Actually the last time Armey was heard from, was when he came to Oklahoma to try to force the so-called “Tax Payer’s Bill of Rights” upon us.  His idiot pal Paul Jacob and a couple others were indicted for conspiracy to defraud the state.

  As always, Oklahoma is ignored.  The left treats us like East Timor back in the day, we don’t matter..just let us rot in this fundamentalist hell-disaster.

AFriend—I beg to differ with your closing assumption—that only the “poorest” will not pay taxes?! I guess you have never been poor or even working class…

The poorest are the largest number who use tobacco. As an ex-smoker, I am the first to admit that the poor are more vicitimized by tobacco than anyone else—but the taxes on it!! True, it supposedly goes to pay for poor children’s heatlh care, (just ignore the subsidized tobacco agri-business and the sharecropper wages they get to farm it)which I totally support, but, if their parents cant get care, who will take the kids the the dr. (I support totally socialized medicine, in the strongest way! Ive been treated under it!)

The poor pay taxes on food, GASOLINE, rent, fees for parking a damn trailer, property taxes,(for crappy public schools and religious based charter schools taht teach their kids that there wil be “pie in the sky when you die”) any price that almost unregulated gas, electric, water, sewer, etc, wants to charge them,and, perhaps worst of all, live in areas where the only jobs that their kids can get are often to go die for the rich in the fricking fmilitary,(which “all respect”, but I do not see them joining) and then we send them to prison , for admitted torture, which they were ordered to do by Cheney who is left to go home and live in luxury…rant over.
Oh, BTW, we dont need lobbyists at all.

Congress, as it stands, is not the answer. They have no motivation for reform.

Just wondering, did the rich invest in the stock market in “teabag” commodities just before this illogical display of public protest? What about cleaning up the mess these teabaggers have created by dumping teabags, entire boxes of of tea including the plastic shopping bag into the waterways. The least they should be given is a fine for littering.

As for Texas’s governor talking of seceding, fine and take Alaska and all those like minded people who fee that way also and do us all a favor, leave the country. And BTW pay back all those governmental monies taken for the hurricane cleanup in Texas and other bailouts you received from the government. And don’t forget to take Sarah with you.

Never underestimate the power of stupid people who gather together in large groups.

jackpine savage,

It seems to me a better question to ask is; where are the progressives on this issue today?

Conservatives have been complaining about the deficit and runaway republican spending for over 10 years. But, oddly enough, the more progressive crowd, who had been complaining about Bush’s $500 billion deficit, are strangely quiet today over President Obama’s $3.6 trillion budget. Which, in the coming decade, will reach an ENORMOUS $12 trillion.

To answer your direct question: Events that have lead to the recent protests have been building since the summer of 08 when the Fanny Mae, Freddie Mac, AIG and auto industry bailouts began. It’s now reached a crescendo with most people.

I find it extremely odd that anybody here would suggest that the current president has “no choice” but to propose his obscene spending budget.

—-

Real change should begin in reforming the Congress. A full work week and an end to four months annual vacations would be a good start. Disallowing members of congress from becoming lobbyists for, say, five years would be another needed change. Barring members spouses, children and siblings would also be real change.

Nobody voted for a $12 TRILLION dollar deficit! And there is not enough money in the pockets of the rich to pay down that sum of money. Taxes will go up for everyone but the very poorest.

Why arent they protesting Wall St and our enormous military budget, recently increased…

AFriend,

I dig it, but i have to wonder where these patriots were when G.W. Bush was digging this hole.  The largest expansion of government since LBJ.  Borrow and spend policies.  What Obama’s doing is just a continuation of what Bush (and even Clinton) did.  So how did it take so many patriots so long to get fed up?

BobZ,

Maybe you should stop to consider that you are the one with the overwhelming focus on skin color?

It still seems to me only a true bigot would lump this large a group together and smack a single, all encompassing, label on them.

—-

Bigot –noun: a person who is utterly intolerant of any differing creed, belief, or opinion.

