Middle Class Joe

What Now for the Republicans

2012-01-23T22:46:00.003-06:00

Since my last post I have been out of sight. There are several reasons for this, personal and professional obligations as well as research on a story that I am hoping will pan out. If you have read my blog before, you can guess who I am researching.

During my absence we have seen the rise and fall of the candidate I was personally rooting for Herman Cain and am sad to see this man drug through the muck the way he was. I think Ann Coultier was on to something when she associated the allegations with David Axelrod. You can find more on this story HERE.

With the loss of Herman Cain as a candidate, the Republican party has a tougher job of defeating Obama. A story like Cain's could not have been better. He has a history of standing up to politicians as he did Bill Clinton, he was a self made business man and entrepreneur. And, he did not take crap from anyone. Tie Herman Cain with a smart VP candidate with knowledge on foreign affairs and you had a winner of a ticket. Well, that is not going to happen now, so, what do we do.

Let's be honest, shall we. Obama is going to go after whomever is chosen by the electorate as his opposition. They are going to use the candidate's personal life, they are going to dig up any past indiscretion and they are going to mis-state the facts. This will all be done with the assistance of the media. The candidate that is selected has to be the one that can beat Obama not only with their ideas but is likeable by moderates, independents and Reagan Democrats.

Listen, you can be as high and mighty as you want when it comes to social values, but you are not going to win a national campaign that way. To quote James Carville, "It's the economy stupid." If a candidate can come across with a moderate social policy, strong defense and a strong fiscal policy that promotes small government, we should rally behind him.

The minions of Obama are already starting the game plan. They are blaming Congress, both Dems and Reps for the economy. They are propping him up for his action overseas and as the man that killed OBL. They are stating that he came into office under bad terms and cannot be expected to fix everything in 4 years. If you read Andrew Sullivan's article in Newsweek, he builds the case that everything Obama has started was based upon an 8 year plan.

The person that is chosen for the Republican Presidential Candidate has to be someone who is electable in a general election. So, with that said, who is that person? Is it crazy uncle Ron Paul who makes some strong fiscal sense but talks a little nutty on foreign policy? Is it creepy step-dad Newt Gingrich that says things that make sense and what you want to hear, but you wonder if he really means it? Is it the over achieving cousin Mitt Romney that seems a little out of touch with the day to day life? Is it the overshadowed cousin Rick Santorum who never really got the attention that he may have deserved?

I do not know who the right candidate is for the country. None of these guys were my first choice. I respect Jim Talent and he has good things to say about Mitt. I respect Sarah Palin and she seems to lean towards Newt. Mark Levin, who I think is both smart and entertaining, has endorsed Rick Santorum. The very smart Judge Andrew Napolitana, from Fox News, has endorsed Ron Paul.

All I can say is this. We can bicker about who best represents what we want, but in the end, we need to elect someone that can win. There is no way on God's green Earth that Obama is going to agree to a series of debates, Lincoln-Douglas style or otherwise with Newt. We will be lucky to get 3 out of Obama and no more. Without the debates, I do not think Newt is electable. The debates are what is helping him out now. Ron Paul, comes across as detached from foreign affairs as compared to Obama, so he would be eaten alive in the debates when it comes to foreign policy. This lives Rick and Mitt. I believe that of the available candidates, these two are our best choice.

That said, no matter who the candidate is, we still have another issue. If Obama is still down in the polls come time for the conventions, then this election will be made into a race issue. No matter who the nominee is, we must have someone as the VP who can offset any claims of racism. If it is true that Condi Rice wants to get back into the political game, it would be smart to look long and hard at her as a VP candidate. For either Rick or Mitt, it would add much needed foreign policy experience. Condi being a single, black professional woman can help offset racist and sexist Republican stereotypes. All that and in the end she would be a damn fine VP who has a ton of experience and can go mano y mano agains a Joe Biden or Hillary Clinton should Joe step down as VP as some rumors suggest.

Republicans and Minorities

2011-09-20T08:55:00.000-05:00

I thought I would share a couple of youtube videos that I found interesting and profound. As we go into the next election cycle, there are some intersting things here to consider and think about as we work on campaigns and such.

This is the trailer for a movie that is profound and insightful. I would suggest that everyone watch this.

and then, let us not foget the words of the great Ronald Reagan in a speech that I find many people are not aware of. It is interesting to see how timeless his words are, although with Reagan that seemed to always be the case.

