Books Sep 30, 2010 at 4:00 am

Two Pollsters Try to Legitimize an Illegitimate "Movement," with an Assist from Their Leader Glenn Beck

When you can just print signs?

Comments

2
Your ignorance is surpassed only by your stupidity.
3
Dude - your stupidity is second only to your ignorance...
4
ddd
5
ddd
6
So many problems with this article, there's almost too many to count!

1) This is obviously a biased political spew designed to make the reader hate the Tea Party. Why does the writer need to do this, I wonder? Paid?

2) The Tea Party name was intentionally created by the media, which is owned by politically biased corporations. The political party is known as the Libertarian Party. It has been around for a very long time. The Federalists (Washington, Jefferson, etc) back in the early days of our country were all early Libertarians.

3) The purported "leaders" of the "Tea Party" movement are paid-for provocateurs, given face time in the paid-for media. The Libertarian Party already had leaders before Beck came along. Try Ron Paul, or Mike Badnarik, for example. These are today's leaders of the movement.

4) All of the above, including the posted article, is a well-funded attempt to smear the long-standing Libertarian Party.

5) The Libertarian Party only really wants to protect the US Constitution, which guarantees the basic legal freedoms of American citizens. Why would anyone pay money to repeatedly attack this philosophy? Well, if you are paid by pro-socialist/fascist/communist UN-huggers, guess what? You will write anything.
7
Why try to make a valid point by using the term "Teabaggers"?

Callng an angry woman a bitch, or a man a dick does not help make a point.

9
Catholics do not worship saints, so saints are not part of a pantheon. I don't see how matching disdain for fact-checking bolsters one's arguments. In fact, if I were an editor assigned this piece I'd ask for a rewrite.

It's not just television feeding this suspect and myopic rebellion, it's newspapers and any broadcast media suffering from lack of advertising dollars and readership. It's the American culture of bread and circuses instead of bravely forwarding any positive and new ideas.
10
Oh, please, @9: I was raised Catholic and I know it's not polite to say it, but Catholics pray to saints for specific wishes to be granted, and they keep graven images of the saints to protect them from harm. They have feast days, and they go to church to celebrate some of the more prominent saints on those feast days. What more do they have to do to make it worship? It's a pantheon, not monotheism.

@2: I'm glad you posted back at @3 to add that "dude." It really clarified your argument.
11
Dude- Why don't the Teabaggers take the lady in the sign's advice and just print their own money to pay taxes with. Brilliant idea.
12
@2,3: You're doing it wrong. RONG RONG RONG RONG RONG.
Also, you're an idiot. THIS THREAD IS NOW DIAMONDS.
13
I've been seeing a lot of posts talking about how the unemployment rate won't go down from my online conservative friends, and they're shocked when I point out that the unemployment rate is dropping - in Blue cities.

Sucks to be them.
14
Confidential to PC: great stuff, but you may want to leave the gratuitous use of capital letters to LW and WmSH.
15
Prayer does not mean worship.


Worship refers to specific acts of rel…


Prayer refers to communication. It can mean confession, making requests or prayer according to God's will. Quite literally it means speaking to God or an act of thanks.

The Difference Between Prayer and Worshi…

Many non-Catholic Christians believe that it is wrong to pray to the saints, claiming that our prayers should be directed to God alone. Some Catholics, responding to this criticism, have argued that we do not pray to the saints but with them.

Both groups, however, are confusing prayer with worship. True worship (as opposed to veneration or honor) does indeed belong to God alone, and we should never worship man or any other creature as we worship God. But while worship may take the form of prayer, as in the Mass and other liturgies of the Church, not all prayer is worship. When we pray to the saints, we’re simply asking them to help us, by praying to God on our behalf, or thanking them for having already done so.

Yes it's a semantics issue, but I expect more from an ex-Catholic writer. If you'd used "veneration" instead, I would have no argument.

16
Paul--your sense of humor is only surpassed by your awesomeness.
17
Great article, but I would love more detail. I read your GBU stuff, but it seemed like more satire.
18
They are rebranded Republicans who are all about the lie that they are against deficits. Republicans have been the very party that has given us repeated deficits of gargantuan proportions, starting with the biggest liar, Ronald Reagan. But let's not let the left off the hook here. The left has acted like spoiled brats because Obama hasn't delivered their every wish, like some miracle worker, in just two fucking years! TWO FUCKING YEARS!!! The Republicans spent us into the ditch for TEN YEARS!!!
19
@6:

"The Libertarian Party only really wants to protect the US Constitution". As well as gut every social welfare program that keeps the poor from gutting the rich.
20
@18 Hear hear!
21
I've found that some of the time (OK, most of the time), my cock is surpassed by my balls, while other times, it is my balls come in second and it's my cock that stands above. So to speak.