Correct me if I am wrong but, does this not sound exactly like the bigoted intolerance you are displaying toward those “John McCain” types?

—-

Intolerance –adjective: not tolerating or respecting beliefs, opinions, usages, manners, etc., different from one’s own, as in political or religious matters; bigoted.

A friend - to try and paint this tea party protest as being supported by Democrats is asinine. Democrats, independents, and many Republican’s fully support Obama.  With millions of people out of work and our entire economic infrastructure on the verge of collapse, Barack Obama has no choice but to do what he is doing and he is doing it while trying to protect the take home pay of 95% of the country. What is going on here is media networks like Fox News trying to foment a white rebellion against a black president by pretending it is about taxes, while the reality is our tax rates are the lowest in decades and about to get lower for most of us. And the fact that all these folks are suddenly worried about deficits when the former president wasted the surplus he was left by Clinton. This whole sorry episode is so transparent. The right wing can’t bring themselves to admit they lost the election and elections have consequences. Obama has 2/3 of the country behind him in trying to solve our economic crisis. These demonstrators are rooting for him to fail just like their hero Rush Limbaugh. You can be sure that the true facts behind these demonstrations will emerge and the perpetrators will be the same of agitators from Fox News and their right wing corporate friends.

Repeatedly, across the country speakers at these rallies referred to the $trillions in debt being piled on future generations.

These weren’t fully Republican protest, even though some Republican state legislators are trying to use these events to their advantage. But those same congressman witnessed an abundance of speakers and placards all over the nation reading; look, Republicans helped get us in this mess – they spent like crazy when it was their turn?

The Denver tea party was mostly a grassroots, Internet-coordinated occurrence like some 730 others that took place across the country.

Nor was this an act of mob imbecility, even if Obama insists that economists of all ideological persuasions agree that spending is the only available means of getting us out of the recession. In fact, dozens of economists, including Nobel Prize winners, say differently – that lowering spending would serve us better and that the government should at least not spend crazily.

These nation wide protests are encouraging in that at least some Americans care enough about a mindless tumble into jeopardy to make themselves heard. This whole tea party phenomenon is at least one signal to Washington that some get it. This spending spree coming on top of an already huge debt could be economically devastating, and that there’s a plan for unprecedented levels of spending on new and expanded programs long after the recession ends. And the price tag for all this? An astounding and vulgar $12 trillion. Nobody voted for this. Nobody!

This is what the protest remain being about. Not racism or pure partisan politics.

BobZ,

What do you call it when one lumps whole groups of people together and denigrates them as hippie4ever does in this thread?—“They’re hopeless and we must move on without these worthless people.”—Does this not smack directly of putrid and useless bigotry?

You claim you truly believe that tens of thousand of people all across the U.S. attended protests due to the new black president. You are convinced that only those “John McCain types”, who are naturally born the same, think the same and act the same, attended the tax day protests.

It still seems to me only a true bigot would lump this large a group together and denigrate each and every one.

Evidence suggest, at most, perhaps 2% of the attendees protested the president’s skin color. But you see something very different.

If it’s not bigotry in your perceptions perhaps you could show me how I am misplacing the definition of a bigot.

@ hippie4ever

I just don’t see why a working person should pay taxes to a government that doesn’t represent him/her. Very little of the tax money goes to the poor and homeless anyway. Most of it goes to bankers, and weapons makers- corporate welfare. If you don’t like your federal government then don’t pay for it.

This is the best government money can buy, and whether the brand is Bush or Obama the underlying corruption remains the same. What other nation has a lobbying system as the foundation of government? Why is it legal for a former government official to join a lobbying group after holding office, or the other way around? These guys are all crooks and actively work to subvert the U.S. Constitution. Traitors one and all. The truth really isn’t very hard to see, if you put down the beer or bong for a few minutes to become even semi-informed. The teabaggers are too ignorant and are reminescent of the Brown Shirts—they couldn’t understand the truth if it came right up, introduced itself, and then bit them on the butt. They’re hopeless and we must move on without these worthless people.

