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whereaminow (60.20)

Tea Party Betrayal

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October 23, 2010 – Comments (32)

Is this what the Tea Party was all about?

Writes Tyler Smith:

"I’m currently at a tea party rally, at the encouragement of a family member. I thought a bit off play-by-play might be fun.

The way it has unfolded so far: a prayer, mostly lauding the war dead, then a moment of silence, for another, recent victim of the Iraq atrocity. When I didn’t stand or remove my cap for the national declaration of adoration, I got a few dirty looks.  Twenty minutes into it, every local two-bit politician has made their patriotic fervor known on the stage. Then a woman with a beautiful voice stands and sings “To God Be the Glory” followed by the most deranged version of “Change Our Heart Oh God”, mutated with the pledge of allegiance inserted in the middle, then the hymn transitioned into “God Bless America”. Again, everyone was told to stand. More dirty looks my way. When did this gathering, advertised as a rally for economic sanity, turn into a state church?

The secretary of state spoke briefly about his current initiative to require all voters to have a valid, presumably federal, ID to vote.

They now have a 12-year-old boy reading about the importance of caring for the war ruined with tax money.  Also about the importance of using our tax dollars to pay for the retired generation! He wrapped up by advertising for Americans for Youth Patriotism. Yes! Indoctrinate a new generation of hosts for the parasitic state!

I’m sad to say that this rally has nothing to do with liberty or decreasing the tax burden on the American populace."

http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/

A while back, Lew Rockwell wrote an important article about the upcoming betrayal of the Tea Party. 

http://www.lewrockwell.com/rockwell/prepare-for-betrayal155.html

Basically, Lew's point was that the Tea Party was pulled in directions that had nothing to do with liberty, and that this was a natural occurrence in any democratic uprising:

You might as well know right now, however, that the Tea Party, no matter how successful it is at the polls in November, will certainly betray the party of liberty. There are several reasons for this, but the fundamental one is intellectual. The Tea Party does not have a coherent view of liberty.

The sad fact is that the Tea Party is already a monstrous affront to Liberty, whether you are a rational anarchist or a Constitutional conservative. 

A few months ago, a poll showed an intellectual divide among those who identify with the Tea Party.  In an almost 50/50 split were the supporters of the popular version of libertarianism espoused by Ron Paul.  The remaining half were the supporters of foreign adventure and government intervention in social affairs, the neoconservative positions of Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, and Rush Limbaugh.

It should have been obvious that the Tea Party would eventually be dominated by the Palin-ites.  It's quite simple actually.  Libertarians actually listen to what politicians say.  With a slew of Tea Party candidates showing little interest in liberty, libertarians have abandoned ship in droves.  We need more life boats on the Titanic because this ship is going down.

In the end, will the Tea Party actually do more damage to America?  Absolutely.  I'm glad that I have finally relented, abandoned hope of saving this train wreck, and have decided to move on.  Don't worry fella's, I'll be sure to let the door hit me on the way out.  I need a good spanking for believing that America was ready to understand a consistent ideological position advocating liberty.

America isn't ready yet.  A few more dead soldiers.  A few thousand more dead Iraqi and Afghani civilians.  A few more puppet democratic socialist governments to buttress Iran.  A few more trillion in debt.  A few more scapegoats (immigrants, homosexuals, brown people from someplace near the Middle East since you can't tell the difference.)  A few more bailouts.  A few more Contracts With America.

The Tea Party betrayal will lead to an even worse reversal down the road.  You think Pelosi and Reid were bad?  Just wait until you see what's in store after the Tea Party Express devilers nothing that you are expecting.  The next round of left-wing fascists will make Pelosi and Reid look like Lord Acton.

I'm just not sure why I ever expected anything else. 

David in Qatar

32 Comments – Post Your Own

#1) On October 23, 2010 at 7:56 PM, BurntTiger (31.65) wrote:

thanks for the synopisis, im looking forward to seeing what this all about as well.  any thoughts on Stewarts/Colberts rally later this month?

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#2) On October 23, 2010 at 8:24 PM, RonChapmanJr (98.51) wrote:

Not sure what to make of this.  Are you saying that the US is going down and has no hope (my belief) or is there something that can actually be done to fix things?

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#3) On October 23, 2010 at 8:40 PM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

BurntTiger,

thanks for the synopisis, im looking forward to seeing what this all about as well.  any thoughts on Stewarts/Colberts rally later this month?

