# How do Tea Partiers feel about the War on Terror, immigration, and economic globalization? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 22, 2010, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652 "2010-09-22T15:32:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dick\_Dastardly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c4cdca/32.png) [@Dick\_Dastardly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dick_Dastardly)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/21 "2010-09-24T13:48:44Z")
[quote=“bubba\_jr, post:17, topic:554652”] > [@Dick\_Dastardly](#): > > Barack Obama taking away their right not to have a black President or something else, /QUOTE] > > Dick, really, pull the racist shit. Keep pulling the racist shit, every time you do, you just piss off more and more people. My grandmother who never so much as said the word damn, and if you did chased with a broom, who didn’t talk to my grandfather for months and months and months after he voted for Bush instead of Kerry, who voted for Obama, now at 80 years old and 100% sane and very observant, is sick of having her own thoughts and feelings on the direction of the country being labeled as “racist”. She is now having “some problems with minorities”. > > Or as my aunt who was a little more vocal than my grandmother(obama voter), yet very very liberal and would chew your ass out for even the slightest racial inference. “I’m really not liking black people right now” > > Or my girlfriend. Die hard liberal to the core. I couldn’t even refer to a gay guy as a pansy ass without her getting mad or refer to a colored, black, negro, african american or whatever the word is of the day without her getting mad. > > A few months ago, we were cruising along and saw a nice little bunch of American’s that appeared to be of Mexican descent, wearing pretty(gang) colors walking with average weight (plus 50lbs) attractive (if you like drawn on sharpie eyebrows and Bozo the clown) women wearing snug fitting (lard squirting) pants and tasteful tube tops encompassing very nice (pancaked shaped) breasts swinging like udders like over exposed babies that are still encapsulated. > > I rolled my eyes… and she said “call ICE” > > WHAT??? > > “I’m having a little problem with brown people lately” > > Me, realizing that I still want to get laid “(pet name), everywhere you go there are people that are going to suck, they are of all races, colors and genders” > > Her: “you’re right, people do suck, it just so happens that they are all brown” > > 3 true stories of people that voted for Obama, and were never even the slightest bit racist until recently. > > Keep spewing that racism. Its doing wonders for your cause. > > I myself didn’t vote, I didn’t want to be responsible for deciding between dipshit and dumbass. Take your pick who was who. > > After the election I really though Obama was going to do good things, I was wrong(I thought there never could be a president as bad as Bush). And the more I’m told I’m a racist for disagreeing with him, the more racist I become. Thirded. I didn’t say that all the teahadis are racist, I said that some of them are. And some of them clearly are. ---
**Author:** ![pyromyte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d26b3c/32.png) [@pyromyte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pyromyte)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2010, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/22 "2010-09-24T15:23:00Z")
> [@New\_Deal\_Democrat](#): > > don’t cut my government benefits. I was thinking it was more like “Please cut my government benefits.” ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/23 "2010-09-26T00:53:56Z")
BTW, the [_American Conservative’s_](http://www.amconmag.com/) cover story this week is, “Will The Tea Parties Turn Antiwar?” ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/24 "2010-09-26T01:01:00Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > BTW, the [_American Conservative’s_](http://www.amconmag.com/) cover story this week is, “Will The Tea Parties Turn Antiwar?” If they did, I’d probably consider them grassroots and libertarian. But I don’t think they will, and they aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/25 "2010-09-26T01:56:09Z")
> [@sleeping](#): > > > [@BrainGlutton](#): > > > > BTW, the [_American Conservative’s_](http://www.amconmag.com/) cover story this week is, “Will The Tea Parties Turn Antiwar?” > > If they did, I’d probably consider them grassroots and libertarian. But I don’t think they will, and they aren’t. Well, [paleconservatism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleoconservatism) is not quite the same thing as libertarianism: > [@](#): > > Paleoconservatism (sometimes shortened to paleo or paleocon when the context is clear) is a term for an anti-communist and anti-imperialist political philosophy in the United States stressing tradition, civil society and anti-federalism, along with religious, regional, national and Western identity.[1] Chilton Williamson, Jr. describes paleoconservatism as “the expression of rootedness: a sense of place and of history, a sense of self derived from forebears, kin, and culture—an identity that is both collective and personal.”[2] Paleoconservatism is not expressed as an ideology and its adherents do not necessarily subscribe to any one party line.[3] > > Paleoconservatives in the 21st century often highlight their points of disagreement with neoconservatives, especially on issues like immigration, affirmative action, U.S. funding of its allies abroad, foreign wars, and social welfare.[1] They also criticize social democracy, which some refer to as the “therapeutic managerial state,”[4] the “welfare-warfare state”[5] or “polite totalitarianism.”[6] They see themselves as the legitimate heirs to the American conservative tradition.