Freedom Werks "Runaway Slave" Project

Tea Bags Not Really Racists After All

Please take a few moments to enjoy this great email MeanMesa received from Reverend C.L. Bryant, FreedomWorks Foundation Fellow and Runaway Slave.  If you have ever had any incorrect thoughts about the progressive side of Dick Armey's corporate "grass roots,"  maybe the good reverend's letter will help settle the matter once and for good.

There can be no doubt that the film will result in a flood tide of new voters rushing to the Republican side of the 2012 ballots.

The email:

(All links from the original email are left enabled.)

Please Contribute Now To Help Us Complete This Film

Dear MeanMesa,

My name is C.L. Bryant—former Democrat and NAACP Chapter President—current Tea Party leader and freedom fighter.

As a minister and a Black conservative, I believe in an America defined by courage, liberty and faith. A country where, as Martin Luther King, Jr. said, people are judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. In fact, if the liberal media would take a minute to stop calling Tea Partiers "racists" they'd find out that's what we are all about. You've probably heard me speak about these convictions if you attended FreedomWorks' Taxpayer March on Washington in 2009 or 2010.

Still, I wanted to do more. I wanted to open the eyes of Black America to see what I have come to see: that big government policies have enslaved the Black community to a cycle of poverty and dependence. So I partnered with FreedomWorks Foundation and filmed a documentary where I expose how supposed Black "leaders" like Al Sharpton have deceived the Black community into voting for the very same liberal government policies that hurt them. I crisscrossed the country interviewing other Black conservatives, Tea Party members and journalists who were willing to speak truth to power. I titled the documentary "Runaway Slave" because that's how I feel; I've run away from the slavery of government oppression and toward the blessings of individual liberty.

But we aren't done yet. FreedomWorks Foundation and I need your help to complete the editing, production and distribution of this film. Your help will show that patriotic Americans are united, not by race, but by a love of freedom. Please make a tax-deductible donation to FreedomWorks Foundation right now to help us finish this film.

You can watch our latest trailer of the film below or by clicking here.



Whether you can give $20 or $2,000, please make your tax-deductible donation to FreedomWorks Foundation immediately. Your gift will go right into the final stage of creating this film and bringing the message of courage, liberty and faith to America. Your gift will:

• Pay for video editors to assemble the stories and rent the editing equipment.
• Purchase historical stock footage from video libraries.
• Hire producers to dig through the hours of interviews and footage to find the right, persuasive stories.
• Allow us to bypass liberal Hollywood and get this life-changing film into theaters near you.
• Help us reach millions through email and other internet resources.

My team tells me we need to raise $45,000 get us across the finish line. That's why I'm asking you to give $25, $50, or more to FreedomWorks Foundation to help us get there. The film crew, my family and I have all sacrificed personally and financially because we believe in this film. I hope you will find it in your heart to sacrifice whatever you can to make that belief a reality. Please donate now.

Thank you and God Bless,


Reverend C.L. Bryant
FreedomWorks Foundation Fellow and Runaway Slave

P.S. -- To learn more about the Runaway Slave movie project please visit us online here.

Tea Bags to GOPCons - Please, Pretty Please, Let Us In!

 Good Republicans and Bad Republicans

Givers and Takers? Oh well, Takers and Takers

There are certain phrases which seem to saturate "news" coverage of the latest calamity which has fallen on the last, desperate remnants of what used to be the old Republican Party. The particular phrase which is "at play" in this posting is

the constantly repeated argument that "there is no line" between the zany pubescence of the over ebullient tea bag illiterates and the stodgy corporatists in the "more legitimate" traditional Republicans.

MeanMesa guesses that, when you own the media, such dreary repetitions can, in fact, be ordered onto the air waves if you want them.  However, this particular scheme has not yet been repeated enough to reach the credibility of "settled fact" among the voters, now a crowd which is growing more and more suspicious by the day.  No problem.  Money is no object.

After the anti-democratic "dancing monkeys" on the Supreme Court delivered up the Citizens United decision last year, well, money moved from being "no object" to being "absolutely, totally, incontrovertibly 'no problem at all,' whatsoever, under any circumstances and regardless of anything else."

The dark oligarchs of the old GOPCon family have little interest in anything beyond the simple continuance of their illicit wealth redistribution schemes and looting tax money into the pockets of their owners.  The new faces, the tea bags of the recent "freak show," are something of a more discouraging side of the phenomenon.  The fresh faced tea bags remain the "puppet ideologues" of all the propaganda the "oldsters" have been spewing for the last decades.

Last month, the tea bags in the Florida legislature, for example, reduced unemployment benefits and banned bestiality, a nice fit with the general "tide" of illegalizing Sharia Law in the respective states.

