As you may know, the tea or T.E.A. (“taxed enough already”) party was started when a financial journalist went on a rant on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Rick Santelli said we need a new Chicago tea party (link) as a protest against taxpayer funding to bail out banks and homeowners in the 2008 financial crisis. The defining point was the image and symbol of the Boston Tea Party as a protest against authority, taxation without representation, and the fact that Party also means a political party, so the dual symbolism had traction and resonance. It was luck, but the Tea Party was born, and the original symbolism was hijacked to become a focal point for right wing extremism.
We need a similar party, to fight the Tea Party and Trumpism. We need to start this party with a rant, a symbol, and thus something to rally around and against. We clearly have something to rally against: the tea party, trump himself, and trumpism, which can be defined as the combined cognitive dissonance of cowtowing to a billionaire while professing populism, and claiming the moral high ground by following an immoral leader, and by the Trump Effect of the misogyny, racism, violence, xenophobia and hate caused by trumpism, initiated by trump, dog-sirened (not whistled), and encouraged by trump. We clearly have something to rally around, the symbol and the idea of love and compassion for our fellow man, as an exact opposite and counter to hate. They have weaponized hate, we will weaponize love. But, we will no longer be meek. We will fight for what is clearly right and regain and retain the moral and political high ground and reverse the scourge of trumpism in our land.
So, here is my rant that I hope will spark the LOVE Party:
<RANT>
I'm tired of the right-wing claiming this is their country and they are going to "take it back". No, this is our country, all Americans, and We the People are going to take it back from the plutocrats and theocrats, and from the right-wing coup that took it from the People.
I'm tired of taxation without representation - Democrats in blue states are taxed like everyone else, yet a larger proportion of our taxes goes to red states. I'm tired of my vote, which is my representation, being diluted by the Electoral College and gerrymandering. The tea party claims they are taxed enough already - bullshit, I say, WE are taxed enough already, and not represented enough already. Maybe there’s a remedy here for a legal battle against the EC and gerrymandering, “taxation without representation” — it worked for the moral basis for the American Revolution, maybe it can work again?
I'm tired of the RW trashing welfare recipients while red states receive much more federal funding from blue states, a direct transfer of wealth and welfare for red states.
I'm tired of the right-wing blaming welfare recipients out of one side of their mouth for taking their tax dollars and out of the other, not wanting to pay a living wage to all who want to and are able to work.
I'm tired of the RW complaints about activist judges while they have benefitted from the 2000 Bush v Gore decision, Citizens United, Voting Rights Act dilution, etc.
I'm tired of the right-wing hiring their undocumented workers (UDW) as nannies and gardeners, frequenting Mexican restaurants, and in fact, most restaurants that use low-wage UDW, while they hire the same UDW to work their construction jobs and then complain about “illegal immigrants”.
I'm tired of the hypocrisy and hate of the right-wing Christians who say that marriage equality and homosexuality are sins while they have sons, daughters, nieces, nephews, uncles and aunts who are LGBTQ, and then go and enthusiastically vote for the thrice-married adulterer and sexual predator trump.
I'm tired of the the RW hate for the “other”, for their inability to rise above their upbringing, for their tribal nature, for their theocratic, non-tax-paying, politicized churches (pdf) that preach that Democrats are inherently evil, for their pushing of authoritarian ponzi schemes like Amway in their churches (link), for their blind allegiance to sports teams where they subjugate their individuality by wearing the same clothes as their tribe/team (a direct sign of the rise of authoritarianism in our country - it used to be only the real fanatics dressed in their team's colors, now it is expected behavior).
I'm tired of this knot in my stomach I've had since June 2015 when trump got done taking a trump on his gold plated toilet, and came down his gilded escalator to start his 1 1/2 year-long trump dump on Mexicans, women, Muslims, the disabled, people of color, and everyone else he has disparaged.
I'm sick and tired of the RW terminology such as libtard, cuckservative, etc. This is from the "values" party.
I'm sick of the fact that 62 people own as much as the poorest half of the world (down from 388 in 2010).
I'm sick that 42% of women voted for trump.
I'm sick that the Earth is sick, and getting sicker each year, and that the RW knows it, knows it is caused by mankind, but doesn’t care, because brown people will be most affected.
I'm sick that the Democratic party has no cohones, and didn't fight the recount or Electoral College battles.
I’m sick of the Clintons and their stupid mistakes that were a slap in the face to Democratic supporters, and that made them easy prey for the RW (sex in the oval office, private email server, etc). I’m sick that they will attend the inauguration.
I'm already sick of the Trump Effect, which we know will only get worse on January 21st.
I'm tired of people of normal intelligence believing every crap email they receive, or fake news site or meme they get pointed to, that Obama is a Muslim because curtains, or Hillary is going to death-tax family farms out of existence, etc. They have been hate-radicalized and this hate must stop. They believe what they want in their bubbles because of this hate. They must be shown a different, loving and compassionate path.
I'm sick of RW seniors, who, being saved by what must be miraculous cures to them compared to what they grew up with, all paid by Medicare, vote for the Paul Ryan’s and trumps of the world, take their Medicare benefits, no questions asked, and then bash Obamacare. They would be bankrupt and/or dead without Medicare, and now want to kill Medicare as well - I guess they must hate their own children.