To AFriend,

“Have you considered that only a true bigot would make such a statement? You truly believe that tens of thousands of people, from hundreds of cities across the United States, turned out to protest out of fear of a black man in office? I honestly believe only bigots would feel that way.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

What we saw on Wednesday was a reprise of the people who populated the John McCain rallies right down to the crowd demographics, the types of signs they carried, and the slogans they yelled. And no, I’m not a bigot. I worked on the Obama campaign full time for months, because I was sick of George W. Bush and his distortion of the U.S. Constitution. Fortunately most American’s aren’t that easily swayed by Fox News, CNBC, and right wing talk jocks. Thank God for that. Even many conservatives are appalled at how stupid these people make conservatives look.

JFoster2k,

I believe if one pays attention to Olbermann’s body language while he’s speaking about others who think unlike himself one will see actual hatred. His habit of looking directly at the camera after one of his rants about “them”, and states they “they” are idiots, it’s very clear that he displays a clear attitude of deep seated hatred.

I have watched Olbermann for over 18 months now. I have never witnessed a single display of humility, empathy, or a willingness to honestly listen. I can’t recall a guest on his program that disagreed with him.

Olbermann talks of republicans as if they’re all demons. He talks of the homeless as if they are stupid. He talks of minorities as if they are to be pitied and spoken to like children. People are people not matter what their politics. Olbermann holds a great deal of hatred within him.

In my profession I have witnessed pure hatred countless times. Olbermann covets hatred toward others who fail to see or think as he does. Nothing could be more clear. He’s an extremely unhealthy individual.

BobZ:“The protestors are scared to death that America had the audacity to elect a black man as president and now they are using the bailout excuse to protest.”

Have you considered that only a true bigot would make such a statement? You truly believe that tens of thousands of people, from hundreds of cities across the United States, turned out to protest out of fear of a black man in office? I honestly believe only bigots would feel that way.

From the CNN correspondent you see the usual left-right paradigm being played out. The “nooze” woman presents this as a right wing reactionary protest. The funny thing is that there is a protest sign in the background that says “Republicans suck too”.

http://www.eyeblast.tv/public/checker.aspx?v=ydSUqGSUaG

AFriend,

I agree that the proposed budget is too big and the increased debt is beyond mind-boggling. I also agree with many of the protestors re: bailouts. The trouble, as I see it, is that the Republicans (and Fox News) are attempting to pervert the legitimate protests into a support of their agenda. It is not. Many of the citizen complaints I heard, on Fox, by the way, condemnded Democrat and Republican alike. 

Furthermore, we had enormous anti-war protests some years back, yet Fox marginalized them. Their fervor over these protests is just too self-serving.

“Both Olbermann and Maddow reported on this phenomena but got every bit of it wrong. Olbermann (sic) spent almost his entire hour on denigrating the protests and the protesters.”

Yes, Keith continued his denigrating rhetoric, but I think Rachel back pedaled quite a lot compared to the way she had goofed on “tea-baggers” the previous night.

As for Keith’s “hatred of anyone not like himself” I think you are entirely off base. I don’t see this “hatred” you refer to. It’s just distain, not hate.

Regardless of the media slant, on both sides, as well as the public outrage over spending, the issue remains that if we don’t invest in a workable health care system, improve our education and wean ourselves off foreign oil, we will be bankrupt anyway. It’s better that we at least try to fix it rather than to just continue doing the same old things and expect a different result.

http://tinyurl.com/incometaxes

More Americans wary of tax man this year

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As a deep recession strips Americans of their jobs, homes and investments, the 2009 U.S. tax season promises to see a large uptick in first-time delinquent income taxpayers.

“Our calls are up 280 percent,” said Richard Boggs, founder and chief executive of Los Angeles-based Nationwide Tax Relief, a firm that helps delinquent taxpayers resolve tax issues.

