BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Election

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: CarolC
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 11:38 AM

The members of the teabag movement call themselves teabaggers. That's where I learned the term. Same goes for neo-cons. That's their word for themselves. I have no reason to want to call them those things except for the reason that that's what they call themselves.

The teabaggers call themselves that with pride, too. They were quite surprised to learn that there was another meaning for that term, but by then, it was too late. They had already invested a lot in promoting the use of the term.

I think if there is ignorance being shown anywhere, it's by the people who don't know history.

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: Rapparee
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 11:35 AM

I wouldn't make too much out of this off-year election. Incumbent often do poorly, and the governorship of two states isn't a significant statistical population. I'd look more to the mayoral races than the governorships.

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: pdq
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 11:19 AM

It seems traditional to reduce your enemies to one short swear word.

Perhaps it keeps people from having to think.

Another example is "neo-con", which has nothing to do with "social liberal, fiscal conservative, pro-defense" stand of Strauss and the founders Neoconservative Movement.

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: GUEST,beardedbruce
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 11:10 AM

CarolC, the use of the term "teabagger" is just like using "towelhead" or "honkie", "Bushites", or "Democraps"- it is insulting and objectionable.

The term is Tea Party /Tea Partiers, like in "Boston Tea Party"

Your term is not acceptable fot civil conversation... But I presume that is your intent.

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: CarolC
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 02:16 AM

By the way, our county went for McCain, but our city just reelected the incumbent Democratic mayor. His opponent was a teabagger. So I guess that door swings both ways.

I didn't like either one of them, myself. They're both corrupt. But I would have voted for the opponent of the incumbent mayor had he not been a teabagger. The problem I have with the teabagger movement is that it has been co-opted by large and powerful corporate interests who are using it to promote their corporate agendas. I consider anyone still in the movement under the circumstances highly suspect as long as this is the case.

Subject: RE: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: CarolC
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 02:11 AM

That traditionally Republican district in New York is not going to be Republican after 2010. It's going to be redistricted (is that a word?) after the 2010 census and it will become majority Democrat.

Some of the teabaggers are racists, although not all of them are, and those who are, aren't at all ashamed to put it openly on display. Those are the people most of those who used the word "racist" in the context of the teabagger movement were talking about.

What tax increases?

Subject: BS: A Small Start But Significant, US Electi
From: Claymore
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 01:51 AM

It's a small start but significant as the US Republicans swept the votes in VA, NJ, and as I go to bed here, the gay marriage act in Maine. It looks like a Democrat won in the special vote in NY but he will have to run again next year in a traditional Republican district. As a 30 year resident of Virginia I knew that as soon as the local and national groups started calling the Tea Party activists "Racists" and "KKK" members they were going to lose VA. VA has a long history of racial equality, voting for a black governor thirty years ago, which is still not repeated in modern history. (NYs Paterson was a secession, not an election)

Yet even during the 40 years of Virginia's all Democratic-control history in the 50s-90's, it was also a "Pay as You Go" state. Yet it went for Obama, by some 10 points, with only a relatively small black population. For the liberal chimps to call them "Racists" after they had once voted for Obama but were now protesting the tax increases, has set a new paradigm in future State and National politics.

I completely admit that many of the Tea Party and "Birthers" movement types are nuts, but but what I call the counter-nut over-reaction was what set the stage for the Obama/Democrat losses. These folks bombed their own runways and as one T-shirt now reads;

I voted for Obama
I protested higher taxes
I was called a racist
We still need a change...