"I am for a government rigorously frugal and simple. Were we directed from Washington when to sow, when to reap, we should soon want bread." -- Thomas Jefferson
Even though I have voted for Republican candidates for most of my adult life, I would never classify myself as one. Why? Its simple. Republicans have generally been less of a threat to freedom than the Dhimmirats. But they are often, as in the case of John McCain, liberal-lites, or the lesser of two evils.
When a Republican is suggesting that government should get more involved in health care or tax energy to stop "global warming", or that we need more gun laws, or "fairness" in the media, they are not supporting traditional Republican positions, and certainly not Conservative values. These are all Dhimmirat issues, and like Arlen Specter, politicians with these positions probably need to accept that they are in fact liberals and belong with the Dhimmirats.
I am a Conservative. To me that means: small government + lower taxes + strong defense = more freedom. Many issues fall under this formula. Recognizing that the Constitution is law and not just helpful suggestions is one. Limiting the power and scope of the Federal government and keeping taxes and regulation to a minimum to maintain a vibrant and growing economy are two others. Defending this country from threats here and abroad is probably the most important. I mean you can't have much freedom if islamic kamikazes are flying planes into buildings.
Lots of talking heads have been giving Republicans advice on how to win. Many of these so-called Republicans call themselves "moderates" as if fence sitting is something noble. We have seen what happens when liberal Republicans run for President just last year. McCain is as close as you can get to being a Dhimmirat and he lost in spite of having one of the best VP candidates in the modern history of elections.
Reagan did attract lots of people to him because he focused on issues that do matter: smaller government, defending the nation and lower taxes. Most Americans can agree those are the most important issues to our freedom and security. So my formula for success is easy. Focus on the issues that we all can agree on, which will be really easy after seeing the alternative these next 4 years.
In your propaganda film, you argued of an imminent loss of oceanfront due to dramatically rising water levels. If that is true, why did you purchase an expensive oceanfront condo in San Francisco?
How is man, who accounts in any appreciable density for less than 1% of the entire earth's volume, capable of changing the GLOBAL climate more than the sun, oceans, earth core, volcanic activity or any of a hundred other much greater climate influences?
Why has the IPCC report been so horribly wrong in its predictions of escalating temperatures when in fact global temperatures have been steadily declining this decade?
How can the "global warming" debate be over if there never has been one? How can there be consensus when 30,000 scientists (and growing) disagree with the IPCC and your fanatical chicken little predictions?
If the cap and trade nonsense is passed, how much more will you personally earn profiteering from this hoax?
In the face of imminent disaster from "global warming", how do you sleep at night with energy use that is 20 times the average household and with an irresponsible lifestyle that in no way sets the standard you would impose on most Americans if your punishing energy taxes were passed?
The numbers and repoted events keep coming in. The lastest numbers show over 901 events in all 50 states. At minimum, over 780,000 people attended, with estimates as high as 916,000! You can follow the tabulation here.
Why as the national media largely ignored or dismissed these numbers? To have nearly a million people protesting in the midlle of the week is impressive. Imagine what those numbers might have been on a weekend or with better planning and coordination between all the grassroot organizers.
If I were liberal or a liberal-lite politician, I would be concerned about my future in politics. People are getting very tired of big, oppressive government!
Today, April 22 is Earth Day 2009. The date coincides with that noted lover of freedom and Christianity, Vladimir Lenin. Obviously, the date selection was pure coincidence. The anti-freedom and anti-Christian messages throughout Earth Day and the radical environment movement cannot be ignored. The Earth was created by God for man. It is not to be worshiped or given reverential terms like "mother earth" or venerated as the early pagan religions and now the creators of Earth Day.
If the day focuses on conservation and being good stewards of the Earth's resources, everyone can participate. When we deviate into the Al Gore, "man is destroying the earth" nonsense, I will not participate. I will not worship at the altar of a secular religion. Either you believe in a loving Creator or you don't. And when you don't believe in God, you become a puppet for evil forces. There is good and evil, there are no categories in between - choose wisely.
Whenever I hear those folks who like to blame man for global warming or predicting catastrophic changes in sea levels, I remember the exchange between God and Job in the Bible. Job had been getting really bad advice from his friends, questioning the ways of the Lord. God intervenes and begins to ask Job about His creation.
“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?
