The survey exposes the expected divergences. Whilst both are predominantly White, male, Protestants who are more likely to voter Republican, TPs are generally older, and far more Evangelical and inclined to use government to impose their social agenda on the populace. Given the demographic trends, either the younger lot will increasingly become TPs over time, or the TPs will fizzle out and libertarians will supplant their numbers. My expectation is for the latter.
they're mostly the same, only differing in that the tea party is much more socially conservative and militaristic. I also wonder, does the demographic make up matter really?
Certainly, the age differential has implications. As the aging TPs fade away, the younger libertarian, white Protestant males that supplant them will not be attempting to impose the TPs' evangelical social agenda upon Americans..
To the degree that the Left continues to try to pass off mega-costly and ill-affordable bureaucratic monstrosities down the nation's throat using falsehoods and deception as their m.o., produces statements like "you have to pass the bill to find out what's in it", denies responsibility for anything and everything that turns sour (e.g. Obama's stock response, "I wasn't aware..."), and childishly, in knee jerk fashion, incessantly tries to blame the opposition for their own policy failures, I doubt either the TP or Libertarian sectors of conservatism will soon fade away.
I'm a Libertarian and there is no chance at all I join ranks with the TP. But I do fit the libertarian demographic. I'm white, male, and middle aged. Evangelical not so much.
It'll be good when these social conservatives finally drop off the face of the Earth and it's not an issue any more (like up here North of the border). Then we can seriously deal with how our tax money is being spent.
So 49% of libertarians DO associate themselves with the Tea Party. Wow! That's an excellent gain for the Tea Party. That's a huge number.
Your jaded, distorted view does not reflect the mindset of the American populace as reflected in recent elections or in a preponderance of national polls. If "The Left" is going to be your perennial scapegoat, it is America from which you are alienated. Curiously, the fringe elements are nicely balanced, 7% being consistent libertarians, and 15% leaning libertarian whilst a compimentary 7% are communalists and 17% leaning communalists. The vast majority are steadfastly moderate, of course.
The authoritarian TP social agenda is repugnant to many libertarians - advocating increased State womb intrusion but one conspicuous example - but I see signs lately that the increasingly unpopular TPs are, at least, spouting a fiscal agenda to draw attention from their nuttier baggage - birtherism, etc.
Indeed. It is certainly not libertarian to attempt to use the long arm of the law to force your personal religious beliefs on other people. Plus, too many in the tea party are nothing but hypocrites anyway. I have no use for them at all.
It's not necessarily religious in nature mind you, nor does it have to be interpreted as being authoritarian. Caring for life need not be religious, nor does extending that to include the unborn need be religious. And if it's about protecting lives I fail to see how it can be construed to be authoritarian. Note that I'm not as opposed to bortion as they are, but I just find the common mischaracterisation of this all to be somewhat dishonest.
I was not really even speaking of abortion specifically. Social conservatives have a long list of anti-freedom positions. In any event, I fully realize there are people against abortion based on non-religious grounds. Every anti-abortion libertarian I've ever met, actually. And I do not believe their position to be authoritarian, either. I fully understand it and sympathize with it. I just disagree that banning it will accomplish the goal of actually ending it. It never does, after all.
oh, nevermind then. My post still applies to other poster though. What things were you thinking of then?
To me, Tea Partiers seem to be pretty much identical to Libertarians. They both seem to: have an inherent distrust of the government want to avoid paying taxes cling to traditional values rail against intervention support gun rights are anti-abortion Some glaring differences between Tea Partiers and Libertarians are that Libertarians seem more secular and don't want religion imposed on people, while Tea Partiers seem to want Christianity forced on everyone. Libertarians seem to be more accepting of gay rights, but I think that's mostly because they'd appear horribly hypocritical if they didn't accept everyone's basic rights (liberty, property, etc.), including gays. Tea Partiers also seem to want more foreign intervention -- or rather, foreign invasion (although they seem to be cooling their jets on this issue due to recent failures) -- while libertarians are always screaming about interventionism (and statism, collectivism, communism, and a host of other labels). I think I would rather be stranded on a desert island with a libertarian more than a tea partier, but I'd still probably make a raft out of either of them.
As opposed to libertarian - more inclined to surrender personal freedoms to rules and laws imposed by government.
Well, gee Natty, thanks. What would I ever do without your wise advise? And when I rage, it isn't from the fringe. Nor is it from the propaganda and brainwashing of partisan news organizations like Fox and MSNBC. When I rage its because I know how to think apart from some cultish desire to fall in line with some inane political ideology. Have a nice day.
There is no escaping that eliciting the coercive power of government to dictate personal behaviour is authoritarian. Libertarian ideology should abhor any State either proscribing or requiring abortion. If anyone is disposed to influence other folks to his perspective in the matter, he can exercise his freedom of speech to persuade others to voluntarily share his position, just as they can try to convince him of theirs. - - - Updated - - - Hold that rationale.
"...TPs are generally older, and far more Evangelical and inclined to use government to impose their social agenda on the populace." Taxcutter says: No, they are not. The OP only parroted the Soros lie. The Tea Party stands for: Less federal spending Less taxation Less government in general The various Tea Party elements have put forth written manifestoes. All of them sound very libertarian.
I agree. But some view abortion as murder. If you truly believe that for whatever reason I can give you a pass on being a GOP-type authoritarian. I personally subscribe to your view.
The Tea Party has to have political allies. No single group wins anything. Old saying: Politics makes strange bedfellows. Viz: The Democrats include blue collar labor unions and the enviro-kooks that kill blue-collar jobs. Explain that one to me.