A Call To Core Tea Party Members

It is no secret that I am not a fan of the Tea Party movement that has sprouted in the United States. With that said, however, I will defend their right to organize and lobby for their views. I don't have to agree with them to respect their Constitutional rights and their political views.

With that said, I implore the core Tea Party members to stand up and take control of the group. It is time for those who are rational and level-headed to exercise some tough love on the group before it spirals out of control and overrun with outrageously radical elements.

I've already discussed in a previous blog posting the need to confront the racist element (small though it may be). Now it is time to stand up to those who seem bent on pushing down a path seemingly leading to armed insurrection. News has come out of Oklahoma that Tea Party members and some legislators there want the state to authorize the creation and funding of an armed state militia and there is similar talk in a small number of other states. Though they profess only lawful and peaceful intent, one has to seriously question this. First, states already have a militia called the National Guard. Second, it is the responsibility of the federal government to provide for the protection and defense of the states. There is no reasonable need for the establishment of such state militias. One cannot deny that there are elements in the Tea Party movement that would love to promote an armed insurrection against the federal government. As a former history teacher, I can't help but see a correlation to events in the South prior to and leading up to the Civil War (a war, which incidentally, settled the issue of the supremacy of the federal government over the individual states).

So, I implore that vast majority of the Tea Party to stand up and clearly and adamantly denounce such dangerous and divisive actions. Yours is a noble movement with just causes and legitimate concerns (yes, I can say that even if I disagree with your views and methods). Do not let it be hijacked, for the consequences could be grave for the nation and the ultimate goals of the Tea Party rejected by a nation that has always ended up rejecting political parties/movements that become too radical.