The truth may set you free, but not if you’re a Republican and the subject is taxes. After all, 95% of American families as promised received a tax cut from the Obama stimulus package. And while three-quarters of Americans support President Obama’s proposal to roll back the Bush tax cuts for those earning over $250,000 to their Clinton-era levels, it turns out that affluent voters, too, chose Barack Obama over John McCain. Making matters worse, a Gallup poll Monday revealed that Americans’ “views of income taxes among most positive since 1956.” So as their furious followers head off to their April 15th orgy of tea-bagging, the leadership of the GOP and its amen corner in the right-wing media have instead turned to tall tales on taxes.

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One of the greatest gifts my parents gave me was the love of reading. They both led by example, filling our home with books, magazines and newspapers. We made frequent visits to the library and often received books as gifts. I was an eclectic reader but rarely if ever read poetry. Becoming a poet wasn’t on my to-do list but I recently became a published poet. My work is part of an anthology recently published by Orchard Park Press. I became part of a poetry writing group more than two years ago. I had taken some writing classes and was seeking to strengthen my abilities when I was asked to join a writing group. I was equally terrified and intimidated by the thought of writing poetry. Fortunately my writing partners were patient and encouraging and never gave up on me. It took months to write my first poem and many of my initial efforts were like diary entries. Gradually by studying poets and discussing their work and the work of my writing partners, I began to assimilate knowledge of what was expected of me. One of the most difficult elements of poetry is brevity. Having come from a journalistic background, writing radio news and then editorial commentary I was used to researching and assembling facts to support my opinions. Short sentences, abrupt line endings and the richness of the vocabulary stalled me for a time. I think the element that kept me going was the discovery of an entire genre of writing that I had been unaware of before. I am in awe of original, thought provoking phrases that often stop me in my track, those lines that resonate and stay in your mind.

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This is a column about Republicans — and I’m not sure I should even be writing it. Today’s G.O.P. is, after all, very much a minority party. It retains some limited ability to obstruct the Democrats, but has no ability to make or even significantly shape policy. Beyond that, Republicans have become embarrassing to watch. And it doesn’t feel right to make fun of crazy people. Better, perhaps, to focus on the real policy debates, which are all among Democrats. But here’s the thing: the G.O.P. looked as crazy 10 or 15 years ago as it does now. That didn’t stop Republicans from taking control of both Congress and the White House. And they could return to power if the Democrats stumble. So it behooves us to look closely at the state of what is, after all, one of our nation’s two great political parties. One way to get a good sense of the current state of the G.O.P., and also to see how little has really changed, is to look at the “tea parties” that have been held in a number of places already, and will be held across the country on Wednesday. These parties — antitaxation demonstrations that are supposed to evoke the memory of the Boston Tea Party and the American Revolution — have been the subject of considerable mockery, and rightly so.

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