someone an asshole. The post that had nothing at all to do with the topic shold have been removed and a warning given.

 

Please continue with the racist, uneducated white people, who pay the least amount of taxes, as being the prevailing makeup of the tea party.

[GoSox05]

Does anyone on here consider themselves part of the Tea Party movement?

[Jenksismyhero]

Does anyone on here consider themselves part of the Tea Party movement?

 

Define "part of." I've been to a couple of rallies and agree with a lot if the things they discuss. I guess that makes me part of the movement, though I'm not sure I'm a part of the "party."

 

[StrangeSox]

And Jenks never said it was...nor did he say to call him Dr or anything else. He simply said he has a doctorate, which he does, and to minimalize that in anyway is as direct of an insult as calling someone an asshole. The post that had nothing at all to do with the topic shold have been removed and a warning given.

 

Yeah, I would support splitting out that derail. My own personal bias of what I think of when I hear "doctorate" doesn't change what Jenks has earned and accomplished.

[GoSox05]

Define "part of." I've been to a couple of rallies and agree with a lot if the things they discuss. I guess that makes me part of the movement, though I'm not sure I'm a part of the "party."

 

 

Are these the first political rallies you've been to? What made you want to go?

[Jenksismyhero]

Are these the first political rallies you've been to? What made you want to go?

 

No, I've been to many before. Republican, democrat, green party, whatever. I normally go just to see what it's about. In this case, I liked what I heard. Contrary to the bulls*** spread around on this site (and the media), it's not a bunch of redneck hicks talking about lynching blacks and gays. It's about people being upset at Washington (both liberals and conservatives, but the brunt of it being the Dems since they hold the powerful offices) for shifting national values, wasteful spending, needless public intervention into the private arena (the requirement of health care, with a government subsidy for those that choose not to purchase it, was a big topic), the wars in afghanistan and iraq, etc. It's basically a libertarian message, which I'm a huge proponent of. There was ZERO discussion about race or sexuality. There was ZERO discussion about Obama being a Muslim or not an American.

 

Shocking, I know.

[southsider2k5]

Does anyone on here consider themselves part of the Tea Party movement?

 

I have actually spoke at a Tea Party rally, though it is hard to say you are a part of the movement since it is something else to each person. Then again I have been to rallies for just about everything, including a socialist rally, a labor rally, an immigrant rally, and many others.

[GoSox05]

I have actually spoke at a Tea Party rally, though it is hard to say you are a part of the movement since it is something else to each person. Then again I have been to rallies for just about everything, including a socialist rally, a labor rally, an immigrant rally, and many others.

 

 

I was just curious if anyone here had ever gone to rallies or things like that.

 

You go to socialist rallies huh? Are you gonna show up one day talking about the class war and workers losing their chains.

[southsider2k5]

I was just curious if anyone here had ever gone to rallies or things like that.

 

You go to socialist rallies huh? Are you gonna show up one day talking about the class war and workers losing their chains.

 

I have gone to one. That was all I needed.

[Paint it Black]

"The worst thing in American Politics" isn't on that list. But it's that.

[Jenksismyhero]

"The worst thing in American Politics" isn't on that list. But it's that.

 

That's rich. Did Jon Stewart teach you that?

 

I honestly don't know how any "democrat" could view the tea party as the "worst thing" in politics. It's precisely the type of grass roots movement that IS American politics. You might not agree with the message, but the idea that people can get together, voice their opposition to their government, and create change is fundamentally American.

[GoSox05]

That's rich. Did Jon Stewart teach you that?

 

I honestly don't know how any "democrat" could view the tea party as the "worst thing" in politics. It's precisely the type of grass roots movement that IS American politics. You might not agree with the message, but the idea that people can get together, voice their opposition to their government, and create change is fundamentally American.

 

 

They have to have these protests and what not when a Republican is president too. They can't protest when a Democrat is in office and than disappear when a Republican takes office.

 

If your gonna have protests for smaller government you have to do it all the time. Like when the Patriot Act is passed.

Edited September 9, 2010 by GoSox05

[StrangeSox]

That's rich. Did Jon Stewart teach you that?

 

I honestly don't know how any "democrat" could view the tea party as the "worst thing" in politics. It's precisely the type of grass roots movement that IS American politics. You might not agree with the message, but the idea that people can get together, voice their opposition to their government, and create change is fundamentally American.