“Who kept the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb, and as I clothed it with clouds and wrapped it in thick darkness? For I locked it behind barred gates, limiting its shores. I said, ‘This far and no farther will you come. Here your proud waves must stop!’
Job 38:4-11 NLT
We have gained substantial knowledge on how the earth works, but we are still far from understanding every intricate detail, especially when it comes to climate science. I am sure of one thing, God does good work. The earth is not in any danger from man. Frankly, we would have a tough time "destroying the planet" even if we tried.
For most of my life I have been hearing doomsday predictions and one manufactured crisis after the other. The purpose is to sow fear (who do you suppose is behind that) and change policy to place our lives more completely under government control. I love the Lord and He loves me. I will never act in fear.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
John 1:1-5 NIV (my emphasis)
The Word, or Light of men, is Jesus who is also Truth. When you know the Truth, you can live a life free from fear. Something to meditate on today.
Happy CREATOR DAY!!
Click here for more verses and Bible studies on the Creation Story.
I have been helping some folks gather actual numbers for the various Tea Parties this week and the numbers are phenomenal. Early reports were suggesting about 250,000 people participated. That number is falling way short of actual numbers. We are now over 629 cities with a low estimate of 690,000 and high end estimate of 797,000. You can check the numbers here for the running tally.
These are all based on media accounts, signatures or eyewitness testimony. This is why the range is employed to account for any "liberalization" of the results. Remember the "million man march" where "400,000" people suddenly tripled? Heck that's nothing, if you put two union members, a handful of angry code pink feminazis, an anarchist or two and a couple of alternative lifestyle types together, CNN would estimate the crowd in the thousands. They would probably go with 24/7 coverage as well. What a joke that network has become.
Anyway, I was working on Texas and found that the rallies were not only widespread, but very deep as well. From small towns, to counties and everything in between, the reach of this event was amazing. Places like Gilmer, Texas, heretofore known mainly for its celebration of the yam, had 250 people at the courthouse making their dissatisfaction with the current administration known!
And the liberal astroturfers are getting paid overtime to add their two cents to every media story comment section. I know exactly what all their rage is about. They have owned the protest meme for so long and can't handle the fact that ordinary, hard working folks aren't willing to be steamrolled anymore. I laughed out loud when I read them trying to defend Obama's spending like a drunken sailor. Yes, massive deficit spending will certainly spur the economy. Got to keep those ACORN types employed and out of crime, right?
Its a shame what the public school system has done to the average American's intelligence. Economics should be brought back to the High Schools. Unfortunately, with teacher unions and government educrats firmly in charge, I would be scared to see what they would actually teach. Maybe they could start with crowd estimation and then segue into where government gets its money. That would be real a hoot.
Christopher Monckton lays the smack down on the global warming nuts in a letter to Congress. In it, he enumerates 50 issues (or Red Flags) that raise serious questions about testimony heard by Congress on this most important issue. It is lengthy, but worth a read. Here is the link and some highlights (emphasis is mine):
However, my notes of the hearing indicate that certain national and international executive agencies may have materially, serially, seriously, and successfully misled your Congress for several years about the imagined extent, anthropogenic component, and effects of “global warming”.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower, in his farewell address to the nation in 1961, gave a warning “that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite.”
He said –“Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. ... The prospect of domination of the nation’s scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present – and is gravely to be regarded.”
Nearly all of your nation’s scholars and scientists owe their primary livelihood to the involuntary generosity of the taxpayer. Some of your rent-seeking, scientific-technological elite, taking willful and shameless advantage of the taxpayer’s largesse and of the scientific illiteracy that is now widespread, are mightily enriching themselves by misleading your Congress into appropriating disproportionately large sums to permit them to address the non-problem of anthropogenic “global warming".
1. Global temperature has been falling rapidly for seven full years: however, this fact appears to have been kept from the Committee, and the director of an agency whose own global-temperature dataset clearly shows the seven-year decline repeatedly failed to admit when questioned by the Committee that there have indeed been seven full years of global cooling, raising the question why, on the central issue of the rate at which “global warming” is or is not occurring, the official was reluctant to admit the seven-year cooling that his own agency’s global-temperature dataset plainly shows.
10. In one of nine serious “errors” identified by a UK High Court Judge in Al Gore’s movie An Inconvenient Truth, it is suggested that in the palaeoclimate it was CO2 concentration that changed before global temperature, when in fact it was temperature that changed before CO2 concentration, raising the question why Congress (and Her Majesty’s Government) still treats Gore as though he were a ranking expert on “global warming”.
