Even the very NAME of the TEA Party is a lie ... or at best a misrepresentation

The followers of the TEA Party love to say that their party was founded on the principles that they are "Taxed Enough Already", and say that this is what the TEA Partiers in Boston were all about.

However, the TEA Partiers in Boston were not actually protesting the LEVEL of taxation. They were actually protesting the fact that the King of England set their tax rates, and that they had no representation in the English Government to counter taxation rulings.

The Boston TEA Party was never about the AMOUNT of taxation. It was about "taxation without representation". From Wikipedia "The Tea Party was the culmination of a resistance movement throughout British America against the Tea Act, which had been passed by the British Parliament in 1773. Colonists objected to the Tea Act because they believed that it violated their rights as Englishmen to "No taxation without representation," that is, be taxed only by their own elected representatives and not by a British parliament in which they were not represented. Protesters had successfully prevented the unloading of taxed tea in three other colonies, but in Boston, embattled Royal Governor Thomas Hutchinson refused to allow the tea to be returned to Britain."

However, the extreme right wing will have their followers believe that they called themselves the TEA Party because they think the levels of taxation are way to high, and they want a smaller Government.

Massive misrepresentation, even just based in the NAME of the organization.

Taxed Enough Already!!

But let me collect my Social Security, Medicaid, drive on public roads, send my kids to public schools and use public hospitals!

reply to post by babybunnies


there is a bit more to it than that.

the East India trading company was getting preferential treatment by the English Government and was forcing the American colony to purchase from them. Furthermore....American companies were being targeted by higher taxes.....yes "higher" taxes on exporting tea and other items out of India and into the Americas than the English company.

secondly....the English Government as setting up military posts to the west to coral the settlers in on the east coast. This was done because as the settlers moved west....they would kill the native Americans as they went along. So the crown was actually doing something good there in trying to protect the indigenous peoples but.....but, England needed a way to pay for these outposts and the men stationed there.....so this came back to the taxes being levied on the colonists....they were being forced to pay taxes to pay for guys to block them from going west.

Aren't most Tea Party protesters on Social Security and Medicare?

Highly ironic

reply to post by UxoriousMagnus


But again, not really protesting the LEVEL of taxation, just what their tax money was being used for and who was levying it.

They weren't upset at HOW MUCH they were being taxed, even if the levels were higher, they were upset about taxation without representation.

muse7
Taxed Enough Already!!

But let me collect my Social Security, Medicaid, drive on public roads, send my kids to public schools and use public hospitals!

Social security and medicare - paid for by you....your entire working life so that at the end of your life it is there to use.
public roads....paid for by gas tax
public schools...paid for by property tax
public hospitals....?

reply to post by babybunnies


Americans should get sent a list of what our money was spent on yearly, or even every quarter or 6 months....Setup a website with receipts and I would be happy! I want to know where my money is going and if I don't agree with their spending, I can protest or file a complaint online...

That isn't that much to ask for, is it? Why can't this be done? Because they don't want us to know where OUR money is going....It is a joke!!

muse7
Aren't most Tea Party protesters on Social Security and Medicare?

Highly ironic

edit on 2/7/2014 by muse7 because: (no reason given)

Aren't most of your posts based on assumptions?

Highly ironic.

muse7
Aren't most Tea Party protesters on Social Security and Medicare?

Highly ironic

edit on 2/7/2014 by muse7 because: (no reason given)

Highly Ironic and exponentially moronic!

babybunnies
reply to post by UxoriousMagnus

 

But again, not really protesting the LEVEL of taxation, just what their tax money was being used for and who was levying it.

They weren't upset at HOW MUCH they were being taxed, even if the levels were higher, they were upset about taxation without representation.

edit on 7-2-2014 by babybunnies because: addtl info

I am not a Tea Party member but it just feels like you are trying to demonize them for no other reason than to demonize them.....I think most tea party people are good people who don't like the direction the country is going and also feel we are taxed to high.....because we really don't have any representation in D.C.

LeatherNLace

muse7
Aren't most Tea Party protesters on Social Security and Medicare?

Highly ironic

edit on 2/7/2014 by muse7 because: (no reason given)

Highly Ironic and exponentially moronic!

that is fake....but nice try

muse7
Taxed Enough Already!!

But let me collect my Social Security, Medicaid, drive on public roads, send my kids to public schools and use public hospitals!

Do you mean that social security, and medicare that employers, and the rest of us are paying, plus when they don't have the cash to pay for in the first place their go to answer is raising taxes.

Them public roads. that property taxes, toll road taxes, and fuel taxes, and lottery is suppose to pay for ?