Although the Muslim hating tea bags were literally ejaculating at the prospect of "driving another stake through the heart" of the dangerous peril of domestic Sharia Law, the well seasoned looting team of GOPCons saw something different.   

If you are a Republican "oldster" who is dutifully concentrating on redistributing wealth to your masters, how, exactly, do you intend to win a 2012 election with this tea bag "flea carnival" squatting on your Party's record?

Now, the moribund servants sponsored by the corporations and the insidiously wealthy -- the GOPCons, of course -- can only frantically dream of putting the old scheme back on the tracks.  The tea bags, smelling blood in the 2010 election, slid all the way into the gaseous fog of the traditional talking points which had perpetually formed the currency of the old regime.

"Smaller government"

"Out of my bedroom"

"Cut spending"

Uh, "The Path to Prosperity"

The "extraction scheme" of the old school Republicans had always been as sophisticated as possible, designed not to inflame the uninterested and constantly lubricated by the relentless flow of media talking points.  The old GOPCon idea had been a simple one.  Transfer wealth quietly and in complex, nearly undetectable little schemes with which the manipulated party loyalists could co-exist without much particular angst.

The tea bags want none of this.  It turns out that they wants lots more.

"Hey!  Come on you old geezers!  We won the election and now we want to, uh, do stuff, and, you know, do stuff.  Cut government spending.  Fire teachers.  Bash unions.  Take our country back! Red, White and Blue!  Red, White and Blue!"

 

Well, a couple of the denizens of "oldsters" from the, you know, Republican "old school," seeing another chance to insinuate themselves into the glowing favor of FOX News and the billionaires, "jumped onto the band wagon." 

"We were ALWAYS tea bags down in our souls!  It was the other Bad Republicans who wouldn't let us do the, uh, tea bag stuff all these years.  We ALWAYS wanted to bash unions and fire teachers and stuff.  We should be the leaders of the tea bags."

The following email went out from the tea bag bunkers -- the basement of Dick Armey's "full service" law firm, "grassroots" lawn maintenance and public opinion complex -- encouraging tea bags all across the world to plead with Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McChinless, to put some of the crazies into important Senate Committees.

The Email from Freedom Works

Call Senate Republican Leader McConnell Now!

Dear MeanMesa,

Two years ago, Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) was one of the first politicians to embrace the Tea Party movement. A true fiscal conservative, Sen. DeMint is one of our best allies in the United States Senate. He's been such a loyal advocate for our principles that he's often dubbed by the media as "Senator Tea Party".

And now he's got back up. Sen. DeMint's leadership helped usher in a new freshman class of Tea Party Senators last November including Rand Paul, Mike Lee, Marco Rubio, Pat Toomey and Ron Johnson.

So now it's time for us to return the favor.

There is currently a vacancy on the Senate Finance Committee which has jurisdiction over the issues that bring the tea party together—free markets, fiscal responsibility, and constitutionally limited government. The vacancy is our chance to get a Tea Party ally on this powerful committee. Sen. DeMint, who is by seniority the top contender, is "very interested" in serving on the Finance Committee and we're very interested in him doing so.

Calls Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell now and ask that he appoints Senator DeMint to the Senate Finance Committee!

As Senate Republican Leader, Sen. McConnell has stood strong with the Tea Party movement against much of the harmful Obama agenda, including opposing the "stimulus", ObamaCare, and Cap and Trade. Now he has an opportunity to advance Republican commitment to limited government and burnish his own credentials as someone who listens to and understands our movement by appointing Sen. DeMint to the Senate Finance Committee.

Sen. DeMint's appointment would be a clear signal to our broad and active movement that Republicans in Washington are still listening. Sen. DeMint has requested a seat on the committee every time one has been available. Given his seniority this time, and his importance to the powerful Tea Party movement, now is the perfect time to offer him a seat.

Sen. DeMint has had our back since the beginning of this grassroots uprising we call the Tea Party movement. So let's return the favor. Call Sen. McConnell now and ask that he appoints Senator DeMint to the Senate Finance Committee. Thank you.
In Liberty,

Matt Kibbe

President and CEO, FreedomWorks

P.S. - Whether it's supporting Senators like Ji m DeMint or leading the fight against ObamaCare we're here to support the Tea Party agenda in any way we can. But we can't do it alone. Please consider chipping in $10, $50, $100 or more to help us continue our fight for freedom.

 Republicans -The Timid and the Bold

The Republican Party is, actually, divided, but that division is not simply a division between the tea bags and old crooks.  That over generous bit of imaginary "steadiness" is way too demanding for this bunch.  

The real division is between the old party loyalists who are content to quietly continue their traditional looting rampage and the old party loyalists who are willing to "take the plunge," join the tea bags and begin a newly formed, modern looting rampage.

