On The Right Side

by Tom Sears

  The official also said, “It also includes hundreds of billions of dollars saved by not continuing to spend $170 billion a year in Iraq.” So a tax hike represents a spending reduction? Billy C. would be proud.

  So yes, Barack, for the good of the future of my country I want you to fail and fail miserably.

  New York Could Learn From Other States

  What a difference 950 miles makes.

  Anita has been researching potential areas for retirement and came up with a pretty intriguing option: Winchester, Tennessee.

  To be honest, her search was somewhat biased due to her being such a garden and landscape enthusiast (I would use the term fanatic or addict instead). She was excited by the fact that we would be moving from something called a zone 4 (bad?) to a zone 7 (good?). I think it has something to do with growing seasons.

  I admit she did 95 percent of the work (I was more interested in the tax and political environment), and I have learned long ago to trust her judgment. I should qualify that previous statement so as not to include political persuasions, as she is at the other end of the political spectrum. We learned long ago not to discuss politics which is one of the reasons we have been married 38 years.

  So, last week we took a trip to Winchester. We were both favorably impressed. The difference between liberal New York and conservative Tennessee is dramatic, but first the weather. While upstate New York was suffering with temperatures ranging from the 40s during the day to the teens at night, Winchester was experiencing temperatures ranging from the 70’s to the 50’s, a huge plus for me right there.

  The cost of living in Tennessee is very low. It is the third lowest-state in that category. In contrast, New York is the 5th highest. As a matter of fact, the 18 out of 21 states with the lowest cost of living statistics were states that voted Republican in the last election.

  Tennessee, for example, went 57 percent to 42 percent Republican. In contrast, 24 out of 29 states with the highest cost of living were tax, spend, borrow and waste states who voted Democrat. You could probably list them yourself. As a matter of fact, the top 13 out of 14 states with the most expensive housing markets and the highest cost of food also voted Democrat.

  When it comes to spending, Gov. David Patterson could learn a few things. While New York is considering more spending and higher taxes (I guess they call them fees, charges and the like to make them sound less harsh) Tennessee is considering trimming 1.5 percent from the current budget, and the governor (a Democrat, but conservative) has offered up plans to shrink the budget 12 percent in three years.

  All this will be accomplished with no increase in income taxes. It should be pointed out that Tennessee’s income tax taxes interest and dividends only, not wages. Compare that with New York rates. I sure did.

  When it comes to housing, what we found was pretty impressive, also. We looked at quite a few parcels, either by ourselves or with an agent.

  One example is a house in a nice, quiet neighborhood, walking distance to downtown, with almost a half-acre of land listed at $123,600!

  The agent said it will probably sell for much less. We were thinking of offering

  $100,000 and he didn’t laugh. If this wasn’t good enough, how about annual property

  taxes of only $680!

  The reason for all this fiscal conservatism is most likely due to the political makeup. Both U.S. Senators are Republicans, split representation in the House, a conservative Democrat for governor and a Republican controlled state House and Senate.

  Republicans ran on a conservative agenda, and this platform is what was credited with their making gains in both the House and the Senate, giving them a constitutional majority.

  In addition to their conservative spending plan and budget cutbacks, there will be no tax increases, and they will be left with untouched surplus reserves of $1.72 billion. What a unique approach. And one that is very similar to the strategy we ourselves personally have to follow.

  Lastly, I have to mention the people. Everyone, without exception, was polite and friendly and went out of his or her way to offer assistance.

  We went to the Chamber of Commerce to get statistics on crime and other issues, and we talked with an elderly couple staffing the office at the time. They were from the state of Michigan and had moved to Tennessee 11 years ago.

  Unfortunately, the wife was a gardening enthusiast, also, making it difficult to pull my wife away.

  But I don’t want my “fans” to worry. I’m speaking about all those people whose skin I get under. We’re only in the planning stage right now and Obama is giving me a lot to write about. How could I abandon you at this critical time?

  Let’s Act Against Tax Burden

  Well, according to the Tax Foundation of Washington D.C., Monday is tax freedom day.

  This is the date that, on average, we have paid off all levels of government for the year and can start keeping what we work hard for.

  Basically we work 103 days for the government and allow it to keep wasting our money; and Obama, not even three months into his reign, is setting records as to the amount he wants to waste. To put it another way, we pay more in taxes than we spend on housing, food and clothing combined.

  We New Yorkers even have it worse. We are ranked third-highest of all 50 states. That means all levels of government keep sucking the money out of our wallets until April 25. Only New Jersey and Connecticut are worse than we are (barely).

  Great job Governor Patterson. The sooner you’re out of office the better off

  we all are (I hope).

  Alaskans had their governments paid the soonest. They’re done by March 23, more than a month sooner than we are. Hmmm, now who runs Alaska? Congratulations Governor Palin. Tennessee, my eventual home state, has a freedom day of April 5th.

