Teabaggers descend upon Williamsburg

[Kanastrous]

I guess I should just go check out that thread, then.

[FSTargetDrone]

Maybe Americans don't travel enough, or widely enough.[/i]

That's it. That, and general ignorance. Sheer, mind-busting ignorance. Of course, I haven't been outside of the US, Canada and Mexico, but I still feel I'm more informed than most of the sluggards in this country. At least the noisy ones.

[Kanastrous]

There's a lot to be said for just knowing when to keep one's yap shut.

I've heard.

[Count Chocula]

Oh no, you don't get to pull that card after you were involved in the very same thread where this was brought up.

Thanks, I had honestly forgotten about that "thought exercise." I presume you mean the links that The Dark posted. I'll go look at them.

Let's see, first link, from the Tampa Bay edition of examiner.com: Yah, +http://www.stormfront.org looks like a pretty scummy group of folks. According to their BBS stats, they have upwards of 2,585 members on the board. Six members posted that they would be attending the Tea Parties in their areas. Stupid math gives a ratio of 0.23% of Stormfront members attending tea parties. Compare that to a 2010 CNN Poll, in which 35% of the respondents support the Tea Party movement, and 5% of respondents said they have attended a Tea Party or associated organization's event. Stupid math gives (5% of 300 million) us 15 million Tea Party and affiliateds, versus 6 Stormfronters. Granted, these are all very very rough numbers, but I'm thinking the impact of the racists is, oh not so much.

But don't take my word for it! Here's a report on the April 15 DC Tea Party rally, also from the TB edition of examiner.com. Hmm, looking for the racism...still looking...nope. Not there, it must be hiding with the proof that Emanuel Cleaver and Andre Carson were called n*****s in March.

Wow that was long-winded. On to the second link, from the Anti-Defamation League: according to their quotes, Stormfronters think the rallies are a good place to spread the "White Word." I tend to disagree, but hey, that's just me. There's even a Tea Party Americans Coalition (TPAC, oops sounds kinda like Tupac, don't tell them) that had a whopping 42 members at the time of the article's publication. Erich Gliebe, from the National Alliance out of West-by-God Virginia feels the rallies are a great recruiting tool. Billy Roper, an Arkansas (what is it with that state?) bigot and wannna-be Governor, is also a Tea Party attendee. In at least one rally, he was ejected with the comment to him that "racists weren't welcome." Note that NONE of these assholes has done more than attend rallies or hand out flyers. They sure as shit aren't keynote speakers, but useless straphangers IMO.

Finally, the last link, from a SodaHead blogger called "LegionTM": First off, he posted it 12/23/2009. Which Tea Party rally did he mean: the one in July in Biloxi, or the September rally in Gulfport?Or did he mean the organization? Hard to tell, here's what he said:

I am not claiming that the attendees were White Supremacists, I'm stating the simple fact that the Council of Conservative Citizens (http://CofCC.org), a "mainstream" White Supremacy organization sponsored, as in paid for, the Mississippi Tea Party.

That's a pretty breathtaking assertion, backed up by a reference from Stormfront (oops, silly blogger, get your sources right). Well whaddaya know, the blogger's FULL OF SHIT (from the ADL):

The Mississippi CofCC chapter also claimed to have staged its own Tea Party rally on October 31, 2009, in Ripley, Mississippi, with 50 attendees.

Funny, it wasn't on a list of events at the Mississippi Tea Party Web site. Funny, the CofCC isn't listed as a partner either. So, the CofCC sucks, but to consider them representative of the Tea Party movement is laughably stupid. I was tempted to ask LegionTM what his source for his opinion was, but -oops- his account is deactivated.