I may get flamed for this but I am ok with that. I bring this up because I am a realist. In Missouri's first district, we have a large black and a growing hispanic population. That combined with our large union base does not bode well for Republicans. If we are to ever get a Republican or a right leaning Libertarian in office, we have to listen to these people. We have to learn that this is a different audience than we are used to and reach out to them. Too often we assume that we cannot reach this audience and that is not the case. As many people stated in these clips and in the movie, many blacks and latinos are social conservatives. They have just been brainwashed to think that they have to vote Democrat. We all know that is not he case.

Obama Admits to NOT Enforcing the Laws and The Press Says Nothing

2011-09-15T14:00:00.000-05:00

As I am going through my normal reading patterns, I stumbled upon this article in the Washington Examiner (HERE).

In it, Obama talks about how he wants to work around Congress until he can get his lapdog Nancy Pelosi back in charge. Work around Congress. If George Bush or any Republican said that the MSM would be screaming from rooftops about dictatorship. Trolling through the cable news channels, I have yet to hear anyone mention this. Drudge has it up on his website, but that is about it.

On top of that, Obama all but admits that he is not enforcing the laws on the books as his way of circumventing immagration law. Once again, the main street media is not saying anyting about this. Obama is all but bragging that he is choosing to not enforce the laws and not a peep.

Of course, Obama makes remarks to say that while he tempted to do his own thing, that is not how our rule of law works.

So in one side we have Obama saying he cannot override the rule of law, but on the other side he is saying I can do what I want by deciding how and when I am going to enforce the laws. Bush was called a dictator for his actions in Iraq even after receiving Congressional approval.

The corruption and arrogance of this administration is appaling. They will go after Gibson Guitars for what they see is illegal purchase of wood (story found HERE) but they will not legally deport illegal aliens. What's worse is in this example, Obama's admin would rather shut down a company based upon their interpretation of a foreign law rather than enforce the laws that are on the books.

This is what we get when we elect a community organizer for President of the United States. A community organizer that said in 2001..

"If you look at the victories and failures of the civil rights movement and its litigation strategy in the court, I think where it succeeded was to invest formal rights in previously dispossessed people, so that now I would have the right to vote. I would now be able to sit at the lunch counter and order and as long as I could pay for it I’d be OK

But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn't that radical. It didn't break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution, at least as it's been interpreted, and the Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can't do to you. Says what the federal government can't do to you, but doesn't say what the federal government or state government must do on your behalf.

And that hasn't shifted and one of the, I think, tragedies of the civil rights movement was because the civil rights movement became so court-focused I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change. In some ways we still suffer from that."

While Obama is speaking in the context of the civil rights movement, he is talking about redistribution of wealth and the government being granted rights. This is a man who does not understand the Founding Fathers' concepts of individual freedoms. This is why he believes that it is ok to not enforce the laws on the books and instead shutdown companies that may not be doing anything illegal.

If this does not explain why we need a change in 2012, nothing will.

Our Republican Candidate Choices

2011-09-12T22:27:00.000-05:00

Greetings and saluatations,

Rather than re-hash an old topic or talk about Lacy Clay, I want to talk quickly about the Presidential Republican candidates. I am probably going to get flamed for this but frankly, I do not care. I must say that I really do not like many of the choices we have. Most of them either come off as weak and populist or strong and unelectable.

Here are some thoughts:

Rick Perry - I like some of the things he has said and done, but I fear that his past and some of the things that he has said in Texas will come back to haunt him. I think he trying to come off as electable to everyone by channeling Ronald Reagan. Just look at him during the CNN debate. He looked like a young wax figure of Reagan.

Can he beat Obama, probably.
Would he be a good president, maybe.

Herman Caine - If I had to vote today, he would get my vote. He is plane spoken, speaks his mind, is no nonsense. I believe he is exactly what this country needs, a non politician who is socially libertarian and fiscally conservative.

Can he beat Obama, probably not. Caine makes too much sense and does not play politics.
Would he be a good president, with the right VP to help out on foreign affairs, yes.

Mitt Romney - He is the most photogenic and possibly the least trust-able candidate. He acts like he is small government fiscal conservative. That said, he does not have the political background to prove this change of heart.

Can he beat Obama, yes.
Would he be a good president, 50/50 chance.