You know, the timid and the bold.

Both gangs have every intention of taking over the entire country in 2012.  Each side may view the domination and dismemberment of the other as an inconvenient pause in the "Republican Grand Scheme" of things, but whichever is the victor, the common thread of wealth extraction and redistribution will continue to mindlessly rage forward.

GOPCon-wise, the damage the country will suffer at the hands of the timid -- those "oldsters" who intend to sideline the tea bags, carrying the day with their latest purloined public cash -- or at the hands of the bold -- the "angry young lions," vacuous ideologues, to whom facts and tradition mean nothing are actually quite similar. These wounds will appear only as different as the work of a patient vampire on one side compared to an unpleasant, adolescent tantrum on the other. 

These are not revelations, they are simply the plans of continuation.  Both of them.

During the 2012 election either these looters will pay the full price for their record, or we will for ignoring it.

Tempting Governors to Bad Behavior

Can Tea Bag Governors Remember Their States?

From time to time, MeanMesa presents emails from the infamous Freedom Works tea bag psych-managers. Although almost always cruelly humorous, the little missiles occasionally reach out to reveal and even darker, inner side of American politics. In such cases, we see that there exists a significant population of voluntarily illiterate voters who live, "chin to shin," in the make believe world of the brazenly anti-democracy right wing.

Those tragic cases which find themselves saturated with the unending conspiracy theories and ever more outrageous flow of innuendo after innuendo issuing forth from the Limbaughs and Hannitys become completely infatuated with conveniently gaseous matters such as challenged birth certificates and prepubescent caricatures of the President as a monkey or a  Muslim.

Don't kid yourselves.  This IS your governor. (image source)

Those of us who still remain committed to the ideals of the American Democracy are charged to remember that each of these folks is resolutely enfranchised. They can and do vote. After the glacial flow of deception becomes completely material in their fully manipulated world model, these are the voters who send the grotesque to the Congress, bizarre anomalies of electoral irresponsibility under whose vapid thunder the rest of us must suffer.

In this light, please take a glance at the following email from Freedom Working, the latest form of single syllable "news brief" issued out to the American Legion bars and wheel chair vendors. This is what the tea bags see, and worse, consider somehow relevant in their vapid, staggering "patriotism."


From the tea bag Freedom Working Newsletter
(MeanMesa Note:  All links are left enabled for visitors wishing to explore the email's invitation to "read more.")

Saturday, April 30, 2011

Gov. Kasich Fights Back Against Obama
Governor John Kasich recently balanced Ohio's budget and passed Senate Bill 5, restricting public sector unions' much-abused monopoly bargaining power. For his efforts, FreedomWorks gave Gov. Kasich our "Legislative Entrepreneur Award" for supporting economic liberty.

Now President Obama has struck back, criticizing Gov. Kasich and Senate Bill 5. Watch the video below to see Gov. Kasich defend the taxpayers:

Please call (614) 466-3555 and tell Gov. Kasich that as a FreedomWorks member, you thank him for standing up for the taxpayers of Ohio!
Read More >>

End the ObamaCare Slush Fund
Under our Constitution, only Congress has the power of the purse. ObamaCare's creation of an open-ended slush fund ("indefinite appropriation") for state-based exchange grants was a dangerous and irresponsible delegation of money and power to the President. It m ust be repealed as quickly as possible.

Sign Here>>

Urge your Representatives to vote YES next week on H.R. 1213, Representative Upton's bill to eliminate the massive, open-ended Obamacare slush fund for state-based exchange grants.
Read More >>

Gov. Daniels Passes Sweeping School Choice Bill

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels approved the broadest school choice legislation in America this week, expanding charter schools, instituting merit pay for teachers and restricting the collective bargaining power of teachers. The Associated Press declares that Gov. Daniels' school choice legislation makes Indiana "a showcase of conservative ideas" for other states to model.

Donate to FreedomWorks right now to help us bring legislation lik e this to states across America!

The bill creates a voucher system for not just low-income households but for middle-income families as well, so that all parents and children in Indiana are empowered to make their own educational choices.
Read More >>

Activist Update
Support School Choice
Pass SB 1 in Pennsylvania
Support Here

Pass the BBA
We Must Shrink Government's Waistline
Take Action Here

Stop Implementation of ObamaCare
Support the Save Our States Act
Support Here

Fire Jim Rogers
A Petition to the Duke Energy Board
Sign Here

Stop Obama's EPA
They're Increasing Energy Costs!
Take Action Here

Join FreedomConnector
Find Activists in YOUR area!
Join here

Forward to a friend

Know someone who might be interested in the email? Why not forward to a friend.

Become a fan!

Have you checked out our Facebook page? Click here to become a fan!