Could there be racists at Tea Party rallies? Sure there could, and probably have been, along with a whole bunch of people with totally different mindsets or sexual preferences, none of which are germane to the key issues that have folks riled up enough to even attend Tea Parties. In fact, the national organization is dead set against it, as are local chapters. Here's one excerpt, the whole article's pretty balanced:

Last fall, the Council of Conservative Citizens put fliers promoting the group on cars at a tea party event in Virginia. In response, leaders of the Roanoke Tea Party publicly disavowed the council.

In April, an Alabama attorney who was scheduled to speak at a tea party rally in Wausau, Wis., was asked to withdraw after it was revealed that he had a history of speaking at white supremacist events.

So yeah, Thanas, I'm calling bullshit on you.


Link to Stormfront broken.

F.H.

[Ziggy Stardust]

Oh, what a surprise, it's another bash the Tea Party attendees thread.

Dude, did you read the article? If you are really so offended by people wanting to bash the tea party people, why not try and rationalize their behavior instead of just complaining? Seriously, you can't fault people for pointing out their idiocy and refuse to prove that they AREN'T morons.

[Count Chocula]

To Ziggy: I grew up in Northern Virginia and have been to colonial Williamsburg several times, and Bull Run, and Harper's Ferry, Gettysburg, Monticello, etc. etc. From what I've seen and read about the Tea Party movement, a lot of the mood seems to be a desire for a time when the US government was smaller, poorer and had fewer regulatory fingers in the pie. Glenn Beck actually has a pretty good (yes I used "Beck" and "good" together) segment on his TV show, called "Founders' Friday" IIRC which goes over a different Founding Father every week. It's indicative of an increased interest of our history, and not the only one: F.A. Hayek's The Road to Serfdom is #12 ranked in nonfiction on Amazon, and it's a pretty dry read. Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals is ironically #12 on the Politics bestseller list (know your enemy, what?).

So some Tea Party members have chosen to "live" history by visiting Williamsburg and interacting with staffers portraying famous figures. Does that make them crackpots? IMO, not really, any more than Civil War reenactors, paintball warriors, warbird owners, or Renaissance Faire participants and attendees are crackpots.

My first three sentences were more of a crack at Lonestar's choice of thread title. Guess I was too subtle.

[Ryan Thunder]

From what I've seen and read about the Tea Party movement, a lot of the mood seems to be a desire for a time when the US government was smaller, poorer and had fewer regulatory fingers in the pie.

Taxes are incredibly low by every concievable measure and everything is in dire need of more regulation, not less. What the fuck do you really want?

[eion]

Teabaggers cloaking themselves in the regalia of colonial America, the fife and drum corps, the tricorner hats, the Gadston flag, the fake looking parchment, naming their pronouncements after the residences of founding fathers, titling their books after documents of prominent American revolutionaries, etc. are nothing more than overt or sneaky appeals to authority.

The teabaggers don't own George Washington. He belongs to all of us.

[Temujin]

I'm sure Beck's comedy routine sounds perfectly wonderful to conservatives, it's exactly what they want to hear after all. But Beck and the rest of the chucklefuck brigade are only interested in an idealized version of American history; and despite my wishes to the contrary, no amount of listening to reenactors (let alone any other sources of actual truth and/or facts) is going to convince them otherwise.

[kouchpotato]

Tea Party Racism - Illustrated Edition.



Dale Robertson - holding a sign that reads "Congress = Slave Owner, Tax Payer = Niggar"

Tweet from Sonny Thomas, Springfield Tea Party founder saying "so many spics make me feel like a speck..."

(Not in picture) Tea Party express leader Mark Williams referring to Allah as a "monkey god".

Just a few gems.

[Lonestar]

Hehe. I meant the fact that it is rather cleaned up in general. Everything's very manicured and proper. The tavern fare doesn't give you intestinal parrisites and the reenactors aren't obliged to sprinkle lice in their hair before going out.

Ah, okay. I'm tracking. For my money though I'm willing to let 'em obey OSHA Regs and State/County health Codes though.

But your point is taken.

I mostly remember it because it pissed off both the NAACP and, oh, just about every American out there with an idealized view of Colonial America. Also for my money, they should do it more often.