I'm tired of privatized prisons, toll roads, fees at city parks, all other signs of privatization and/or exploitation of our public assets.
I'm tired of cities selling off their last remaining green spaces for private development.
I'm tired of universities shafting students for a dirty dollar.
I'm tired of State legislatures shafting universities.
I'm tired of ALEC, the Koch brothers, and their hubris. How dare they think that because they have a ton of money they know better and believe in a feudal way that they can dictate legislation? I'm sick and tired of Citizens United.
I'm sick to my stomach of the concept that only people that own property should be allowed to vote, pushed by Bannon (link), since they have "skin in the game". What hubris. What hate. What lack of compassion for those whose literal skin is really in the game of life: poverty, hunger, eviction, sickness or death.
I'm sick and tired of people trashing unions out of one side of their mouths, and saying the "union bosses" are just getting welfare from them, and want the "right" to work, haha, and saying the union "pukes" should better themselves and take a night class, etc., and then, vote for Big Daddy Warbucks trump who they think is going to print money for them and let them stay in their dying towns and communities by getting rid of the (non-existent) Mexicans and bringing back all those jobs that went to robots.
I'm tired of these same people shopping at Walmart instead of boycotting it to save their small mom-and-pop stores. I'm sick of the irony of them buying things there that are marked Made in China.
I'm sick of the people who blame everyone but themselves for their addictions, knowing full well that only Democrats have plans they need for mental healthcare.
I'm sick of these same people giving lip service to religion while committing sins against their families and themselves, all the while trashing the “godless” liberals.
I'm sick and appalled that our unpresident-elect retweeted a meme of him as Pepe the frog (link). Pepe is a white supremacist symbol. David Duke tweets pics of Pepe all the time. This is not normal. I'm tired of the "new" normal. The normalization of this weird swamp creature who says he will drain his own habitat, is not normal and must be resisted and called out at every opportunity. I'm sick of the people who look the other way, who just say "we are not electing a pope, just a president". Jerry Falwell, I'm looking at you (link). Bullshit I say. And bullshit to the media for covering him as a normal candidate, and now as a normal president-elect.
I'm tired of the professional politicians, the million- and billionaires running our government. I'm proud of Evan McMullin for running for president - don't agree with his policies, but we need more citizens like him to run for office.
I'm tired of the terms "moral" or "silent" majority. The truth is, WE are the moral majority, we are the ones who really follow the great religions of the world's teachings to take care of those less fortunate than us. WE are the ones that follow humanistic policies to take care of those around us, and as Christopher Hitchens said, we do indeed have a care for the morrow, whereas the evangelicals, since they turn over all responsibility to Jesus, give up responsibility for themselves and those around them. This is from the "individual responsibility" party.
WE are the silent majority.
WE need to speak up with our voices, our values, our dollars, our votes.
</RANT>
Indivisible
Recently, this guide (dK diary) has been released detailing the methodology used by the Tea Party in largely defeating or slowing the Obama Agenda. It is now up to us to oppose and stop the Trump Agenda using this guide. The signs are horrible, just like the following:
- Kurt Eichenwald attacked
- white nationalist Bannon “we will govern for 50 years”
- build the wall video
- Hannity painting
- FADA Cruz
I'm soliciting ideas for the acronym LOVE, with "V" probably standing for Votes, Voting, or Values:
- Love (and compassion), Opportunity, Voting, Equality
- Liberals Organized for Voting Equality
- Limited Our Votes Enough
- Let Our Votes count Equally
- Liberate Our Votes Equally
You get the idea.
Suggested slogans:
- Take our country back
- We are America
- People First
- One American, One Vote
- America for All
Suggested protest signs:
- any of the above slogans
- Take Your Small Hands off my Obamacare/Medicare
- Non-Billionaires for Peace
- Oops, I forgot which agency I'm heading and about to destroy?
- United States of Exxon/Trump
Start a group of LOVE Party regulars in your neighborhood, or in your social media encounters (start a LOVE Party Facebook group, get creative), using the Indivisible guide. Meet in your local library, or, meet in your home. Everybody should bring some canned food for your local food bank, or clothing or money for charity, remember, this is the LOVE Party, and part of this is to do good for the less fortunate. Occupy your local representatives' offices, write letters, emails, call, follow the guide to activism posted above.
The LOVE Party Manifesto
The LOVE Party:
- is not a political party, it is not in conflict with, but coexists in harmony with the Democratic Party
- exists to take our country back from right-wing extremists
- is an organic, grassroots organization
- is nonviolent
- is against gerrymandering by political parties, and for redistricting by bipartisan citizen committees
- is for the concept of One American, One Vote
- believes Voting is our most sacred right and duty
- believes Donald J Trump, his supporters and the current Republican Party are an existential threat to the Constitution of the United States of America and calls on all patriots to defend the Constitution, especially those who have pledged to do so in the military or in government
- is proudly progressive and proud to support progressive causes
- believes in love and compassion for the less fortunate