Make a Donation

We need your help! Click here to make a donation.

Activist of the Month

Oregon activist and new FreedomWorks staffer Kristina Ribali, has been helping other grassroots activists find, create and act on FreedomConnector and recently wrote a piece in Smart Girl Nation entitled "A Reluctant Activist is Born".

Congratulations Kristina!

Of course, the "carnival" attributes of this mess are entertaining enough, but just after the laughter, a more disturbing side emerges.  This latest crop of tea bag state Governors, after the otherwise embarrassing flood of plutocratic dollars into their campaigns, are now being lauded openly for their efforts to defeat the President.  ("Governor Kasich Fights Back Against Obama")

That's right.

Governors are SUPPOSED to be running their states. (image source)

Governors are supposed to run their states, but we see these governors locked into "non-solutions" being dictated by their campaign managers to the behest of their real loyalties -- loyalties not particularly even related to the citizens who elected them.

If you don't already have one of the "special" governors sitting in your state house, don't think that there isn't one "sitting in the wings."  With the fetid, democracy crushing flood of Citizens United money already nicely packed into war chests all across the country, the Koch brothers and their ilk already have you in their sights.

Their campaigns and their candidates will be there in the 2012.  Don't kid yourselves.  Whether or not you think that union busting and crony-style privatization schemes are tolerable, add the prospect of having a governor who isn't even concerned with managing the state which elected him because he is so busy carving out everything his bosses have ordered him to deliver to them.

Be informed. Be active. Walk like an American.

Latest Freedom Works Email -- Oooops.

Naturally, progressives watched in glee as the "conservative base" voters had their "little chat" with GOPCon Congressional throwbacks in last week's townhalls.  The wing nuts were expecting a "hero's welcome" from the locals, but instead, "Medicare killers" like Paul Ryan were lucky to go home after the meeting without nails through their wrists.

After all, it WAS the Easter season.

Courtesy Huffington Post (image source )

Not to ever "take a second seat" to anything, Freedom Works stumbled up to the microphone for yet another tedious "flame session."  Out went the email -- most likely only a few minutes before the "media" got a hold on the town hall videos.

CBS News - Ryan Booed at Townhall Meeting

Attention Freedom Works:

This cow doesn't like it in the barn.

The email:

Demand a Vote on the "Save Our States" Act -- Halt Implementation of ObamaCare!

Dear MeanMesa,

There is legislation in Congress that would kill the ObamaCare health care takeover, but it needs your support NOW to have any chance of passing.

TAKE ACTION!

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) has introduced the "Save Our States" Act. This bold legislation would completely halt ObamaCare's implementation pending a final ruling on its constitutionality by the courts, effectively stopping the President's socialized health care nightmare dead in its tracks.

This is exactly the reason so many conservative and independent voters flooded into election booths last November. Unfortunately, Senate Democrats under the leadership of Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) are leveraging their now razor-thin majority to prevent even holding a vote on this important reform.

It is critical for grassroots America to create a groundswell of support for hold ing a vote on the Save Our States Act. If we can reinforce how important holding a vote on this legislation is, even amongst conservative and moderate Senators, Reid will have little choice but to give in and at least schedule a vote on it.

This is step one - but an important step towards reviving this debate and putting lawmakers, many of whom will be vulnerable in the coming 2012 elections, on the record on what they really think about ObamaCare.

Click here to use FreedomWorks toll-free online phone tool to be immediately connected with your Senators' offices and deliver this important message: it's time to schedule a vote on Senator Hutchison's Save Our States Act and stop the implementation of ObamaCare!

Sincerely,


Matt Kibbe
President and CEO, FreedomWorks

P.S. Help support FreedomWorks' larger health care reform campaign to stop the ObamaCare health care nightmare with your generous donation - click here! Through the support of members like you we can reach more limited government activists with "calls to action" like this one that will ensure we keep up the grassroots energy against government run health care. Thank you!

Glenn Beck - High Command of Freedom Works?

The latest email from Freedom Works turned out to be one of those things which are "just too sweet" not to share.  Imagine, after spending long hours organizing the puppet zombies for an appearance in Madison, the Central Command of Dick Armey's Freedom Works could still find the time to pump this baby out across the internet!

The email:

Dear MeanMesa,

If you had trouble believing our new grassroots networking tool FreedomConnector would take off . . . it's time to come around!

That's because Glenn Beck is now on board, and he's promoting FreedomConnector on radio and TV.

"Find a way to connect without any middle man. I want you to go to FreedomConnector.com right now . . . This is something that I think is absolutely critical." -- Glenn Beck

And he's been promoting it with that enthusiasm -- with that much zeal -- over and over, ALL WEEK LONG.