  That makes Wednesday more important than ever. This is the day that over 3,000 towns and cities across the country will be holding their TEA (Taxed Enough Already) parties.

  Haven’t heard about it? Of course you haven’t. Most, if not all, of the main stream media have chosen not to report about this event. Too bad our future budding journalists aren’t taught to just report the news, no matter what it is, even when you don’t agree with it. A class in Ethics 101 would probably help also.

  Fortunately, the conventional media are becoming less and less relevant. Won’t it be great when these biased, liberal bastions are out of business? It will be a great day for everyone when the New York Times, the L.A. Times, the Washington Post and others like them have to close their doors for the final time.

  Back to Wednesday’s TEA parties. The number of parties is growing every minute, even at this late date. You can go to taxdayteaparty.com for the complete list. There are thirty pages of cities and towns! New York state alone has more than 85 sites. Those closest to us include Albany, 11:00 to 2:00, Binghamton, 5:30 to 7:00, and, most recently, Norwich, 9:00 to noon. Many of these 3,000 plus sites are expecting numbers in the thousands.

  Remember the Million Man March in 1995? The media swooned and salivated over this event, giving Louis Farrakhan all the free publicity he wanted, months in advance. Even though Louie predicted attendance of three to five million, he had to settle for numbers in the range of 400,000 to 800,000. Let’s see how Wednesday’s numbers compare.

  Go to teapartyday.com to see the issues, in addition to repressive taxes, that will be addressed. Most common sense Americans will agree with most, if not all of them.

  To list a few, the site asks, “Are you fed up with a Congress and a president who vote for a $500 billion tax bill without even reading it, are spending trillions of dollars, leaving a debt our great-grandchildren will be paying, and want to take your wealth and redistribute it to others?”

  The same fed up question is also applied to social issues. Do you want a Congress and president who “force doctors and other medical workers to perform abortions against their will, want to take away the right to vote with a secret ballot in union elections, want to appoint a defende
r of child pornography to the No. 2 position in the Justice Department, want to punish those who practice responsible financial behavior and reward those who do not?”

  Go to the site to see the other important issues. Let’s go and show Barack we aren’t going to stand for his version of “ethics” much longer.

  So, let’s see how big a success tomorrow’s parties will be. Better yet, let’s see

  if the mainstream media report on the event, either before or after they take place.

  Will they be professional and unbiased and report the facts or even the events, or will they continue to be the increasingly irrelevant supermarket rags they are becoming? Tomorrow might answer that question.

  Don’t Let Yourself Get Fooled Again

  Obama’s continual incompetence is giving me so much material, I think I have enough for my next ten columns.

  As much as I would like to begin to write about these weaknesses, I really have to write about the recent TEA (Taxed Enough Already) parties held in all 50 states last April 15.

  I attended one in Milford, New York and was truly impressed. It was organized and run by a gentleman who paid for all the costs out of his own pocket.

  It was estimated that over 50 people attended, and everyone had the opportunity to express personal concerns about where this country is going and what can be done about it. The whole event was orderly, peaceful and everyone acted responsibly.

  The other parties had the same result: unbelievable success. The numbers are still coming in but the latest estimates, as of were over 1 million people at over 2,500 locations.

  What makes this amazing is that there was no George Soros, MoveOn.Org or Acorn group to finance and organize the events. It was truly a grass-roots effort made by thousands of normal, patriotic, tradition-believing individuals who really care about this country.

  Now, the left, predictably, attempted to use lies and distortions to demean and degrade these events. Normal, intelligent people easily saw through these weak, pitiful attempts.

  One of the best outcomes was that young people, the ones who overwhelmingly supported Obama, are beginning to see the real Barack rather than the one who lied and deceived his way into office.

  Now that they are seeing their future and their children’s futures being mortgaged away by the Obama, Reid, Pelosi cabal, they are realizing what a big mistake they made. The good news is that I am certain most of them won’t allow themselves to be duped again.

  This is not to say the Republicans came out of this unscathed. The event I attended held contempt for both free-spending parties, and rightfully so.

  However, while the Democrats were bashing President Bush for the deficits he was creating, Obama and his cohorts in Congress, in just three months, have managed to more than triple the deficit. They have succeeded in making George W.Bush look like Ebenezer Scrooge.

  Why do those on the liberal left always have to use emotion, lies, and distortions when they speak out against people who disagree with them?

  The answer is pretty simple. They don’t have the facts or truth on their side.

  They are either scared, ignorant and most often both.

  Why scared? They realize that the majority of the people in this country are center-right or right in their beliefs, and if this majority is awakened the left, and their socialist ideas, will become a thing of the past.

  Why are the lefties so afraid of these TEA Parties? Lorie Byrd, in her April 14

  column, listed five reasons to attend one. I’ll list three.

  No.1 - “You don’t mind paying reasonable taxes, but you don’t believe your

  wealth should be spread around.”

  No. 2 - “You believe the ‘Stimulus’ bill contained too much pork and not enough stimulus.” Remember when Obama promised to reduce earmarks and then permitted thousands of pork items to be signed into law?

