Why Does This Rain Smell Like Ammonia?

In the grand scheme of things, republicans seem to be very crafty in their messages to the people.  They tell us that the sky is falling and we tend to believe them.  They tell us Democrats caused the sky to fall and we believe them.  They tell us that spending needs to be brought under control and the only way to do that is to put the screws to the working people they represent... and we fall right in line.

I was glad to see that the massive protests in Wisconsin have not subsided since governor walker stamped out the voice of the middle class last week.  It shows the world that you can't piss all over us anymore and tell us it's raining.  In my home state of Pennsylvania, our newly elected republican governor just rolled out his new budget plans.  You guessed it, it isn't raining, but the middle class is all wet again.

This is how it works.  He leads in with reinforcing his campaign promise that his budget doesn't raise a single tax.  We all cheer and party and think this guy actually cares about the working man, after all, he's not going to ask us for more money.  That's when the smell of urine begins wafting through the air.  You would think that the only way to shoulder such a bold promise would be to ask those that can pay for it to shoulder the load.  But we're not dealing with the logical mind, we're dealing with republicans, here.  While we'll enjoy steady tax bills, we'll also enjoy layoffs, wage freezes and cuts to that age old root of all evil... education.

While Ed Rendell was Governor, education saw a boost in funding and I have to admit, I proud of the public schools in Pennsylvania.  The teachers are dedicated, many of them have won awards and consistently rank high in quality of education.  No better reason to cut funding, right?  And educated middle class is a dangerous middle class.  Instead of asking business and wealthy residents to kick in, corbett has decided to attack the unions, put people out of work and slash the wages of public employees.  These are the people that depend on their salaries to... you know... eat.

What's even more shocking than the very clear disdain for the working Pennsylvanian is the obvious favoritism for the rich and businesses.  Lowering capital gains taxes is obviously much more important that funding programs for kindergartners, even I thought that was obvious.  Also avoiding the knife are those environmentally destructive natural gas companies.  A nice tax cut for those guys who have this amazing ability to turn normal drinking water into a volatile explosive.  Apparently this is much more interesting than say... mental health care for Pennsylvanians.

The one good thing about all these republicans and their budget plans is that the middle class now sees the error of their ways.  I have a feeling in 2012, the working American is going to be pretty tired of being the republican's toilets.  Hell, in Wisconsin, they're probably not even going to have to wait that long

The Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing

In light of the recent events in Wisconsin, where governor walker and his team of republican senators have effectively silenced the voice of the government Worker, cyberspace has been chattering away.  One of the biggest arguments on the right, and I’m talking about the common republican citizen, is that Unions, while serving a purpose many years ago, have no place in our world today.

What I find so shocking about this is the fact that the corporation has effectively zipped up his sheep suit and now walks amongst his prey.  We’re at a point now where people no longer believe that corporations follow the “profits over people” mentality.  I’ve got to hand it to all those public relations departments, they did a hell of a job pulling the wool over the worker’s eyes.  Now we’re all hanging out, having a good time – one big happy family.  Corporation and worker, together again.

The problem here is that this is all a big farce.  Market forces do not dictate corporate actions, which is clearly evident by the fact that even in this recession, these businesses are recording record profits, yet aren’t hiring people on to the payrolls.  They are just sitting atop their mountains of cash and looking down on their peons.  And because no one seems to be looking up at them and realizing what is going on, the first domino against the voice of the worker has fallen – the rest are sure to follow soon.

When people see the word “Union,” they should be seeing what it really means and that is “Worker’s rights.”  Anyone who say’s Unions have no place in today’s world are really saying that the Worker has no rights in today’s world.  And once the Union counterweight to profits over people has been eliminated, the corporation will rip off that sheep skin and show his true colors.  And it will not matter if your are Liberal or conservative, Democrat or republican – YOU are what’s for dinner.

The Socialism Scare Tactic

Originally published on September 16, 2009 - Bucks County Courier Times

The debate on health care has reached epic proportions, with heated arguments from the masses on why a public option health plan is a bad idea and in some cases, downright illegal.

More often than not, opponents will cite our old friend, the U.S. Constitution, as a defense against universal health care.  They tell us that it's unconstitutional to provide universal health care and that health care is not a right guaranteed to us.

Using this document to defend against a public health plan is insulting to each and every citizen who believes in the vision of our Founding Fathers.  For starters, the preamble of the Constitution clearly states that one of its purposes is to promote the general welfare of the people of the United States.  Isn't giving every citizen the "luxury" of health care promoting the general welfare?

The Constitution was also written to be flexible.  In other words, just because the Constitution doesn't specifically guarantee a right, doesn't mean it can't be changed to do just that.  Furthermore, the forerunner of the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, also notes that the Founding Fathers of this country expressed the desire to uphold certain inalienable rights.  The rights are, of course, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

When I hear stories of health insurance providers rescinding coverage for sick people and refusing to pay for life-saving services, aren't they denying Americans their right to life?  Isn't a person who is in good health made happy by the peace of mind that their health concerns will be addressed by a doctor without worrying about how they're going to pay for it?  Therefore, aren't health insurance companies also denying Americans the right to the pursuit of happiness when they allow people to die for the sake of their own bottom line?  When did the right to corporate profits trump our rights to life and happiness?