Obviously teabaggers know better than anyone what I'm talking about.
22
@6
1)yes, he was paid, he's a writer that works for a paper, of course he was paid. Putz.

2)Yes the tea party was created by the media. Fox specifically. That was kind of the point of the article. Putz.

3)Yes, that's what the article said. Stop mixing up the Libertarians with the Teabaggers. Putz.

4)Dude, can you even read? The article was about teabaggers, not libertarians. Putz.

5)Libertarians have a lot of good points and should be severely offended by the Tea Party's co-opting of their message within their ignorant rants. Personally I wouldn't want Libertarians in charge but I'd like more of them in congress. Don't blame the teabaggers on liberals, those assholes were solely created and fed by conservatives.
23
I can't believe no one has yet pointed out to IMFLover2 that Jefferson was the opposite of a federalist. Or that the federalists were proponents of a strong central government, so not exactly (or at all) libertarians.
24
So uh these teabaggers are railing against military spending right? Maybe buy a few less billion dollar airplanes?

@6 accuses you of bias but he is completely hysterical, hypocritical, and hyperbolic, esp in his last bullet.

the whole bizarre thing is the droves of poor people supporting the wealthy elite, long after any trickle down has been shown to be ineffective.

25
This:
"...commentators whom 24-hour news channels are forced to trot out to fill every possible second with controversy for the blogs to froth over for eternity."

is a great line and a nice succinct description of the state of our political media.

Also, shitstorm.

Kudos, sir.

26
@9: "In fact, if I were an editor assigned this piece I'd ask for a rewrite."

@15: "Yes it's a semantics issue, but I expect more from an ex-Catholic writer. If you'd used "veneration" instead, I would have no argument."

Hmm. Sounds like instead of a rewrite, you wanted him to use "veneration" instead of "worship."

Good stuff as always, Paul.
27
How many teabaggers does it take to change a burned-out light bulb?

None. They don't replace dead light bulbs, even on their Xmas tree. They prefer living in the dark.

Yeah, I deliberately said "Xmas" to piss them off. They're so easy to get going. Simple, slow, always in a pickle... that's teabaggers.
28
Liberals are just crying in the microbrews and throwing up their vegan spaghetti over the Tea Party, aren't they?

This spontaneous grass roots movements sprung up because no one - Democrat or Republican - was listening to their concerns - no socialism, no illegal aliens in the white house, and not one more child converted to homosexuality.

We have taken over the GOP and the big shark headed towards Barry Soetoro's rowboat could be described in one word - CONSERVATISM!

That's right - America is a conservative country, created in God's image, and it only takes a little whiff of Marxism and Fascism to awaken the sleeping giant that is conservatism, and the hard traditionalists who will fight to the death for it.

So enjoy your little teabagging parties all you want. After November 2nd, America will be returned to it's rightful place, and the way will be paved for Sarah Palin in 2012.

Take that to Intrade!

ROTFLMAO!!!
29
Lord Oregano, liberals LOVE the Tea Party like conservatives loved Nader.
30
@28 youre posing, right, like julien the intern? good one!

Run Sarah Run! 2012! We all love a good circus!
31
And the War of Dumb and Dumber continues....sigh.

Um, Lord Basil...what ARE you whiffing, actually?
32
@27: Right on, man!
33
@28: Cool story bro.
34
@7: They're called "teabaggers" for the simple reason that so many of these idiots showed up at early protests with tea baggies dangling from their clothing. Were they at all current with today's generation, they never would have done something that would invite such obvious mockery.

@9: Keep up the arguments, and maybe you'll convince yourself. Because you won't convince anyone outside of your own church.

@28: There are so many easily disproved notions in your 2nd and 4th paragraphs that I can only conclude (again) that you are a sock puppet.
35
Magnificent use of parentheses!
36
When I was a kid, I asked mom why there was no kids day, since there was a mothers day, fathers day, etc. She gave me a incredulous look and replied "everyday is kids day".

Think about it honkies!
37
I enjoyed you column! Entertaining and informative.

Teabaggers flogging values! Thats Funny
38
@18 "Rebranded Republicans" is the best way to describe them that I can think of. When I first heard about this movement, I was somewhat optimistic that SOMEONE out there was trying to organize people and demand that the government finally at long last stop government over-spending, since this is a huge threat to our country's stability and quality of life.