 

The problem is that, at the top level, it isn't grass roots. It's funded by powerful and wealthy people.

[Jenksismyhero]

The problem is that, at the top level, it isn't grass roots. It's funded by powerful and wealthy people.

 

So? Our country's revolution was funded by powerful, wealthy people.

 

Edit: GrammEr fail.

Edited September 9, 2010 by Jenksismybitch

[Jenksismyhero]

They have to have these protests and what not when a Republican is president too. They can't protest when a Democrat is in office and than disappear when a Republican takes office.

 

If your gonna have protests for smaller government you have to do it all the time. Like when the Patriot Act is passed.

 

That's a fair criticism, but I think there's a difference between expanding intelligence powers and increased military funding right after being attacked, and spending trillions bailing out companies/people and subjecting the country to Obamacare and the like.

 

 

[StrangeSox]

If it's funded by powerful, wealthy people, it's not grass-roots by definition. That's all.

[NorthSideSox72]

That's a fair criticism, but I think there's a difference between expanding intelligence powers and increased military funding right after being attacked, and spending trillions bailing out companies/people and subjecting the country to Obamacare and the like.

 

Wait, so military spending doesn't count?

 

If it's funded by powerful, wealthy people, it's not grass-roots by definition. That's all.

 

Well to be fair, I think it STARTED grass roots, then was co-opted later.

 

[StrangeSox]

That's a fair criticism, but I think there's a difference between expanding intelligence powers and increased military funding right after being attacked, and spending trillions bailing out companies/people and subjecting the country to Obamacare and the like.

 

Both are expansion of government powers and expenditures at the expense of private rights and taxation (or deficits).

 

You're making the case that it's really about conservatism and not libertarianism.

[Jenksismyhero]

If it's funded by powerful, wealthy people, it's not grass-roots by definition. That's all.

 

Then by definition grass-roots efforts are incredibly rare if not non-existent since they start as small groups and later get aid from the powerful and wealthy to spread the message.

 

Either way you want to define it, it's still a "movement" that's getting a lot of participants becoming more vocal and active about their government.

[StrangeSox]

Well to be fair, I think it STARTED grass roots, then was co-opted later.

 

There were big corporate funders pretty much from the start of the "Tea Party" idea. "People pissed off at Obama and Democrats" came before that, but the movement, as it were, didn't really come together until their was significant backing.

 

That doesn't mean it's wrong or bad, just that it really isn't the populist, grass-roots movement it's described as.

[NorthSideSox72]

There were big corporate funders pretty much from the start of the "Tea Party" idea. "People pissed off at Obama and Democrats" came before that, but the movement, as it were, didn't really come together until their was significant backing.

 

That doesn't mean it's wrong or bad, just that it really isn't the populist, grass-roots movement it's described as.

I don't agree with that. Big powerful money were not organizing the early rallies and what not - that just isn't the case. Now, these big Glenn Beck scream-and-shout hate-the-world chorus events, sure, those are backed by big bucks.

 

[Jenksismyhero]

Wait, so military spending doesn't count?

 

I'm saying that in context, considering the timing of it all, I understand why some people (like me) were willing to be ok with expanded government for defense and intelligence purposes, so that might explain why there wasn't the same type of backlash for it.

Edited September 9, 2010 by Jenksismybitch

[Rex Kickass]

Wait, so military spending doesn't count?

 

 

 

Well to be fair, I think it STARTED grass roots, then was co-opted later.

 

Actually it seems more Astro Turf that grew roots IIRC.

[NorthSideSox72]

I'm saying that in context, considering the timing of it all, I understand why some people (like me) were willing to be ok with expanded government for defense and intelligence purposes, so that might excuse why they wasn't the same type of backlash for it.

OK, but the Patriot Act wasn't about military funding anyway. It was the expansion of federal power to intrude on people's lives, and that's something I'd expect any libertarian to scream and yell about.

 

[StrangeSox]

I don't agree with that. Big powerful money were not organizing the early rallies and what not - that just isn't the case. Now, these big Glenn Beck scream-and-shout hate-the-world chorus events, sure, those are backed by big bucks.

 

Dick Armey and Freedomworks (and by extension the Kock brothers), among others, have been involved from pretty much the start.