As a libertarian who happens to be a Republican (or might that be Republican who happens to be a libertarian?), I have long been sympathetic to the Tea Party principles, which are usually stated thusly:
Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, and Free Markets
Core agreement on the above can unite a broad coalition on the right side of the spectrum, because people can put aside (or at least put off) less fundamental issues, and even agree to disagree on them.
What has long bothered me is the way various crackpots keep trying to claim the Tea Party mantle, and in the process provide ammunition to the left.
I saw a classic example yesterday at a WorldNetDaily affiliated, so-called “Tea Party” website. Some ignoramuses who are unfamiliar with Mt. Rushmore saw water seepage emanating from the eyes of George Washington (and the noses of other presidents), and many readers are in various states of a quasi-religious frenzy over it. One reader who lives in the area tried to inject a little common sense:
I am lucky enough to live near Mt. Rushmore. Hate to burst your bubbles, but this is a regular occurrence when there is rain
She was promptly put down for throwing cold water on their parade. None of that is a big deal for me. If people want to have religious experiences when water seeps through certain sculptures, that is their business.
What bothered me (enough to motivate this post, at least) was this comment (in bold; the comments to which he’s replying are supplied for context):
REPLY:
Sad and how all Real Americans should be feeling. LosingAmericato communists is sad when half the country Welcomes it! The same half would vote in Hitler an follow him too though.
REPLY:
Sadly enough, not everyone is a real American.
REPLY:
And those are the half that when the SHTF we take them out……. Pass a law that they have to have a big red dot on the foreheads, that is so we can hold a scope on them….. Then we go after the communists and take them all down………
REPLY:
Remember, Hitler created many government jobs and eventually the money runs out to pay these people. Obama said the other day that we should be a shame because these government workers work for us everyday. He also said that the government was the largest employer in the country. The sad part of all of this is that we no longer have men like our forefathers. We are all talk and no walk. The only ones carrying out the walk are the left in power, and not the little guy. The little guy is just playing right into their hands!
It goes on and on with numerous other commenters. Yet not one commenter so far as I could see took issue with the idea — proposed by a regular contributor to the site — of murdering 65 million Americans. I think it’s pretty disgusting that anyone would propose killing all Obama voters, and even more disgusting that none of those people jumped on the guy, but there you go. It may be WorldNetDaily pretending to be the Tea Party, it may be the WorldNetDaily Tea Party, but it is not the Tea Party I have known over the years.
I sincerely hope that the man is not serious, and I hope that what he said is simply an example of hyper-escalated political rhetoric of the sort I have described:
..like-minded, single-issue activists often associate with — and tend to exclusively surround themselves with — other like-minded, single-issue activists. The result is what many call an echo chamber — or “the choir.” But I think “echo chamber” and “choir” are less than accurate terms, because the implication is that people are simply getting together and agreeing with each other in groups. When group dynamics are factored into single issue fanaticism, a lot more happens than mere group agreement. Because people are naturally competitive, many activists want to prove to the group that they are not only devoted to the cause, but more devoted than the others. This leads to extreme hyperbole, and the taking of positions which normal people would consider laughable.
Which means that if you don’t think killing 65 million Americans is an especially good idea, you’re a goddamn RINO squish!
Comments
15 responses to “I know! Let’s kill 65 million Americans!”
Or is it a troll Democrat dressed up in TP clothing?
not a democrat. tea baggers actually think like this! I know I talked to racist tea baggers every day! while most democrats are authoritarians some are more libertarian but with a social conscience like me. so if your tired of wearing white sheet over your brown shirt and jack boots put down that burning cross take off your pointed hood and leave the republican neo-nazi party! democrats and libertarian party will take in all of you “good germans!”
“What has long bothered me is the way various crackpots keep trying to claim the Tea Party mantle, and in the process provide ammunition to the left.”
This is true. But while there are charlatans on both sides, there are many more on the left, and the left doesn’t even realize it.
The “TEA Party” is not really a party, it is a philosophy. And despite the its demonization by the media that philosophy is quite popular. When polled, those brainwashed by the media claim to oppose the TEA Party, but they still tend to support its philosophy. That is what really frightens the left.
“those brainwashed by the media claim to oppose the TEA Party, but they still tend to support its philosophy”
Absolutely right! The Ann Arbor City Council is said to be infested by the Tea Party, and many are complaining:
http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2013/10/ann_arbor_council_member_says.html#incart_m-rpt-2
There is even a blog devoted to this:
http://middleoftheleft.com/wake-up-ann-arbor-the-teapublicans-are-taking-over-your-city-council/
Little wonder the WND loony right wants to control them.
There are plenty of crazies all over the place.
The worst part? It’s usually lefties, like Obama’s buddy Bill Ayers, who want to kill people who disagree with them.
http://www.zombietime.com/prairie_fire/
I want you to imagine sitting in a room with 25 people, most of which have graduate degrees from Columbia and other well known educational centers, and hear them figuring out the logistics for the elimination of 25 million people.
And they were dead serious.”
We can’t allow our country to sink to the level of our fine, tolerant left.
One that one comment page alone, while it seems you were only disturbed by the genocide calls, you will find:
“Illegal occupation” of the White House
Birth Certificate
More of the usual on who are “real Americans”
Commie-calling
More commentary on how brainwashed the
(majority of the) population is.
This goes on and on, and of course when pointed out, is written off as trolling or just another crazy.
Meanwhile, poll-tracking shows record low approval ratings for the Tea Party, the GOP and the GOP-controlled Congress.
The sad thing is, there is plenty for much of the country (and many on the left) to like about libertarianism. Unfortunately, as comments 1, 3, 4 and 5 show, libertarians are incapable of introspection and instinctively look to demonize those who disagree with them. Why would any sane person want to embrace the Tea Party philosophy when they can’t even police their own? You expect people to join the Tea Party when five years into the Obama presidency you goofs are still talking about the birth certificate? Is it that hard to shout these people down or are you guys that dependent on them for publicity? Is this supposed to get middle of the road people to support your philosophy? Is everyone who disagrees a Marxist?
Eh, I was trolling capt az, but I caught someone else.
The response was all I expected though.
The pot has been boiling for several years now and the social pressure is building, with no real sign lessening anytime soon. Blowing off steam on a blog post is preferable to actually going out and shooting someone. I think you are reading this signal wrong. It’s not that there are more crazies out there, it’s that the world we live in is making more people crazy.
veeshir we leftists don’t want to kill you we want to re-educate you in a nice little summer camp! hope you will like mrs clinton better as she will win in 2016 and she is WHITE! for all you racist teabaggers.
See?
It’s hard to tell the difference between someone who’s messing with us and someone who’s serious.
If you believe in democracy, genocide is “rational” (as economists define it). Tribe B can become Tribe A if it simply eradicates enough voting members (or future voting members) of the incumbent Tribe A.
That is why I cast my lot in with the “Dark Enlightenment” – because I don’t want to kill 65 million Americans! I just want them not to vote. For that, I am willing to surrender my own vote.
I want everyone to vote even racists teabaggers after they have served there sentences for treason and sabotage and mrs clinton will win in 2016 thanks to the minority birthrate 150,000 turn 18 every month and they hate republicans as much as I do!
Like I said, troll.
[…] light of the highly emotional uproar over natural occurrences at Mt. Rushmore, I wonder what the WND crowd might make of the fact that all the American flags on the moon have […]
[…] to what accounts for this weird, paranoid behavior that Freddoso describes, once again I think it is an example of hyper-escalated political rhetoric of the sort I have described here: […]