Michelle Bachmann - She is the Tea Party candidate. She is also the target of much of the media's criticism. She also suffers from what my mom calls "foot in mouth disease". Michelle has said too many things that make her seem extreme. True or not, she has been painted as the Republican Nancy Pelosi.

Can she beat Obama, not likely.
Would she be a good president, maybe. I question how well she could work with everyone to get things done. She seems to be too much of a my way or the highway personality

Ron Paul - Ron makes a lot of sense 75% of the time. The other 25% of the time, he either seems to be wrong, in my opinion, or he just rambles like your crazy Uncle. On social issues, I agree with Paul. On several of his fiscal issues, I agree with Paul. When it comes to his foreign policy though, he comes off as an isolationist and that does not fly.

Can he beat Obama, no.
Would he be a good president, no. Foreign policy is too major a part of being a president and it is much more complex than I think Paul is willing to admit.

Rick Santorum - As a senator, he did some pretty good things but he is not a strong candidate. He is spending too much time downplaying his competitors instead of talking about his ideas. I know he is trying to get his foot in the door by trying to show the chinks in the armor of his competition. He appears to be a fiscal conservative and socially moderate.

Can he beat Obama, yes.
Would he be a good president? He would probably be OK, not bad and not great.

John Huntsman - Based off of all the things he has said and presented he appears to be a middle of the road Republican. I would not call him a fiscal or social conservative by any measure. He may be appealing to the masses but I do not think that he is what the country needs.

Can he beat Obama, probably not.
Would he be a good president, probably not. He seems to wishy washy and willing to bend to polling numbers.

Newt Gingrich - Newt is by far the statesman of the group. What he says makes total sense. Newt knows how to get things done in Washington and while he is a politician, he is also a scholar. That all said, Newt brings a lot of baggage with him and because of that, would probably not be embraced by the general public.

Can he beat Obama, maybe.
Would he be a good president, yes.

If the American people knew what was good for them, they would elect Herman Caine or Newt Gingrich. Either man would do great things for our country and in my humble opinion, the two of them together could really kick some tail. I mean, Mitt Romney has practically agreed with Herman Caine every time the two are together. The difference is Mitt Romney is a more polished politician.

If I had to guess today, I would say Huntsman will be the next one out. He would likely endorse no one and his backers would probably fall in line with either Ron Paul or Rick Santorum. After that, it is really going to depend upon fund raising. Gingrich, Santorum or Caine could have to bow out early if they do not pick up more money or endorsements. As we get closer to the primaires, Ron Paul will become a non-candidate as the American public learns mreoa bout him (NOTE - After the CNN debate, it could be earlier), leaving Bachman, Perry and Romney.
So, with all that said, using a Hubble telescope type lens to predict the future, I could easily see a combination of a Mitt Romney-Herman Caine ticket or a Rick Perry-Rick Santorum ticket. Mitt and Herman can project a pro-business, working knowledge of industry perspective while a ticket of the 2 Ricks could project strength, Christian conservative and youth values.

There are some other VP candidates that I think would be good too and they include Newt Gingrich, Paul Ryan and locally Jim Talent. They all bring different things to the table and it will really depend upon the state of the nation and the world as to who would be offered the job. If the economy is really in the tank and the House and Senate has a lot of internal bickering, Newt would be the perfect VP. If the economy is still showing no signs of growth and business outlook is dim, Paul Ryan and Herman Caine would be very good choices considering their knowledge and backgrounds. If foreign affairs becomes a hot topic due to more terrorist threats or increasing military action, Jim Talent's name could rise amongst the ranks. Of course if there is a need to try and grab some Atlantic Coast votes as well as some Christian conservatives, Rick Santorum would be a good pick.

I say all of this and admit, though, if Sarah gets into the race, you have to throw out the entire playbook and start from scratch. Personally, I think Sarah is bigger than the presidency at this point and can do more good where she is at now than as the President.

Now these are my opinions. I welcome counter points and other thoughts.

Where Have I Been???

2011-07-03T08:55:00.002-05:00

I had some people email me asking if I was quitting the blogging thing and moving on? Simple answer, No. More complex answer, Hell No!.

In all honesty, I have been spending time enjoying the wife and kids. Between that, reconnecting with some old friends, making some new friends and my days job, I just decided to take a break from blogging.

Oh sure, I have some things to write up on cars, green technology, politics, etc. In fact I have a couple of posts that I started and never finished. I promise I will get to them.