However within a couple of months it became obvious that these people were just newer Republicans making a power grab from the older Republicans. They had dumbasses like Sarah Palin and Glen Beck appearing at their rallies and co-opting their shit, and before you know it the movement begins matching stupid stances on social issues (in particular the abortion issue and gay marriage) with fiscal conservatism. The original crop of libertarian organizers just stand on the sidelines and go "Well, they can believe what they want to... our movement doesn't get involved in social issues" while the morons run off with their movement.

So it's just the Republicans all over again, except it's a new crop of them who are even stupider and have less political experience.
39
@18 "Rebranded Republicans" is the best way to describe them that I can think of. When I first heard about this movement, I was somewhat optimistic that SOMEONE out there was trying to organize people and demand that the government finally at long last stop government over-spending, since this is a huge threat to our country's stability and quality of life.

However within a couple of months it became obvious that these people were just newer Republicans making a power grab from the older Republicans. They had dumbasses like Sarah Palin and Glen Beck appearing at their rallies and co-opting their shit, and before you know it the movement begins matching stupid stances on social issues (in particular the abortion issue and gay marriage) with fiscal conservatism. The original crop of libertarian organizers just stand on the sidelines and go "Well, they can believe what they want to... our movement doesn't get involved in social issues" while the morons run off with their movement.

So it's just the Republicans all over again, except it's a new crop of them who are even stupider and have less political experience.
40
@18 "Rebranded Republicans" is the best way to describe them that I can think of. When I first heard about this movement, I was somewhat optimistic that SOMEONE out there was trying to organize people and demand that the government finally at long last stop government over-spending, since this is a huge threat to our country's stability and quality of life.

However within a couple of months it became obvious that these people were just newer Republicans making a power grab from the older Republicans. They had dumbasses like Sarah Palin and Glen Beck appearing at their rallies and co-opting their shit, and before you know it the movement begins matching stupid stances on social issues (in particular the abortion issue and gay marriage) with fiscal conservatism. The original crop of libertarian organizers just stand on the sidelines and go "Well, they can believe what they want to... our movement doesn't get involved in social issues" while the morons run off with their movement.

So it's just the Republicans all over again, except it's a new crop of them who are even stupider and have less political experience.
41
@18 "Rebranded Republicans" is the best way to describe them that I can think of. When I first heard about this movement, I was somewhat optimistic that SOMEONE out there was trying to organize people and demand that the government finally at long last stop government over-spending, since this is a huge threat to our country's stability and quality of life.

However within a couple of months it became obvious that these people were just newer Republicans making a power grab from the older Republicans. They had dumbasses like Sarah Palin and Glen Beck appearing at their rallies and co-opting their shit, and before you know it the movement begins matching stupid stances on social issues (in particular the abortion issue and gay marriage) with fiscal conservatism. The original crop of libertarian organizers just stand on the sidelines and go "Well, they can believe what they want to... our movement doesn't get involved in social issues" while the morons run off with their movement.

So it's just the Republicans all over again, except it's a new crop of them who are even stupider and have less political experience.
42
@38-41: Oh, for fuck sake...
44
@28: "no one - Democrat or Republican - was listening to their concerns - no socialism, no illegal aliens in the white house, and not one more child converted to homosexuality."

Thanks, I've been wondering just what the Tea Party is all about, and now I know. In truth, I suspected it was something like that.

You know what they say, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you.
45
@42 "Rebranded Republicans" is the best way to describe them that I can think of. When I first heard about this movement, I was somewhat optimistic that SOMEONE out there was trying to organize people and demand that the government finally at long last stop government over-spending, since this is a huge threat to our country's stability and quality of life.

However within a couple of months it became obvious that these people were just newer Republicans making a power grab from the older Republicans. They had dumbasses like Sarah Palin and Glen Beck appearing at their rallies and co-opting their shit, and before you know it the movement begins matching stupid stances on social issues (in particular the abortion issue and gay marriage) with fiscal conservatism. The original crop of libertarian organizers just stand on the sidelines and go "Well, they can believe what they want to... our movement doesn't get involved in social issues" while the morons run off with their movement.

