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Justify your rage

The dust from the great 9-12 rallies of 2009 is still settling, as evidenced by the ongoing media coverage, blog coverage, discussion board coverage and all other sorts of inescapable coverage. And even though I've watched these people, and read the talking points and seen the websites and posts, I confess that I still do not understand. Maybe it's the incredibly disjointed expressions of discontent that come off as impotent "we hate Obama!" rage, although I suspect it has more to do with the fact that I am fairly rational, and not a xenophobic moron. Either way, I would love to understand.

All I am seeing is a completely irrational disconnect from reality, and if anyone reads this and can correct that perception please by all means, enlighten me.

I am hearing that the government is too invasive, from people who cheered for the Patriot Act. From people who applauded as Bush granted himself the power to declare martial law. From people who clapped when the term "enemy combatants" was created and it was written in to law that the president could declare at will that you were one and had no legal rights. But now is the threat to our privacy and civil rights?

I am hearing the government is spending too much money, from people who loved trillion dollar preventive war. I suspect that Bush could have unveiled a spending bill double the stimulus package back in October 2001 and as long as it was 90% military and "defense" these same so-called fiscal conservatives would have lauded it as a bold and necessary step for the future of our country.

I am hearing that we must question our leaders and all that they do from the people who less than a decade ago called the same thing un-American at best, treasonous at worst. Joe Wilson just got $1 million dollars from people who would have called for a Democratic congressman's head if he had cried out "You lie!" at Bush in 2002. And I do not mean that as a figure of speech-they would have been searching eBay for a guillotine.

I am watching the people who raged against the anti-war demonstrators of the Bush years now calling the anti-President demonstrators of the Obama months great America-loving patriots.

And I have to say, at the end of the day all I am really hearing are a whole lot of crazy rants and borderline racism. I am seeing nonsensical portrayals of Barack Obama as the Joker (what exactly does that have to do with Socialism again?). I am hearing the same batshit insane rants that I heard during the campaign about shadowy Muslim takeovers and unsubstantiated ravings from people who do not actually know what Marxism is. So please, someone...anyone. Negate the above listed hypocrisies and cognitive dissonance, and for the love of God, justify your rage.