As you might imagine, an endorsement of that magnitude (to a live radio audience of 9 million listeners!) led to a spike in traffic. And by a "spike," I mean a virtual flood of visitors.

Within seconds, thousands upon thousands of listeners flocked to the site. Now I'm no techie, but I'm told our servers are top-of-the-line and built to handle traffic spikes.

But like I said, this was no ordinary "spike." The enthusiasm is so high, the interest so great, that the site had some trouble handling the traffic for a brief time.

Our web team is working around the clock to make the necessary upgrades, but with Glenn promoting it to the world (and the whole world seeming to join at once), that's no small undertaking. Not in terms of their time and definitely not in terms of our cost.

So we're unloading some goodies in exchange for help to foot the bill and keep this full-scale promotion going. I'm asking for your help.

• If you can contribute $25 today to become a Sponsoring Member, we'll send you a complimentary "Don't Tread on Me" bumper magnet for your car.
• For $100, you'll get the magnet AND a copy of our best-selling book, Give Us Liberty: A Tea Party Manifesto.
• And if you can afford a generous donation of $250 or more, my co-author Matt Kibbe and I will happily autograph your copy of the book.

I'm prepared to sign books until my hand falls off -- THAT'S how important I think it is that we keep FreedomConnector up-and-running for everyone who wants it.

The sky is the limit and we hope to have hundreds of thousands -- millions, even -- of patriots using it. But we really need your help to do it.

Please make a generous contribution of $25, $100, $250 or more -- whatever you can afford -- so Glenn Beck can continue to spread the word and we can meet the growing demand.

I realize times are tough, and not everyone has much to spare. If you can even chip in $10 or $15 to help us, every single penny is important, appreciated, and helps a ton.

The potential for FreedomConnector is really unbelievable, and the skyrocketing number of users prove it. But the numbers also prove that we're gonna need some help to keep it going and keep it growing.

Would you consider helping with a contribution?

If you aren't already familiar with FreedomConnector (I hope that's not the case!), it's our revolutionary new social networking platform developed specifically to connect like minded patriots. Click here to check it out.

Tens of thousands of activists and local leaders are already using it to find new patriots nearby, communicate better with their existing networks, and grow their Tea Party movement.

Please, if you aren't already connecting, I strongly urge you to get plugged in now. Don't get left behind!

And if you can, please also click here to make a contribution of $25, $100, $250 or whatever you can afford, and get some cool stuff along with our deepest thanks.

Nothing like FreedomConnector exists anywhere else, and even Leftist web-giants MoveOn.org and Organizing for America are already clamoring to keep up. We can't afford to lose a single step now that we've taken the lead.

Please, help us overcome the (very good!) problem of too much interest in FreedomConnector by chipping in whatever you can, be it $10 or $25, or something more.

I trust you'll help make FreedomConnector everything that it can be, either by using it, supporting it with your generosity, or both.

Thank you in advance for whatever you can do.

Sincerely,

Dick Armey

Chairman, FreedomWorks

If you think this is hysterical, take a "trip" to FreedomConnect.com!  Warning:  Associating with this site may degrade your spelling -- and maybe, your IQ.

Talking to the Neighbors -- After the Election

MeanMesa has posted before about the importance of talking to one's neighbors about politics.  Naturally, this activity usually advances to "front and center" when we are anxious to influence how our neighbors will vote.  Older Short Current Essays posts (It's Time To Talk To The Neighbors) have included images of our own favorite means -- the "home made door to door index card" -- of educating all our MeanMesa neighbors about what we consider to be pressing issues to be decided in a campaign.

MeanMesa Galactic Command resides in a comfortable, ca.1960's,  apartment complex here on the high desert.  The place has around 80 units of two bedroom apartments.  Although we're pretty respectable by Albuquerque standards, on a national scale, we'd be firmly centered in the middle to lower class income range.  Consequently, even though lots of our neighbors have jobs, lots of them also rely on government services to get along, especially in the wreckage of the Great Republican Recession.

Well, as we have been listening to the squawking utterances of the Tea Bag Express and Rolling Freak Show which has just been handed the keys to the House of Representatives, it is clear that our neighbors need to expect even harder times ahead.

Of course, we heard the "kissy - feely," momentarily sober, Speaker Boner talk about "crossing the aisle," but the real message comes from the staggering, unknown throw backs who, although they now temporarily hold some power in Washington, D.C., haven't actually realized that they are no longer surrounded by Texas hill billies in Pig Feet Creek.  Their message?

"Whaa, harumpgh, harumpgh, we gonna' tek aowr contr' bek!  Ef thet means shuttin' down th' gov'ment, then sew be it!  Us baggers dun heeard th' VOICE O' Th' PEEPPEL!"

