Here's where I would say Jon Stewart dropped the ball...

[DaveinJapan]

At the risk of starting yet a new topic, I'm not sure I've read this commented on...it struck me as salient though.

He was talking to Rachel about Code Pink, and how she and/or MSNBC took that seriously while ridiculing the whole townhall teabag thing.

Well, he's wrong. Code Pink has a clear message and YES they're extreme in their approach but it makes sense.

The whole teabag phenomenon, I think, Stewart is claiming MSNBC should've taken more seriously.

Fuck that.

There have been PLENTY of times in history when large groups (heck, even near 50 percent of the population or worse) have been on the wrong end of justice, not to mention rationality.

WHY should the teabag thing have been taken seriously by MSNBC? Were they rational to begin with? Lower taxes? (when tax rates are historically low to begin with) Was there any other point (other than I hate Obama and I hate Democrats and I'm angry so my Bush vote didn't matter, see!)?

I think this is the issue at hand. YES, they took an election this time...bigtime...but was their cause a rational or reasonable one? DID they deserve to be taken seriously?

I say no.

[rocktivity]

1. It was Rachel who exposed the Teabaggers

for the fake grass-rooters that they were. They DESERVED ridicule from the media, not free advertising.

:headbang:
rocktivity

[DaveinJapan]

3. I do agree with you, but I also appreciate Stewart's point...

in that some of them *are* angry. Pawns? Sure.

But angry nonetheless.

His point was MSNBC shouldn't have dismissed them.

MY point is they should have (astroturf aside, though that's also a fair point rocktivity)...for the simple reason they had no valid reason to bitch about.

[JVS]

5. That's not a profound point. It was obvious they were angry.

[alsame]

8. MSNBC daytime did not dismiss them at all - the coverage

was sickening. All those town halls during the healthcare debate, the crying mothers who were afraid to let their kids hear the President's back to school speech, tea party activists as guests on the shows.

The evening shows were the ones who were skeptical about the 'grass roots' aspect and what the real motivations were, but during the day they were given an extraordinary amount of coverage and credibility.

[seabeyond]

2. see, i think that was one of his better points. disruptions we cheer, albeit

much smaller, less org, and less extreme. they are two different animals, but same point.

[DaveinJapan]

4. weren't the town hall outbursts also disruptions, though? nt

[seabeyond]

6. they were orchestrated thru big business, not grassroot, so dishonest. and yes

they were. absolutely. there is also consistency. but then you have a reality that has to be acknowledge that stewart refused to do. that is why i say, they are both right.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

7. The main issue is that the Teabag "movement" is neither big nor mainstream

but the coverage it got and still gets is unprecedented. Code Pink has been demonized from Day 1. There is absolutely NO comparison. And Jon is giving legitimacy to this racist Teabagger Movement and falsely equating it with a coherent movement--Code Pink. It's ludicrous!!

Jon is still equivocating! He is wrong! And he's being willfully ignorant because he doesn't want to admit that he's wrong!