The Tea Party could be the lone group standing against this wave of oppression – it certainly isn’t the Republicans or the Democrats! But while the Tea Party people may prefer to think of themselves as Constitutionalists and freedom-loving citizens, the truth is far sadder and more predictable.

The tea party people have, as I see it, at least two problems.

The first problem is one that they share with the Libertarians: The idea that government is evil and corporations are good. Like Libertarians, most Tea Party people seem to want a government that doesn’t do anything for the people.

Defense and police. That’s it. Which of course leaves a power vacuum into which steps the giant corporations – who will have no problem telling you how to live your life in minute detail. Don’t think so?

Paying attention to news, you regularly see stories about someone being evicted from a mall for wearing the wrong kind of t-shirt or saying the wrong thing. That’s because you have no civil rights when on someone else’s private property. But in the Libertarian/Tea Party ideal world EVERY INCH of ground is someone else’s private property. Ergo, no rights for anyone.

Libertarians (and now by extension Tea Partiers) seem to live in a fantasy world where corporations are so concerned with good public relations that they would never impose anything grievous on the people – only evil government would do that. No corporation would ever cut corners and destroy the environment – or force you, in their relentless pursuit of profits, to take services you didn’t want in order to get something you really need.

Except, have you dealt with a corporation lately? Have you ever called Comcast (now Xfinity) customer service? Giant corporations don’t give a shit what you think of them; they are only interested in profits. And they don’t need your good will for that, they just need an effective monopoly.

The second problem with the Tea Party people is that they have been co-opted by astroturf “grass roots” front groups that are funded by big corporations such as Wellpoint (healthcare) and GE (war profiteers). The local Tea Party rally was organized by outsiders from The Lewin Group, a fake grassroots organization that is actually owned and operated by a giant healthcare company. They’re the ones who brainwash granny into going out there and screaming “Keep government out of my Medicare” (literally).

If there is any reader who doesn’t know this, Medicare is “government run” healthcare (as the insurance companies define it).

Unfortunately the healthcare bill that finally passed was more of a Tea Party bill than anything else: It mandates the purchase of private health insurance whether you can afford it or not. The only “give back” is that the health insurance companies won’t be able to exclude pre-existing conditions anymore and they won’t be able to cut you off in the middle of lifesaving treatment (a very common practice). It’s not a very good deal but you can thank the Tea Partiers for that.

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We should not leave this subject without mentioning their biggest problem: Hypocrisy.

Tea Partiers proudly call themselves “PATRIOTS” who want to “take back their government.” This is a message shouted at every meeting to loud applause. They yell and demand (and sometimes threaten). Really? Take back “our” government from whom? Well, they would be “taking it back” from the majority of American citizens that elected the government we have.
It would be hard to argue that the Tea Party movement represents anything close to a majority in America. Instead, they are the farthest right-wing fringe of the American political landscape. Yet they feel entitled to control the government anyway, democracy be damned.
It is hard to imagine a philosophy less patriotic.. well, for an American. This would be a patriotic ideal in the old Soviet Union, but in this country with its tradition of democracy it is …well, anti-American.

Tea Partiers say government is too big. I mostly agree. The majority of federal spending, however, is on the military – something a Tea Party person would never want to cut. They also want government “hands off” their Medicare, which is another big chunk. If they mean other kinds of social spending (and that’s the “big government” they keep mentioning), that is something like three percent of the federal budget.

Tea Partiers say the national debt is too great. I agree. The vast majority of that debt was run up FIRST by Ronald Reagan and then by George W. Bush. These two men are heroes to the Tea Party movement. So naturally the Tea Party people were silent during the reign of these reckless spenders. Also, once again, almost all of that debt was run up with military spending. Something most Tea Party people are for.

What they really mean by all of this anti-government rhetoric is that they don’t want services that benefit anyone else – but they DO want lots and lots of military spending (because they are afraid of everything) and they want their Medicare because that helps them. Everyone else can go fuck themselves.

I guess this brings me to my final point, which is that the tea party movement is a magnet for low information people who are easily swayed by emotional arguments AND who lack compassion for their fellow human beings. They’ve got theirs and the hell with everyone else. It is a movement based entirely on the twin pillars of fear and selfishness.

With that knowledge in mind, I’m very glad that the Tea Party people are a small minority but sad that they get attention so out of proportion to their numbers – and that politicians listen to them.

Oh yeah, um… there was that right-wing uber nut job talk show host Les Kinsolving at every White House press conference, asking questions like, “How can you stand the evil Democrats and their attempts to destroy America?” ..But you know, it wasn’t Rush so it doesn’t count. Nothing the far right does ever counts. EVER. When will we stupid reality-based people learn? – Politico’s Daily Anti-Obama rant.

As you read the story linked to below, notice the complete lack of skepticism.  It’s reported as if she is simply factually correct, with not a word to suggest that she HEARS SHIT THAT ISN’T THERE.

Occam’s Razor, people, Occam’s Razor.

Media uncritically repeats possibly schizophrenic claims

‘Joe the Plumber’ says journalists should be ‘abolished’ from war coverage

“I’ll be honest with you: I don’t think journalists should be anywhere allowed war. (sic) I mean, you guys report where our troops are at. You report what’s happening day to day. You make a big deal out of it. I think it’s asinine.”

Schwitzer health news blog: TV news directors make another bad deal on health care news

“In celebration of Ivanhoe Broadcast News’ 30th anniversary, Ivanhoe and The Radio and Television News Directors Foundation have joined forces to provide two new training opportunities for journalists.”

What it all really means is that you are going to see more and more commercials disguised as news and more and more TV “journalists” acting as product pitch men. That’s just great. Like they didn’t lie to us enough as it was, now they are going to finish the job.

