Why exactly are the Tea Party people so mad? I don't doubt their sincerity, only their sanity. They complain that President Obama has raised their taxes. This isn't even close to true; unless you are in the top tax bracket, Obama doesn't even want Bush's tax cuts to expire.
They complain that President Obama wants to take away their guns. Exactly what kind of paint are these people sniffing? President Obama has never made any speeches about taking away people's guns. President Obama has even signed a new law specifically allowing people to bring guns into National Parks; a right these gun nuts didn't have before.
They complain that President Obama wants sharia law in the US and we need a law to stop this from ever happening. This one I find particularly hilarious. We already have this law. I admit, this law is a little obscure, but you may have heard of it: the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Establishment Clause specifically bans the government from making any religiously motivated laws. Never mind that Muslims make up only around 0.5% of the country. US courts don't even let schools lead students in a moment of silence; how the hell would anything even close sharia law ever be allowed?
While the Tea Party's leaders are certainly exploiting the Tea Party's racist paranoia either for profit in Palin's case or for personal political gain in Gingrich's case, they aren't creating anything that didn't exist already. A certain percentage of the country are scared as hell of anyone who isn't white and will not recognize anyone else's right to govern other than them. I believe the Tea Party when they say they are mad. But, I don't think they are using the word like we do in America: to mean angry; I think they are using the British vernacular. I think they mean they are bat shit insane.
No comments:
Post a Comment