Rand Dagree’s Did you know? Rebuttal

I 100% AGREE….Every time I read something about these leeches making three and a half times the pay of the average American worker, or taxpayers paying them a base salary of $174,000 ($285,000 when benefits are included), or their illegal, but “legal” stock market tactics, it infuriates me. Yes, their approval ratings are at an all time low, however, “We the People” keep re-electing the same Reps and take no action to keep them on the straight and narrow.

Recently I wrote a letter with an attachment to three different individuals, Michael McCaul (my U.S. Representative), Senator Kirk Watson (my Senator), and Mark Strama (my State Representative) concerning this same issue. I asked them to explain to me how can this be possible? How can congress profit from an activity that has been deemed unlawful to the public? That’s like saying the police can arrest me for a crime, but they cannot themselves be arrested for that exact same crime. Am I being punked, because this is totally bogus? Disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff went to jail for all kinds of corruption within Congress, however, he contends that it is still running rampant, so what was the point of him going to jail again (besides making him an scapegoat)?

Although I have not heard back from either office, I will continue to write until I get some kind of answer. It is absolutely absurd that this type of behavior is allowed to continue while we struggle daily to pay for college, to find jobs, to feed our families, and or to just LIVE!!! It is as if Congress lives in a bubble and has absolutely no concern or interest in the American peoples’ reality. I keep saying, instead of protesting Wall Street, or hating the President, we should direct all this anger toward Congress. They should be held accountable, they should be protested against, they should be ostracized from our communities, not the other way around. However, the sad part is I have a sneaky suspicion that Congress is fully aware that we will not do anything, but talk. randdagree.blogspot.com/

"What Have You Done For Me Lately?"

“When small businesses do well, communities flourish and our economy grows.”  This was the sentiment echoed by President Obama on Saturday November 19^th, 2011, as he celebrated along with business leaders, lawmakers, and shoppers across the country, Small Business Saturday (http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/11/georgia-businessman-refuses-to-hire-until-obama-is-fired/). This initiative encouraged people to buy only from local, small businesses for a day. This even included the small business owner that has so viciously attacked the people that made this effort possible for his business to grow.

Bill Looman, owner of U.S. LLC, said he is fed up with the bad economy and D.C. politicians who do nothing to solve the problem and is refusing to hire any new workers until President Obama is removed from office. Mr. Looman posted on his websites as well as his trucks this message to the American people “ New Company Policy: We Are Not Hiring Until Obama Is Gone.”

What I think is so perplexing about this entire situation is the audacity of some individuals. Ninety-five percent of them do not start out writing their Congressmen to complain about the financial state in which they are finding their communities, but yet have this compulsive nature to take their complaints to the extreme right away. These same business owners MIGHT vote during election, but almost never vote in the primaries, and they never get involved with community action programs (that could very well spark some kind of economic fluctuation to their communities and ultimately to their businesses). As I read this news article, I was sure there would be some information on what positive action steps Mr. Looman had put into place, what community leaders he had spoken to, or what types of programs he had contributed his time to in order to keep his company, his community, and or his customers from shutting their doors. But there was nothing! All Mr. Looman has done is complain, just like the majority of us. We are so sick and tired of what is going on in Washington, but yet we do NOTHING except elect the exact same lying officials to represent us all the while never holding them accountable for their mistakes, for their empty promises, for our communities that continue to decline, or our jobs that are constantly being taking away and sent either oversees or to the that young kid (willing to take a little less than the current salary in place) with the highest degree.

Our United States Gov’t is like a pyramid that doesn’t trickle from the top down, but from the bottom up and for those individuals who constantly spew the importance of expressing their Amendment Rights, should first understand that they are the ones holding the pyramid up. The buck stops at “We the People.” We have the power to change every problem that is causing concern, dishonesty, and mayhem within our political arena. This power starts by looking, studying, and contacting who is representing your state. We then make decisions based on what that individual has truly done for our communities, schools, and neighborhoods. Do they truly deserve to represent us? Can they truthfully represent us? We decide who becomes the mayor, the governor, and our representatives in Congress, and we must make good choices, because it is that choice that decides our President. So don’t get pissed with the work your President is doing, get pissed at the work your Congressman is doing. Mr. Looman is clearly an angry man who needs to direct his anger into action. If he is so upset, why not run to represent his community? We all know he will not, because it is easier to keep complaining than to really take a stand and do something about the destruction.

Grace Hendrix's An Arcane Electoral College: Rebuttal

I really enjoy reading your opinions and I have to say I was hoping that your commentary on An Arcane Electoral College (http://americanlibertylifeandhappiness.blogspot.com/) was going to change the way I currently feel about the Electoral College, however, it did not and I am still in disagreement with you. I definitely think the Electoral College process should at least be revised if not eliminated all together.
You are absolutely correct about the founding fathers’ way of thinking for the foundation of America and it “made” so much sense-to them, especially when more than half the country was not allowed to vote to begin with. When all of the attributes of our United States Government were being formed, it clearly was not a safeguard against tyranny of the majority but a protection for the minority that was voting. Our government set it self up so that it not only would be very stagnant, but also depend on very few to keep it afloat. And that has turned the government we know today into a lot like the “Factionist” state in which Maddison spoke against. How can we trust the integrity or wisdom of these so called representatives when their motives have not only become mechanical, but the way in which that machine operates is corrupt to its very core? How can we trust representatives that are influenced by whom ever has the largest purse? I do not believe that we can, I believe the few states that have laws in place to force the Electorals to vote as they wish, is a step toward a new direction.
I do understand that most of the citizens with in the United States, do not care or even vote for a President when election comes around, however, the ones that do turn out to vote I believe do care and want their voices heard. It is a total sham that a nominee could be winning the popular vote, but lose the presidency, because of 270 electoral votes. Again I say maybe the founding fathers thought this was a perfect system in 1787, but in the twentieth century the world has evolved and this country needs to stop holding on to processes that clearly do not make logical sense just to show respect for age old politics.