Socialist-free Purity Pledge

A liberal woman attended an astroturf tea party in Brighton, MI. Why was one of those held in Brighton, of all places? Short answer: It's near, but not in, Howell, long the Michigan home of the Klan. Our intrepid woman filed a long report in which she attempts to interview (jerk the chain of) several of the attendees with varying success.

For those not in the know, an astroturf event is one in which the organizers bring in participants in an attempt to make it seem like a grass-roots demonstration.

How do we know she was a liberal? Her shirt said:

Don't like liberals? Fine. Then give us back… Our clean air and water standards, worker safety protections, the 40 hour work week, the social security program, the civil rights movement, … the school lunch program, … employee health benefits, … the Voting Rights Act…

The list is much longer. But I think the average teabagger attendee probably doesn't want most of those things and remains justified in their hatred of liberals.

Ah, but there is another way to express the issue. Here is the Socialist-free Purity Pledge. The person who signs it vows to keep away from anything that has a whiff of socialism, including:

* Social Security
* Medicare
* Police, Fire, Emergency Services
* US Postal Service
* Roads and Highways
* Highway rest areas
* Air Travel (regulated by that socialist FAA)
* Public schools
* Sesame Street
* Libraries
* The Grand Canyon
* City Garbage and Recycling services
* Byproducts of NASA, such as duct tape
* Email
* Government subsidized produce and crops
* VA benefits
* Government operated Statue of Liberty
* The US Military

Again, the whole list is much longer.