Not really. I'm not quite sure what they are trying to accomplish.  It sounds like Stewart is rallying for the status quo???? But I'm sure he'd disagree.

RonChapmanJr,

Not sure what to make of this.  Are you saying that the US is going down and has no hope (my belief) or is there something that can actually be done to fix things?

Hell, Ron, I don't know.  I'm with you on just about everything you've ever written here.  Heck, I'm the one that isn't in America anymore lol.  (Though I am making plans to come back.)

I don't know what I thought the Tea Party would accomplish specifically, and that was the problem.  Did I think the Tea Party would do more good than it has?  Definitely.  And I guess I'm a little disappointed is all.  All I know for sure is that I don't want to be associated with it anymore. 

David in Qatar

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#4) On October 23, 2010 at 9:32 PM, tomlongrpv (82.47) wrote:

I thought the enemy of your enemy was your friend.  I am glad to see that the anti-government anarchists are all fighting with each other over who is the most ideologically pure.  It gives hope for those of us who believe in government. Maybe all of the tea drinkers will just walk away.   

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#5) On October 23, 2010 at 10:25 PM, BillyTG (32.28) wrote:

I've been following this recently.  The poll you mention pretty much sums it up.  The Tea Party was stolen by the right-wing nutjobs and conservative media.  It's a total disaster.

I follow the founder's website (it's primarily about the economy) and he has told Sarah Palin and all the other God-Guns-Gays knuckleheads who dorked up a good thing to go straight to hell.

I'm a good example of someone who could have had some faith in the system if this had worked.  I've never joined any party, but was very interested in the Tea Party at the beginning.  Once Palin got involved, and I started hearing all this Bible-thumping, racist, and anti-gay bullshit, I was out.  It is anaffront to liberty and has nothing to do with the party's founding principles.

Who took down the Tea Party?  Idiot politicians like Palin, manipulative media like Fox, and angry rednecks who outyelled the angry intelligent libertarians.

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#6) On October 23, 2010 at 10:40 PM, catoismymotor (72.05) wrote:

When Palin started showing up at Tea Party events my heart sank.  Sarah Effing Palin! PALIN! I''m now off to bury my head in a bowl of M&Ms and will wash them down with Yeager.

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#7) On October 23, 2010 at 10:46 PM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

Tom,

I realize that stroking yourself feels really good sometimes, but if you overdo it you forget how to stroke others.  In other words, I think you should cut down on the intellectual masturbation and learn a little give-and-take before it becomes chronic.

David in Qatar 

 

 

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#8) On October 23, 2010 at 10:50 PM, 100ozRound (30.42) wrote:

Agreed.  It is dispicable that the neocons co-opted, infiltrated, and perverted the movement.  It's completely lost its integrity.

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#9) On October 23, 2010 at 11:07 PM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

BillyTG, catoismymotor, and 100ozRound,

I'm glad to hear from you guys.  It sounds like I'm just a little later in the realization of the Tea Party's hopelessness than most libertarians.

David in Qatar 

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#10) On October 23, 2010 at 11:16 PM, Varchild2008 (84.22) wrote:

Uhm?  This went way over my head.

What exactly was the point of this entire article?

You suddenly don't like the Tea party because why?

Oh and anyone that slightly disagrees with a libertarian is a Neocon?

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#11) On October 23, 2010 at 11:21 PM, Varchild2008 (84.22) wrote:

Oh and

"Religious Freedom"

Actually IS a freedom!!!!

So how exactly is religious prayer or any mention of religion in a Tea Party rally count towards "pulling away from liberty?"

Just wondering... I mean....  Do you only believe in being Anti-War, which most Libertarians are, as the only liberty one should adhere to?

Lowering tax burden is exactly what the Tea Party stands for...
Not hearing it at a Tea Party rally doesn't mean the Tea Party automatically somehow someway doesn't believe in that principle.

Like I said... This went way over my head.

You can't say the Tea Party is an absolute Betrayal when we haven't even been able to have a party in power to push for liberty and values and principles yet....

How are we betraying?? We have no political power to be in a position of betrayal.

It's like killing off John Wilks Booth before John Wilks Booth ever even held a single thought about assassinating Abraham Lincoln.  Talk about "Psychic Warfare."