[7] > > Paul Gottfried is credited with coining the term in the 1980s.[8] He says the term originally referred to various Americans, such as conservative and traditionalist Catholics and agrarian Southerners, who turned to anticommunism during the Cold War.[9] Paleoconservatism is closely linked with Distributism. > > Paleoconservative thought has developed within the pages of the Rockford Institute’s Chronicles: A Magazine of American Culture.[10] Pat Buchanan was heavily influenced by its articles[9] and helped create another paleocon publication, The American Conservative.[11] Its concerns overlap those of the Old Right that opposed the New Deal in the 1930s and 1940s,[12] as well as American social conservatism of the late 20th century expressed, for example, in the book Single Issues by Joseph Sobran. You’re saying, however, if I understand you, that the TP movement is neither paleoconservative nor libertarian, but an astroturf neoconservative movement. ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/26 "2010-09-26T02:40:53Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > > [@sleeping](#): > > > > If they did, I’d probably consider them grassroots and libertarian. But I don’t think they will, and they aren’t. > > Well, [paleconservatism](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleoconservatism) is not quite the same thing as libertarianism: > > You’re saying, however, if I understand you, that the TP movement is neither paleoconservative nor libertarian, but an astroturf neoconservative movement. I know they’re not the same, but there is considerable overlap, much more than there between, say, libertarianism and neoconservatism. I do consider the TP to be an astroturf movement, in the service of big business, whose interests dominate the GOP agenda. But I would not say it is primarily neoconservative. I see modern conservatism / the Republican Party as being a conglomeration of various right-wing factions, with the wealthy and corporations setting the main agenda. They will allow different “flanks” to advance at opportune times: [ul] [li]during the Bush administration, neoconservatism and aggressive foreign policy in the service of the military industrial complex was emphasized (and domestic deregulation)[/li][li]then, there was that uncomfortable moment when Bush said he had to “violate free market principles in order to preserve the free market system”[/li][li]now, the deficit hawks and libertarians are being pushed forward, because austerity is good for the wealthy (since they have already grabbed a huge chunk of public money)[/li][li]whenever they lack for energy, racism and religious intolerance are used to make up the enthusiasm gap[/li][/ul] The TP does not have a coherent ideology. Sure, they’re against “big government”; they’re also against gay marriage and abortion, and supportive of the wars and Israel. These positions obviously have nothing to do with libertarianism–and in fact run counter to the positions of actual libertarians or paleoconservatives, such as Ron Paul–but the TP persists in proclaiming itself libertarian. ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/27 "2010-09-26T04:03:37Z")
Here’s an interesting finding: > [@](#): > > [Alliance for American Manufacturing Poll](http://www.americanmanufacturing.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/10pre607-aam-f2-short.pdf), p. 36: > > If American manufactured goods were made more expensive as a result of new climate change legislation, would you then favor or oppose a tariff on products imported from other countries that are cheaper because they came from a country that does not have to > comply with any climate change regulations in the country where the products were made? > > Overall: 59% favor, 25% oppose > Democrat ID 61% favor, 22% oppose > Independent ID 59%–26% > GOP ID 56%–28% > Tea Party Supporters 56%–30% > Tea Party Opponents 65%–24% > > * * * > > p. 26: > > 1. America can compete with manufacturers in any country as long as we can stop unfair trade practices, illegal subsidies and enforce environmental and labor standards > 2. American manufacturing will never be on completely even footing with foreign manufacturers but we still have to do whatever it takes to keep manufacturing in the US > as strong as possible. > 3. We have to realize that no matter what we do, America will never be able to compete with manufacturers in some low wage third world counties – and live with it. > > Overall: > Option 1: 50% > Option 2: 36% > Option 3: 11% > > Democrat ID\_\_ 48%–38%–11% > Independent ID\_\_ 51%–33%–12% > Republican ID\_\_ 51%–37%–11% > Tea Party Supporters\_\_ 52%–40%–7% > Tea Party Opponents\_\_ 49%–34%–15% Not sure how to interpret this. Maybe the TPs, for all their support of free trade and capitalism, are implicitly against NAFTA? ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/28 "2010-09-26T04:18:04Z")
Yep, just a bunch of racist, astroturfed redneck rubes who are bitterly clinging to what they have. You just go right on believing that. Have a nice time at the polls, boys. You can be pleased to know that every time you see one of those tea partiers walk in to the polling place and pull the lever that will add to the destruction of the Democrat majority and the remnants of your great liberal awakening, attitudes like yours helped them get there. ---
