Put on Your Crazy Hat! Mad Tea Parties

Mad Hatter: No wonder you’re late. Why, this watch is exactly two days slow.

Alice: It would be so nice if something made sense for a change.

I have been watching the commentaries about the “grassroots, broad-based, spontaneous teabagging” which occurred on April 15th with open-mouthed Unfortunate choice of words? Possibly. You decide. amusement/amazement. Now I want to say a few things.

1. The morons who were interviewed on television saying that “It’s time for a Revolution!” carrying posters which read “We came unarmed THIS time!” need to shut up and go home. They’re welcome to clean their guns and mutter in the privacy of their basements. But they had darned well better not bring them out and use them on our democratically elected leaders. Or anyone else, for that matter.

2. The Bush administration did a lot of things that were totally screwed up with which I passionately disagreed. Sure, I protested at rallies, advocating for environmental clean up, an end to the war, and several other hoped-for changes. But I never threatened violence, nor did my friends. We worked hard, paid our taxes, and organized for a change in leadership. Which we got, thank you very much! So stop equating that with “no representation” – you’re really being poor losers because the American people wised up to your candidate’s inadequacy! You got to vote. You lost. Get over it.

3. I am not nearly as good at explaining what I believe about this issue as many other writers. So I am going to borrow their words to share with you.

A. There’s a great new Facebook group created by Brian Grey. I joined. Here’s an excerpt from the page National Coffee Party – Anti-Tea Party Group

A lot of people in this country are upset about government spending because they are afraid of a spiralling deficit.

Bull. There was no outcry from the fiscal conservatives until Bush was a lame duck president and, essentially, nationalized the banks. Now, Democrats control the White House and both houses of Congress and need to try, whether it works or not, to apply Keynesian theory and spend our way out. When this money was unbudgeted and went to a war effort largely against a foe we attacked unprovoked, where was this fiscal outcry?

B. One of my favorite blogs, Thoughts from a Liberal Mom, had a great post on Wednesday entitled Teabagging Today. Please go check it out.

C. Jamie Holly at IntoxiNation has a ton of interesting posts on this. I liked the one entitled Because Payback is a Bitch. Here’s an excerpt:

Our Department of Homeland Security is taking a look at groups of people, who are out stock piling weapons and ammunition and even hinting at the assassination of our President. But now the very people, who just a couple of years ago were calling for left wing protestors to be jailed, are now crying foul.

Cry me a fucking river you bunch of hypocrites. This is America – love it or leave it. Our side of the debate was told that repeatedly for the past eight years and now that the tide has turned, the right has got their panties in a bunch.

When the left was under this kind of government scrutiny. Wait. When we were under a stronger scrutiny, considering the fact that the military was watching us, we didn’t run and stock pile guns and ammos and talk about killing Bush. We went about our business and continued our protests.

D. Jon Stewart has done several bits on this. For a good time, watch Nationwide Tax Protests. John Oliver’s interviews on Tea Party Tyranny cracked me up. I particularly liked Tempest in a Tea Party. Stewart highlights the role that the rightwing media played in hyping this. Fox News was inviting people to come out for this while simultaneously calling it a grassroots, organic effort. They said they weren’t sponsoring the tea parties, but Stewart’s point that Fox had ownership is very valid.

E. My second husband, Stephen Colbert, had a few things to say as well. I heart him very much.  Click on his red Wriststrong wristband in the photograph to hear his wisdom.

When White Rabbit is tardy to the tea party, Alice in Wonderland’s Mad Hatter tells him “No wonder you’re late. Why, this watch

is exactly two days slow.” I feel like these protestors are a few years late to the party. This new administration is neither to blame for our country’s economic woes, nor is it misspending our tax dollars. The teabaggers need to better understand both early American history and our recent past.

And I love these people – from Liberal Mom to Mr. Colbert – for talking sense amidst this nonsense.