34. The senior official who testified before the Committee said in his testimony that “global warming” would cause various catastrophes, including sea-level rise, ocean acidification, changes in rainfall, increased frequency and intensity of extreme-weather events such as heatwaves, coastal storms, droughts and heavy downpours, coastal erosion and inundation, changes in crop yields and ocean productivity and in climate-related diseases and pests, raising the question why he did not cite Schulte (2008), who found that of 539 papers containing the search phrase “global climate change” and published since the beginning of 2004 not one had offered any evidence for any catastrophe arising from “global warming”.
35. Professor Nils-Axel Moerner, who has published 520 papers on sea-level rise, concluded in a 2004 study of the Maldives that there had been no sea-level rise there for 1250 years, and that global sea level in the 21st century would rise by 8 inches, as it did in the 20th century, raising the question how the chairman of the Committee had been misled – perhaps by officials – into the belief that sea-level rise, particularly in the Maldives, would be likely to occur in a dangerous degree as a result of “global warming”.
50. Carbon dioxide concentration has been up to 20 times today’s levels in the palaeoclimate, and yet the creatures of the ocean survived and flourished, which they could not have done if the higher carbon dioxide concentration had appreciably acidified the oceans, raising the question how a member of the Committee had been misled into believing that current geologically-low concentrations of carbon dioxide could cause any appreciable or dangerous acidification of the oceans, which remain pronouncedly alkaline and contain 70 times as much carbon dioxide as the atmosphere.
And my favorite nugget...
37. In 2005, in An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore predicted that sea level would rise imminently by 20 feet, inundating coastlines worldwide, leading a UK High Court Judge to find that “the Armageddon scenario that he depicts is not based on any scientific view”, raising the question why in 2005 he spent $4m on a condo in the St. Regis Tower, San Francisco, just feet from the ocean at Fisherman’s Wharf.
Hypocrisy, thy name is Al Gore. Although almost any liberal could share the title.
Monckton covers almost every issue pertaining to this debate. As you know, literally everything has been blamed on global warming from more storms to more tropical diseases. He touches on most of these and refutes some of the nonsense being pushed by the left.
There are many reasons I dismissed the whole "global warming" crap. Having lived through the 70s ice age scare, taught me a valuable lesson on how bad science can be used to push public policy. But even more important is my understanding of how significantly large and intricate the earth, its oceans and atmosphere are, coupled with the influence of that great big yellow ball in the sky, make it laughable to think that mankind could even change the climate if he tried!
It boggles my mind that ANYONE can take someone like Al Gore seriously on such an important issue. While he is preaching fear, he is completely ignoring his own warnings of coming doom by investing in waterfront property. And while enriching himself from these scare tactics, he does nothing to change his own behavior or reduce his own "carbon footprint".
The final straw was the race to impose draconian taxes to "stop global warming". This religion is not about saving the planet. It is simply a power play. Through new confiscatory taxation, liberals intend to control energy and therefore control mankind.
This linked article is a pity party for how mean we are to terrorists. We slap them, deprive them of sleep and spray some water on them. And at one point, we were going to surround one terrorist with caterpillars. Oh the horror!
Here is some simple advice for would-be terrorists. If you don't want to endure of few fraternity-like "tortures," don't freakin' become a terrorist!
And for those liberals all in tears over these poor mistreated terrorists, these same guys would slice your throat in a heartbeat - probably even faster if you are Jewish, Christian or gay. Something to think about when pining for these murderers.
The mainstream media missed the story of the day. Or perhaps they purposely ignored the largest news story of the year. Yesterday, in 800+ cities across this great nation, hundreds of thousands of ordinary people said enough. They were tired of the bailouts, wasteful spending, supporting criminal organizations like ACORN and ever increasing taxes. They know that the biggest reason for the financial meltdown is government interference - especially by the Democrat leadership who took hundreds of thousands in "contributions" from the very banks they have now bailed out. Giving Democrats the power to "fix" things is just compounding a monumental mistake.
You see, ordinary people are not dumb. No matter how many media elites and Washington politicians would like to dismiss the masses, they know the difference between socialism and freedom. The current administration and ruling class in Washington is on a fast track to europeanization of our once great country. And patriotic Americans will not let that happen.
