"Where did it come from? It’s the result of the recession and the tremendous rage that seizes Americans when they think of the behavior of their elites. … and it’s the fear of a loss of American 'values,' from the end of its role as a model envied by the whole world, to leading pointless and bloody wars, and a realization that debt and deficits render illusory a dream once thought to be eternal."
There is drinking and eating
in the Tea Party.As has happened before, it
took time for this movement, which short-circuits the traditional American
parties while claiming to set up a direct line between voters and the authorities,
to be taken seriously.Today, though it may
yet be crushed in the November elections, the Tea Party stands out as the only new
force in America.
Where did it come from? It’s
the result of the recession and the tremendous rage that seizes Americans when
they think of the behavior of their elites. It is also a consequence of the
financial crises, bank rescues and financial excesses that caused millions of
people to lose their jobs. Lastly, it’s the fear of a loss of American 'values,' from the end of its role as a model envied by the whole world, to leading pointless and bloody wars, and a realization that debt and deficits render illusory a dream once thought to be eternal.
Somehow, the emergence of the
Tea Party is the cry of agony from the American middle class, driven into poverty
while the wealthiest people in the country have never been as well-off. The
inconsistencies of the Tea Party political agenda are also evident in the
ignorance of some of its leaders, dispensing populism, demagoguery and sometimes
outright lies like it was second nature. Despite its good-natured facade and the
reassuring character of this popular uprising, racism, and extremism are
sometimes all too present.
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
However, this American
populist surge shouldn't appear so far fetched to us. It echoes the rise of the
extreme right in several European countries, from The Netherlands to Sweden. The
same economic crises occurred here, and similar fears have emerged. America, which
proclaims itself as exceptional - and in many ways it is - seems today to be
caught up in the same dream of “original purity,” and therefore, exclusion; and
by way of the same denial of reality.