Same with them 'public schools' property taxes again pay for those as well as the other taxes already listed.

Same with them TAXES listed previously that all pay for those.

The more value a persons home has the more they pay in those TAXES.

The more money a person makes means they are paying more TAXES by sales, and income TAX.


Yeah people are TAXED ENOUGH ALREADY.

But hey 'mocking the 'TPM' makes people feel better about the endless taxation in this country, and some people are fed up with government taking what they want then go blow it.

Then rinsing, and repeating.

Alrightie then.

babybunnies
The followers of the TEA Party love to say that their party was founded on the principles that they are "Taxed Enough Already", and say that this is what the TEA Partiers in Boston were all about.

However, the TEA Partiers in Boston were not actually protesting the LEVEL of taxation. They were actually protesting the fact that the King of England set their tax rates, and that they had no representation in the English Government to counter taxation rulings.

The Boston TEA Party was never about the AMOUNT of taxation. It was about "taxation without representation". From Wikipedia "The Tea Party was the culmination of a resistance movement throughout British America against the Tea Act, which had been passed by the British Parliament in 1773. Colonists objected to the Tea Act because they believed that it violated their rights as Englishmen to "No taxation without representation," that is, be taxed only by their own elected representatives and not by a British parliament in which they were not represented. Protesters had successfully prevented the unloading of taxed tea in three other colonies, but in Boston, embattled Royal Governor Thomas Hutchinson refused to allow the tea to be returned to Britain."

However, the extreme right wing will have their followers believe that they called themselves the TEA Party because they think the levels of taxation are way to high, and they want a smaller Government.

Massive misrepresentation, even just based in the NAME of the organization.

Uh... taxation without representation? Let's see "Obamacare."

You see, the concept of a government of the people is the foundation of the Tea Party principles. To be of the Tea Party is to want small government, less tax, more representation in the central government, less government interference in personal decisions, less government regulation, and the core being the Constitution of the United States.

The Tea Party is not supposed to be the carbon copy of the Boston Tea Party, but the idea that the power of the citizenry is greater than the abusive government that seeks to enslave them is the same.

Whoops forgot to say:

Social Security, and Medicare are paid by payroll TAXES.

reply to post by babybunnies

I have a tough time with the thought that it is okay to spend trillions on war to protect corporate interests yet damn the welfare recipients, here in America, who need to buy food.

Go ahead and someone tell me that the TEA party is not doing that. I hope you’re right because that is want I want to believe. I find my comment above to be… well, unbelievable!

reply to post by babybunnies


I don't think it really matters what they are called. Does it?

They took a symbolic event from the American past and applied it to their current cause. Considering that this is not 1773, we cannot expect them to be exactly similar causes.

It's pretty obvious how far we've come as far as the spend and tax and spend government is concerned. When you take average income tax rates across the board, add state income taxes, gasoline taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, federal and state fees, well the list goes on and on it's pretty obvious we are over taxed.

Some people just want big bloated government with tons of services and freebies. What can I say? Welcome to the new Amerika.

reply to post by Devino

I have a tough time with the thought that it is okay to spend trillions on war to protect corporate interests yet damn the welfare recipients, here in America, who need to buy food.

Shouldn't we spend more on the corporate welfare industrial complex since we spend trillions on them programs like SS and Medicare, and others.

Social programs protect corporate interests.

Rob from one group to give to another group so they can go out and buy more stuff, and all that money still ends up in the same place.

The problem is the people paying taxes are now outnumbered by those getting government bennies. And once 50%+ of the majority (that votes) have the mindset of our wonderful OP here we end up with garbage like Obamacare and a completely ruined economy. But keep it up, I'm sure another 8 years of Democrat policies will turn things around.

muse7
Taxed Enough Already!!

But let me collect my Social Security, Medicaid, drive on public roads, send my kids to public schools and use public hospitals!

There won't be any Social Security by the time I get old enough to use it. If there is, it won't exist in any form we recognize.

I've never used Medicaid and don't want it.

No one in the TEA Party argues against all government. This is part of a ridiculous straw man set up by people who fear any cuts to government. If you want to cut any government, than you must want to cut all of it. False dichotomy.

I don't want to send my kid to a public school. The system is failing and corrupt and only getting worse with every passing year without massive and meaningful reform. No responsible parent should want their child in that system.

I pay for my medical care, and will only pay more now thanks to Obamacare. I use a local Catholic Hospital.

But please explain to me why I ought to pay about half of our combined annual income in taxes again so that our weekly grocery budget is so tight we are actually living the SNAP challenge?