“We’ve seen a huge rise in what we call the rookie delinquent taxpayer,” he said. “They are incredibly scared, and they have no idea what’s going to happen to them because, God bless them, they’ve never owed before.”

As the weak economy puts job security and a steady flow of income on a slippery slope, many are wary of the U.S. tax man, tax consultants say.

With household balance sheets under pressure, more U.S. households are having trouble keeping up with their day-to-day bills and struggling to pay their taxes.

“Folks are not paying their taxes because they are spending it on necessary living expenses,” said Kristin Lavieri, an accountant with Weinstein & Anastasio, PC in Hamden, Connecticut.

************

I find it amusing how out of touch these controlled left commentators are. These tax protests aren’t going away, and the clowns at the Republican Party are going to be just as gung ho to call in the men in black as the Democrats.

The Republican right wing fruitcakes were out in force yesterday in all their whites only performance. Here they are whining about taxes when our effective tax rates are the lowest in decades. They are whining about the bailouts that are intended to right our ship of state. They are being whipped into a fury by CNBC and Fox News, two of the most right wing television networks, and of course by right wing talk radio. The ugly side of all this is the underlying racism. The protestors are scared to death that America had the audacity to elect a black man as president and now they are using the bailout excuse to protest. They did nothing when George W. Bush started the bailout process. They did nothing when Congress approved the bailouts. They didn’t do anything until Barack Obama became president. Because of this frenzy by a small minority, we are now subject to more stupid acts of violence by people who think Obama is a danger to our country. We are right back in the Howard Hunt days of the 1960’s. Only now we have these extremists in all parts of our country not just Texas and Orange County California.

Does anyone know what solution the teaparty folks propose for the mess our economy is in?  All I can think of is the return to trickledown economics.  The teaparty folks seem to be willing to protest but have not, as far as I can find, offer any viable alternatives to the stimulus.

JFoster2k,

A $12 trillion deficit over the coming decade is not the answer. It matters none if one supports the current president or not. His proposed budget and the spending by the congress is way out of line.

Nobody voted for this. Nobody!

This protest across the nation on tax day was very real. Both Olbermann and Maddow reported on this phenomena but got every bit of it wrong. Olberman spent almost his entire hour on denigrating the protests and the protesters. It’s got to be willful on his part. His hatred for anyone unlike himself runs deep. Very deep!

Remember, fascism is a blue collar phenomenon. It benefits the most reactionary sector of the business class but it’s appeal is based in a populism that exploits and manipulates the genuine anger that grows out of the inequality and oppression their system perpetuates. The right knows how to exploit and manipulate that anger to mobilize the politically naive majority with hyper-patriotic nationalism, religion, xenophobia and fear.

Rebellion for its own sake is not a good thing. It takes some knowledge of what you are actually rebelling against and why it is so.

To:  JFoster2k

Don’t fret, it’s just the last throws of an oversexed octogenarian; it will dribble out in no time.

and to those touting the “tax breaks” obama announced yesterday, dont count on much.

while they may be looking to give you a wopping $400, they have many other taxes planned that will surpase it in no time.

“A bill expected to be introduced in the US Congress as early as Monday would rewrite the ground rules for mail order and Internet sales by eliminating what its supporters view as a ‘loophole’ that, in many cases, allows Americans to shop over the Internet without paying sales taxes.”

thats right, a new tax on middle class americans. all you really get is propoganda and lies…

I’m an Obama supporter. I love Rachel Maddow and find the likes of Hannity, Limbaugh and O’Reilly disgusting. That said, I was more than a little thrown off my game by this Tea Party business. For the first time I can remember I watched Fox News and was not repulsed by the extreme right rhetoric for which they are so infamous.

Despite all of the “Tea Bagging” jokes on MSNBC, I was impressed by the turnouts throughout the nation and doubly so by the surprising clarity of the runaway govt spending theme. For a moment I began questioning the Obama plan… at least until I put it all back into context.