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#12) On October 23, 2010 at 11:34 PM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

Varchild2008,

It's the weekend Var. I'm lamenting the demise of the Tea Party. It's something I've been thinking about for a long time, vacillating quite a bit over the past six months.  I have concluded that the Tea Party will not only betray its voters, but will also cause more harm than good.

Oh and anyone that slightly disagrees with a libertarian is a Neocon? 

Nope. I have slight disagreements with every libertarian on this sight (and countless others) and I'm sure they have them with me.  The difference between libertarians and neocons is almost as great as the difference between free markets and communism.

David in Qatar 

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#13) On October 23, 2010 at 11:57 PM, Starfirenv (< 20) wrote:

 YEA BABY! My boys from the the bay are going to the show. My condolences to our resident Phillies fan....NOT!
  David, would you feel better if they presented a very polished "hope and change to believe in" ala '08? Are you hip to 527 and 501(c)(4) organizations? This should make you feel much "better".
 http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=20760. These boys play rough.

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#14) On October 24, 2010 at 12:18 AM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

Starfirenv,

Congrats on the Giants!  They got out of a couple jams in the end, and I thought maybe the boys in SF were going to choke another one away..... but, they're not the Cubs after all.

would you feel better if they presented a very polished "hope and change to believe in" 

Their lack of polish draws the ire of the Left and makes them easy targets in the Dead Stream Media.  But in my view, it's the only thing endearing about them.

For example, from an ideological perspective, ranking from 100 to -100, Christine O'Donnell is about a -72 for me.  But the fact that the Establishment Left (and some of the Establishment Right) despises her lack of polish moves her up to about a -59.

There are some Tea Party candidates I still like (Towne, Kokesh, Dennis come to mind), but they are so vastly outnumbered by the -72's, that I conclude that overall Tea Party electoral success will lead to worse results for America.

David in Qatar

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#15) On October 24, 2010 at 12:43 AM, topsecret10 (< 20) wrote:

Starfirenv   My mom and dad,(and myself Included were and are lifetime Giants fans. {49er's too}.... I am sure that both of my parents are smiling from above as they watched OUR team take the pennant..  The Giants will win the World Series for my parents, bless their souls...    TS  :)  P.S David,don't give up on the Tea Party before we see what they do when confronted with the Issues. Give em a shot,If they fail,there Is always 2012....

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#16) On October 24, 2010 at 1:05 AM, tomlongrpv (82.47) wrote:

If the goal is to "drive government to zero" the anarchists and libertarians (same thing) should be delighted with the array of incompetent morons the Tea Party is putting up for office.  If you think government is run by idiots now (and it isn't) you just wait.  You should all be dancing in the streets because these cretins will do more to destroy government in their first few days than your pointy headed blogging will ever do.

And watch out for totally unregulated stock markets.  That will add some real fun to the game on this website. 

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#17) On October 24, 2010 at 4:01 AM, zzlangerhans (99.78) wrote:

@#6 Does Chuck Yeager market his own liquor now? But seriously folks, the Tea Party is like a huge joke that someone played on the USA to make anyone uncomfortable with the status quo feel like an imbecile. My advice is to simply ignore the Tea Party. Like a foxhole dug in sand they will shortly collapse under their flimsy raison d'etre and it behooves rational individuals not to be suffocated under the debris. Maintain your principles, function as a unit of one if necessary. In reality there is no security in numbers, only the foolish consistency of the herd.

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#18) On October 24, 2010 at 6:45 AM, ryanalexanderson (< 20) wrote:

@11 VarChild:

 "So how exactly is religious prayer or any mention of religion in a Tea Party rally count towards "pulling away from liberty?" 

Well, put it this way. Imagine if the Tea Party meeting started off with the moderator telling everyone to face east and give a shout-out to Allah before getting down to business. I'm sure that would go over juuuust fine. I think you'd see their ideas on freedom of religion come to the forefront pretty quick. 

I was pretty much resigned to this Republicanization of the Tea Party from the start. The Republicans (Republicrats, really) are well funded, well organized, and can suck any fringe movement in pretty quick.  

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#19) On October 24, 2010 at 8:25 AM, FreeMarkets (99.15) wrote:

My hope is that talking about the Constitution enough will force the TEA Party faithful to confront their demons when they are shown the specific areas they are betraying.  I actually heard Sean Hannity, when talking about the NYC mosque controversy, say that the Constitution allowed the end of the building due to the provision allowing for the defense of the nation.  A day or two later, he was arguing "They have the right to build it, but they shouldn't". 

