Contract from idiots

Every time the Tea Party movement comes to my immediate area, ridicule of these racist hypocrites sets the tone of this blog for days to come - and the past few days have been no exception.

Now this so-called "grassroots" movement has teamed up with Newt Gingrich, Steve Forbes, and Grover Norquist to release what they call their (drum roll, please) Contract From America.

Seriously, they're calling it that.

And I bet they printed it up using the Chicago font, huh?

I know when I think of "grassroots" activists, I think of Steve Forbes. (That's sarcasm, people.)

What does the Tea Party's Contract From America consist of? The first "bedrock principle" in this document says every bill in Congress shall identify the specific provision in the Constitution that authorizes the bill.

Then what part of the Constitution authorizes the Patriot Act (which the Tetley Tyrants generally support)? What part of the Constitution authorizes Congress to censor library Internet access (another law with strong Republican support)?

But the fourth plank in their Contract From America proposes gutting the system of progressive taxation and replacing it with a flat tax that forces the poor to pay as much as the rich. Under this plank, the tax code would also be required to be replaced with one that is no longer than the original Constitution.

This actually violates the first plank of their own "contract"! What provision of the Constitution limits the tax code to less than 5,000 words? So much for "bedrock principles", huh?

The Constitution is effective because of its brevity, which lays the foundation for fair and purposeful governance. That's why no government system has ever been as durable as America's constitutional republic.

A progressive tax structure has been a mainstay of probably all modern democratic republics. Through most of the 20th century, it helped keep prices relatively low even while most working-class Americans still had enough money after tax day.

The only thing the Contract From America proves is that the Tea Parties represent the financially well-off who think hoarding wealth at the expense of society is a constitutional right.