Will America Mirror Massachusetts?
Posted by: Angela F. F. Davis | 10/31/2008 6:21 PM
I am struck by the tenacity of the Obama camp. They press on, asserting that the tax breaks will go to those making below $250K.....or I hear it ratcheted down a few notches in the last 48 hours, now they are sticking it to the $150K and above aggregate of individuals. The threshold along with those numbers is moving south pretty rapidly as we move closer toward November 4th.
This rings familiar.
This rings familiar.
You see, if you lived here in Massachusetts, the scenario that played out a couple years ago with our now Governor, when he was campaigning, is precisely the same scenario we've got playing out on the national scene with the Obama campaign. Tax breaks for all was what our our now Governor boasted and promised when he campaigned, it was a major platform issue and way for him to differentiate himself from the pack of Libertarians and Republicans. In a state where the Democrats have been for years the ruling party in the House and Senate. Does this ring familiar yet to you?
Wait, there's more. A historic win for our Democratic Governor, and he joins an already Democratic dominated Beacon Hill Senate and Legislature.
Wait, there's more. A historic win for our Democratic Governor, and he joins an already Democratic dominated Beacon Hill Senate and Legislature.
And with that the pendulum swung, way over to the left. Just as far left as it could go, and it has stayed there.
Unlike the stock market, we are not privy to a market correction, rather some of us are left praying for a party correction.
Our state tilts so far left that there are times when standing at Park Street on the Boston Common looking up at the golden dome up on Beacon Hill, it appears to be leaning like "La Torre di Pisa".
Shall we explore further? Let me take you on a tour of the political problems we've now secured and claim ownership to in Massachusetts as result of a one party rule.
Moral of the story: Don't be duped and don't think for a minute that change for the sake of change is the way to go, and if you think for a second that a one party system in control of every level of federal government including the oval office is the way to go, then be my guest.
Shall we explore further? Let me take you on a tour of the political problems we've now secured and claim ownership to in Massachusetts as result of a one party rule.
We now have a major ethical dilemma in the State House commonly referred to as "phantom voting". What is that you ask? This means that for example, we had a Democratic Representative who was recorded voting along with his Democratic Majority colleagues on some tax and spend budget issues, while he was actually en route back from a trip to St. Croix. Indeed.
Then there was the Democratic Representative who was drunk as a skunk, so his colleagues pressed his voting buttons for him.
Nice.
That, my friends, is phantom voting.
Nice.
That, my friends, is phantom voting.
And a small snippet of a much larger concern here on Beacon Hill in Massachusetts, because of a one-party system that has let the animal house go wild. It's called Democrat Dominance.
We had our glory days with the likes of Republican leadership, don't get me wrong. Bill Weld and Celluci were guys that were centrists, held the line on taxes and had the ability to work with the Dems. We didn't see them alot down in Hyannisport at the compound with the Kennedys, but nevertheless there was functionality there. They knew how to work both sides of the aisle, and even inject some fun when Weld jump into our Boston Harbor.
We had our glory days with the likes of Republican leadership, don't get me wrong. Bill Weld and Celluci were guys that were centrists, held the line on taxes and had the ability to work with the Dems. We didn't see them alot down in Hyannisport at the compound with the Kennedys, but nevertheless there was functionality there. They knew how to work both sides of the aisle, and even inject some fun when Weld jump into our Boston Harbor.
Then we had a stint with former Presidential Candidate and Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Great guy, integrity, Mitt had to use all his political strength to put the brakes on state spending. With Romney there existed a system of checks and balances. And if the state budget had zeros in the balance column, the Republicans had to put a screeching halt on the spending. Back then, the Republicans were the watchdogs.
Now, fast forward to present day, it's a Democratic Governor for us, leading a democratic house, with a majority democratic senate, and you know what? All those promises about rolling the taxes back have not surfaced.
Now, fast forward to present day, it's a Democratic Governor for us, leading a democratic house, with a majority democratic senate, and you know what? All those promises about rolling the taxes back have not surfaced.
It is indeed a frightful plight that Massachusetts cannot seem to tighten the belt, so we have resorted to a ballot initiative for this Tuesday, called Question 1, which would eliminate the income tax code in Massachusetts.
Indeed, as if things are not wacky enough today, the talk of our trick or treat sidewalk parade tonite is somebody's brain child to remove all the income tax. In essence removing our public highway maintenance, public school funding, senior services, cutting public safety budgets, so on and so forth. If the roads need plowing in a few weeks, and you've got to get out of the driveway to pick up a loaf of bread or milk for the kids, well everything comes to a screeching hault because we cannot afford the basic maintenance.
