Citizens participate in a democracy

As people who protested the Iraq War as far back as February 2003, we're aware of the MSM response. Those of us standing against the illegal war were likened to "terrorists" and called "unpatriotic" and we were "dangerous" and "unAmerican" and so much more.

So we've watched with great interest as some of the same people who were insulted in 2003 turn around and insult the Tea Party movement. They're "dangerous" and they're "fascists" and a hundred other derogatory terms.

Funny, we just thought they were American citizens who we might disagree with but who were exercising their rights in a democracy.

On the most recent Hearing Voices (NPR), the program managed to stitch together several decades of protest to demonstrate just how vibrant American democracy can be.

The problem has never been the Tea Party. The problem's been, for those of us on the left, mobilization envy. And we've behaved appalling, lashing out with attacks on people for doing what we were too lazy to do: Speak up.

Speak up and speak out.

Last week, two people on the left came forward with suggestions. Independent Political Reporter carried a piece by Kimberly and Ian Wilder about the Green Party's efforts to connect with the people in this country who are angry and may also be afraid. It makes perfect sense during record unemployment for people to be angry and to be afraid. But the left has largely ignored this and spat on those who have tried to voice their fears.

The Wilders and the Green Party made a good effort. Paul Street did not. He wants to tell you to stop mocking . . . Well he can't stop. He insults them with a dick joke, he uses homophobia. Paul Street's worthless. He's a damn liar.

Paul Street waxes on about Zowie Howie Zinnless and how Howie was so groovy and so trippy in 2008 that he said you shouldn't spend more than two minutes on the corporate candidates. But Zowie Jenkies Zinn, in fact, endorsed Barack Obama. A point that liars like Paul Street love to leave out.

And in the end it is the lies that do Street in. He wants to offer advertising tips. Don't mistake his crap for politics. He wants to tell you how to trick and fool -- like Madison Avenue.

Paul Street really thinks he's accomplishing something with his really bad article. We found his step 20 suggestion especially hilarious considering his Howard Zinn worship or is he not aware where Howard stood on that issue?

Regardless, Paul Street's another Marxist who thinks the way to get people on your side is to trick them. That's only surprising if you've missed the non-stop insults he's repeatedly hurled at Americans.

The Tea Party isn't the problem. The people expressing themselves is never a problem. The left's refusal to mount a strong and loud argument of their own is a huge problem.

What nobody's getting yet is while too much of the left play Barack Fan Club and drool over their autographed 8 x 10 glossies, the Tea Party (not just right wingers but over half of them are right wingers or right leaning) is presenting an alternative. Anyone with historical knowledge should be able to remember the morass that was the Carter presidency and how it and the left's cheerleading of Jimmy resulted in a generation of Young Republicans.

The nation's angry and has every right to be. As long as the left refuses to acknowledge that and refuses to stop insulting We The People, they are begging voters to move to the right.