Grassroots - adjective of, pertaining to, or involving the common people, esp. as contrasted with or separable from an elite.
Astroturf - trademark used for an artificial grass-like ground covering.
In the lead up to next month's climate negotiations in Copenhagen and
the possibility of the U.S. Congress voting a climate bill, many groups
are claiming to "represent Americans" and their views on energy and
climate legislation.
Chris, McGreal, a reporter for Britain's
Guardian newspaper, took to the road last month to report on how Americans living along Route 66--made famous in John Steinbeck's fictional
Grapes of Wrath journey--are faring during the recession.
You might think McGreal quickly encountered "real Americans" protesting President Obama's "socialist" healthcare agenda by hurling insults at town hall meetings. Cable news channels are full of these images, which together portray the United States as a giant angry grassroots rally against reform-minded policies.
BP and Shell are
being told to tear up their membership of the American Petroleum
Institute (API) in protest at the organisation's attempts to incite a
public backlash against Barack Obama's energy and climate change bill.
HOUSTON — Hard on the heels of the health care protests, another
citizen movement seems to have sprung up, this one to oppose
Washington’s attempts to tackle climate change. But behind the scenes, an industry with much at stake — Big Oil — is pulling the strings.
CNBC Correspondent Rick Santelli called for a "Chicago Tea
Party" on Feb 19th in protesting President Obama's plan to help homeowners in
trouble. Santelli's call was answered by the right-wing group FreedomWorks,
which funds campaigns promoting big business interests, and is the opposite of
what the real Boston Tea Party was.
