Why Are Some Folks Afraid Of Tea Parties?

I remember when Rick pronounced the Iraq War lost and a humiliation for America. So this sort of thing from him doesn't really surprise me. It isn't hard to make the case to support his view on the Tea Party events.

When you get some money, organization, professionalism, and a little more realism, come back and see me.

I think the "come back and see me" quip is a bit much. Why would anyone want to go anywhere to see someone who often seems anxious to embrace defeat? There are choices to be made in any new but potentially significant movement. And the hard ones always come with risk.

You can silently sit on the sidelines watching the parade go by believing it certain to end at any moment. You can try to toss a little water on it if it floats your boat. Or you can invest a very little bit of your emotion, effort and reputation by putting yourself out there to support something you ultimately view as a worthwhile cause - even when there's no way for anyone to know how it all might end up. That takes at least some small amount of personal courage. And it takes even more courage to invest a lot of oneself, as I see some are.

To disparage but not actually oppose in a case like this doesn't really take much at all. The naysayers are always the least remembered voices when something succeeds or even when it fails. There's good reason for that. America just doesn't take kindly to losers, even if they turn out to have been on the right side of events.

I will say this as gently as my curmudgeonly soul will allow; not a chance. It is delusional to believe that these tea parties are the beginning of anything except a round of raucous Bronx cheers from the left, calling conservatives out for their inexplicable, over the top reaction and unrealistic expectations for these 40 or so tea parties that went off today.

Comments

[SacTownMan]

What a tool!!!

Some folks simply don't get it!

Did anyone ask him how many patriots were at the original Boston Tea Party?

[jana]

I live in Chicago, but I wasn't able to go to the party. What he doesn't mention is that this all came about less than a week ago, so two or three hundred people on a Friday afternoon with less than a week to plan is a pretty good turnout, I think.

The turnouts will be even more if they start holding these demonstrations on the weekends.

After all, the people who are protesting the taxing and spending of the government are the ones paying for it. You know, the ones with jobs....

[kto]

I read Rick's piece as well as the comments. One poster reminds another that the original Boston Tea Party had 50 people show up.....the start of the American Revolution.

[Roger Cotton]

I responded on Rick's blog, though the post isn't up yet. The type of genteel hand-wringing we Conservatives have engaged in for so long is over. That doesn't work, and, it's down-right wimpy.

The liberals are now going to get a taste of their own medicine. And, I for one, will be happy to give it to them.

We need to organize and not pay our taxes this year. If millions upon millions of us engage in what the leftists love to call civil disobedience, we will retake the reins of power.

[Scott D]

I read Moran's diatribe. Some people are just full of negativity. Obama's only been President for a little better than 5 weeks.

And in that short time Obama has already highly antagonized persons whom are not normally known for this type of activity, with a 2-3 days short notice show up at 40 locations around the country with crowds ranging from 50-600 is truly incredible. This fire needs to be stoked so that more of these can be held with larger crowds and longer notices in the near future.

With the Omnibus appropriations Bill passed this week Obama and the Democrats have spent nearly $300 Billion Dollars a week since January 20th all while trashing Bush for causing half as much of a deficit over the last 8 years. Then Obama has the unmitigated un-questioned by the Media Gall to declare that he is going to cut the deficit in half by 2011.

O ne
B ig
A **(pic of donkey)
M istake
A merica!

I bought 100 of these bumper stickers today and plan to plaster them everywhere I know that Liberals will see them in mass. The 2010 mid-terms start NOW!

[WBestPresidentEver]

That one is going down. If he is not impeached first he will not be a two term President.
What a piece of trash scum to do something like this to America.
That one is a communist homo.

[Jana]

Thanks for saying this, Dan.

[Mark J. Goluskin]

Excellent response, Dan! I read Rick's rant. My response is simple. Does Rick and those that may agree with him want conservatives to go to ANSWER to learn how to protest? Of course not. So, President Obama has APPROVAL ratings in the 60 percent range and conservatives are supposed to cringe and hand-wring? NO! We need MORE of these Tea Parties! And, hold them on a weekend or two. And, we have to take President Obama and this horrific agenda head on. Not flat on our backs. It is time that conservatives bring a hatchet to a knife fight. We know that is what the left does. Anyhow, great response!

[mark l.]

"Did anyone ask him how many patriots were at the original Boston Tea Party?"

200, give or take. (sorry, I was curious)

[southdakotaboy]

Has anyone thought of holding one of these tea parties at a Dem politician's house? I'm sure that would get their attention.
Also if we know a Dem leader is speaking at an open event we need to organize to infiltrate and disrupt that event. Not in a violent way, but in a way that will bring attention to our cause.

[Peg C.]

Seems like a lot of good folks on our side have just turned into cranks and killjoys. I've stopped reading Rick because he's one of them. Maybe he's hanging out with Patrick Ruffini, whom I've also lost respect for. I think they both backed the wrong horses last year.

[Jim Durbin]

People who show up to protests tend to vote. They organize. They engage. They give money.

Having already given up some time in their lives for an event, they are more likely to do it a second time.

In St Louis, we had over 1500 people at that protest - driven mainly by local radio (Facebook had about 250 folks). It's a start, and the question is how well we take that energy and focus it.

Rick is all well and good to downplay the protests, but what exactly is he doing to organize the millions of people who stay home each year and don't vote?

[Mountaineer]

Rick is not, never has been and never will be a conservative. He grew up in a left-wing family, and I imagine he shares most of his families left-wing beliefs. However, Rick is the same type of character each and everyone of us ran into at some point in our lives...usually in the 5th grade or so. He's simply the guy that gets off standing in a crowd of his so called "peers" throwing sand in all of their faces. You say black, Rick says white. You get angry, Ricks gets off. He contributes nothing positive to the conservative movement, and his blog simply presents another "straw-man right-winger" which the left can point to and say "see, even right-winger Rick Moran agrees with us..." etc. We have way too many of those fools posing as conservatives already. Hell, we nominated one for President. Lets all do conservatism a small favor. Lets just ignore Rick Moran.

[thirteen28]

Given the "success" of Rick's prognostication with regard to the Iraq War, I am highly encouraged that he is trashing the tea parties now. It bodes well for their success.