In the meantime, enjoy the summer, enjoy the fireworks this weekend and enjoy your friends and family.

Until my next post, take care all of you.

MCJ

How to Defeat Lacy Clay

2011-05-21T07:42:00.008-05:00

Let's be honest and face the truth, shall we. Lacy Clay cannot be beat using standard methods. With the new setup for the 1st district, everything leans heavily in his favor. That is, if you think inside the box. For the most part, when people think of trying to dispose Lacy as our representative, they think of an Independent or Republican going one on one in an election. Much like with his father, the results are always the same, Lacy walks away with a generous win.

If we want to change the way the 1st district is represented we must recognize a couple of things:

Unless Lacy does or says something illegal or incredibly stupid, no Republican or Independent is going to beat him in an election.

St. Louis City and parts of North County lean too heavy in favor of Democrats over a Republican.

Lacy has a great support structure in that a majority of the townships and the city are run and controlled by Democrats who want and to a lesser extent need to be liked by Lacy Clay if they want Federal money.

If we want to beat Lacy, we have to do so strategically and recognize that it will take more than 2 years to do so.

The first thing you have to do is cut off his supply line. This can be done in two fashions:

Boycott people that fund Lacy's campaign coffers. Granted a lot of his money comes from unions, but there is a decent share that comes from local corporations that want to stay in good standing with him. Begin boycotting these companies and let them know that you will not do business with a company that supports a politician like Lacy Clay

Remove local politicians that support Lacy Clay and do much of his campaigning for him. This is probably the biggest and hardest part of this overall plan. It is something that will take more than a couple of election cycles, but can do serious damage to his support structure.

It all starts with school boards and city councils. If you are a moderate or conservative and want to see real change, you have to start with your local area and spread out. School board and city counsel representatives are more accessible to the populace. Because of this, they can get the message out in a much more casual and personal fashion than a Congressional candidate. And, they can do it quicker. So, the first thing that has to be done is to get more Republicans or even more anti tax and spend candidates elected into positions of local authority. As these people are in office and bringing about change, they will be able to spring board up as well as inspire others to follow in their footsteps.

Let me reiterate. This is the longest step in taking back control over our local government and eventually the 1st district. It is not something that can be done in 2 or even 4 years. It could take 8 or more years depending upon elections.

The second thing you have to do is keep Lacy honest. This means that we need to hold his feet to the fire every time he does and says something. God knows the media does it to just about every Republican and non line toting Democrat out there. If you know that Lacy is going to be giving a speech, go there and take notes or take video of them. Get it to me or another blogger like Gateway Pundit or Sharp Elbows to name a few. A lot of times candidates will say things that they do not want others to hear when there are no television cameras or reporters there. It is at times like these that you can hear a politician or candidate express their true opinions and that is when you can nail them.

The third thing is probably the hardest to swallow but can help weaken or even remove Lacy Clay and the dynasty he is creating. The third thing is to back a more moderate Democrat(s) while Republicans are found and put into those lower structures. I know it will pain some of you to hear this, but sometimes you can weaken a base more by splitting it. We see it all of the time on MSNBC and such when they try and split Republicans over disagreements on policy. They do everything they can to keep a big happy family for the Democrats because they know splintering the party works and leads to in-fighting and disorganization. So, the best thing to do is to swallow the hard pill support a moderate Democrat who can remove Lacy Clay. If you were to look at the last election primaries and take all of the votes for other candidates, Lacy got nearly 60% of all the votes. Now, imagine if everyone unified together and helped to support a moderate, Blue Dog Democrat. Lacy could be defeated in the primaries. From talking to friends and neighbors who are heavily involved in the local unions, they all express a dislike for Lacy, but support him because he is a Democrat and that is what they are supposed to do. If the unions had another option that they thought could win, many of the people I have talked to think their unions would hold off support until a clear winner is determined or one of their own runs.

Now, I know there are a lot of variables to this. I know that none of this is easy. I know it sounds better to try and throw good candidates up against Lacy but I must say, I hate seeing people like Martin and Robyn put their blood, sweat and tears into taking on this man and be swatted away like a fly. We must remain vigilant and look at this like a war. In war you have to cut off supply lines, have strategic bases, ground level leadership and sometimes make your enemies enemies your friends. If we do this, we can beat Lacy.

What do you think?