These weren't your typical "rent-a-mob" of paid leftists. There was no George Soros pulling the strings to orchestrate these protests. This was a true grass roots movement. Heck, in my birthplace, Longview, Texas, a quiet city in East Texas, over a thousand gathered to protest. I lived there 18 years and my Father another 26 years beyond that. Nothing like that had EVER happened there to my recollection.
There was a protest in Dallas and in nearly every suburb in the Dallas and Fort Worth areas. Texans are familiar with oppression having fought and won our freedom from a ruthless Mexican dictator. We joined the union to enjoy the freedom promised by Uncle Sam. Texans have fought and died in countless wars. We have sacrificed in many ways to do our part to make this country better.
But as Washington becomes more oppressive in its demands, secession is always a possible solution, as many speakers made clear at most of these rallies. If real change doesn't come to Washington, that will be the final alternative. Texas, or any American for that matter, does not deserve to live under the tyranny of a corrupt and bankrupt government. But we will not leave without a fight. This country deserves better than the liberal lunacy that now infests Washington.
Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion or immigration.
Literally every Conservative could at some point be called potential threats by this "advisory." Does this sound like the "change" you believe in? Actually it sounds much more like the Soviet Union or Cuba. All we need now is ACORN or Obama's brown-shirted hoodlums rounding all us evil Conservatives up for eradication or re-education. There was no mention of the many terrorists and terrorist sympathizers currently working in and with this administration.
The mainstream media largely ignored the events or tried to discredit them in their own way. One CNN reporterette made her liberal bias so profoundly obvious - as if we really need more evidence. See if you can spot the "angry" protesters and the "unbiased" reporterette.
Did you catch her DEFENDING the White House, claiming that Illinois gets $50 billion in payola and the taxpayer should be happy about that? Susan, sweetheart, who do you think has to pay for that?
Susan Roesgen is the reporterette's name. And if she is not immediately fired for this completely unprofessional display, she should at least be reprimanded. But this is not the first time Susan Roesgen has displayed her "professionalism."
There is a good reason why I stopped watching CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and reading the New York Times and other leftist media years ago. They are nothing more than propaganda arms of the Democrat party. The irony is that many "professionals" in the industry aren't even willing to admit that just maybe their reporting is biased. As their viewership/readership continues to crash, maybe they will finally wake up and realize that they do have an important role in society. And it is not to promote a leftist agenda.
Regardless of the stupidity of the left, the right is mobilized and energized. Hopefully, strong Conservative leaders will emerge and lead us out of the pit of liberal hell which Obama and friends have taken us.
UPDATE: Founding Bloggers has video taken of our favorite CNN reporterette after the hit piece.
A quick review of President Obama's weekly radio address.
These are two very different holidays with their own very different traditions. But it seems fitting that we mark them both during the same week.
Both holidays celebrate and remember God's deliverance from oppression. For the Jews, freedom from the oppression of slavery in Egypt. For all mankind, Easter celebrates freedom from satanic oppression by the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus. You would think Obama was talking about Kwanzaa, or some other invented holiday by his generic "non offensive" description.
An unsustainable dependence on foreign oil and other sources of energy that pollute our air and water and threaten our planet.
Uh, Mr. President, we have PLENTY of oil reserves in the United States to last us well into the next century. What we do not have is a willingness to allow exploration and extraction of the bountiful resources God has blessed us with. The planet is not in danger from mankind. It was here before us, and will be here long after we're gone.
These are challenges that no single nation, no matter how powerful, can confront alone. The United States must lead the way. But our best chance to solve these unprecedented problems comes from acting in concert with other nations.
It does not take a village to confront the threats we face here and abroad. It takes LEADERSHIP and RESOLVE, something that seems missing in Washington at present. There really is NOTHING America can't accomplish, as we have proven so many times in the past.
It is only by coordinating with countries around the world that we will stop the spread of the world’s most dangerous weapons. That is why I laid out a strategy in Prague for us to work with Russia and other nations to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons; to secure nuclear materials from terrorists; and, ultimately, to free the world from the menace of a nuclear nightmare.
You have resigned yourself to accept a nuclear Iran as indicated in your overtures. You did nothing while North Korea tested a long range missile. And now you would have us rid ourselves of our own nuclear deterrent? While some of the most dangerous regimes in the world are creating nuclear and biological weapons, you have cut our missile defense budget and suggested we should disarm ourselves. Isn't your primary job as POTUS to protect and DEFEND the United States?