People are pissed about the state of the economy and outraged by our debt, deficit and proposed spending. I understand and share these feelings. The trouble is, if we stop the only spending happening right now (govt spending) no one will be pumping money into the economy and this recession will deepen to a depression.

What other choice is there? If you take over a business that was run into the ground, you have to invest in retooling and renovation if you want that business to become profitable again. The alternative would be to continue losing money until you go bankrupt. Sometimes you have to spend money to make money.

There is no doubt in my mind that many of people attending the protests were legitimately concerned citizens. Unfortunately, Fox and the Republican machine co-opted the actual grass-roots elements and twisted it into a conservative vs. liberal argument. I fear they may have glommed onto something that will unify their party and they will use this momentum to derail the progress we are beginning to see as a result of the stimulous spending.

In Jefferson’s favor, Felicity, he was in France in the mid-to-late 1780s and played little or no part in the creation of the Constitution. Besides, one of the hardest things about having a Constitution is making sure the government doesn’t violate it, whether by hook or by crook. As Juvenal said, “Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” (who guards the guardians?)

Perhaps, Heaven willing, the people are realizing that THEY have to “guard the guardians”, because no one else can or will do it.

People being pissed off about government fraud, waste and abuse is not surprising to me.

The response from MSM and pro Obama news sites is not surprising either. Their propaganda is to be expected.

A few GOP opportunists trying to take advantage of the situation not surprising.

My earlier comment being deleted on this site. nope.

What is alarming to me is the response from general citizens and commenter’s opposed to the tea party. Take a moment to step out of the box and look at the situation objectively. Read huff ho or kos.

There is an overwhelming fascist sentiment to the whole thing. Those who align themselves with the current government attacking the other group with endless rhetoric, sexual innuendos and general disdain. We all have a right to protest but one group is sure trying hard to keep the other down. A little too hard. The “reporting” has been a joke.

Its begs the question- is it the citizens that transform us to a fascist society or the government?

Paul_GA - Old Tom Jefferson also said that he feared bankers more than standing armies.  Too bad he and others didn’t include something in the Constitution to protect us from his ‘bankers.’

There is plenty of disgust with both parties. Anyone who attended the event would know this.

There were many calls for a third party to put an end to the corruption.

Or, Jaded Prole, they might become a movement that no one—not even the GOP—can control. Which would be all to the good, as this country has been a long time without a genuine anti-government rebellion.

“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds.” ~ Samuel Adams

“What country before ever existed a century and a half without a rebellion? And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

(And when one thinks about it, it HAS been nearly a century and a half since the War Between the States.)

Conason: “As anyone with a functioning memory should know, the Republicans under the leadership of Armey and his cronies Newt Gingrich and Tom DeLay proceeded to rack up excesses in spending and boodling that made the old Democratic congressional leaders look quite stingy. When he was asked once why he and his GOP comrades were chomping so much more federal pork than the Democrats ever did, he replied bluntly: ‘To the victors go the spoils.’”

Mr. Conason, I’m not writing to defend Mr. Armey. In fact he’s not a favorite of mine. But I would like to ask; are you being disingenuous or is your knowledge of history lacking? Republicans did win that midterm election and both the House and Senate passed a balanced budget which dramatically lowered the national debt.

Why not give credit where it’s due? It was that exact republican controlled congress that wrote and passed legislation that was ultimately signed by President Clinton.

Also, implying that the “Tea Parties” on tax day were something less than grassroots, when tens of thousands of unconnected people, with little to no centralized organization, in several dozen cities, many in the rain, appears to be a willful attempt to miss the point.

Perhaps you could let down your partisan guard and make a true attempt to understand that people on all sides are angry about having to bail out the banks and Wall Street. Americans see a 12 trillion dollar debt in the pipeline and do not want it.

This is not about your politics, Joe. Try not to make it so. Think larger. Get out of the Washington and media group-think.

Today’s manipulated clowns may be tomorrows manipulated brownshirts.