Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
I understand that the Arizona Daily Star is finally going to get around to covering the Tucson City Council races — well, kinda.
The Star's lame idea of covering the City Council races amounts to having reporter Tim Steller hang out with the teabaggers of Tucson Tea Party at their "Tucson’s Last Stand" shindig for the GOP Tucson City Council candidates. Blog: Are Tucson 'Tea Partiers' hype or the real deal? (The Theme is taken from Glenn Beck's use of the Alamo as a "last stand." Yeah, they were all killed or executed, Glenn. Not the imagery I think you were going for. He's not the brightest bulb.)
Since the Republican City Council candidates have voluntarily closely aligned themselves with the teabaggers of the Tucson Tea Party, it is only "fair and balanced" that the local news media inquire into the candidates' beliefs and with which of the various and sundry fringe groups that make up the teabagger protesters they identify:
Birthers? (Obama is not a natural born U.S. citizen)
Deathers? (Obama's health care reforms include "death panels" to euthanize Grandma)
Tenthers? (states can disregard federal law – nullification – and can secede from the union)
Militias? (sedition and armed rebellion against the "morally bankrupt" United States)
Obama is a secret Muslim (who wants to convert "Christian America" to Islam)
Obama is a (choose one:) socialist, communist, marxist, or my personal favorite, the anti-Christ
Obama is Hitler (be sure to spot the Nazi posters)
If the Republican City Council candidates are going to so closely align themselves with the fringe elements of the far right, voters have a right to know what they believe.
And what about those "core Republican values" like "no new taxes" and no "unfunded mandates"? How does this square with their support for the Public Safety First Initiative (Prop. 200)? The candidates concede Prop. 200 is an unfunded mandate – a mortal sin in "Reagan Country."
The Republican candidates are refusing to answer questions about what specific programs and expenditures they propose to eliminate from the City budget. Here's a hint: there is approximately $13 million in "discretionary" expenditures in the budget. Even if they were to eliminate all discretionary spending, how do they plan to get to the $67 million price tag for this unfunded mandate estimated by the independent audit commission? The voters have a right to know. Stop giving these candidates a pass. Don't take that "we'll grow our way out of it" when the economy recovers crap for an answer.
Make them produce to you the economic studies and projections upon which they base this economic assertion. Don't have any? Didn't think so. Wishful thinking and faith-based economics is not a plan.
Even if the economy recovers, they will have to raise taxes to pay for this unfunded mandate. Doesn't that violate the first commandment of the modern Republican Party – "no new taxes"? (BTW: Every Republican president except George W. Bush raised taxes.)
And who are these candidates beholden to? Are they going to make policy decisions based upon what some radio clown like John Justice wants to pontificate about? Are SAHBA, Tucson Realtors Association, Tucson New Car Dealers Association, etc., going to be an unelected and unaccountable "advisory" city council? (OK, they already are, I'll concede that one).
It's time to start asking these Republican candidates the hard questions that they should have to answer. Stop giving these candidates a pass. We don't need another candy-ass fluff piece from the Arizona Daily Star about teabaggers. There's an election, damnit!
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Well, Thane, it is you who has an annoying habit of parsing words and focusing on a single word to distract attention from addressing the argument made. It’s an old charlatan’s trick. You do not address any of the points made in the post, so clearly you have nothing of importance to say, per usual.
Curious. I’ve lived in Tucson since 1963 and I cannot recall any city council, Democrat or Republican, telling me how to live or how to raise kids.
You apparently have created a boogeyman on which to project your insecurities and fears. Demonizing city government will not solve your problems.
If you don’t want your kids in TUSD there are plenty of parochial and private schools available – with tax credits available, no less. Stop whining.
A movement that is not organized is an oxymoron. Of course, so are the so-called anarchists who tend to be highly organized. “Its a mixed up muddled up shook up world…”
To quote Forrest Gump: “Stupid is as stupid does.” I don’t participate in protests because I have never seen the utility in shouting into the wind out of anger, and offering no serious, thoughtful and practical solutions. Just shouting “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!” is just a lot of “sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
You can continue using slang terms instead of focusing on real arguments, it isn’t up to me.
The last 8 years of the Bush regime I was under the impression that issues were important, not name calling. I may have to review the last 8 years though, maybe I was under the wrong impression.
The term “teabagger” was originally used by this so-called movement itself earlier this year until someone pointed out to them the more common urban slang reference for a sexual act. Too bad.
If you want to persuade those independent thinkers of Arizona I would think you would be better off describing the opposition factually instead of using terms like teabagger. One might presume the use of deprecatory terms implies that your arguments aren’t very solid in the first place.
I’m just sayin.