We Are Better Than This

Seriously, liberals? Burn a Confederate Flag Day? Please tell me this is a joke. Please tell me this is satire (and if it is, it's very bad satire).

In case it's not, though, I think I’m going to sit this one out. Not because I have any love for the Confederate flag but because this kind of protest is a) inflammatory (no pun intended); and b) counterproductive.

Here’s a better way to annoy conservatives on Sept. 12:

• Register other liberals to vote. You know where to find them.
• Canvass for your favorite liberal candidate or cause.
• Host a house party, a letter-writing party, a fundraiser or a discussion group to support your favorite candidate or cause.
• Gather some friends, make anti-war signs, and stand on a prominent street corner.
• Organize a community teach-in about an issue you care about: healthcare, climate change, etc.
• Plant a peace garden or community vegetable garden.
• Organize friends, coworkers, or a church or community group for a service project: pick up trash in a park, hand out sandwiches and bottled water to the homeless, help your neighbors winterize their homes. Winter is just around the corner.

I’m sure you can think of plenty of others. Look, folks. I know you’re angry but that’s no reason to stoop to the Tea Baggers’ level here. The one thing that characterizes the Teanuts is that they stand for nothing save anger. They have no ideas, no policy, no platform save anger.

We’re better than that. While they rally with their misspelled signs and vent their hate, we can turn our anger into action.

You know how to annoy a conservative? Make sure they lose the next election.