**Author:** ![Mozart1220](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Mozart1220](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mozart1220)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/29 "2010-09-26T04:59:35Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Yep, just a bunch of racist, astroturfed redneck rubes who are bitterly clinging to what they have. You just go right on believing that. > > Have a nice time at the polls, boys. You can be pleased to know that every time you see one of those tea partiers walk in to the polling place and pull the lever that will add to the destruction of the Democrat majority and the remnants of your great liberal awakening, attitudes like yours helped them get there. And have a nice time living in an America where people like George Bush, Sarah Palin, Christine O’donnell, and other room temp. IQ’s are in charge. Evolution is a myth, and all you need to know about foreign policy is that on a clear day you can see Russia from Alaska. Great. Oh yeah, and “intellectuals are public enemy #1” (Newt Gingrich) ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/30 "2010-09-26T12:34:31Z")
I don’t pretend to know the minds of the Tea partyer’s But I wonder if it is like Alice’s Tea party in Through The Looking Glass!! ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Jacquelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Le\_Jacquelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Jacquelope)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/31 "2010-09-26T13:46:22Z")
> [@bubba\_jr](#): > > After the election I really though Obama was going to do good things, I was wrong(I thought there never could be a president as bad as Bush). And the more I’m told I’m a racist for disagreeing with him, the more racist I become. Correct me if I’m wrong, folks, but doesn’t this sound like “the more I’m told I’m a racist for disagreeing with him, the more I prove them right”? or “… the more I’m letting them get to me?” I disagree with Obama on some stuff, too, but mainly because his moves are to the right of where I stand on current issues. (ESPECIALLY health care and Globalization.) ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Jacquelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Le\_Jacquelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Jacquelope)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/32 "2010-09-26T13:49:36Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Yep, just a bunch of racist, astroturfed redneck rubes who are bitterly clinging to what they have. You just go right on believing that. > > Have a nice time at the polls, boys. You can be pleased to know that every time you see one of those tea partiers walk in to the polling place and pull the lever that will add to the destruction of the Democrat majority and the remnants of your great liberal awakening, attitudes like yours helped them get there. And when it’s all said and done, take a look at the exit polls with regards to race. Don’t get mad at me for calling this ahead of time - get mad at the numbers, for they will be quite telling. All liberals have to do is wait out one core Tea Party racial demographic group. Statistical fact: that group is on the decline as far as birth rates are concerned, and outside of said group, the Tea Party has almost zero support. Again, don’t get mad at me, get mad at the demographics. ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/33 "2010-09-26T14:59:48Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Yep, just a bunch of racist, astroturfed redneck rubes who are bitterly clinging to what they have. You just go right on believing that. > > Have a nice time at the polls, boys. You can be pleased to know that every time you see one of those tea partiers walk in to the polling place and pull the lever that will add to the destruction of the Democrat majority and the remnants of your great liberal awakening, attitudes like yours helped them get there. You preaching there, Sam? Or praying? ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/34 "2010-09-26T15:46:39Z")
> [@Dick\_Dastardly](#): > > I don’t think that the teatards are a monolithic group, I think it’s just a collection of people who are angry about something. Whether it’s bailouts, healthcare, the deficit, Barack Obama taking away their right not to have a black President or something else, it’s just a collection of angry folks with no real coherent set of opinions. > > The teahadist movement started after the Rick Santelli rant on CNBC and was originally all about the bailouts, government spending and what have you. However it does seem to have been hijacked by various GOP astroturf and lobbying groups like Freedom Works. When the GOP’s paymasters objected to Obama’s healthcare policy groups like Freedom Works were bussing teahadists into Washington from all over to protest the bill. When the financial reform bill came up, something you’d think would really get the teahadis really energised, we didn’t hear a peep out of them. No mass protests in Washington, no huge campaign wither for or against the bill. I wouldn’t say it was hijacked by astroturf groups. I would say it was _started_ by them. > **[Rick Santelli's Planted Rant ? - The Big Picture](https://ritholtz.com/2009/02/rick-santellis-faux-rant/)** > > I was interviewed by several journalists last week about Rick Santelli’s Rant — my exact quote was it had a “Faux” feel to it. (I haven’t seen it in print yet) What was so odd about this was that Santelli is usually on the ball; we usually agree more... Now, if some of you tea partiers are trying to break away from that corporate influence, more power to you. I don’t mean that sarcastically, I mean it seriously, even if I do disagree politicaly. However, there’s very strong evidence that it was started as an astroturf movement. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/35 "2010-09-26T15:54:08Z")
