What the tea party stands for

In response to a recent letter to the editor, we feel it appropriate to address some of the accusations made toward the tea party.

Ever since the inception of the modern-day tea party, there has been a deliberate effort by some to demonize us as nothing more than a bunch of redneck, gun totin', right-wing zealots hellbent on taking this country back to the dark ages. Their false accusations have lost their impact, for they describe neither the attitude nor actions of tea party participants.

To our knowledge there have been no attacks by tea party members upon any public servant, only unsubstantiated allegations. Neither has any tea partier attacked any teacher, fire or police personnel. There have been, however, many violent threats, name calling and physical attacks upon tea partiers, supporters of the cause and state legislators by union supporters, government workers and other demonstrators during the heated health care debates and recent events in Wisconsin.

At the first few tea party demonstrations there were some inappropriate signs displayed, but that kind of attitude and unbecoming name calling was quickly addressed and prohibited from within our midst.

It seems too many Americans have come to believe that government should provide for all our needs. However, we became a strong nation not because of a strong central government but because of our strong belief in our founding principles of personal freedom, responsibility, governance, and a reliance upon our Creator.

We are fighting to free our country from the foreign entanglements of wars and unequal treaties. In addition, there are elements within our own country that seek to destroy our way of life in favor of the "One World Order."

We realize the need for us, as a society, to provide for our defenseless children, the elderly, the poor and the sick. This is another local requirement.

We support our teachers, our firemen and our police officers. They are dedicated public servants, and for the most part they are underpaid for what they do. We simply believe that our education system needs to be brought back under the control of state and local communities, teachers and parents. It should be our final say as to what our children are taught, not the federal government's.

In summation, we simply want government returned to its appropriate size and scope.

Tom Young and Jeannie Hinck are members of the Cape Girardeau County Tea Party Steering Committee.