The New York Times has me throwing things again.
I have a temper and there is nothing like the NYT to give me a regular reminder of that fact. This time, they are bringing out a whole ‘nother side of me. At second glance, maybe I want to throw my arms around them and plant a big kiss! *SMACK*
My last post on the new youth in politics entitled, “Happy New Youth” birthed a search for youth involvement in politics. My show host (the one and only McGraw Milhaven, AM 550 KTRS) called me to say there was a NY Times article about my topic. The oddly titled “The Tea Party Teen” made me want to smack them. The condescension!
I wanted to smack them in two ways.
First, I love that they are catching on to the FACT (ahem, thank you) that the Tea Party is NOT GOING AWAY! We said this on a cold, icy day under the St. Louis Arch almost one year ago. While this is news to the rest of the World, this is not news to those of us in the Tea Party. We have watched our numbers grow while big media sneered at us, the GOP warned us about what happens to third parties, the democrats had comic strip clouds over their heads reading exactly “?”, and candidates clamored for our attention.
The NYT acknowledges the Gallup poll confirming that “Americans have less faith in their elected representatives than ever before.”
Ummmmm…yes.
They also noticed that BHO and the new admin have failed to “galvanize a popular majority.” That is a #FAIL for you Tweeters out there. But it is NOT news to the Tea Partiers.
They even cited the Rasmussen poll that said on a generic ballot, a Tea Party candidate would win a 3-way race with 33 percent of voters. Undecided votes would capture 30 percent. The D’s would come in third with 25 and the R’s, last with only 12 % (naturally, with the Independents and Tea Partiers pulling from the Republicans, you can see the Democrats are NOT winning this poll).
The closing remarks in the article are that although not a “fan of the (Tea Party) movement”, Mr. Brooks admits that he can see its potential to “shape the coming decade.”
Outta’ da’ park! Thank you.
But before we pucker up, let us examine what to plant on the other cheek of the NYT.
In the soft-bellied middle of the OP-ED, Mr. Brooks slips, and reveals the snobbery and name calling we have all grown used to in Big Media. He begins a rant about how these fractious fringe folks are taking on the *tighten your upper lip and say it with me* “Educated Class.”
Eeeewwwww. Did he really just say that?
So we are the what…”Gutter Trash?” Are you saying that if you don’t get overeducated you shouldn’t have a say in our political process? Wait! I thought that liberals said we were “corporate big wigs in Brooks Brothers” who hate the workin’ guy? Is the workin’ guy the “educated class”? I am getting so confused about which box the statists want to put us in.
From Mr. Brooks’ perspective:
“The educated class believes in global warming, so (because of the Tea Party) public skepticism about global warming is on the rise. The educated class supports abortion rights, so public opinion is shifting against them. The educated class supports gun control, so opposition to gun control is mounting.”
From his thinking, anyone not left is defined by their reaction to the left. He further earned my ire by calling us an “amateurish movement with mediocre leadership”. Interesting. Let’s take a look at our leaders. Bill Hennessy, leader of the legendary St. Louis Tea Party, is an executive with a Fortune 500 company. Michael Patrick Leahy, Nationwide leader of the Tea Party, was educated at Stanford and Harvard. Many of us, myself included, have multiple post graduate degrees. We are doctors, lawyers, accountants, military officers, and professors. And those of us that don’t have advanced degrees from your institutions, have a doggone LOT of street smarts. The political right has dominated the new technologies and social networks such as Twitter and Facebook. That should probably scare you the most.
Mr. Brooks, let me assure you that we have always BEEN here. We are not reactionary. We are just people who see the assault on our liberties and our republic, and will save it. You have just failed to see us from your ivory towers in big government, big business, big media, and big academia. We have found our voice (Beck et. al.), got our own candidates (The Pit Bull Mom), our own businesses, our own media (www.biggovernment.com) and even our own schools and we aren’t gonna’ take it any more. But on the other hand (cheek), I want to thank you for acknowledging THAT. *SMACK*
As a legislator in the State of Missouri, I want the Tea Party people to know that they have our attention. I just hired a young man who drove from the East Coast to attend a Tea Party event this summer. A friend introduced us, and he is my new staff member (welcome, Matthew!). Please let your listeners and readers know that my office intends to actively engage all citizens who want a voice in their government. That is why I ran. Contact Matthew in my office as to how I can be more helpful. Sincerely,
Rep. Sue Allen
Now, if only the national tea parties would get the President’s attention, we might move this great nation back to the direction it was before Obama took office.