Homeschoolers - Do you know about Leftovers, Etc?

2011-05-09T13:58:00.003-05:00

As many of my readers know, my wife and I ventured into homeschooling in the not too distant past. We love it. We love the way we have connected with the educational process with our children. We love that we can determine the time and speed our children need to grasp subjects. We love that we are involved in the day to day process of educating our children. We are not indoctrinating them, we are educating them. We are teaching them in the way we thing they should be taught and are able to adjust our schedule based upon their interest and how well they are understanding and retaining what is being taught. It was with great joy that my wife and I were referred to this wonderful place that caters to the homeschooling community.

Leftovers, Etc. is a wonderful place for homeschoolers. It is a non for profit 501C based out of St. Charles, MO. This place is dedicated to supplying children and educators many of the basics needed for creative learning by providing surplus resources. These are things donated by businesses, industry and individuals within the community that are committed to the development of children in the fields of education and the arts. Put basically, it is like the biggest thrift store that you will find with recycled items or all types that can be used for teaching. For example, you can find Styrofoam egg cartons that you can use for painting trays. Baby food jars and bottles that you can use for storage or to hold bugs for homemade bug colonies. There are a lot of other things and all at very reasonable prices.

It is not just great for the resource center, but it also great for their enrichment programs. Leftovers offers several classes, some of which are recurring, while others are monthly. An example of their schedule can be found HERE.

The other big reason that we really like Leftovers is because it is common sense green. As you all may know I am big into sensible green technology. This is just a sensible method of being green and practical recycling. Any chance to support being green and recycling, I think, is smart.

So, if you get a chance, check out Leftovers, etc. Even if you are not a homeschooler, they are well worth checking out. You can find more information on them including their hours, directions and much more by going to their website HERE.

My Interview with Andrew Podleski - Candidate for Florissant Mayor

2011-03-21T18:50:00.004-05:00

As I said on my last post, I am not coming out in favor of any one candidate. I do not think it is my place. With that said, I feel it is very important that all of the people voting for the Florissant mayor should know something about the candidates. That is why I have chosen to get involved with this mayoral race. I said it before and I will say it again, as Florissant goes, so goes North County.

As you already know, I reached out, via email, to the candidates for Florissant mayor requesting an interview. Three of them responded and said they were open to it. After reaching out to my readers, I drew up 15 questions to ask. All three candidates were sent the same questions. Below, you will find the response from Andrew Podleski exactly as he responded to me, unedited and just as he sent them to me. I hope you read what he has to say and think about it as you decide and choose which candidate will best represent you.

1. What makes you qualified to be Mayor of one of the largest suburbs in the St. Louis area?

I believe I have the necessary professional experience and education to effectively manage our City. My work history has given me opportunities to perform in many roles and our City needs someone who has a varied background, who understands and knows how to organize staff to accomplish the work that needs to be done. I believe I have these skills which will be a great advantage as Mayor. Having been a team leader and
team member allows me to understand both roles necessary to accomplish team tasks.

2. What advantage/skill set makes you more qualified than the other candidates?

A wide range of experiences, and an ability to resolve complex issues or problems is what sets me apart. I have worked in the Military, U.S Government service and in Private Industry in both large and small companies. I have a strong belief in my abilities but recognize a team needs members with varied skill-sets and strengths.

3. What is your stance on the strong Mayor system that Florissant has and why do you feel this way?

The “strong Mayor” system can work well given that the Mayor has good professional skills, experience and personnel management abilities. Using the alternative system with a Mayor and City manager and other staffing to support the City manager is usually more costly because you have multiple salaries to pay versus the one.

Our Charter form of government defines our current Mayor wearing both hats, not only as the head of our City government (i.e. signs legislation into law) but also the role of the chief City Administrator and is charged with running the City on a daily basis. Other cities have a part-time Mayor and a fulltime City Administrator (and in some cases an Assistant Administrator).

I believe the Citizens who framed the Charter wanted to combine these positions so there would be accountability to Citizens through the ballot box. A City Administrator is selected by the City Council, who hires and fires them and is beyond direct accountability to the voters.

Being Mayor is an enormous responsibility. But the Citizens through our Charter have the final say on the direction of the City by controlling the ballot box. I will never forget they are the ultimate boss through the power of their vote.

4. Younger families are flocking to St. Peters and O’Fallon. As Mayor, what are you going to do to attract and retain young families to Florissant.