By the way, I am of the firm opinion that every American should go to CW and the Colonial National Historic Park. The problem is that there is a lot of walking involved and the summers tend to be infinity billion degrees + humidity, so most winners will instead stay inside watching FOX.

[eion]

I mostly remember it because it pissed off both the NAACP and, oh, just about every American out there with an idealized view of Colonial America. Also for my money, they should do it more often.

By the way, I am of the firm opinion that every American should go to CW and the Colonial National Historic Park. The problem is that there is a lot of walking involved and the summers tend to be infinity billion degrees + humidity, so most winners will instead stay inside watching FOX.

Oh I agree, it's well worth the trip, but go in the spring or fall. Christmas there is also very nice. But if the blacksmith can forge horseshoes in the middle of July in full wool and wig then tourists can certainly manage a day's walking about in the hot Virginian sun; my 80 year old grandma did just fine.

And I'm glad that they not only continue to hold the slave auctions, but have shown that not every black resident of Williamsburg was a slave.

[General Mung Beans]

I find it hilarious that a bunch of people who hate BIG GUBBMINT ENSLAVING THEM are looking towards slave owners for talking points on liberty. That'd be like Teabaggers looking toward Karl Marx for economic advice.

While its true many of the Founders owned slaves most hoped for gradual abolition-George Washington freed his slaves in his will upon his wife's death.

[Count Chocula]

Dale Robertson - holding a sign that reads "Congress = Slave Owner, Tax Payer = Niggar"

Hey guess what, mouth breather...Robertson was kicked out of the Houston Tea Party rally for bringing that sign.

Let's see, top left sign: "Free our markets, not the terrorists." Yup, that's racism all right. Oh wait...
Top middle: You're obviously too young to remember Damon Wayans' (black guy) "In Living Color" series' skit "Homey D. Clown," wherein Wayans portrays a black parolee determined to get back at "The Man". Pretty racist; a black man is playing up a negative black stereotype for - gasp - amusement! Here's a sample, kid: Homey Don't Play That
Top right: I guess, if you looked at that sideways and squinted reeal hard, you could see the racism. I can't see it, looks more like an hyperbolic complaint about taxes.
Bottom left: oh, come on, buckaroo, try to get your canards right. That sign's a painfully obvious merging of cap'n trade and the birther argument. Racist, nah.
As for the Sonny Thomas Twitter post, he's a douche. But so what, it's a Tea Party, right? I'll bet a lot of people still showed up for the April 17 shindig. Actually, this is what happened: Springboro Tea Party rally fizzles. You mean those racist cocksucker teabaggers didn't want to associate with a racist cocksucker teabagger? Whodathunkit.
Oh, and Mark Williams? He's been ostracized by other Tea Party organizations since May and stepped down as chairman of the Tea Party Express in June. Google is your friend.

Over a year of Tea Party rallies, and this is all y'all have? I'm disappointed.

EDIT: Missed the "The American Taxpayers Are Jews For Obama's Ovens" sign, thought it was part of the Twit(ter) post. Yep, that's anti-black ALL THE WAY!1!1! Or, maybe, it's the new, improved "Bushitler!" Yeah, that's it.

[Akhlut]

I find it hilarious that a bunch of people who hate BIG GUBBMINT ENSLAVING THEM are looking towards slave owners for talking points on liberty. That'd be like Teabaggers looking toward Karl Marx for economic advice.

While its true many of the Founders owned slaves most hoped for gradual abolition-George Washington freed his slaves in his will upon his wife's death.

And Thomas Jefferson brutally tore apart families and repeatedly raped a young woman. Why should I listen to a rapist and slaver on the talking points of liberty?

[General Mung Beans]

I find it hilarious that a bunch of people who hate BIG GUBBMINT ENSLAVING THEM are looking towards slave owners for talking points on liberty. That'd be like Teabaggers looking toward Karl Marx for economic advice.