Of course, MeanMesa visitors know that, in fact, there are only a very few voices -- the ones which bring "grassroots checks" to rather stinky, Citizens United, First Ammendment "grassroots  patriots," that is, corporations, law firms, Freedom Works, Americans for a Brighter Future Without Poor People, and, of course, the Chamber of Commerce.

Patriotic Tea Bag Campaign Contributors

However, although the "House of Circuses" has only just begun its 6th grade level rampage of further looting, there remains this rather unpleasant prospect of having the government shut down.  You know, Newt Gringrich style.  You know, Contract on America style.  Although the tea bags and the "establishment Republicans" they are dragging behind the truck have, indeed, found some power in their loins, this idea of shutting down the government for a few months as a glorious tirade has limits.

They won't be able to do any permanent damage to programs such as Social Security and Medicare, but they will be able to unfund all the administrative work which makes these programs function.  This means that even though the Social Security Trust Fund is in good shape ($2Tn), they can temporarily furlough all the labor which would normally be responsible for mailing out the checks.

Based on this disturbing plan of the baggers, MeanMesa once again fired up the old steam powered index card printer and produced another card, this one warning our neighbors about the real possibility of harder-than-they-expected times ahead.

Finally, is all this just to blow the "activist horn" of MeanMesa hobbling around the complex?  Not at all!  The point is is best posed as a question.

"Based on what you think, isn't there anything YOU might like to discuss with YOUR neighbors?"

Heh, heh.  Nothing, absolutely nothing, irritates the billionaires at Freedom Werks more than neighbors talking to their neighbors.  Not a single dollar in their  democracy crushing "war chests" can reach through that wall.

Great News - Tea Bags Have Already "Reformed" the "Governemnt!"

Ever wonder what, exactly, all your Tea Bag friends are thinking about what's going on in Washington?  Even spookier, have you ever wondered why they are thinking those things?

For a "journey into weird," take a look at a couple of "news" items MeanMesa has extracted from the most recent Freedom Works "Newsletter."

Aside from the fact that what is said here is not true, the "word salad" is just sophisticated enough to be not only barely palatable, but out rightly delicious to the hill billies on the Freedom Werks email list.  Once their sweet little bellies are properly filled with this drivel, this bunch of hill billies will be on their way to "fixing" the entire country.

For them, the good news is two fold.  First, there's no need to actually know what's happening to any extent beyond the Freedom Works-Glenn Beck-Sarah Palin "talking points."  Second, everything, absolutely everything, which must be done to get us out of this mess is so simple even a third grader could solve it!

Oink! (image source) (NOT Photoshopped!)

Of interest here, notice that the road weary, inflammatory Tea Bag statements in this  excepted material are entirely consumed with politics at the exclusion of problems or policy, not to mention accuracy.

From Freedom Works, "Freedom Working" Newsletter

Friday, December 17, 2010

Tea Party Stops $1.3 Trillion Pork Bill Yesterday, on the 237th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, pressure from grassroots activists forced Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to withdraw his pork-laden Omnibus spending bill (1) from further consideration. Not only was the bill chock-full of earmarks, but it also sought to provide funding to key provisions of Obama's health care law. Its defeat was an early holiday gift and a story Hollywood couldn't have scripted any better. When the Sons of Liberty stormed Boston Harbor that 16th day of December in 1773, they set in motion a chain of events that eventually led to the American Revolution. This year, the Tea Party movement proved that there has been a seismic shift in the politics of spending. This victory wouldn't have been possible, of course, without the tireless efforts of activists like you, who helped usher in November's congressional landslide. Your desire to fulfill the timeless vision of the Boston Tea Party continues to sustain and grow this decentralized, grassroots movement. Read More >>
Federal Judge: Obamacare Is Unconstitutional U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson struck down the individual mandate of Obama's health care (2) law on Monday, finding the measure which requires citizens to purchase health care by 2014 to be unconstitutional. This is a big early victory in a long fight which will now move to federal appeals court and will likely be finally decided by the Supreme Court. Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who spoke at FreedomWorks' 9/12 Taxpayer March on Washington, has been instrumental in the fight against Obamacare. "I am gratified we prevailed," Cuccinelli told CNN. "This won't be the final round, as this will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court, but today is a critical milestone in the protection of the Constitution." Already, support for Cuccinelli has been voiced by thousands on our FreedomWorks Facebook page. Please become a fan of FreedomWorks on Facebook to "like", "comment" and "share" our stories. Don't forget to click the suggest friends link to invite your friends to join our page. This is critical in helping us spread the word about lower taxes, less government and more freedom. Read More >>

The Latest AWESOME Email from Freedom Works

Does anyone hear that "bone crunching" sound around the corner?  Don't worry, it's just the Republican tea bags eating their own.

Oooops.  Have you ever eaten a tea bag?

