Ragnar
<--- Pic is not me
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/opinion/18douthat.html?_r=2&ref=opinion
The Old Grey Lady throws out some non-hysterical thoughts on the Tea Party people that has much of the MSM so out of sorts...
No doubt brother. Go check out the link. It's a very short but well done heads up and way above par for the "newspaper of record".
The Old Grey Lady throws out some non-hysterical thoughts on the Tea Party people that has much of the MSM so out of sorts...
(Turns out: not so much)The Tea Partiers are racists (debunked) theory is the most inflammatory storyline, but there are many more. Lets consider them, in order of increasing plausibility:
THE TEA PARTIES ARE DRIVING REPUBLICANS OFF A POLITICAL CLIFF.
(Theory is strong with fail)THE TEA PARTIERS ARE PUPPETS OF THE SINISTER RICH.
(Good try... not)THE TEA PARTIES ARE JUST THE JOHN BIRCH SOCIETY ALL OVER AGAIN.
(Uh oh, NYT is maybe on to something...)THE TEA PARTIERS ARE HYPOCRITES.
That is, they say theyre for small government, but they dont want anyone to touch their Social Security and Medicare. This is by far the most persuasive liberal storyline. Poll after poll suggests that Tea Partiers are ambivalent about trimming entitlements, even though thats the spending that will ultimately send either deficits or taxes through the roof.
On the other hand, some Tea Party-backed candidates have been refreshingly courageous on this front whether its Rand Paul telling Fox News that hed support higher deductibles for seniors, or Buck apologizing to Michael Bennet, his Senate opponent in Colorado, for Republican demagoguery on Medicare.
So the jury is still out. If Tea Party standard-bearers end up being as hypocritical on entitlements as most American politicians, then this liberal narrative, at least, will have been vindicated.
But for the sake of the countrys finances, liberals should hope that the Tea Party proves their most convincing story wrong.
No doubt brother. Go check out the link. It's a very short but well done heads up and way above par for the "newspaper of record".