When the Tea Party was first starting to pick up momentum I joined the local chapter's online forum, which was being run by a young lady that received some notoriety during the 2008 presidential campaign after she got a visit from the Secret Service over the details of a phone conversation with an Obama campaign worker. She ended up banning me from the forum after I started asking questions regarding the Tea Party positions on social issues, she took exception to the email address I used to register, as well (rootchoke@someisp.com). It was perfectly clear that these people who were claiming to be non-partisan were, in fact, extremely partisan, more partisan than ever, actually. Nothing but Bush neo-cons that tried to rebrand themselves, only the naive fall for their shit.
^^^THIS!
If not for the extremist social positions held by so many of the various TEA party chapters and leaders, I would have probably joined as well. I've never been a Democrat or a Republican... and I never will be. On any given day, all I can say is that I may hate one more than the other on that day. I really do believe what George Washington said during his farewell address: political parties and partisanship will eventually destroy the republic. But I did join United We Stand back in the early 90's. And that movement/party really was rather non-partisan. It really was based on economics and creating a better life for all based on creating better jobs and sounder fiscal policies. At least in the chapter meetings that I attended, you saw all kinds of people from all walks of life. You might have a college professor from UVA's Darden School of Business sitting beside a student from a community college or a blue collar guy/gal who worked the night shift at a local factory. Race, religion, gender, wealth, educational level, etc. did not play into that movement. Despite how Animus might feel (or what he might *want* to believe), the TEA party movement has indeed relied too heavily on promoting social and religious beliefs. I know a few people who are fiscal conservatives or libertarians who are members - and I can talk to them. There is one who I see eye-to-eye with on a great many issues. We talk economics and he knows his stuff - we don't delve into social or religious discussions. But as the movement has now become a catch-all for any and every paranoid, extremist wingnut on the far right, people who have some modicum of sanity and knowledge about (actual) economic theories and fiscal/monetary policies have
no desire to be connected with this/these groups. Call it snobbery or whatever, but anyone who considers himself to be knowledgeable, or one who relies on facts, data and information to drive his decision making, rather than just blind ideology, cannot bring himself to sit and listen to the likes of a Sarah P@lin, Michele Bachmann, Christine O'Donnell, Joe "the Plumber" Wurzelbacher or Todd Akin ramble on about social issues. By supporting and promoting these poster children of
retardedness, the TEA party(s) continues to dig its own grave with those who just don't hang out with stupid/ignorant/extremist/paranoid people in real life. And IMO,
that is why this movement never has and never will get the respect that United We Stand had. Dump the retards and promote people who are capable of speaking to economic and business initiatives (not just parroting the term "free markets" at every opportunity) and I'll join tomorrow.
And as you touched on in your last sentence, yes, as the movement gained traction, many displaced/shamed neo-cons ran in the door and pretended to change their stripes. Not to put too fine a point on it, but in the years after WWII many of East Germany's top Communist leaders had been Nazis during the war. Nazis and Commies are like cats and dogs, so how could this be? Because, just like the neo-cons, there are people who will call themselves
anything, as long as that anything leads to them recapturing some of the power that they once had. That's what it's all about.
To be honest, I think what's happened to the TEA party (where it's gone) is really unfortunate. To borrow an old movie line:
they coulda been somebody... they coulda been a contenda.
