One of the reasons the Tea Party caught on at all is that many of its members were leading marginal lives and some of their more persuasive voices articulated their disaffection and it took the form of anger against the government.
We all know the government makes mistakes, but if you are going to be angry, then get your facts straight, and this they did not do
.
People gain prestige when they are angry, or so they think. Anger gives the impression that you are not a fool, that you know when someone is trying to sell you something rotten. Many admire those who seem to be “telling it like it is” except they weren’t, they were just scratching their victimhood itch and everyone starting doing it.

Adding to this aura of martyrdom was an underlying racism that only receded a little during the 2008 miracle. When Obama did not solve all our problems the day after his inaugural, racism, never really gone, resurfaced and it was easy to blame the black guy and we were wrong to trust that he would change things.

The Republican party, ever alert to the usefulness of pressing emotional buttons to persuade people to vote against their interests, took advantage of the racism, took advantage of failed lives, took advantage of those who don’t look into things because it is easier to let the flim-flam man tell you how it is. The flim-flam man plays the God card and tells you Democrats are evil because they believe in self-determination about private accommodations that harm no one. They tell you it is okay to think gays will destroy your family, as if you are just sitting around and suddenly a gay guy seduces your wife or “turns” your son. They tell you that life begins with a man’s erection. (I borrowed this from a Bill Maher monologue.)

The flim-flam man makes me feel good because he tells me my anger is righteous. I feel so righteous that I vote for him and suddenly all the social programs that I have been against are cut and I am worse off than before. Suddenly, the flim-flammers are removing the right to collective bargaining, and jumping back into the bedrooms of America, where they so definitely do not belong.

The moral majority (remember that phrase?) is worried that its grandchildren are going to bear the burden of U.S. overspending and do not even think about the fact that the wealthy could solve the budget by giving back their undeserved tax cuts. The middle and lower classes are financing the budget and the rich guy buys another villa in France. We ought not worry about the financial woes to come for our grandchildren. The little darlings are going to keel over on a planet whose air will not be breathable because Republicans are busy eliminating restrictions against pollution in order to protect corporate profits. The kids won’t live long enough to pay for today’s “mistakes”.

In their determination to regain power, the Republicans encourage prejudice and fear, and the American people buy it because it "feels so good" and it means we are not responsible for any of it. Incidentally, as one of the American people always referred to, I do not buy any of this. I am waiting for the flim-flammers to discover me.

Obama has been criticized as being ineffectual. This perception comes from the fact that he never appears to be angry, preferring the reasoned approach and believing in the spirit of cooperation. One of the reasons Obama’s leadership is questioned is that he never approaches anything in anger. If he gets angry, he does not show it. I think he should learn to use anger as a tool in his arsenal. Cold anger is most useful.

xx, Teal.