Hence, we all pray Question 1 does not pass, it would endanger the municipalities. Some conservatives will vote yes, simply to posture and send a message. It's a wreckless path to nowhere though. Fiscally irresponsible.
There is simply no middle ground here in this state. You'd think if this were a real fairy tale, this is the part where the conservative or at least a centrist comes to Beacon Hill to slay the dragon.
Indeed, as if things are not wacky enough today, the talk of our trick or treat sidewalk parade tonite is somebody's brain child to remove all the income tax. In essence removing our public highway maintenance, public school funding, senior services, cutting public safety budgets, so on and so forth. If the roads need plowing in a few weeks, and you've got to get out of the driveway to pick up a loaf of bread or milk for the kids, well everything comes to a screeching hault because we cannot afford the basic maintenance.
Hence, we all pray Question 1 does not pass, it would endanger the municipalities. Some conservatives will vote yes, simply to posture and send a message. It's a wreckless path to nowhere though. Fiscally irresponsible.
There is simply no middle ground here in this state. You'd think if this were a real fairy tale, this is the part where the conservative or at least a centrist comes to Beacon Hill to slay the dragon.
Well the story just does not end that way.
One last nightmarish event for this week. We've got State Senator Wilkerson, found guilty of tax evasion not too long ago here in Boston. This week, video emerged of her stuffing her brassiere with green paper. Yes, literally caught her taking money from undercover agents for various things such as liquor licenses, and her left hand goes up under her shirt and pops the cash into her lingerie.
This goes beyond insulting and demeaning, and grinding away at the fabric of our society.
Further supporting a point that we have swayed so far left in our state, with everything under control of a one party system that there is absolutely no system of checks and balances behind the closed doors of government. There is instead a blatant lack of oversight and quite frankly, lack of care. This State Senator Wilkerson is still serving constituents, while the Majority Party, Democratic State Leadership is making robo calls, voicing their support of her re-election bid.
A revised version of yard sign supporting the Question 1 Ballot Initiative appeared this week with the Wilkerson debacle, and it reads "Stuff your Bra with Cash, VOTE YES ON #1", posted on a front lawn somewhere north of Boston.
We are suffering economically here in Massachusetts. We "bought into" the Obama plan 2 years ago.
We are suffering economically here in Massachusetts. We "bought into" the Obama plan 2 years ago.
Look at us now America. We have so much pork in our budget, and the democrats don't want to get rid of anything. As our local folks like to say, we don't have a revenue problem, we've got a spending problem.
Moral of the story: Don't be duped and don't think for a minute that change for the sake of change is the way to go, and if you think for a second that a one party system in control of every level of federal government including the oval office is the way to go, then be my guest.
Pull the lever.
And when the story starts to unfold January 21, 2009 and thereafter, and it rings familiar, you can say "yea, I heard that story before. That is the story of Taxachusetts....I mean Massachusetts. Man, did they get a raw deal."
And when the story starts to unfold January 21, 2009 and thereafter, and it rings familiar, you can say "yea, I heard that story before. That is the story of Taxachusetts....I mean Massachusetts. Man, did they get a raw deal."
I can hear it now....Oh, it's alot worse than we thought....we are going to all have to pull together and sacrifice on this one....hide your wallets America!
Obama voted to raise taxes on anyone making over 40k. This guy makes Bill Clinton look like a conservative.
The Massachusetts Legislature does a whole lotta nothing. By doing nothing like not taking a vote or not calling a motion, they make it worse. No dialogue for the public to hear.
"Together We Can", Deval Patrick's catch phrase for his election is now the mantra for Democratic politics in MA.
Note it does not say "Together We Can 'improve our economy', 'get everyone a good job', 'have health care for all children', 'have great schools and public colleges', you get the picture - nothing specific, nothing action-oriented.
In fact it was just NOTHING. And today in Massachusetts NOTHING is being done by the legislature. In fact we have an additional 2000 state employees hired by Patrick contributing to the NOTHING.
A crazy rock group of the 1960's The Fugs perform a song "NOTHING". Go to You tube and search for The Fugs Nothing. What you will hear is the theme song of today's MA legislature. "Monday - nothing, Tuesday- nothing, Wednesday - nothing..." you get the idea.