Crazy feeding crazy

Posted Tuesday, September 21, 2010 10:03 pm

Before last week’s primaries, anyone that was listening to talking point right wing gas bags took utter pride in telling us how the Democrats are in trouble. They would say that Obama and his band of merry politicians would be out in 2012 and this country would usher back in backbone and reason. This country would once again rise from the ashes and shine proudly again. To which I would say, I don’t think the Dems are in as much trouble as Rush Limbaugh would lead you to believe -- however, if enough of these tea baggers get through, it’s not the Dems that are in trouble, it’s the Guardians of Privilege that will be in a world of hurt.

Well, the elections happened last week. Ralph Paladino, who was running for governor of New York, won his primary. Christine O’Donnell from Delaware got the GOP nod, Kelly Ayotte got backing from Sarah Palin and all of a sudden, she’s running for a Senate seat in New Hampshire. Well, those were the primaries, the elections themselves are still several weeks away and we’ll just have to wait and see what happens. But I can tell you this, any state that handed GOP reigns to a tea bagger -- suddenly turned blue, so if Republican Red is your favorite shade of politics, then, my friend, you’ve got some worries.

I understand why the Tea Party was formed. People are generally frustrated with how things are going. The status quo, well, no longer applies. Liberals want their government to pay for everything; the conservatives want to pay for nothing. The Dems want to rob from the rich and give to the poor while the Pubs want to rob from the poor and give to the rich. And frankly the Dems have their own level of crazy that has yet to be named. But the Tea Party is funded, it has big money backers. It’s got just enough attention to turn, well -- ugly.

I’m wondering if I’m the only one seeing the writing on the walls here. I wonder if anyone else can make the parallels between history and what going on with the Tea Party movement. Maybe this is just my liberal bias. Perhaps it’s just my turn to drop something into the spin machine and incite some controversy. Let me offer this. In 1919 a group of people formed, they did so from a small segment of the right wing party. It appealed largely to the middle class that felt they would have their best interests at heart. Some of their platform was based on fiscal responsibility but mostly for the working man -- your everyday "Joe the Plumber." Innocent enough at first but then they started to omit people from their plan -- if you weren’t like them, you weren’t allowed in. That party was the Nazi Party and before it finally was taken out by both Republicans and Democrats alike, it did a ton of damage. So I hope I’m not the only one who can see this. Sure it might be funny to laugh at now. We may be too busy to really stop and see what is unfolding before our very eyes. But when I hear Paladino quote the plaque on the Statue of Liberty and say "No, don’t bring us your poor," or when Christine O’Donnell considers masturbation a form of adultery. I’m sorry -- this is crazy feeding on crazy!

All I’m trying to say is, if we don’t watch what’s happening, if we write this off as some sort of passing phase, it won’t pass and we’ll be in another mess. There are signs all around us. For instance the whole immigration reform bill. It clearly states you can not ethnically profile, yet in order to enforce it, you have to ethnically profile (crazy feeding crazy). It’s like having a natural childbirth without having to push. Maybe it’s just my own paranoia but I for one am keeping a close eye on this whole thing. I’m not scared, but I am aware.

Best way I heard the Tea Party described was like this: How many tea partiers does it take to change a lightbulb? Ten million and five: One to buy a lightbulb, one to call Obama a racist, one to misspell a rally poster, one to complain about the socialist conspiracy, one to change the bulb, and 10 million to sit in the dark even though the light is on. What the hell is up with that?

Fish is the morning talent on Classic Hits 92.7 FM. He also offers up his opinion on-line at www.whatdahell.net. E-mail him at fish@wkvt.com.