The email:

Freedom Works Down With Upton! Dear MeanMesa, We recently alerted you to the possibility that GOP Leadership might name Big Government Republican Fred Upton to chair the Energy and Commerce Committee. The vote is set for tomorrow, Tuesday, December 7th. Which means they need to hear from you again, TODAY. Please click this link to make phone calls to the members of the House Republican Steering Committee, who will determine Upton's fate. It's important we call now to make sure the leaders they chose will be ones who share our Tea Party values, not progressive Republicans like Fred Upton. A long list of his bad votes is compiled on the calling page here. Do not let the new Republican class start ignoring the Tea Party from Day One by choosing Big Government leaders to set their agenda for the next two years. PLEASE, CALL NOW. The Energy and Commerce Committee had jurisdiction over such disastrous legislation as ObamaCare and Cap and Trade, as well as a broad swath of other economic policies. That's why it's so important you call the steering committee now, and tell them we need a constitutional conservative in this position, not a Big Government RINO like Fred Upton. Sincerely, Matt Kibbe President and CEO, FreedomWorks

Two Glimpses of the Tea Baggers

MeanMesa understands that view of the tea baggers from our circles tend to be a little "lopsided."  Further, the major horde of corporate media fraud-pundits have elevated not only the likely population of these "arrested development cases," but also the "success rate" of the candidates they have sponsored, making "well rounded," factual conclusions about the "tea bagger effect" an elusive target, indeed.

So, where can we go from here?

MeanMesa proposes two interesting places -- each one a source for a view which many of us have not encountered, at least, directly encountered, very often.  The first of the two is a nice email from the tea bag command.  Please remember, real-life tea bags do not consider themselves pathetic "dancing puppets" of Dick Armey's plutocratic clients.

Here's their tea bag newsletter describing their next "courses of action" as they scramble to supervise the rewards of their work, all the while applauding the "great election victory," although actually rather modest, of their tea bag candidates.

(Image source Huffington Post)

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

FreedomWorks To Interview RNC Chairman Candidates Today

In a historic move, the Republican National Committee has invited FreedomWorks and Tea Party activists to interview and vet candidates who hope to become the next RNC Chairman.

Freedomworks will live-stream the event from 2-4 p.m. on Wednesday, December 1st. Click here at 2 p.m. to watch.

This is the next step in what we have termed the Tea Party movement's "takeover" of the GOP. It's an exciting opportunity to make sure that the grassroots activists play a key role in an open process to vet the candidates who want to be the next RNC chairman. This is the first time we know of in RNC history that an outside organization has been given such an opportunity, and it proves that the Tea Party movement has made an enormous impact on the Republican Party, and on American politics in general.

Our goal in participating is to give real grassroots Americans an opportunity to have input on who will be the next chairman of the RNC. You can submit questions for the candidates by sending an email to thale@freedomworks.org, on our Facebook page, or by using Twitter to tweet a message to @FreedomWorks

Don't forget to watch the event live from 2-4 p.m. today! Read More >>

"Down With Upton!" Petition Tops 27,000 Signatures

Fred Upton, once thought a shoe-in for the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce committee, has had his candidacy put in jeopardy by the Tea Party movement.

Bloomberg on FreedomWorks' Down With Upton petition:

Upton is "one of the least fiscally conservative Republicans in the House," said Max Pappas, vice president for public policy for FreedomWorks, a Washington group that says it advocates lower taxes and less government and is aligned with the Tea Party movement.

The group's "Down With Upton" campaign online has attracted 27,000 supporters and generated 1,000 calls to the steering committee, he said.

"This is part of a new reality," Pappas said. "People are tired of business as usual."

Please sign the petition and continue to put pressure on the GOP Steering Committee by making calls.

"Give Us Liberty": The Perfect Holiday Gift

Looking for a special holiday gift this year? Look no further than "Give Us Liberty: A Tea Party Manifesto".

This book, coauthored by FreedomWorks leaders Dick Armey and Matt Kibbe, highlights the brave citizens who launched the Tea Party movement and provides a behind-the-scenes look at how it all happened.

Want to inspire your friends and family to join the Tea Party movement? Show them the back section of "Give Us Liberty", where they can learn how to mobilize their very own Tea Party in the book's "grassroots activism toolkit".

Let your friends and family know how far this movement has come and where it's going next. Give the gift of liberty today!

 

Activist Update Down With Upton! Say NO to a Big Government Energy and Commerce Chairman Learn More Here Now We Must Govern What Contract FROM America planks matter to you? Vote Here

Forward to a friend Know someone who might be interested in the email? Why not forward to a friend.

Become a fan! Have you checked out our Facebook page? Click here to become a fan!

