Tea parties were a waste of time

The recent tea parties were a testament to the sense of entitlement in both parties. The GOP hijacked the parties from the libertarians and made them about taxes, even though Obama has only increased taxes on tobacco and didn't encourage congress to make temporary bush-era tax cuts permanent. Everyone was protesting bloated government and taxes, but no one was protesting specific government programs. There were no "cut the military" or "eliminate social security" signs. No one was demanding the government cut back homeland security or prescription drug benefits for the elderly. How do you shrink a bloated government if you're not willing to cut the programs that are making the government too big?

Now that the GOP isn't in control, they act like they're outraged about government spending. Neither party can credibly argue they're for smaller government. GOP wants less pork for alternative fuels and environmentally friendly stuff, the Dems want less wealth transfers to corporations. Neither actually wants a smaller government, they just want more regulation and spending on different things.

If we're going to get serious about shrinking the government, we need to cut spending. The "starve the beast" idea where massive deficits will force fiscal responsibility has not worked, will not work. Our politicians, at large, have shown a complete unwillingness to look to the future with fiscal responsibility. If we aren't willing to cut spending, we'll have much bigger things to protest than increased taxes, we'll have to protest the lack of garbage pickup, really dysfunctional transportation, and the loss of the entire social safety net.

The tea parties showed only one thing. We're not willing to protest about real issues. We're only willing to protest the opposing party.