I am curious what people here have to say about the tea party reactions. I agree with the whole fiscal outlook that they say they have but where were they when the Republicans were spending the entire economy into deep debt.
Also just from checking out the positions from guys like Doug Hoffman they seem to be big Patriot Act, anti immigrant, military keynesians. Ahh perpetual war for perpetual peace.
Anyway folks what is your take on these people and do you consider yourselves one of them.
I'm a Canadian, so I'm not one of them.
Also, they're for lower taxes. That's the main issue they are focused on. Who gives a damn what their other positions are?
And...
Patriot Act
anti-immigration
Military
Keynesian
Liberals don't mean to destroy people. They just do.
I am not one of "them" as I am for social organization based upon consent and voluntary interraction. Government, any amount at any level is the opposite of consent as it uses force to steal from the productive or in the case of the world today, steal from the somewhat productive. In fact, I was invited to go to the one in the center of the city where I live and I replied that I was going to play golf instead. I do not believe the "Tea Party" folks as they did not seem so into the concept when Republicans were running up giant deficits and funding the TARP. They seemed to gain steam when a Democrat won the office.
The one silver lining to the movement is/was that there were assembled a large number of people who are receptive to the ideas of liberty beyond asking permission from a party organization to petition the government.
I am very steamed at the fact that these folks are not for peace and prosperity. They seem to cling to the concept of the all-powerful state in dealing with foreigners.
Deist: Anyway folks what is your take on these people and do you consider yourselves one of them.
I wouldn't vote for them (or anyone), but I wouldn't mind if any of them actually bothered being fiscally conservative & attempted to offset the complete upcoming FAIL of the economy in the next few years, preferably without involving some sort of war (both parties would probably offer this in either outcome, so it's complete naivety to expect otherwise). I wouldn't mind if the Tea Parties were a prelude to a much needed 2nd civil war, & secession becoming a possibility. They would do their own thing regardless if I approved or not, though. I'm too busy trying to make sure I don't end up being homeless in the next 5 years & picking my small argumentative battles when I can to get into the whole "political vs. apolitical" strawman dichotomy debates.
WARNING: This signature violates Rule 5. Stay classy!
As soon as the GOP gets back into power, many of these teabaggers like Lee Doren will be back to calling libertarians and liberals anti-American, and supporting fascist torture, mass murder and wealth transfers.
Are there some decent people in the teabag movement? Sure.
But it is not a libertarian movement. We've been down this road before...
What I Learned From Paleoism
Sucking up to teabaggers is as pointless as left libertarians sucking up to left anarchists and the anti-war movement.
If you find something evil that wobbles, push it. - Gary North
Nitroadict:I'm too busy trying to make sure I don't end up being homeless in the next 5 years
Co-signed. Nice to see you Nitro.
What started out as a libertarian, constitutionalist, small-government group has basically become a republican, right-wing, neocon group.
Periodically the tree of liberty must be watered with the blood of tyrants and patriots.
Thomas Jefferson
I like America with the tea parties better than America without them.
liberty student: As soon as the GOP gets back into power, many of these teabaggers like Lee Doren will be back to calling libertarians and liberals anti-American, and supporting fascist torture, mass murder and wealth transfers.
I haven't seen Lee Doren being subtle about his wanton bloodlust.
Or did he pull a Glenn Beck when he hijacked Bureaucrash?
I am leery of them. I am a "Ron Paul Republican," and I feel like the GOP is trying to co-opt the liberty movement to attack the Democrats.
Capital Pumper:Or did he pull a Glenn Beck when he hijacked Bureaucrash?
He didn't hijack B/C. CEI runs bureacrash, and hired him as crasher-in-chief.
Lee is who he has always been. A nationalist and fascist. CEI (a conservative think tank) ruined B/C, but since it was their own project, that is their prerogative.
I feel compelled to defend them in the internet against the anti-capitalist and pro-state idiots.
These people are like the leftist protesters during the Bush administration. They're not protesting the economy. They're just doing it because of Obama... just like the Bush protesters were not doing it because of the war but because of Bush.
You're all missing the point.
Now is the window of opportunity to get the message out to the right. If we cede the field to the GOP then we deserve what we get.
The TP movement is where the energy is today and they are as receptive as they will ever be.
We lose opportunities every time we congratulate ourselves for being right instead of working to be effective.
If pure libertarian zealotry would win the battle we'd already be living in libertopia. It doesn't. Hold your nose and adopt a tea bagger.
Or else prepare to whine louder when the right-statists get back in power.
Faithkills:You're all missing the point.
No, you're missing the point.
Enabling and encouraging these fascist elements in the tea party is not progress. If you want to make progress, keep being radical, keep pulling the center towards liberty. If you won't be radical, no one will. When you dumb down your principles, when you take the lesser of two evil arguments, which you cutely called,
Faithkills:pure libertarian zealotry
But some of us call the only real liberty, then you are conceding ground to the statists.
They are not "tea baggers". That is a nickname proliferated by the establishment media to ridicule them which is what they do any time a populist movement springs up. Any populist movement improves the current cesspool-like situation, I wouldn`t care if they were devil worshippers at this point. They are facing off with power and that is enough. I am going to keep an eye on them. There are people protesting?! We can`t have that, can we! Go gome stupid protestors! Any protest is in its nature a libertarian act, whether it is liberals pretending they are against the war or the red state fascists pretending they are against taxes.
Marko: I like America with the tea parties better than America without them.
Interesting and insightful statement. I agree with you.
'It is difficult to imagine any normal person wishing to meet Marx for a third time.' - Alexander Gray, The Socialist Tradition
I don't think a lot of the teaparty folks actually are protesting for anything... just protesting against Obama because they were told too by Rush and his cronies. They let Bush run wild with the deficit and didn't care but if the Democrats do it then it is the end of America.
Nothing wrong with protesters. We really need more protest, but I just don't get the impression that these guys have a clue. As soon as the christian republican party gets back in power they will shut up and let them screw up just as much as democrats are now. And praise them for it. Then it will be the liberals turn to complain.
A cult is a religion with no political power. - Tom Wolfe
Life without music would be an error. - Nietzsche
We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home. - Edward R. Morrow
Tukaram:I don't think a lot of the teaparty folks actually are protesting for anything... just protesting against Obama because they were told too by Rush and his cronies. They let Bush run wild with the deficit and didn't care but if the Democrats do it then it is the end of America
Perhaps you can find examples of the Tea party that predates my statement I'm about to make, and if you can I would like to see. Isn't the Tea party movement a result from the Ron Paul campaign? So this comment about letting Bush go wild seems a little strange to me. Are there any examples of this as a movement? Or is it just certain individuals who are still sympathetic to their partyline?
I don't know a lot about them. But the ones I've seen interviewed talk about the wonderful christian America and bush, then the evil obama.
Of course the news picks and chooses who to interview depending on what side they want to show.
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