Joe the Plumber & Britney's Headache

I'm afraid Joe the Plumber is finding out just how dangerous it is to publicly question the policies of Senator Obama and the liberal establishment. He found his "15-minutes of fame" with his cogent, intelligent, and relevant question to Senator Obama about the Senator's tax plans, and his astute analysis of the impact to small business and to "the little guy." Unfortunately, like the child who pointed out the Emperor wore no clothes, Joe's question prompted an answer from Senator Obama that revealed the naked truth of Senator Obama's tax plan; he wants to redistribute dollars from those who earn to those who do not.

As a result, the liberal establishment, bloggers and the mainstream media alike, are now trying to discredit Joe the Plumber. It seems that everything is fair game. So he's not really a licensed plumber. He works for one. So he really doesn't make $250K a year. He never said he did. He only said he might have the opportunity in the future to buy a small business that could make $250K. So he had a lien for unpaid medical bills. The bills have been paid and the lien lifted. So he might owe back state taxes. So his name might be spelled wrong on voter registration lists. SO WHAT??? In a great quote, Joe said that "I'm kind of like Brittney Spears having a headache. Everyone wants to know about it."

What gives the press and the liberal establishment the right to go after and make public every little bit of dirt they can possibly uncover about Joe the Plumber? He's an intelligent and responsible voter, who just wanted to ask a candidate about the candidate's policies. That the candidate's answer honestly showed what the candidate really thought, instead of what the candidate wants the public to think, does not mean that Joe needs to be painted as something other than a concerned voter trying to figure out who to vote for.

The liberal reaction to Joe the Plumber and his 15-minutes of fame is telling; and very scary. It shows that they react to dissent by vilifying the dissenter. It shows that they will go to any lengths to stifle dissent by anyone who doesn't agree with them. When you couple what's happened to Joe the Plumber (an everyday citizen) with the Obama campaign's attempt to use law enforcement to stop dissent in St Louis, or the lawsuits brought against conservative commentators, and the cry of "racist" or "racism" raised every time someone disagrees with Senator Obama or his policies; you get a very scary picture. Add the liberal attempt to re-institute the wrongly named "fairness doctrine" and you have a very clear picture of the liberal mindset: we know what's good for you, whether you agree or not, so you better not rock the boat or we'll make it difficult for you. Scary when you think of it that way, isn't it.

What's next? Re-eduction camps? Oh wait, those are called charter schools these days....

UPDATE: Check out this great article at American Thinker that says what I wanted to say, but does it so much better!