I also hear the term "socialism" thrown around quite a bit in these town hall meetings.  I suppose this has a greater effect on people just a little older than I am, when Soviet Russian dominated the nightmares of Americans.  At 33, the socialism scare tactic doesn't really have much of an effect on me, as I assume is the case for most people my age.  But when we really think about it, the current health care system is based on a socialist business model.

Health insurance profits rely on the masses contributing to a pool of money that is then spent on the few who need it.  In a sense, if you're healthy, you're paying for a sick person to get better.  The only difference is that under the capitalist model, you have no power to evoke change should your insurance provider not provide the optimum service.

Health insurance is a special industry that doesn't even fall under the "freedom of choice" defense because of the pre-existing condition clause.  You get cancer, your health insurance decides not to pay because you had a wart on your toe when you were seven - and you can't even get a new provider.  At least under the socialist model, you can vote in a new political administration.  Or better yet, you can switch to a private plan, because, contrary to popular belief, the public option will not be the only option... hence the word "option."

Bit let's go back to that one sentence:  "If you're healthy, you're paying for a sick person to get better."  If anything, doesn't that make you feel a little better about yourself?

Two Wrongs Can Make A Right, Actually

Two major tragedies have recently occurred in the world. The first being Libyan pilots, who decided that their loyalty to a deranged idiot who never did anything good for any of his people was stronger than the their sense of right and wrong, went ahead and bombed and strafed civilians with their fighter jets. The second calamity was that the Supreme Court decided that Reverend Phelps and his cult of complete douchebags is protected by the First Amendment when they protest the funerals of military service men and women.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court was most likely right in their decision, but boundaries need to be made when interpreting free speech. After all, yelling “fire” in a crowded theater isn't worse that what these morons are doing. We have wiggle room and it should have been utilized.

So here is my solution to these problems. First we fill a casket full of rocks, drape an American flag over it. Next we put that casket out into the middle of the desert in Libya. We place a call to Reverend Phelps (I'm sure we could get Ian Murphy to work his magic again) and tell him that they are trying to avoid the word of God, spoken through you, of course, by holding a funeral out in the desert. I honestly don't think it would be too hard to fool this idiot, after all, he believes picketing funerals is Godly. His IQ has to register somewhere between Forrest Gump and a rock.

What we will then have is a bunch of people that the world would be better off without in the middle of the desert. Next we place another call (thanks again, Mr. Murphy) that there are unarmed civilians throwing shoes at pictures of Gadhafi and send them into action. Grab a cell phone and record a bunch of douchebags slaughtering a bunch of douchebags. It's guaranteed to go viral.

While I certainly don't condone to use of deadly force on anyone, this may be a case of two wrongs finally making a right. After all, anyone who is going to miss a member of the Westboro Baptist Church will be rotting out in the desert anyway.

Why Negotiate When You Can Strongarm?

When I was in school, taking those Civics classes that I thought were so boring at the time, the one thing you always learned was that politicking was about negotiation. It's the fundamental core of that cornerstone test question on “checks and balances.” Checks and balances is what made the American government so unique. No one had all the power. Of course this refers to the three branches of government, but at it's heart is figuring out how to compromise.

Apparently Governor Walker did not pay attention during Civics when he was in high school. That's probably why he wants to dismantle public education with the fervor of an Al-Qaeada militant. Walker could easily find a compromise for the current budget stalemate in Wisconsin if he really cared about the state and people of Wisconsin, but he doesn't. He's a republican and republicans can't be bothered by the needs of the common taxpayer. Sure, they mask all their generous tax breaks for the wealthy and businesses as helping the middle class, but do they ever help the middle class? Looks like we need one of those “overpaid” Wisconsin public school teachers to pull Walker aside and give him another lesson on voodoo economics. It's clear that it doesn't work for the middle class as the only thing trickling down on us is wet and stinks of ammonia and processed Dom Pérignon.

So with the worker of Wisconsin sending a message that they will not be trampled on at any cost and their Democratic Senators unrelenting in their support for these workers, isn't it time Walker got the message that what he is doing is just not the right way to go? Wouldn't a reasonable governor say, “Hey, lets negotiate and work this out so everyone is happy,” or "Maybe giving tax breaks to those who don't need them and make the people who do, pay for them, isn't such a hot idea." Of course not. Instead of negotiating, Walker is trying to strong arm the Senate by cutting off direct deposit payments thus forcing them to claim their paychecks in person, passing late-night resolutions to now fine lawmakers who wont show up to vote for his budget and restricting taxpayer access to the state Capitol. Civics: Fail, Gov. Walker.

Just because the Koch brothers and their wealthy campaign donors-in-arms managed to get Walker elected, doesn't mean that this is what the people wanted. People want sensible cuts without being stomped into the ground. The worker is drowning and it's tough to get air when people like Governor Walker have their boot on their head holding them under.

Be a politician, Governor Walker, and negotiate. Take the concessions offered by the unions and let the teachers and other public employees retain their dignity and power to negotiate with their employers so the checks and balances between employer and employee remains intact.