Tax Day protests...

I can't express how sick and tired I am of hearing the liberal media and my liberal acquaintances tell me that the "Tea Party" is an extremist movement against high taxes.

While I haven't attended or helped organize a Tea Party, I did go to watch one unfold in Scranton, PA back in 2008. It was very calm, very friendly, and focused almost exclusively on "fiscal responsibility" and not on the elimination, or even the reduction of taxes. I understand the necessity of taxes, and while I don't support every tax I'm asked to pay, I know that many are vital and necessary for the society I live in. Since its inception during the election run of '08, the Tea Party movement has called for an accountability in government spending and an adherence to Constitutional guidelines for the structuring and running of our government.

What is "extremist" about that? What is so wrong with asking that the government stop interfering with business and financial matters at the most basic and fundamental levels? What is wrong with asking the President and Congress to explain and detail the manner and means by which the money the Feds get from my taxes is spent? Furthermore, what is wrong with my exercising my First Amendment right to voice my opinions in the manner I see fit about how that money is being spent?

Even a cursory glance at the news that is reported about the tax day protests shows that no actual calls for the elimination of taxes, or even stark and loud complaints about current tax levels, can be found. People aren't upset at the prospect of paying taxes on April 15th (at least not anymore than they have been since the institution of the IRS). They are complaining about the direction the nation is taking under liberal leadership, and the prospect that our already high taxes will be forced higher in the future because of unwise or unwanted spending now.

So, Mr. Obama can deride the Tea Party ideals in his speeches all he wants, but I did NOT see a reduction in my tax bill this year, my return was NOT 10% larger than it was in 2008, and I am still waiting for a detailed, comprehensive explanation as to WHY the Federal deficit has very nearly tripled in size since the end of fiscal year '08, with no clear and measurable means to pay that debt off. I want someone to explain to me why my tax bill next year WILL increase, by as much as 7%, but I will receive no benefit from that increase until 2013, by which time I hope and pray that the entire fiasco has been repealed and put to bed.

I know I'm preaching to the choir here... I expect no actual rebuttal or debate. What I am doing is voicing my frustration at the prospect of having to continue to listen to the smug and dismissive language coming from the leadership in the White House and Congress about how my opinions are "extremist" and "out-of-touch" with reality, while the fantasy-based schemes of the liberal Left continue to keep the nation from the level of prosperity that it should be experiencing even now.

That's HOPE and CHANGE, I guess...