Here’s my take: the word “fair” is a hell of a word. I think it’s possible to think that one pays a fair amount of taxes but still want the overall level of taxes to be lower (because of the effect on the economy of high rates of taxation). So, overall, I don’t think this survey shows a hell of a lot.
Also, if the results would have gone the other way (i.e., 98% say their taxes aren’t fair), you would have just called them greedy and selfish for not wanting to pay taxes. So, this survey was a dream for you because it gave you more reason to throw shit on the Tea Party folks no matter how the results came out.
Note that I said “taxes are too high”. Bit of a difference. And “taxes” means a lot more than just “income taxes”, which is the only thing the poll asked about.
But if you want to think this poll spells the implosion of the Tea Party movement, knock yourself out. Frankly, I don’t think they have much staying power, but that’s because they’re leaderless and unfocused. Not because of some poorly executed poll.
To be honest, I think this poll paints the supporters as reasonable, and the activists as less reasonable. Frankly, I would have thought the supporters would be more rabidly anti-tax. That’s why I think the tax cut message is misplaced.
I hope not, the success of the Tea Party creates problems for the Republicans. There is not a shot in hell they will succeed outright, but they could play spoiler to who ever runs in 2012, or even this year in the mid terms. That is what I am hoping for nationwide; endless ideological purity tests and conservative disarray.
You think that everyone that responds to a survey must think the exact same thing you do about the words in the question asked in the survey. I recognize that people can attach different meanings to words and not everyone thinks that a word means exactly what I think it means.
Remember the thread showing a huge disparity (mostly among Democrats) when people were asked whether “gays” should serve in the military and whether “homosexuals” should serve? The same thing could be going on here.
But you don’t understand any of this. You think people who you describe as “anti-tax” should also answer that taxes aren’t “fair.”
I believe that words have meanings, and simple words like “fair” and “unfair” have meanings that are understood by most people. If it comforts you to think this is some impenetrable mystery we cannot learn anything from, I won’t try to dissuade you.
