…but it’s just as useless. It’s stupid when Virginia Organizing does it, and it’s just as stupid when Danville’s Tea Party does it.
Danville Tea Party protests EPA regulations at closed office
(If you get the stupid Register & Bee paywall block, just reload the page and hit the stop button on your browser after the story loads.)
Face. Palm. There are so many things wrong with this “protest”. Let’s go to a Big List of them…
- If you’re going to your senator’s office to tell his staff how you feel on a particular issue, it’s better to tell him yourself, not in a large group.
- If you’re going to your senator’s office to tell his staff how you feel on a particular issue, it’s better to go WHEN THE OFFICE IS ACTUALLY OPEN!
- Jim Webb doesn’t give a damn about Americans For Prosperity. Remember that organization? They used to do things in SouthsideVA but we haven’t seen or heard much from them since Ben Marchi left the group.
- Jim Webb doesn’t give a damn about the Danville Tea Party.
- Jim Webb doesn’t give a damn about Danville.
- Jim Webb doesn’t give a damn about pretty much anything since he’s done with the senator job and the end of this year.
- “…the group left some literature for the junior senator encouraging him to prevent certain EPA rules…” – He didn’t read it. He probably hasn’t even seen it. He’s not going to do a damned thing any differently because of this “literature”.
- I’m sure that the Tea Party left the same literature at Mark Warner’s office as well. Warner didn’t read it. Warner probably hasn’t even seen it. Warner’s not going to do a damned thing any differently because of this “literature”.
Protests like this one by the Danville Tea Party are as useless as the one’s Virginia Organizing occasionally stages outside of Robert Hurt’s office. The last one I seem to remember there was when they rounded up stupid old people and handed them signs saying something like “Republicans are trying to destroy Social Security” (by the way, they’re not). Hurt’s staff cordially welcomed the protestors, listened to what they said, accepted their literature, sent them on their way, then probably shredded the literature while mocking the idiocy of the protest.
Take that above paragraph, substitute “Danville Tea Party”” for “Virginia Organizing” and substitute “Jim Webb & Mark Warner” for “Robert Hurt” and you get what happened last week. It was a useless stunt that accomplished absolutely nothing. I’ve been impressed with the Danville Tea Party’s longevity and the recent restoring of sanity to the group. I’d have been a lot more impressed if the Danville Tea Party had actually used their influence to work on issues that they actually could accomplish something on, like the recent Danville City Council election & the recent Danville city budget.
With that being said, I’m also disappointed that the R&B’s headline mocked the fact that Webb’s office was closed. Tiffany Holland’s story was balanced and fair, but Charles Wilborn or Robert Benson’s headline was slanted against the protest. The R&B should provide unbiased headlines because it’s a news organization. Here at SouthsideCentral, it’s been made very clear that opinions and personal viewpoints are part of the content but that shouldn’t happen to a newspaper that’s supposed to provide unbiased coverage.
Final Thoughts: It was a stupid protest that accomplished nothing. The fact that Webb’s office was closed made it even stupider. The Danville Tea Party could have spent their time on something else and not let Americans For Prosperity talk them into something this useless. However, nobody in the group was wearing one of those ridiculous colonial costumes or shouting to nobody in particular, so it could have been worse (and by “worse”, I mean “even more mockable”).
OH my! I have to take time to respond to this one!
1st-I am NOT A STUPID OLD PERSON-I have been at a rally or two for VA organizing and I take personal exception to your rant above. Don’t ever imply that because someone is older and participating in a rally that they are just a stupid old person….When a person rally’s for something or someone that hurts their own best interest-well, they might be a bit stupid-but age has nothing to do with it…. 2nd-I agree that protesting in front of any empty office seems pointless so I don’t do it…. 3rd-The ones I went to for VOP were in front of open offices and not Hurt’s office. I do agree that a protest in front of a Hurt office is totally useless (even open! 4th-What are you so bitter about? 5th-I agree that Webb don’t give a damn. 6th-I agree that Webb don’t give a damn. 7th- I have been to rally’s of the Prosperity Group and boy…what I could say about that group, but I won’t. 8th-The Tea Party-Just a spin off of the GOP. Don’t know of anything special they did for the last council election. Don’t think they did any more than any other political group or even more than I did to try to inform people. 9th-What’s up Bruce? Your blog comes off so angry. 10th-Sen. Mark Warner does care about Danville. 11th-VA Organizing is a good organization.
Why are you so upset with VA Organizing? They are a great group and they do a lot to empower people. They are working a lot locally to help motivate citizens to become involved and show them how to be involved. It is a good thing. Don’t knock them, in fact, you should do as I do and join in some of their activities. I bet they will welcome you!
I’m glad I riled you up this morning. 😀
First thing: If anybody thinks that the Republicans want to eliminate Social Security, they’re stupid. They may want to change the business model into something that’s long-term sustainable but they have no politically suicidal thoughts on cutting the cash flow to the senior citizens. I went to the last Virginia Organizing protest and heard an elderly woman say “Robert Hurt wants to take my Social Security away”. She took in what Virginia Organizing said when they lied to her and she regurgitated it on command. That woman was gullible and stupid. Don’t get me wrong, the other side of the aisle is just as guilty with their “November Is Coming” slickly printed signs (then never returning to Danville).
Shelia, you seem to be confusing the words “bitter” and “snarky”. I only have a problem with Virginia Organizing when they (and other activist groups) use these type of tactics for useless protest manned by mind-numbed people. I am welcomed by VO and in fact had good things to say when they did their latest protest about usurious payday loan businesses.
I am proud to say that I have the ability to point out stupidity & hypocrisy (and any other terms you want to insert) on all things political and social. I’m the world’s leading expert on my opinion and I don’t mind one bit if you think that I’m an idiot at times, too.
I usually recognize snarky Bruce and I can only say you come across as being very angry (better than bitter?). Referring to people as stupid does not help your point, in fact, it turns people off which damages your point.
AS far as the woman who said Hurt wants to take her Social Security away, she could have very well interpreted what he wants to do this way herself. I don’t know her but I would not tell her she was stupid and gullible.
Bruce, I would never tell you that you were: stupid, gullible, old and stupid, old, or an idiot. I might tell you that you do some stupid, silly things sometimes! 🙂
Peace and Love to all…
I wouldn’t have a problem with you telling me any of those things, and we’d still be friends afterwards.