One thing I believe we need to address is the common perception of many in the metropolitan area that our City and North County is in decline. Our City has housing stock of a wide variety and age range. A great many of our homes were built when materials and craftsmanship in home building was far superior to what you see in many homes today. These well-built homes in established neighborhoods are affordable and excellent values. Plus they have excellent commuter and travel access. The dedicated men and women of our Police Department keep our community safe and our parks system is enviable for a City of our size.

In my comprehensive plan to market Florissant, our housing office will aggressively sell these points to employers like Boeing, ExpressScripts, UMSL and other new facilities in North County (North Park). These companies will be hiring young professionals who will be looking to gain a credit history and equity in a home. It is my desire to help them make that home choice in Florissant. To pursue a plan for enticing younger residents, we will need to highlight the many services and variety of neighborhoods we have to offer. I plan to develop a professionally prepared, cohesive and aggressive marketing package to entice them. There are many possibilities and I will always be open to suggestions from our employees, current
Citizens and potential new Citizens.

5. Considering these tough economic times, do you see any cuts to the City’s Senior and youth programs?

I feel we have many great programs for our Citizens and we must try to maintain or improve them. While I do believe we need to look at every service our City offers to be sure it is run efficiently and provides value, I think any proposals to change current services needs to be viewed in the light of which programs serve the most people in Florissant. I will also look to the Senior Department and Parks Department as well as the Parks Board and Senior Committee to offer suggestions for enhancements and efficiencies in our programs.

6. The two school districts in Florissant do not have a great reputation. This is major reason people cite for not moving into Florissant. While the City does not control the schools, what are your thoughts on how the City can help change this perception?

Last week, I attended a candidate forum for the Ferguson-Florissant School Board. It became clear one topic which needs to be addressed is the engagement of the Cities (not just Florissant, but all the surrounding communities) with the School Boards and their Superintendents. I want to have regular meetings with them to discuss possible involvement by Florissant in their efforts to improve the schools. For instance Florissant may be able to provide access to our Civic Centers for after-school programs.

Dialogue is needed here. They may have ideas how we can help them, and I believe they will be receptive to ideas I will bring to them as we share a common desire to make our Community the best it can be.

7. What do you like about the City of Florissant?

As I indicated in my earlier answer about attracting and retaining younger families, there are many things I like. Our rich history is impressive and varied with interesting twists and turns in its development. Driving around the City, I see quiet neighborhoods that are obviously well maintained by their residents.

Florissant is conveniently located near several interstate highways and because of our many large arterial streets you can travel to just about anywhere you choose in the metropolitan area either by highway or by main arterial streets. We have an incredible variety of park space both large and small. I remember in my youth when these parks were always in use. I hope to see them again very busy with the new Citizens we aim to attract in the future. The best part of any neighborhood or City is the people. We have good people who are the backbone of any community. We need to keep these good neighbors here while we try to recruit new ones to join their ranks.

The large and diverse collection of businesses that includes many large well-known companies but also many small and unique enterprises makes shopping and dining easy and interesting. Small entrepreneurial operations like the City Diner or long-time successful family busineeses such as Handyman Hardware, in addition to the big outlets, provide us with an excellent retail market place and great entertainment opportunities.

8. There are a lot of vacant businesses in Florissant. What are you going to do to fill those vacant buildings and attract vibrant businesses to the city?

Empty storefronts are a problem here as in many communities during these tough economic times. I will work with the Economic Development Director create a new plan for recruiting more businesses for Florissant.

Besides the Greater North County Chamber of Commerce, there are regional groups that can be tapped for information and help to attract specific shops and/or restaurants. One of these is the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce that has ties throughout the Metropolitan area. I will ask for Citizens to help by suggesting what they want to see in the way of new or expanded businesses.

Look at Florissant Meadows. We now have a sushi/seafood buffet(Hokkaido) that is drawing large crowds. This traffic creates synergy that can only help other businesses in this shopping center and the surrounding businesses of the Lindbergh corridor. I have already been in contact with several commercial Real Estate professionals who have given me an insight into how to bring new business into Florissant.

We need to let businesses know that we really want them here to serve our community. The first step is to develop a welcoming attitude for them, by becoming more business friendly. I want to establish a system in Public Works to help prospective businesses get through the City requirements of bringing their companies to Florissant. We will have a one-stop coordinator who will assist in outlining the steps to satisfy the requirements of Planning/Zoning and business licensing so the businessperson can negotiate them with reduced frustration.

