Mad, Mad, Mad
Heavy weekend snowfall closed down the capital of the United States. Not that many outside the Washington Beltway were sorry about it. Possibly—by their reasoning—the blizzard was God's gift to decent government, a holiday from the ceaseless commotion, braggadocio and show-offing that have become the capital's principle pastimes.
Did Sarah Palin bring down the house in Nashville, Tenn., at the big tea party bash and the next day at a Rick Perry rally in Texas? By virtue of her considered views on Federal Reserve reform or transportation policy? Nothing of the sort. She laid into the Washington politicians, calling for "another revolution." Wow. That's pretty stern talk. And the crowd loved it.
On Monday, a Rasmussen Poll indicated why. Seventy-five percent of likely voters, the polls said, are "at least somewhat angry at the government's current policies." That's both parties in the government. Sixty percent, according to Rasmussen, believe "that neither Republican political leaders nor Democratic political leaders have a good understanding of what is needed today." Just 52 percent thought that way in November. Forty-nine percent are worried not that the federal government will do too little to "help" the economy—rather that it will do too much. Fifty-nine percent favor tax cuts over increased federal spending. For the size of the deficit, 83 percent blame Congress rather than want-it-all taxpayers.
In an interview before the Super Bowl, President Obama announced a Feb. 25 half-day "bipartisan health care summit" that he said would be televised live. The president said he wanted to see what Republicans could bring to the table—except he won't allow them to propose taking time to start over again. No way, it seems, are we going to hit reset. We're going to figure a way to meld two bills that nobody anywhere likes very much.
Obama's aggressive tone to Republicans—"How do you want to make sure that the 30 million people who don't have health insurance can get it? What are your ideas specifically"?—pretty much dooms the event, save as an occasion for Democratic and media bashing of Republicans. On the other hand, that may not matter. Polls show Americans opposed to health care in its present big government configurations. Attempts to cram—the precise the word for it—health care down the nation's throat will meet a popular hostility, for which it seems to me the Washington establishment isn't prepared.
"Let's take our country back," cried the Divine Sarah (allow me to borrow the great Bernhardt's nickname) at the Perry rally in Texas. Back from whom? How? When did they get it? Never mind. Point is, whether or not we live at one of those storied historical "turning points" we read about, deep anger concerning government is real. Those who govern us smirk at their peril.
Feelings of national inefficacy are rife. We can't get the job machine cranked up, and our government gives the impression of sappy solicitude for the rights of terrorists. A voter can work up a pretty good head of steam contemplating such data. Meanwhile, the Divine Sarah declines to foreswear a presidential run.
The adulation she evokes has something to do, of course, with her brass and sass. What we can't overlook, at the same time, are the targets of her sass, namely the perpetrators of national anxiety and, as she sees it, decline. The "perpetrators" don't see it that way; but, then, they wouldn't—cushioned as they've been by the prerogatives and perquisites of high office. These very prerogatives, by the way, they gained at the polls. None would be in office today but for the people's concurrence. That's how democracy sometimes works: hope, followed by remorse.
We're in the remorse stage now—a stage that will pass (because it always does) but which, right now, is potent in the extreme. And overdue, if you want the truth. Government is out of hand. It is too big and bossy. Something does need to be done. Hold tight. Now, tighter . . .
COPYRIGHT 2010 CREATORS.COM
Entries(RSS)
When Sarah Palin and the rest of the Tea Party crowd start calling (publicly) for actual CUTS in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, that's when I'll start taking them seriously.
Not that that day will ever come---there are simply too many people getting said benefits to make it politically practical to cut those programs down. The political imbalance between Makers (the productive classes), Takers (the central government and the beneficiary classes) and Fakers (mediamen and lobbyists) is simply too far out of whack, and has been for too long, for the situation to be corrected peacefully.
"When Sarah Palin and the rest of the Tea Party crowd start calling (publicly) for actual CUTS in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, that’s when I’ll start taking them seriously."
I will start taking them seriously when hell freezes over. There is real, legitimate resentment behind the tea party "movement", but unfortunately it is - and has been nearly from the start - being exploited and turned into a pro-GOP "movement" and nothing more. The tea partiers themselves are, in the main, too stupid to even notice (and probably wouldn't care if they did). What started as an anti-establishment sentiment has morphed into a pro-establishment, Fox News-sponsored GOP get-out-the-vote machine.
Sarah Palin's performance was (as usual) nauseating and absurd, and that the Tea Partiers aren't revolting against it says all that needs to be said about them.
"Sarah Palin’s performance was (as usual) nauseating and absurd, and that the Tea Partiers aren’t revolting against it says all that needs to be said about them."
Yes, this is exactly what Dr. Wilson and other Chronicles writers have been predicting. If the tea party folks want "change they can believe in" they will stay as far away as is humanly possible from the Republican Party death rattle. Any serious person today will be recognized by their utter contempt for either party and for national politics in general. For a microcosm of what's coming from the Republican party in the way of thanks for the tea drinkers support (as opposed to the KOOL- AID drinking stalwarts) take a look at the new Senator from Massachusetts and his comments about their work and support of his candidacy i.e. "They had very little to do with my election and I will have very little to do with them." This is the oldest republican ploy of the ages -- run right, zig left and after the election, remember the folks who bought it for you. In a happier age it was known as organized crime, today it is simply organized politics. Don't put your faith in it.
Mark #1--When Sarah Palin and the rest of the Tea Party crowd start calling (publicly) for actual CUTS in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, that’s when I’ll start taking them seriously.
Add to actual CUTS of Military presence in 148 countries and foreign aid. Then a complete dump of the present income tax code and replace it a flat tax, no exemptions. I won't hold my breath.
It was predictable that the grass roots of the Tea Party would give way to Republican operatives. From Whigs to Republicans to Tea baggers. "Meet the new boss same as the old boss"
Nothing will change until it all comes crashing down. Then we'll have change we'll have to live with, whether we believe in it or not.
Then, hopefully, we can minimise or mitigate the influence of the disestablished establishmentarians when they reorganise themselves into new parties with new names, like the old ruling East German Communist party did. We'll have a harder time doing this since there could be big money behind them.
If we're lucky, big media will collapse when big government does. It may even happen, when people can no longer afford to take the designer drugs big media hawks in order to survive.
The collapse of Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare, Corporate Welfare, and Big Military must happen in a way that the people will blame the establishment, not real reformers, for their demise, and the reformers must be able to make the people understand that we simply cannot go back to that kind of system.
#1. Makes, Takers, and Fakers. Dear Sir, that is a classic! Thank you
Living near Washington the blizzard did not affect me much, and neither did the absence of working functionaries, toadies, yes-men, and liberal-leave-taking-non-essential workers. In fact as I surfed through Comcast's selection of feeds, I passed C-Span and realized that they were playing re-runs. Coming to think of it maybe the whole political scene is a nightmare after all. They could make up something that looks like functioning representative government, and most folks would never notice the difference.
These observations are true, but we will get nowhere insulting the intelligence of this angry throb. That will only serve to drive them deeper into the darkness of the GOP.
Adopt a tea-bagger today. Face them with one or two simple, honest questions that they know Sarah Palin can't deliver on (or hasn't even promised to work on). Then don't let them hide in the lesser of two evils argument, give an option they can seize upon (this is harder).
My tendency is towards this type of question: "Our nation is deeply in debt because of decades of overspending. The main three expenditures are Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid and National Defense. Which one of these has the GOP promised to cut?"
Do not let them deflect into earmarks, which are a drop in the bucket or tax cuts, which are a superficial bribe. And good luck.