The late comedian George Carlin used to say America was built on a double standard: "This country was founded by slave owners who wanted to be free."

We wonder how his joke would have sat with members of Tennessee's tea party, which just presented state legislators with five priorities for action, including amending state laws governing school curriculums to change textbook selection so that "no portrayal of minority experience in the history which actually occurred shall obscure the experience or contributions of the Founding Fathers," the Memphis Commercial Appeal reported.

Hal Rounds, an attorney and a spokesman for the group, said the goal is to address "an awful lot of made-up criticism about, for instance, the founders intruding on the Indians or having slaves or being hypocrites in one way or another," according to the Commercial Appeal.

"Neglect and outright ill will have distorted the teaching of the history and character of the United States. We seek to compel the teaching of students in Tennessee the truth regarding the history of our nation and the nature of its government," according to materials the activists distributed.

Critics say the activists' search for truth is really an attempt at lies.