This is only my hope, as the left and the right have so mutilated the document and its meaning, that they have agreed the Constitution means whatever they say it means.

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#20) On October 24, 2010 at 9:03 AM, rockbox64 (24.08) wrote:

Friends.  The TP movement is all about channelling anger while having no constructive means to shape that anger into any actionable principles for change.  The Constitution?  The Constitution is said to be a "living, breathing document", meaning that the simple words of the document can, and are, nuanced and shaded to comport with the times that we live in and by individuals that live in those times.  I think that we will all find that the few TPers that do find seats in November will quickly find that they, like other well meaning "independents" and splinter party candidates of the past, will move towards the middle and we'll forget all this hullabaloo, which is exactly what it is.  The Constitution is not like "The Cider House Rules" or the Ten Commandments, meaning the are not clear and unambiguous.  TPers seem to think this is the case.  Out of all this, we should all be glad, that at least in principle, the Supreme Court of the U.S. is an apolitical body.  I believe they do what they think is right, and deciding what is, and what isn't "constitutional", while giving a second thought to the TP movement is, is not what they do.  In fact, I would venture to say that, that if you were permitted to ask a justice, and if you actually got a truthful answer, they would tell you that the Tea Party movement is not composed of a set of ideals that you could run a country with. 

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#21) On October 24, 2010 at 9:51 AM, Quantemonics1 (99.66) wrote:

TP on CAPS usually refers to TigerPack!  LOL

As usual I will vote mostly Libertarian in a few days, with a few Republicans sprinkled in, at the local level.  Libertarians are the TRUE PROTEST, FREEDOM LOVING, LIBERTY minded, FREE MARKET, LESS GOVERNMENT advocates, not Republicans mascaraeding as Tea Party types to get your vote.  Republicans the last 20 years since Reagan have PROVEN to be bigger deficit spending, big business loving knuckleheads, even worse than the socialist Democrats.  Sometimes the facts just don't matter.

Libertarians have been running on a platform of small government and true freedoms for individuals in America, with little fanfare or voting success for many decades.  My vote usually doesn't count for much, as few Americans can do any thinking or puzzle solving on their own.  TV and radio ads dictate every thought and decision now for the general population.

Anyone that understands what is going on, like David, is very worried about the 2012 backlash against government chaos and inaction in 2011 as double-dip recession hits.  I am very worried that true socialists and communists will win in 2012, AS A RESULT OF TEA PARTY/REPUBLICAN STUPIDITY NEXT YEAR.  Democracy in action I guess.

I argued with my Political Science professor two decades ago that our 2-party oligopoly on power would be our demise.  Of course conventional wisdom decades ago, was 2-party rule was the "core" of American democratic success.  Whatever!

Our "choice" today in 2012 is quite clear: vote for power-loving, brain dead, egotists on the left or right wing fringe of society, controlled directly by special interest money.  Nobody in the middle, nobody serious about maintaining freedoms, nobody serious about balancing the budget, or getting rid of the Federal Reserve system of bank enrichment, etc. etc.  Just flag waving, baby holding, picture ops... and lots of TV ads bashing the far otherside opponent.  What a freakin mess we have created.

I weep for my country, and what lies directly ahead for the economy and our society.  Reread TickRTapeKing's main blog he put out a year ago, if you think you are serious about fixing America the correct way. http://caps.fool.com/Blogs/how-to-fix-america/302070  So far leaders in both major parties have voted NONE OF THE ABOVE in terms of his master list on actually changing things for the better!

-TigerPack

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#22) On October 24, 2010 at 9:53 AM, devoish (98.80) wrote:

Small gov't, free marketeers consistently want to shrink the Gov't programs that provide for the poorest and enlarge the programs that provide for themselves. Finding and supporting the programs that defy them and send CNBC into a tizzy are the solution. The free marketeers are consistently not the right answer. I am not fooled by their attempts to rebrand themselves from "Conservative Republican" to "Libertarian".  I have written to Ron Paul and warned him it is happening. They will help him for a while, then persuade him someone else is more "electible" if libertarianism catches on enough. Then we will hear we elected peole who weren't "true" conservatives///libertarians - Devoish, April 28th, 2009

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#23) On October 24, 2010 at 10:38 AM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

TigerPack,

You nailed it on the head in a lot of ways and exposed all of the phoniness that surrounds our current political environment - corrupt from the politicians to the universities to the public..  And thanks for pointing out that fantastic blog which I somehow missed last year.  That was tremendous!

