WTF is the Tea Party Movement? Is it Libertarian?

[extropalopakettle]

While libertarian Ron Paul is recognized as having been instrumental in starting the Tea Party movement, the current cast of characters, both candidates and followers, gathering under the Tea Party umbrella, seem pretty much right-wing conservative, not libertarian. Yet I still often see the Tea Party characterized as "Libertarian". WTF is going on?

[Death Mage]

[raekuul]

From what I understand, the Tea Party movement is like Libertarianism in a few aspects, but not enough of them to be "truly" libertarian. The main focus of the Tea Partiers is to get Government to shrink, which will result in more personal liberty for everyone not presently on welfare or foodstamps. Libertarianism is the other way around - where Tea Party Liberty is a nice side-effect, Libertarianism sets it as the ultimate goal.

[extropalopakettle]

[Death Mage]

Marijuana needed a better PR firm. I mean, tobacco and alcohol get away with it - alcohol even made it into the Constitution, twice (once to remove it, once to remove THAT), but Marijuana gets banned, and ties up HOW much in the courts etc.? It's a bit incongruous.
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[Gomez*]

The vast majority of Tea Partiers are just former Bush supporters crusading under a new banner. They're libertarian to the extent that they ever were. If I were looking to quantify their libertarian pedigree, I would conclude that they were, by and large, 'pick 'n mix' libertarians. They cheerfully adopt those planks of the traditional libertarian platform that they can easily shoehorn into their existing worldview, and then disregard the rest. If they were genuine libertarians, Ron Paul would be the front runner for the GOP nomination.

There are numerous instances in which Tea Partiers have behaved in a way which belied their libertarian pretensions. The most recent was at the recent GOP debate, where the assembled audience, the vast bulk of whom were Tea Partiers, enthusiastically applauded Rick Perry's utterly horrific admission to rubberstamping the executions of over 235 convicted prisoners.

I can't imagine a genuine libertarian getting behind capital punishment. It does, after all, represent a vast overreach of government power. I know that Ron Paul isn't the emperor of all libertarians, but for what it's worth he has recently spoken out against it.

So yeah...Tea Party? Libertarian? Not so much.

[Pablo]

[Gomez]

[Pablo]

Just adding emphasis.... in agreement.
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All religions are the same - Guilt....just with different holidays.

[Thok]

I generally feel like the Tea Party wants everybody to sacrifice but themselves, while libertarians want everybody to leave everybody else alone for the most part.

[Pablo]

Tea Party Platform
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All religions are the same - Guilt....just with different holidays.

[Pablo]

Gomez,
In case I wasn't clear, I was equally horrified at the audience reaction to the mention of capital punishment. Even if I supported the practice, which I don't, I would still have been horrified. Even those who believe capital punishment is just should feel remorse over the need for it.
_________________
All religions are the same - Guilt....just with different holidays.

[Death Mage]

[extropalopakettle]

[Pablo]

[Pablo]

[Death Mage]

[Pablo]

To me, the death penalty is absolutely linked to our tendency to murder each other. Consequently, it's not something I would celebrate, even if I thought it was effective in deterring such murder, and even if I thought it was moral.
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All religions are the same - Guilt....just with different holidays.