While its true many of the Founders owned slaves most hoped for gradual abolition-George Washington freed his slaves in his will upon his wife's death.

And Thomas Jefferson brutally tore apart families and repeatedly raped a young woman. Why should I listen to a rapist and slaver on the talking points of liberty?

Jefferson essentially had to sell his slaves because he was deep in debt-he didn't want to. In addition the Sally Hemmings case seems to be a myth: http://www.ashbrook.org/articles/mayer-hemings.html

[Lonestar]

Jefferson essentially had to sell his slaves because he was deep in debt-he didn't want to. In addition the Sally Hemmings case seems to be a myth: http://www.ashbrook.org/articles/mayer-hemings.html

I'm sure it was mere coincidence that Jefferson freed Hemmings' kids and no one else.

[eion]

Let's see, top left sign: "Free our markets, not the terrorists." Yup, that's racism all right. Oh wait...

You're leaving out the inference that the Christian President of the United States is in reality a secret Muslim!

Top middle: You're obviously too young to remember Damon Wayans' (black guy) "In Living Color" series' skit "Homey D. Clown," wherein Wayans portrays a black parolee determined to get back at "The Man". Pretty racist; a black man is playing up a negative black stereotype for - gasp - amusement! Here's a sample, kid: Homey Don't Play That

Who knew, black people can make fun of themselves without being racist? Gee, I'll bet some of them also use nigger as a term of endearment and claim to be "taking back the word"

Also, read the tiny, tiny print at the top. Not only is Obama a secret Muslim, he's not even American, he's from Kenya!

Top right: I guess, if you looked at that sideways and squinted reeal hard, you could see the racism. I can't see it, looks more like an hyperbolic complaint about taxes.

I really don't see anything about taxes on that sign. Just the inference that if Obama succeeds his ultimate plan is the enslavement of the white race.

Bottom left: oh, come on, buckaroo, try to get your canards right. That sign's a painfully obvious merging of cap'n trade and the birther argument. Racist, nah.

Okay, why don't you give us a non-racist defense of the birther argument. Also, isn't "cap" a slang term for shooting someone? I'm not sure that was the sign-holder's intention, but it is certainly one way to read it.

As for the Sonny Thomas Twitter post, he's a douche. But so what, it's a Tea Party, right? I'll bet a lot of people still showed up for the April 17 shindig. Actually, this is what happened: Springboro Tea Party rally fizzles. You mean those racist cocksucker teabaggers didn't want to associate with a racist cocksucker teabagger? Whodathunkit.

Just because they're racists doesn't mean they're stupid racists.

Oh, and Mark Williams? He's been ostracized by other Tea Party organizations since May and stepped down as chairman of the Tea Party Express in June. Google is your friend.

Again, they're not stupid racists. Of course they kicked out the idiot who made blatantly racist comments. These people want power, and the whole white sheets and burning crosses performance doesn't attract as many voters as it used to.

Also, where are the people of color leaders in the tea party? You'd think somewhere there must be a tea party group led by a Lewis Washington, a John Tran, or a Julio Ortega. Why aren't the national tea parties pointing to them and saying, "We're not racists! Here are 5 leaders of local chapters headed by so and so..."

Also, here's some more:
http://img.wonkette.com/wp-content/uplo ... _party.jpg
http://racistconservatives.com/wp-conte ... 10/Wow.jpg
http://justgetthere.us/blog/uploads/Sav ... icaGuy.PNG
http://www.bobcesca.com/images/tp_Racist_signs.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4067/447 ... c35410.jpg
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_kC5MT2r5U8s/S ... y+sign.jpg
http://img.youtube.com/vi/KIcAd8eqI0g/0.jpg
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/images ... arty21.jpg
http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gadget ... _large.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3602/344 ... 00.jpg?v=0
http://www.blackenterprise.com/files/20 ... aparty.jpg

[StarshipTitanic]

Dale Robertson - holding a sign that reads "Congress = Slave Owner, Tax Payer = Niggar"

Hey guess what, mouth breather...Robertson was kicked out of the Houston Tea Party rally for bringing that sign.

