The Tea Party:American Culture at the Breaking Point

Although I believe that the Fed is correct to have another round of Quantitative Easing (QE), it is unfortunate that they chose to highlight what is essentially a "coupon pass" and is standard monetary policy by the Fed and give it a new name.

QEII will only benefit the banks-as it should for the moment. Despite the fact that their earnings currently lead many to believe that the banking system is fine, the truth is that they are actually under extreme duress. Without a healthy banking system there will be no progress on the unemployment front, and that is what the Fed has in its sights, even if they are having to attack it indirectly.

The Fed has two mandates: To effectively promote stability of the currency and to maximise employment.

There are many who would argue that the second mandate, granted by the 95th Congress in 1977 is an example of "big government". I would not only disagree with them, but would wholeheartedly attack them for that is the catechism of the Republican Party and their idiot cousins the Tea Party.

Big Government means regulation and oversight to combat the excesses of the profit motive of extreme capitalism. The dismemberment of Regulation and the demonising of the Social Contract inherent in the "Great Society" has been the heartbeat of the right-wing ideologues begun by Reagan and personified by GW and Cheney. What is amazing is how the Republican party has been successful in brainwashing large swathes of the American population through their media arm (FoxNews)to essentially vote against themselves.

This has been one of the great political feats of the last quarter of a century with a brief respite of Clinton and now Obama.

But the march goes on, this time picked up by the Tea Party who are hypocritical and ignorant in the extreme. They rant and rave, fueled by a religiously driven hate and anger to anyone or anything perceived not to be on their side. Perceived, for their perception is reality, regardless of the facts.

They rail against the government, while maximising their Medicare usage. They rail against the government while receiving extended unemployment benefits and Social Security payments. They forget what happened yesterday twisting historical facts to fit with a belief system predicated on blatant lies and revisionism. They would destroy America to achieve their warped utopia. That is the problem. They base everything on their belief system, and you can't argue with the fervent.