I Need to Vent for a Moment...

I Need to Vent for a Moment...

• 4.02.2010

on politics, taxes, and “global warming”. 

This post has been sitting for a few weeks now; I've been debating whether or not to publish it.  In the end, this is my blog.  It's a place of my own where I can express my opinions and beliefs.  So sit tight and read on!  If you don't agree, I'd love to read what you have to say! 

I hate New York State today. Someday we will move from here and return to “God’s Country” out West where the sky is bigger, the mountains taller, and the taxes much, much lower. New York State is ridiculous. It sucks everyone’s wallets dry. Everything is more expensive, which includes our insurance premiums and extra money towards our cell phone bill. New York tacks on five cents to every bottle of soda sold, which I think is a crummy way of encouraging consumers to recycle. The taxes I just filed for the state were notably more complicated and much more extensive than the Idaho taxes I filed. Plus, if we lived in New York City or Yonkers, I would have been obliged to fill out additional paperwork. Yuck! New Yorkers are simply overtaxed. The sad thing is, they’re unaware. Most people have grown up here and have never experienced anything different. If they had, I think the realization would upset them.

However, New Yorkers might argue, the tax money goes towards the myriad of wonderful social programs run by the state. Well, I’m frankly against so many social programs. I think a few programs are necessary—like public schools and such—to help give every citizen the same OPPORTUNITIES to succeed. We are not created equal and our government wasn’t built on the belief of equality for all. Our nation was built upon the idea that every man should have the opportunity to improve his situation and live out his dream. Opportunity does not guarantee success though. Some people are more talented or just plain lucky. Others, unfortunately, must try again or try something else. But I believe that EVERYONE should have that OPPORTUNITY to try to better themselves regardless of race, sex, or religious affiliation.

Many people believe that more money thrown into social programs equates to more success among its people. It just isn’t true. The state of Utah spends the least amount of money per child and their test scores rival those states that just pour money into their children. I think that those kind of successes come from simple values such as hard work, responsibility, and parental involvement with their children. It is not just a teacher’s job to educate, it’s also a parent’s job as well. A teacher is there to help facilitate learning, but a parent is the one who encourages and teaches his or her children to take responsibility for their actions and thus, their education.

Has the United States helped create a generation of lazy individuals and families? Absolutely. I don’t understand how taxing the rich more—just because they chose to sacrifice their time for an education or worked years to build a company from the ground up—and redistributing the money to the less fortunate aids in encouraging individuals to improve their circumstances. Do you know how many people are on “disability” and are afraid to get a job because they will lose their “benefits”? Their sitting around like a couch potato doesn’t help anybody or anything; they are literally draining the system. In fact, they often ask for more handouts and assistance from other places because they are backed into a financial corner when their car breaks down or their heating bill goes up. I’m not making this up; I actually know people who live this way. It drives me nuts!

As for the new health care bill that was just passed, I have mixed feelings. I agree that our health care system needs some changes and the bill addresses some of those. Yes, health insurance should be more affordable and yes, people with pre-existing conditions should still be eligible for coverage! However, I think the bill attempts to mask the problem and “treat its symptoms” rather than take the problems head on and “eradicate the disease”, so to speak. I don’t think pulling money from tax payers’ pockets to pay for yet another government insurance is going to fix anything. Medicare and Medicaid are already overwhelmed. I saw evidence of this first hand when I worked for an ophthalmologist office. What is another government health insurance going to do?

I don’t have all the answers to the “health care problem”. I have ideas and suggestions—like putting a cap on medical malpractice—and I have faith in those who are smarter and more experienced than myself to improve it. I’m just a young woman who wants the best for my family and friends. I have empathy for those who struggle financially or who are truly at a disadvantage and cannot afford to see a doctor when they really need one. I hope there are solutions out there for them.

Lastly, I’d like to announce that global warming is a bunch of crock. It’s not true! There’s no such thing as “global warming” anymore. Instead, we politely call it, “climate change”. Global Warming and Climate Change are more of a political bandwagon to extort a political agenda. The BBC has been reporting on this for months now. (Read this or this or do your own research.) Even NASA has declared there not be enough data to back up global warming claims. The earth has a natural cycle and we humans are too insignificant to throw her off. This doesn’t mean that I’m against recycling and conservation. I very much believe that those are noble ideas; I don’t believe that we should be blatantly wasteful. What I’m sick of hearing are things about reducing carbon footprints in order to save the world from overheating! If global warming is a bunch of crock, then we don’t need to worry about it! What we do need to worry about, however, is using what we do have wisely and efficiently and finding affordable alternative fuel sources, ethanol not included. Fuel should NEVER be connected to our food supply.  I could continue, but I’ll save your eyes and ears…

Oh, yes, Mrs. Obama.  Quit calling your garden "organic".  What other kind of garden could it be?  Quit misleading the public. 

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I want to bring back old-fashioned values like honesty and hard work and responsibility and family. And I want the whole world to adopt the motto: TO ACT AND NOT BE ACTED UPON. I think it would make such a difference.