Instead, we have to find – and build on – our mutual interests. For it is only when people come together, and seek common ground, that some of that mistrust can begin to fade. And that is where progress begins.
Honestly, I see no common ground between peace-loving Americans and suicidal Islamic terrorists. Maybe instead of beheading us, they shoot us? I'm really not sure where our compromise position is with people striving to destroy us.
And if we can do that, then not only will we fulfill the sacred meaning of these holy days, but we will fulfill the promise of our country as a leader around the world.
Leader of the free world? A country currently held hostage by a bunch of Islamic thugs in a dingy? A country that is willingly to sell out our allies in the Middle East by allowing a terrorist supporting regime to develop nuclear weapons? A country whose leaders have financially broken our nation through excessive interference in the financial/mortgage industries and then mortgaged our financial future by spending money, that we don't have, like drunken sailors - no offence to drunken sailors intended.
Story #1 Shriners hospitals, which have provided free care since before the Great Depression, are considering closing a quarter of their facilities as donations stagnate, costs increase and the charity's endowment shrivels. Facing hard times, Shriners may close 6 hospitals
Story #2 The center looked at how the proposals Mr. Obama released on Thursday would have affected giving based on 2006 data showing how much taxpayers deducted for charitable contributions. It said that if Mr. Obama’s tax plan had been in effect, Americans with incomes of $250,000 or more would have decreased their giving by 4.6 percent or nearly $3.9-billion. People at that income level claimed more than $81-billion in charitable gifts in 2006. Obama's Tax Plan Could Cause Giving by the Wealthy to Drop by Several Billion Dollars Annually
Now what in the wide, wide, world do these two stories have to do with each other?
It points out the idiocy of government trying to run health care. There are plenty of private charities and religious organizations that do their part to offer free or inexpensive health care. Instead of finding ways to encourage a private sector solution to health care expense, Obama would prefer to run those types completely out of business by choking off their donations!
If anything, the charitable benefit should be expanded. More donations flowing to churches, charities and nonprofits would allow them to enter and expand into education, welfare and health care, reducing the dependence on inefficient and corrupt government bureaucrats.
Instead of hope and change, we get more of the same pathetic government "solutions."
Good Friday remembers the day Jesus was nailed to the cross over 2,000 years ago. He gave his life freely for mankind. Numerous times authorities tried to arrest, stone or toss him off of a cliff, but failed because it wasn't his time. When the time came, he willingly endured the torture, shame and pain of the cross.
Crucifixion is no picnic. You essentially suffocate unless there are other factors. While Jesus was on the cross he took on all of mankind's sin, sickness and the full curse of the Law. He would pay the price that nobody else could pay.
Even during his last moments, his thoughts were on helping people - forgiving his tormentors, providing for his mother and assuring the repentant thief beside him.
Darkness covered the land and the earth shook. The veil of the temple was ripped from the top to the bottom. It was not needed anymore. Humans would now be God's Temple. Even to the jaded Centurion who witnessed Jesus' death, it was obvious that Jesus was a righteous man wrongly crucified.
His followers placed his body in a tomb. Remembering his many prophecies, the Jewish leaders insisted on placing guards and sealing the tomb. That would not matter.
For the next two days, Jesus endured the full penalty for mankind. He had died physically, but just as there were two sacrifices (lamb and scapegoat), Jesus had to endure the spiritual separation from God for two nights and then destroy the power of the enemy.
The morning of the third day, the guards were startled to see the power of God roll away the stone and Jesus leave the tomb. He appeared to his followers for several days - teaching and explaining what his resurrection really meant. On the road to Emmaus, he took two followers through the Bible to show them how he had fulfilled all the promises and prophecies.
He finally ascended to Heaven to sit at the right hand of God. He has delegated his power and authority to all who believe in him and waits to return and gather his followers.
This was not just a good man. He was either the Son of God as he claimed or a loon. He has given you his Word. You can either accept the message or reject it. Remember, hell was not created for humans. It was created for Satan and the rebellious angels. God never intends for any human to enter hell - unless they choose to go there by rejecting His Son.