  No.3 - “You oppose the current bailout mentality and oppose bailouts, both past and future.” Why reward the irresponsible actions taken by individuals and then have responsibly behaving people pay for them?

  Why do these reasons makes the lefties lash out with such venom?

  Now, the ignorant side of the left. Letters to the editor, on the local, state and national level, are all the same. They simply act as parrots and repeat what their leaders tell them to say.

  For example, they don’t make the effort to see what events, such as the TEA parties, are about. They let others form their opinions for them.

  Pretty shallow, huh? There is often little thought involved. Almost all of them are irrational Bush haters, and their letters simply try to get in as many nonfactual accusations possible. It gets rather tiresome. There is no originality involved. I can buy a parrot of my own and teach it to say the foolish things Janeane Garaofolo, Keith Olbermann, CNN, Sean Penn, and many other bottom feeders spout.

  What’s next? Have patience. 2010 and 2012 aren’t that far away, and we must be sure not to burn out before then. We must harness the energy that was created April 15, use it wisely, and talk to as many others as we can.

  Rest assured, the youth of this country are tired of being indoctrinated and represent a huge source of energy to make real change happen. They, and the many other people who were fooled once, will make sure the same mistake won’t be made again.

  SEALs Deserve All of Our Respect

  Last week, a student brought in a book for me to read entitled “Lone Survivor,” a No. 1 best seller about the personal story of a U.S. Navy SEAL and his experiences in the mountains of Afghanistan.

  I literally couldn’t put it down until I finished it. The review that follows will probably take two columns and then I can tie it all in with Janet “from another planet” Napolitano’s Department of Homeland Security report that pointedly slanders our military forces and American conservatives in general.

  It begins with the author, Marcus Luttrell, sadly making a trip to visit all the families of his fallen comrades to console them and tell of his fellow SEALS’ bravery; they died while he and these men carried out a sensitive and dangerous mission in Afghanistan.

  It then moves on to tell the reader what the requirements are in order to become a SEAL. It is impossible for you or me to comprehend the intensive training these young men go through. Many, although totally dedicated and fit, don’t make it. They don’t go through all the pain and suffering of the program for monetary gain or personal recognition. They simply want to be the best of the best and serve their country to the best of their ability, willing to sacrifice their lives, if necessary, to keep you and me free and protected.

  And it is not just the SEALS who are willing to go through hell to keep us safe. There are also the Green Berets, Rangers, and Delta Forces. The bravery, heroism, selflessness, and patriotism of these young Americans and other service members make you proud to know we have individuals like these defending the freedoms that we take for granted.

  Unfortunately, some Americans don’t give back the respect our military deserves. Fortunately, those in the service see right through this and view with disdain the liberal politicians, the liberal press and the “I support the troops but not the war” crowd.

  Our soldiers are becoming more and more aware of the growing problem that faces all our forces throughout the world.

  As Lattrell puts it, “For me it began in Iraq, the first murmurings from the

  liberal part of the U.S.A. that we were somehow in the wrong, brutal killers, bullying other countries; that we who put our lives on the line for our nation at the behest of our government should somehow be charged with murder for shooting our enemy. It has been an insidious progression, the criticisms of the Armed Forces from politicians and from the liberal media (and liberals in general) which know nothing of combat, nothing of our training, and nothing of the mortal dangers we face out there on the front line. We constantly had in the back of our minds the ever-intrusive rules of engagement.”

  These rules of engagement are drawn up by some air-
headed politician sitting safely in his Washington office “a very long way from the battlefield, where the slightest mistake can cost you your life.”

  SEALS, contrary to what John Kerry and others say, are not stupid individuals; and they, more than most Americans, read the press stories coming from the American media.

  Lattrell takes issue with “serving members of the armed forces who have been charged with murder in civilian courts for doing what they thought was their duty, attacking their enemy.”

  The rules are very straightforward. Don’t open fire until being fired upon or have determined who the enemy is and have proof of his intentions. Sounds very noble, doesn’t it? The author saw how these rules worked in his specific case, and it resulted in costing the lives “of three of the finest SEALS who have ever served.” There is no way you can ever convince me, or them, that all those sign-waving, quote-spieling groups care one bit.

  Lastly, for this column, let me tell you what additional fear these men have when they go into combat against the Taliban or al-Qaida.

  “The fear of our own, the fear of what our own Navy judge advocate general might rule against us, the fear of the American media and their unfortunate effect on American politicians. We all harbor fears about untrained, half-educated journalists who only want a good story to justify their salaries and expense accounts. Don’t think it is just me. We all detest them, partly for their lack of judgment, mostly because of their ignorance and toe-curling opportunism. When the media gets involved, in the United States, that’s a war you have a damned good chance of losing, because the restrictions on us are immediately amplified, and that’s sensationally good news for our enemy.”

  Truer words have never been spoken.