Your source quotes a representative of the local tea party society, who is hardly an unbiased source. If you're going to ignore testimony regarding the racial epithets thrown at congressmen over the health care bill, why should we accept anything less than video evidence of this scumbag (and others like him) being ejected from the rally? In your words, "prove it."

Top right: I guess, if you looked at that sideways and squinted reeal hard, you could see the racism. I can't see it, looks more like an hyperbolic complaint about taxes.

Odd, because I don't see the word "taxes" on that poster but I do see that the slavery Obama plans isn't plain slavery but "white" slavery. You can't just rationalize what the protester meant without explaining why he added a racial dimension to his statement. I mean, you can, but it's dishonest to anyone who isn't an ideologue.

[Samuel]

Jefferson essentially had to sell his slaves because he was deep in debt-he didn't want to.

Jefferson was in debt because of his lifestyle. He could have kept his slaves, but expensive French wines were more important than the feelings of a few slaves.

From what I've seen and read about the Tea Party movement, a lot of the mood seems to be a desire for a time when the US government was smaller, poorer and had fewer regulatory fingers in the pie.

Why? The government doesn't make money disappear- there is inefficiency, but for the most part they provide services. Do these people object to the social contract? Do they think that the government is slowing down economic growth even though it needs strong infrastructure and human capital investments?

Glenn Beck actually has a pretty good (yes I used "Beck" and "good" together) segment on his TV show, called "Founders' Friday" IIRC which goes over a different Founding Father every week.

What is the second item engraved on Jefferson's tombstone? Was it ever mentioned on the show?

[Thanas]

Jefferson was in debt because of his lifestyle. He could have kept his slaves, but expensive French wines were more important than the feelings of a few slaves.

What is your source for that?

What is the second item engraved on Jefferson's tombstone? Was it ever mentioned on the show?

The statute of religious freedom of Virginia (1786), with the key phrases being:

Be it enacted by General Assembly that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of Religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge or affect their civil capacities.

[wautd]

It becomes really hard to parody Teabaggers. Poe must be spinning in his grave if he were not alive.

[Ziggy Stardust]

So some Tea Party members have chosen to "live" history by visiting Williamsburg and interacting with staffers portraying famous figures. Does that make them crackpots? IMO, not really, any more than Civil War reenactors, paintball warriors, warbird owners, or Renaissance Faire participants and attendees are crackpots.

From the article:

"The executives who oversee Williamsburg said they have noticed the influx of tea partiers, and have also noted a rise in the number of guests who ply the costumed actors for advice about how to rebel against 21st-century politicians."

This is a lot more than people taking a trip to Colonial Williamsburg for a little vacation. I've been there myself, it is a wonderful little family spot. But this is a completely different scenario than the one you are painting it as, which the article makes quite clear. There are people literally going to colonial Williamsburg to cheer the paid actors when they quote the Founding Fathers, and literally ASKING THEM FOR ADVICE. Do you not see why this is worthy of ridicule?

Put it in perspective. What would you say if there was a news story about some southern rednecks going to Civil War re-enactments and asking the guy who plays Robert E. Lee for advice on how to "rise again"? Or a wanna-be bank robber going to Old Tucson and asking the guy playing Doc Holliday how to escape from the law?

[Kanastrous]

What, bible-whacking 'Federalists' can't distinguish fantasy from reality? Color me unsurprised.

[Samuel]

What is your source for that?

Damn, I don't remember. I'll retract it unless someone posts Jefferson's budget.

The statute of religious freedom of Virginia (1786), with the key phrases being:

I knew that. I was trying to get the Count to realize that Jefferson considered it one of his three greatest accomplishments.