Sometimes I get excited about what is happening in the world or in Washington. Its nice to remember that God is in control. He is my source and my provider. As a believer, I am called to pray for our leadership and cast my vote as a seed - expecting a good harvest. The only way things will really change is by Christians everywhere to exercise their faith and get Godly people into office - people with integrity, honor and filled with God's wisdom.
This nation was founded by men and women like that. And its time they return to power.
When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan.
Shortly after the United States became a nation it was forced to deal with the Barbary Pirates attacking US ships in the Mediterranean sea. Strangely, these were also Muslim fanatics and felt compelled by their religion and "prophet" to raid, pillage, enslave and hold hostages for ransom.
At first, the new nation followed Europe's lead and paid the tribute and ransoms. Eventually, President Jefferson sent the now larger and better prepared US Navy to end the threat.
I know President Obama claims we are not at war with Islam. But it would seem that Islam has been at war with us since the beginning of this nation. There were of course periods of relative peace. But based on all the attacks since 1979: Iran hostages, Marine Barracks - Lebanon, embassy bombings, kidnappings/murders, USS Cole, WTC and 9/11, you would think we are facing more than "man-caused disasters."
In Obama's latest 3 a.m. test, Somali pirates attacked a US-flagged ship. In classic American style, the crew fought back and freed the ship and only the captain remains a prisoner. The US Navy is now nearby and negotiations are underway.
Obama has been largely quiet on the issue and Hillary Clinton had a cryptic cackling episode while calling the behavior "criminal."
I'm not really sure what is funny about fanatic pirates holding American hostages. And I am certain that the act of piracy is not a "criminal activity." It is an act of war and should be treated as such. Its time for America to take the gloves off and end the threat once and for all.
Obviously, I don't expect this administration to take this approach. I'm sure we will sit down and negotiate a fair ransom price. Maybe Obama can go over and pay homage to the warlords like he did to his Saudi Arabian master. I would also expect him to give a biting speech on how bad America has been and blame us for everything wrong in the world.
Since the 1890s, surface temperatures have risen faster in the Arctic than in other regions of the world. In part, these rapid changes could be due to changes in aerosol levels. Clean air regulations passed in the 1970s, for example, have likely accelerated warming by diminishing the cooling effect of sulfates.
You can read all the details at the link, but basically all those aerosol products that the left DEMANDED that we stop producing in the 70s, are now likely the cause of increased temperatures in the arctic. Another in a long line of liberal unintended consequences such as more malaria after DDT was demonized and excessive water use by forced conversion to "low flow" toilets.
It should be obvious to those paying attention that "global warming," or climate change, is the least understood field in science. There are so many conflicting reports and assumptions that any actions taken by governments to stop "global warming" are futile at best and economically devastating at worst. This does not mean that anyone advocates polluting the planet. Commonsense actions to reduce pollution can be undertaken without destroying the economy or industry, and without the help of massive government regulations.
Big Al needs to fold up his "cap and trade" play set and go home. The greatest scam the world has ever known is rapidly falling apart.
The Detroit News recently published a story, Leaving Michigan Behind: Eight-year population exodus staggers state lamenting the fact that so many people were leaving Michigan. Most of the departures include the most highly educated and highest wage earners. The people quoted were whining about declining tax revenue and less Federal dollars for education.
What these knuckleheads don't seem to get, is the smart people know when they are getting screwed. Why should I be taxed at draconian levels to pay for everyone else to sit on their bum? Michigan has some of the highest tax rates in the country. Coupled with a heavy union population, no business in their right mind would ever relocate there.
You have had near complete Democrat control for decades with Michigan being a reliable blue state since 1992. Which means each candidate promises voters even more goodies from the treasury of the hard working types. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why the taxpayers are fleeing Michigan and just about every other blue state.
It really is so simple. You lower taxes, lessen regulation and get government out of people's way, and the economy booms. And even though taxes are lower, you end up collecting more revenue than you would have with higher rates that everyone finds ways to avoid. This works on the county, state and federal level. Lower taxes always produces more growth.
But here is the key, you cannot, like typical liberals, start spending like drunken sailors. If too much revenue is coming in, taxes need to be lowered again. You never take in or spend more than necessary for basic government functions. You don't create layers and layers of departments and bureaucrats for taxpayers to support. Government workers are a net drain to the economy and merely make life more miserable for private citizens. And you definitely don't get into the charity business and steal from one to give to someone else too lazy to get a job.
