Republican "Tea bagging":

Republican "Tea bagging":

I am becoming both fascinated and appalled at this phenomenon. It has a certain attraction to me as a liberal/progressive like -- for me -- the hobby of following and hating Rush Limbaugh. I mean, you KNOW how patently absurd what he says is, but it's a phenomenon, right? There are some twenty percent of Americans who are true followers of this man! And the same thing seems to be happening with the Tea Parties.

But at the same time, when I consider the Tea Parties and tea bagging as someone who loves liberalism, who has volunteered for Democratic campaigns, who takes politcs very seriously, the whole phenomenon seems to me to trivialize politics, because they are taking their objections to the Obama administration and the stimulus and making a joke, a spectacle out of them. Tea Bagging and Tea Parties, are, sadly, the best methodology, the primary means of political dialogue, the highest level of political debate and discourse, that a supposedly serious and major political party has embraced as its semi-official means of expression in opposition to the Obama administration.

 Personally, I am amused, but appalled, and I felt like making some kind of symbolic, equally frivolous gesture to express my disgust in some kind of snarky way. I mean, I don't know whether to die laughing or just turn off the TV for a few days. For entertainment, watch the delightful discussion on Tea Bagging by Rachel Maddow, here. (It's also on my own Evans Politics Videos page, here.)

So, in keeping with the intellectually robust, politically rigorous manner in which the loyal Republican opposition has chosen to institute a lively political discourse upon the major, important issues of the day, I decided to offer Daily Kos readers a humorous poll on it. The point of the largely-frivolous choices for answers was to trivialize Tea Parties and Tea bagging, as they have trivialized the political process and the Republcian Party. This sort of thing is a traditon on Saturdays at Daily Kos. You could have chosen any of these answers and you wouldn't have been wrong. And that's the whole point: It doesn't matter what you think about it, because the whole thing is a joke, is laughable and frivolous. (Except when you consider that both a large segment of the population as well as the mainstream media are taking it seriously.) Here are the results after the voting has largely finished (319 votes so far):

Republican "Tea bagging":

* Might actually gain them some traction and will be (sadly) all over the mainstream media -- until two days after Tax Day
(14% -- 47 votes)

* Let's be plain: it's just the most stupid thing I have ever heard of, no need to elaborate
(13% -- 43 votes)

* A desperate move conceived by increasingly desperate, delusional imbeciles
(36% -- 115 votes)

* A national joke within a National Joke
(31% -- 100 votes)

* I drink coffee, I wouldn't know
(4% -- 14 votes)

So let's vote here at OpEd News and see if we agree where We stand on this highly intellectual, politically rigorous means of expression. What do YOU think of tea bagging???

Might actually gain them some traction and will be (sadly) all over the mainstream media
       9% from 7 votes  
Let's be plain; it's just the most stupid thing I have ever heard of, no need to elaborate
       3% from 2 votes  
A desperate move conceived by increasingly desperate, delusional imbeciles
       66% from 49 votes  
A national joke within a National Joke
       15% from 11 votes  
I drink coffee, I wouldn't know
       7% from 5 votes  

    74 votes    Vote               View Demographics Cross-Tab Results

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