The truth about the Fox News Tea Parties


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  • Open Memo to Media: This is What Astroturf Looks Like
    04/15/2009 - 12:07

    "Astro Turf." Fake grassroots. It’s what you get when big business and rich zealots hire pricey consultants to manufacture public outrage. With big budgets, limitless manpower, sophisticated targeting, and a sympathetic media channel, it's not difficult to generate anger. And that’s exactly what’s going on with today’s tea parties

    Whether these so-called tea parties originated as grassroots events or not, they have become nothing more than Astroturf outrage generated by Fox News and corporate-financed consultants. $aveTheRich.com is dedicated to documenting these efforts, so we created a clearinghouse of information to expose the truth behind the so-called “Tax Day Tea Parties” being held around the country. And so far, the tell-tale signs of Astro Turf are everywhere:

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Ken Mandile: MA Tea Party Organizer took $1.1 million Dollar Loan from Federal Government

Submitted by Marisa on Mon, 04/13/2009 - 18:02

This morning I came across an op-ed in the Worcester Business Journal Online by Worcester Tea Party Organizer Ken Mandile:

As a small business owner, perhaps I’m expected to gripe about the government. Taxes. Regulations. Taxes. Fees. Taxes. More regulations. And even more taxes. The government has always given small business plenty to complain about, but there comes a time when responsible citizens have a duty to stand up and defend their freedoms...

...Washington is disrupting a process that always has allowed the best people and companies to thrive. Propping up weak banks and auto companies not only weakens those who should succeed, but in our now-upside-down world, the idea of failure no longer exists. We don’t need to punish failure, but we need to let its natural consequences occur for the free market to work.

At the end of the op-ed Mr. Mandile described himself as "president of Swissturn/USA of Oxford and an organizer for the Worcester Tax Day Tea Party event..."

Hmm, well, certainly seems like Mr. Mandile has no use for the federal government, and certainly no use for a federal government giving handouts to businesses in need of a little help to get ahead in the economy.

Right, except it turns out he only means when the federal government isn't giving money to his business. If the federal government wants to give him a little help, that's help he's willing to take:

Yesterday, Swissturn/USA marked the formal opening of its new 19,000-square-foot factory in a renovated building at 1 Hawksley Road. The move to Oxford from smaller space in Whitinsville was aided by $1.1 million in financing from Flagship Bank and the Worcester Business Development Corp. through the U.S. Small Business Administration's 504 loan program.

Combining long-term, fixed-rate SBA-backed and conventional bank financing with a 10 percent down payment, the 504 loan program helped Swissturn/USA buy the land, building and more equipment. Mr. Mandile, who employs 22, promised to add at least seven new jobs over the next five years.

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you've distorted things.

Submitted by Suzen on Thu, 08/27/2009 - 06:59.

1) Ken Mandile, whom I know, took a LOAN. NOT a government handout, not welfare, not a bailout. So get off that lie.

2) Tea Party protesters are not racist. We are working and retired and college people fed up with the way this administration is printing money, creating a huge federal debt that government agencies cannot even agree with over the amount. We work hard and do not appreciate our tax dollars being thrown around and given to the "disadvantaged" - hey, I want a penthouse apartment in Boston but cannot afford one - does that make me disadvantaged?

We do not agree with the ideology that is being shoved at the American taxpayer. We do not believe in this 'distribution of wealth.' Why should we bother to work at all if our wages will be taken from us and given to others?

We believe that HR-3200, so-called 'health care reform' is dangerous. I've read the bill. It is ambiguous, has references to documents that we cannot find, is subject to interpretation (per Rep McGovern, MA) and also re-definition of words and phrases at the whim of the government.

3) All of my doctors are very against this bill in any form whatsoever because they see the implications that we don't see.

4) Start with Torte reform. Ah, but the admin and gov't in general is in bed with these lawyers.

5) Reduce the cost for medical students so they don't start a practice with 500,000 in debt.

6) Finally for now, a bill of this length, confusion, and total revamping of a system being HURRIED along for a vote when most congressmen have NOT read it - is tantamount to dereliction of duty - their duty to do the right thing. To take time to properly review exactly what the problem is and then work on that. Why have this enormous very expensive shake-up plan to "fix" 20 million folks? This bill is the beginning of the loss of all of Americans freedom as it will put the Government in charge of every aspect of your lives. You too will lose your freedoms.

So when you see our rag-tag group with home-made signs, know that we are not organized by the Republican Party (I'm an Indepent, others are Democrat) but we see the danger of government takeover and loss of our freedoms.
We don't want this nation turned to a socialist/communist nation with a facist dictator at the head.