So it's just the Republicans all over again, except it's a new crop of them who are even stupider and have less political experience.
46
God damnit, Constant. Here I was, safely ignoring the Tea Party assholes as plebeian morons, and now that you've put out such an inane rant about them, I am forced to take them seriously and consider that they might have a point. Thanks for that, jerkwad.
47
Constant has struck at the heart of the target. It’s all true. But the Tea Party is more than just a Republican-fueled attempt at rebranding old ideas and molding them to fit the times. Rather, it is a sword pointed right at the heart of our democracy. A sword sharpened on a whetstone lubricated with the tears of millions thrown out of work or from their homes in the great economic maelstrom manufactured to hide the skulking of the oppressors.

Glenn Beck is a puppet of hidden forces and backstage maneuvers designed to enslave us all. As capitalism marches onward towards its inevitable heat death and collapse, the running dog captains of industry are hatching their plans to control the souls of the people with cheap and easy marijuana. Why use religion as the opiate of the people when you have actual opiates at your command, the dark path oiled and slickened with the slippery oil of sloth-inducing cannabis.

But we still have the unions, my friends! They can still save us! Shoulder to shoulder, the teachers and nurses, government workers and longshoremen, Teamsters, and others must band together and throw the Tea Party into the ocean before they can hatch their evil plan. Renounce the siren call of marijuana and double your efforts to strengthen the barricades! The People will not be stopped. Peace, brotherhood, and justice must prevail!

Patty Murray will lead us all into the promised land.
48
@34 The fact of the matter is: Barack Hussein Obama has not proved his eligibility to be POTUS. Your liberal lying on his behalf doesn't change that fact.

It's also common knowledge that liberals, socialists, fascists need as many children to convert to homosexuality in order to weaken the christian family, as the christian family is the only societal organ that strengthens freedom.

And I hate to say this, but the Tea Party movement was, in fact, a spontaneous full throated voicing of the conservative values this country was founded on. Once a Marxist Fascist was elected POTS without proving his eligibility to be so, patriots awoke from their slumber and took to the streets. You liberals will lie and say it's astroturf, and the only evidence you cite was made up by George Soros and Moveon.org.

And stop calling us "teabaggers." Tea Baggers are homosexual perverts and are likely to be Marxists. We are Tea Party Patriots and we're taking over!!!

ROTFLMAO!!!
49
It's unfortunate that the tea party has been overtaken by extremists. I've enjoyed the mockery; it's well deserved and unavoidable. However I have to say I sympathize with them in a way. Before and besides the loonys it was fueled by something completely legitimate- taxes are high, government is big and scary and out of control. It's not that crazy for people to want to keep more of their own money, have less laws telling them what to do. Of course we need roads, cops, and soup kitchens, but there is something to the idea of privatizing and deregulating some things; if we had school vouchers, for example, poor kids in Texas would have the choice to go to a school that actually taught American History properly. Not sure if vouchers can work practically, but just as an example of an idea.
Right now our choice is between a spineless conservative Nanny State party and the White Jesus Party of America (for the Rich). Grrreeeeat.
Why isn't there a Freedom Party? Why can't the right let us have our homo marriages and ganga, and in exchange, they get to keep their guns and confederate flags? Win-win. In the meantime, we could work on taking out corruption, overspending, ,etc and lower taxes.
I'm down with Libertarianism, but most of those flying that flag seem to be right wingers masquerading as such. It's sort of like how the term Feminist gets confused with Man-Haters.
Our government needs reform. The division of the people into factions is not helping. Maybe instead of just mocking the teabaggers we can try and understand where they're coming from a bit from time to time.
50
Excellent article Paul I think you got right to the heart of the tea party movement. I am surprised that you immersed yourself in the Glen Beck University, that must have been a painful experience. But it made me think of another movement that needs some serious journalistic attention given its growing popularity, and that is the 9/11 truth movement. Take the 2007 Zogby poll on http://www.zogby.com/news/readnews.cfm?I… titled "51% of Americans Want Congress to Probe Bush/Cheney Regarding 9/11 Attacks"
Headline for the article, "67% also fault 9/11 Commission for not investigating anomalous collapse of World Trade Center 7" I dare you to apply your same vehement journalism to this growing movement as well.

-Jonathan Thompson
Organizer for the Seattle Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth Action Group
51
Because I don't vote republican or Libertarian I guess Lord Basil would also call
me a Liberal,socialist,fascist. It's obvious that he doesn't understand the political spectrum. Fascism is a far right trait. Not a far left. Hitler was a right wing fascist. Which is why he spoke about his hatred of the communists so much.

What Lord Basil really doesn't understand is that the left and right don't get it. The Tea Party doesn't get it because the people who are funding them. (Dick Armey, Koch brothers) don't want less spending. They want more spending. On them and the rest of corporate America.