The Teabaggers are for everything they like, except when they don’t like it, and then they’re against it. For instance, socialized medicine is bad, except for Medicare if they get it. But then only for them, not those other people. You know who they are. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Jacquelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Le\_Jacquelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Jacquelope)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/36 "2010-09-26T16:01:42Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > > [@Dick\_Dastardly](#): > > > > I don’t think that the teatards are a monolithic group, I think it’s just a collection of people who are angry about something. Whether it’s bailouts, healthcare, the deficit, Barack Obama taking away their right not to have a black President or something else, it’s just a collection of angry folks with no real coherent set of opinions. > > > > The teahadist movement started after the Rick Santelli rant on CNBC and was originally all about the bailouts, government spending and what have you. However it does seem to have been hijacked by various GOP astroturf and lobbying groups like Freedom Works. When the GOP’s paymasters objected to Obama’s healthcare policy groups like Freedom Works were bussing teahadists into Washington from all over to protest the bill. When the financial reform bill came up, something you’d think would really get the teahadis really energised, we didn’t hear a peep out of them. No mass protests in Washington, no huge campaign wither for or against the bill. > > I wouldn’t say it was hijacked by astroturf groups. I would say it was _started_ by them. > > [Rick Santelli's Planted Rant ? - The Big Picture](http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/02/rick-santellis-faux-rant) > > Now, if some of you tea partiers are trying to break away from that corporate influence, more power to you. I don’t mean that sarcastically, I mean it seriously, even if I do disagree politicaly. > However, there’s very strong evidence that it was started as an astroturf movement. “We are all Koch.” “Eh, don’t you mean Kosh?” [“No. Koch.”](http://washingtonindependent.com/95603/the-koch-brothers-and-the-tea-parties) ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/37 "2010-09-26T17:16:28Z")
> [@New\_Deal\_Democrat](#): > > The Tea Party attitude can be summed up in one word: _ **ARG!** _ No, three words: _ **I. ME. MINE.** _ ---
**Author:** ![pyromyte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d26b3c/32.png) [@pyromyte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pyromyte)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2010, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/38 "2010-09-27T04:27:03Z")
Even though I think this thread is completely off topic now, I am compelled to say that the tea partiers are not selfish; they just believe there are better ways to help people than through government (especially government handouts). What is the more noble act? To reach into your own pocket to give to someone in need, or to reach into someone else’s pocket to give to someone in need? I was not at all surprised to read anti-tea comments here, but the characterizations of the tea party as a group of low-IQ, selfish, racists illustrates a gross misunderstanding of what the tea party movement is about. The lack of understanding, if genuine, is encouraging to me. If, rather than a lack of understanding, you are tactically mischaracterizing the tea party, then it is still encouraging, because it means you feel threatened. I half expected this thread to get off topic. And although some of you have attempted some reasonable argument here, I am surprised at Dopers resorting to the sophomoric name-calling. ---
**Author:** ![sleeping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sleeping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeping)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2010, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/39 "2010-09-27T04:49:50Z")
> [@pyromyte](#): > > Even though I think this thread is completely off topic now, I am compelled to say that the tea partiers are not selfish; they just believe there are better ways to help people than through government (especially government handouts). > > What is the more noble act? To reach into your own pocket to give to someone in need, or to reach into someone else’s pocket to give to someone in need? [Teabagger to man with Parkinson’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_PX5L_v_7I#t=0m51s): “If you’re looking for a handout, you’re in the wrong end of town. Nothing for free over here. You have to work for everything you get.” [_Other teabaggers proceed to throw money at him_.] Yep, no selfishness there. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2010, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652/40 "2010-09-27T05:06:53Z")
> [@pyromyte](#): > > Even though I think this thread is completely off topic now, I am compelled to say that the tea partiers are not selfish; they just believe there are better ways to help people than through government (especially government handouts). “Get your government hands off my Medicare” No; they are selfish, and if they aren’t hypocritical it is only because they are so incredibly stupid as to not realize they are condemning others for receiving aid while they accept it themselves. > [@pyromyte](#): > > What is the more noble act? To reach into your own pocket to give to someone in need, or to reach into someone else’s pocket to give to someone in need? Why should I or anyone care about “nobility”? Why should I have to carry a bunch of selfish rightwingers on my back, whose entire worldview boils down to “what’s mine is mine, what’s yours is mine”. They aren’t advocates of “rugged individualism”; they want to take society for everything they can, enjoy its benefits, and give nothing in return. And sneer with hatred at the people they are exploiting to boot. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-tea-partiers-feel-about-the-war-on-terror-immigration-and-economic-globalization/554652.md?page=3)