David in Qatar

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#24) On October 24, 2010 at 11:11 AM, ChrisGraley (31.50) wrote:

I've never been a huge Tea Party supporter precisely because the movement includes a bunch of neo-cons, but I still think that even when the inevitable rift occurs, it will result in more parties and not less and more choice is always a good thing.

 

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#25) On October 24, 2010 at 12:27 PM, whereaminow (60.20) wrote:

ChrisGraley,

but I still think that even when the inevitable rift occurs, it will result in more parties and not less and more choice is always a good thing.

I do hope you are right. 

David in Qatar

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#26) On October 24, 2010 at 1:35 PM, starbucks4ever (99.52) wrote:

"A man will fight harder for his interests than for his rights. "

Napoleon was right on spot. 

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#27) On October 24, 2010 at 1:40 PM, BillyTG (32.28) wrote:

What a great quote. Thanks zloj

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#28) On October 25, 2010 at 1:54 AM, rfaramir (30.43) wrote:

"Libertarianism is the heart of conservatism" --Ronald Reagan

Conservatives are teachable about the truths of liberty, and this is a teachable moment.  Socialists are not, and they fear the Tea Partiers.  So long as they fear the Tea Party, I will support it, warts and all.

Even on the issue of war, they are teachable, as the troops are "defending our freedoms" (and those of other countries who don't seem to be able to muster enough defense of theirs).  That's a start, though they need to be taught about how force always goes wrong, and how liberty shouldn't be imposed, even though it is right.  If a people is corrupt morally, they WILL choose slavery, and it is a complete waste of time (and lives) trying to win liberty for them.

On the religious issue, they are easily teachable: this country was founded by religious people trying to find liberty for themselves.  They were not too good at giving religious liberty to others around them, though (Puritans), but have since learned better.  They just need to keep liberty in the forefront.

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#29) On October 25, 2010 at 2:11 AM, BillyTG (32.28) wrote:

@rfaramir,  what "freedom" are we defending? I had a whole reply written, but I want to be clear what exactly you mean, before writing it again.

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#30) On October 25, 2010 at 6:27 PM, rfaramir (30.43) wrote:

@BillyTG

I'm just saying that that's what "they" say.  It's their justification for sending the troops.  Your question is exactly what we need to confront them with, not so much to blast them out of the water with logic, but to help them clarify their thoughts, motivations, and philosophical basis for war support.

Once they see that freedom really is important, then educate them to the voluntary nature of freedom (you cannot coerce freedom), then they'll see that sending our forces out is rarely the right answer.

They really do love liberty, but they do not fully understand it. They've been raised in a country with a lot of statists in control of education, so it's no surprise they have a lot of confused statist notions along with their basically correct value of liberty. They need to be shown and taught the logical consequences of liberty, both the good and the frustrating (giving others the same liberties you want, even when they choose differently or even very poorly).

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#31) On October 25, 2010 at 8:09 PM, BillyTG (32.28) wrote:

rfarmir, thanks for clearing it up and I agree with you completely.  You had "freedoms" in quotes, so I figured you meant it as just described, but wasn't sure.

Yeah, we name these things operation enduring FREEDOM, operation Iraqi FREEDOM. Nice little buzzwords that have nothing to do with the reality of why we're over there.

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#32) On October 26, 2010 at 10:55 AM, Melaschasm (88.82) wrote:

The Tea Parties stand for three things:

Reduce spending

Smaller debt

Lower taxes

The greatest strength of the Tea Parties is the decentralized nature of the groups.  That is also their greatest weakness.  Thus how we end up with some groups bringing religion in the discussion while others do not.  The local Tea Parties to which I have access are exclusively focused on the three issues above.  They do not discuss religion, foreign policy, abortion or any other divisive issues.

This discussion is a great example of why the Tea Parties are so desparately needed right now, and why they would fail as a third party.  As long as they can stay focused on their three official agenda issues, they can win support from a majority of the country, and force politicians into scaling back the Federal Government a little bit.  As soon as the Tea Parties get involved in other issues, they will break up into many small impotent groups of people, unable to pressure the politicians to cut spending, debt, and taxes. 

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