The reason that the health care bill didn't go far enough is because corporate america is hedging their bets by funding both parties. There is no Dem or Republican party. Just a Corporate party.

The Corporate parties use the ignorant people to fight with each other while they screw all of us. Clinton and Bush both sent all the good paying jobs to China. The Tea Baggers, if elected, will also send any or all good paying jobs to China.

Dems and Repubs have done a good job of dividing and conquering the middle and poor classes while letting CEO pay skyrocket from 45 times the average worker in the 70's to 450 times the average worker now.

So much for socialism.
52
@51 Handymanou812:

I could NOT have summarized it any better myself!

We live in Corporate Amerika now, folks.
Tea-baggin' goon squad---all your in-your-face whoopin and Sarah Palin hollerin' is all for
N-O-T-H-I-N-G, Bush pawns. Why do you idiots think you keep getting sent off to fight mindless, illegal wars? C-O-R-P-O-R-A-T-E
P-R-O-F-I-T-S.
Like, D'UH!

So--will you still be whoopin' and hollerin' with glee when the Chinese come take your homes, pickups, and guns---not because of a declaration of war or wrongful invasion, but because THEY NOW OWN YOUR HOMES, PICKUPS AND GUNS?
This is what Dumb and Dumber will get us in 2012.

And for all of you in college, your grandchildren will be paying off your loans.
53
@48: Can I be elected POTS too?
54
"...it reveals them to be what they are: craven, gutless, simpering fearmongers."

Fantastic.
55
@46: I'm totally sure that one article by me has caused you to reconsider the entire Tea Party movement. I have forced you into it, and you didn't have any Republican/libertarian leanings beforehand. That's entirely realistic.
56
"This is the small-government dictum, the charge that is easiest to refute: So every road should be a privately owned toll road? The police should charge you before finding the guy who stole your car? Old people should be left to die in the street (presumably for the road-owning private corporations to deal with)?"

If it's the easiest, then it's too bad you did such a poor job. Most of the TP folks don't say that every road should be a toll road, they claim that the entire budget can be balanced by squeezing out the waste (including paying a living wage to union members to do the work). They freely ignore arguments like yours because they so grossly mistate their unrealistic, mathematically impossible beliefs. But your caricature, which
doubtless some of the most extreme TPers might recognize, allows them to repeat the claim and remain unanswered...
57
Citing a Matt Taibbi article as some form of evidence is right up there with believing something because it was on Fox News. Anyone taking him seriously is so blindly partisan that they've dropped out of intelligent conversation.
58
/snip/ It's also common knowledge that liberals, socialists, fascists need as many children to convert to homosexuality in order to weaken the christian family, as the christian family is the only societal organ that strengthens freedom. /snip/

Wow. That is some powerful stuff you're smoking there, Sweet Basil.
Clearly, only strong faith in a permanent celestial dictatorship - run by your favored invisible sky-god (and his son, of course) - prepares you to appreciate the finer points of freedom and democracy.
59
@48: Poe's Law.
60
Obviously the Tea Partiers are filling their Lipton bags with some really strong cannabis -- how else to explain the serious bout of short-term memory loss of the 2000-2008 Republican-led fiasco? Bunch of fuckin' sore losers. We had to deal with Dubya for two terms driving our country into the ground. And now we have an intelligent, qualified person leading the country -- one who can actually construct a sentence. If you all had been out in force during the catastrophe of the Bush years, I might give you a little more credence. But the fact that the TP emerged pretty much on Obama's inauguration means it's just a marketing ploy by the fascists in the Republican party. The fact that there are so many people in this country whose hearts and minds can be swayed by fear and propaganda is truly dispiriting. Almost makes me hope for a TP/Republican takeover of Congress in a few weeks -- if you dumbshits need to be reminded of how badly you fucked things up just a few years ago, go for it.

And a word for Basil -- I refuse to match wits with an unarmed person.
61
Obviously, the only way to settle this is to clone Washington and Jefferson and put them back in charge... and get rid of all the amendments to the constitution since those are bastardizations made by liberals, right neo-cons?
62
Um.....is it just me, but if all these angry-as-hell tea baggers really have so much power, then why are they AFRAID TO SHOW THEIR FACES?
What's with the cheap sunglasses?

And RIGHT ON, Snockered, about "Basil".
I second that!

Please wait...

Comments are closed.

Commenting on this item is available only to members of the site. You can sign in here or create an account here.


Add a comment
Preview

By posting this comment, you are agreeing to our Terms of Use.