How is the "Tea Party Movement" like or unlike past American social movements?

In addition to what I said in my answer to your previous
question, there are a few similarities and differences between the Tea Party and
previous social movements.

The main similarity is that the
Tea Party arose based on its members' opinions on one particular issue, the issue of
government spending.  This is very typical of a social movement.  They tend to coalesce
around single issues like civil rights, abortion, or gay rights rather than around a
range of issues like a political party does.

The major
difference, though, is that the Tea Party has not been heavily engaged in any of the
traditional "outsider" actions that social movements have engaged in.  They do not do
sit-ins like the Civil Rights Movement or Operation Rescue.  They do not have a major
focus on lawsuits the way that rights movements like the Civil Rights Movement and the
movement for gay rights have had.  Instead, they are focused mainly on trying to get
candidates that they approve of elected.

There are major
similarities and differences between the Tea Party and previous social movements, which
is why it is hard to know whether to classify the Tea Party as a social
movement.