Make a Donation We need your help! Click here to make a donation.

Activist of the Month This December, we have two dedicated Colorado activists we would like to highlight. Ken Clark and Fran Telarico are founders of the magazine Liberty Ink, which advocates a return to constitutionally limited government that protects rather than infringes upon our rights. Thanks to Ken and Fran for their commitment to liberty!

The second of the two sources is an unusual one -- from deep within the Russian Federation, the editorial pages of PRAVDA.  At this point, it may be helpful to recall that Russians, generally, have very little affection for fascists, hence the less than glowing appraisal of the tea bag movement in America.

U.S.: who is behind the rise of ultraconservative Tea Party

November 16, 2010

"Time for tea." This phrase used to evoke thoughts of English mansions, separate meetings of the British around a table, tea served in china cups securely by a butler named James. Not now.

By Juan Gelman *

Now the Tea Party comes to mind, the ultra-rightwing sector in the U.S., with a think-tank that spreads very ancient thoughts. It is called Liberty Central (LC), and to honor its name, proudly promotes bigotry, racism, rejection of abortion and gay marriages.

It is directed by Ginni Thomas, wife of Justice Clarence Thomas, a member of the Supreme Court, and is home to 54 "friends' groups," including the ultra-Catholic Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). An independent replica the TFP was founded in 1960 in Sao Paulo (Brazil) by the politician, journalist and writer Plinio Correa de Oliveira.

Pliny hated the French Revolution, Protestantism, Catholicism, liberalism, Marxism, of course, and believed that the Spanish Inquisition was the "most beautiful page in the history of the Church" because, while it lasted, "the Catholic Church had been purged of heretics."



The American TFP is not far behind: included in their friends' list are U.S. weapons owners - an organization that insists that every U.S. citizen should have his own gun or at least one gun - Project for the Sovereignty of Missouri - which advocates armed insurrection to overthrow the government - and 52 other members. They have always been linked with the radical right, including the International Freedom Foundation (IFF, its acronym in English).

The IFF was established in the Reagan years and is best known for supporting the apartheid regime in South Africa. But their activism has taken on other fronts. According to investigator, Richard Bartholomew, "the TFP had a role in the Brazilian coup d'etat of 1964, and there are indications that in Uruguay, explosives were received from the military attaché of the Embassy of Brazil to attack places where Communists met. The director of the Chilean TFP magazine, Jaime Guzman, became one of the ideologues of the Pinochet regime "(/ / barthnotes.wordpress.com, 25/02/2008). The same name was raised by Argentine Mario Amadeo and his most famous leader was Cosme Beccar Varela.

TFP / USA is dedicated, among other things, to recruit young people through means of curious practices like the militaries of the Middle Ages. In July of last year, they promoted a "call to chivalrous nobility" in a camp in Louisiana. According to the webpage of the group, "some new techniques were taught such as the use of the medieval sword and archery."

The fighting with sword props had great success as well as simulations of war in tropical rainforests surrounding the property. It is unclear whether these exercises were brutal nor did it specify the number of broken arms and legs during its implementation.

The Tea Party presents itself as a popular movement, but its sudden success would not have been realized without the fortunes of the oil billionaire David H. Koch or Rupert Murdoch, owner of vast media empire, Fox News Corporation, which controls the group of channels Fox and Sky, the daily newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, The Sun, Times. They also supported some 150 candidates from the extreme right in the recent U.S. election.

All of them oppose abortion, some even in cases of rape. They particularly want a tougher policy on all levels, more market freedom, lower taxes, reducing the powers of government and the federal budget. Sharron Angle, one of these candidates, demanded the abolition of the Department of Education and the Environmental Protection Agency.

The support of Tea Party candidates was not only from the media. Koch, who has a personal fortune of $3.6 billion and owns with his brother Charles the megapolis Koch Industries, with annual revenues estimated at 100 billion dollars (30-8-10, The New Yorker), earmarked huge sums of money through The Americans for Prosperity Foundation, which he chairs, and Freedom Works that it finances which funds the election campaigns of candidates of the Tea Party. All are under the Republican flag and can imagine being part of an internal struggle for control of the party.

The former judge and pastor of the New Millennium church in Little Rock, Wendell Griffen, well defined the ideology of the Tea Party: his "patriotism" is "a constant attack on the idea that the U.S. welcomes people of any nationality, creed and ethnic origin. His subliminal white supremacy is an old cancer of the country, never eliminated, because in all periods of U.S. history politicians have had to win the support of the white majority" (ethicsdaily.com, 1-11-10). Economic crises give rise, sometimes, to expressions of populist movements, and not all are on the left!

* Juan Gelman is a poet and journalist in Argentina

Translated from the Portuguese version by:

Lisa Karpova

Pravda.Ru