The only thing we can do is to REFUSE to watch any TV news, ever. Period. You’re reading this online so obviously you have Internet service. You can get real news online…although you have to hunt for it. I’ll suggest a few places some other time. Oh, and readers may feel free to suggest their own sources.

How local TV embraced fake news – Machinist – Salon.com

They were suicide bombers, right?  That means they blew themselves up.  Into teensy tiny bits.  So, how the hell does anyone know they had Down Syndrome?  You’d be lucky to be able to identify their gender after they went kaboom.

Every news outlet went with the Down Syndrome story as if it was Gospel, though.  Did you hear, read or see one single word expressing the slightest doubt about the Down Syndrome thing?  Nope, you didn’t.  It was reported as if it was a fact, like the Sun rising in the East.

Oh, but the crazy Iraqi terrorists are SO crazy that they used retarded people as suicide bombers.  Um, excuse me for asking a question, but why would they need to do that?  It doesn’t seem to me as if there’s any shortage of NON-retarded religious fanatic nutjobs over there to cause them to have to resort to Operation Strap Bombs to the Retards.

My theory is simple: someone in the American military or intelligence simply made up the Down Syndrome story.  It’s intended to make the crazy religious fanatic nutjobs look even crazier.  Remember the story during the first Gulf War about Iraqi soldiers taking newborn infants out of their incubators and thrown onto the floor?  Remember how the girl who told that story to Congress turned out to be the daughter of an ambassador and the whole story was fictitious?  Oh, you didn’t hear that second part?  Well, it’s correct, I’m not making it up.  The whole “throwing babies on the floor” thing was bullshit, designed to whip up anti-Iraqi fervor on the part of the American public.

I’m smelling the same big rat with this Down Syndrome suicide bomber story.  Now that a majority of the American public wants our troops to be brought home, it’s time to make the crazy Mohammad lovers look even crazier to get people to want our military to bomb the living shit out of them again.  I’m predicting some kind of ramped-up offensive on the part of the U.S. military any day now. 

Seriously, folks, isn’t it time we wised up to the fact that our government is currently run by people who will tell any lie about anyone at any time when it’s advantageous for them?  They aren’t nice people, even if they do wear little American flag lapel pins. 

The Strangling Of TV Creativity | The Agonist

How did this guy get to run Disney?  Did they have a “millionth customer through the turnstiles at Disneyland this season gets to be CEO” contest?

Hey Eisner, I have a great idea for the NEXT “new Mickey Mouse” after this one stiffs.  It’s a character called Man from Nantucket.  He has this amazing, uh, super power.  And he really enjoys it!  It makes him grin.  The kids are gonna LOVE this one, Mike!

Eisner has his new Mickey: It’s Bazooka Joe

It’s time we all just accepted the fact that we are mere bit players in The Oprahverse.  We exist at Her pleasure.  When The Oprah weeps, it rains.  She is, after all, as Her talk show’s former theme song says, every woman.  And every man.  She contains multitudes.  The Pope has The Oprah on speed dial for advice on matters of faith and morals.  Do not fold, mutilate or spindle The Oprah.  Daylight Savings Time was extended this year at the request of The Oprah.  Every human being in Mountain Home, Idaho belongs to The Oprah by state law.  During a commercial break on a recent edition of Her show, The Oprah single-handedly separated two conjoined twins backstage.  A cargo cult in the South Pacific worships The Oprah as a deity.   The Oprah is a robot sent back from the future to save mankind.  Tibet will be freed when The Oprah says so.  While it is well-known that The Oprah once gave every member of Her studio audience a new car, it is less well-known that guests who displease Her have to give Her their cars.  When The Oprah lactates, Her breasts produce liquid gold.

Oprah Vows Shake-Up Over Abuse Scandal

Why does Fox News Channel hate America?

Fox News gives students national voice

RFD TV.   What do you mean, what’s RFD TV?  It’s the cable network that broadcasts “Cattlemen to Cattlemen,” silly.  It’s also the network that broadcasts Big Joe’s Polka Show, a program I once watched with my then-teenage daughter.  She had never heard polkas before and I asked her what she thought of them.  “Well, it’s happy music,” Christa answered.  Damning with faint praise, perhaps, but accurate.  I mean, I’ve never heard the Funeral Dirge Polka.

Imus used to be seen on MSNBC, the bargain basement of cable news channels.  OK, maybe MSNBC isn’t the hottest thing on cable, but at least you’ve heard of it.  I suspect that some of the people who work at RFD TV haven’t heard of RFD TV.   If I told you I’ve seen an entire show on RFD TV about tractors, you’d think I was kidding, wouldn’t you?  I’m not.

Now that I think about it, though, maybe RFD TV is precisely the right place for Imus to appear.  I mean, he does have something in common with a lot of tractors; they both look like they were left out in a field in the sun too long.

Imus on the Farm?

Silicon Alley Insider: Oxygen’s Dashed Synergy Dreams

What’s that you say?  It sounds like YouTube?  And why does the world need yet another YouTube clone, especially one that won’t let people upload whatever stuff they want, which is perhaps the biggest thing YouTube has going for it?  Gee, you ask good questions.

The answers to your questions are:

Yes, it SOUNDS like YouTube, until you get to that “you can’t upload whatever you want” part.

And,

The world doesn’t need yet another one of these things.

You’ll know this thing is on its deathbed when some publication prints its shitty hit count and an executive from either NBC Universal or Fox makes a statement like, “Hit count is not the only way we measure the success of our web properties.  We’re very satisfied with Hulu’s performance.” 

If you work at Hulu and you see that statement, immediately run, do not walk, to the Xerox room, lock the door behind you and start cranking out copies of your resume. 

NBC/Fox Video Site May Have Missed Video Tide.