9. Some residents complain that there are too many check cashing, payday loan, rent to own and used card lots in Florissant. They feel that this brings in a seedier element and detracts from the City. What are your thoughts on this?

As a Councilman, I have voted for moratoriums on car lots within our borders. While we cannot prevent businesses from coming to Florissant if they are an approved use in any particular zoning district, we can certainly try to recruit other more desirable businesses to fill these empty spaces. It will take a well thought out plan and a Mayor who will stick with this plan to make it successful.

10. It has been said that our current Mayor can be contentious if you do not agree with him. How do you plan on working with the City Council?

While there always will be areas of disagreement in government, I believe as Mayor I need to set the tone on civility. My role is to lead the discussion not overwhelm the discourse with strong opinions and a personal agenda.

A successful leader listens to all sides of the discussion before making a decision.
I want to actively involve and engage the Council on City matters. For example, creating the budget earlier and including them in the process. But as the Chief Executive of the City, I will make the decisions that need to be made. I will explain my position very clearly, and it will not be just because I do not like the opposing viewpoint. As a Councilman, some have called me a naysayer because I asked pointed questions about Bills coming before that body. I view my position on the Council as the representative of the people, who cannot ask those questions I ask those questions to help Citizens understand the processes and duties of the Council. Open dialogue is never bad, however, it must be civil and respect the other person’s viewpoint.

11. Politically speaking, who do you model yourself after?

I greatly admire Missouri’s own Harry Truman. When he was elected to the U.S. Senate, he immediately thrust himself into his work so he would be as prepared as possible. I will strive to be involved in all aspects of the City operations, but I will also try to ensure City employees are the best they can be and can move with autonomy when needed.

In the book A Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin, she describes how Abraham Lincoln convinced his rivals for the Presidency to join his cabinet. He was not afraid to have these strong-minded men as advisors. In fact he wanted them for that very reason. They would offer him frank advice and they would not be yes men. I hope I can also achieve success in that area by utilizing our City employees in the positions where they can perform their best.

12. Is there anything you want to accomplish in your first year?

To strive to develop a budget that is balanced without re-directing money from the Capital Improvement Fund, the Parks Improvement Fund and the Sewer Lateral Fund. The Citizens of Florissant voted for those funds to be used for very specific purposes and that should be respected. I want the budget to have input from the Council at an earlier stage.

The budget must be presented in a way that is clear to all of our residents and it will be posted on our Florissant website. This will be a difficult task, but I believe with hard work it can be done.

13. What do you think people should know about you?

Most of my life I have been a very private person and one who believes I should do my very best in whatever I pursued. I ran for Mayor in 2007 and I am running now because I feel I can make a positive difference in the City I long called home. I have accomplished much in my life, but I always remember it was not just my efforts that helped me to succeed. To manage the City effectively, I will need the assistance of every department employee and staff member, but I will be the first to give them the credit for their efforts. It is important to be approachable; Citizens and employees will be able to contact me with opinions and questions without feeling apprehensive.

14. The trash/recycling contact will expire during the next Mayor’s term. Do you want to continue with a City wide contract or have it go back to being resident’s choice?

I was somewhat skeptical about this working in Florissant, but I knew it worked in other Cities. I have been pleased with the results so far. I think we need to continue this program. Can it be improved? Yes. In negotiating a new contract with Meridian or whoever will compete for this work, there are things we can do. I would like to see curbside leaf pickup in the Fall. I will investigate the possibility of the “tag-a-bag” program for Seniors. All options are open, except going back to six or seven different haulers. Besides the huge increase in recycling in Florissant, the reduction of truck traffic on our streets reduces wear and tear on them and extends their useful life which is a great thing. Any solution implemented, would have never met all needs and expectations. Overall, I think the single hauler solution we developed was a reasonable answer.

15. WalMart in Florissant, where do you stand and what are your thoughts?

Some of WalMart's business practices in dealing with manufacturers and employees run counter to the ideals of a great many citizens, including myself. The entrance of WalMart into a community often brings a highly negative impact for smaller businesses. It has been documented how their presence can devastate smaller competitors by undercutting prices in what I see as unfair practices.

Last year, WalMart presented a proposal to build in Florissant, but only with the help of Tax Increment Financing. It is their prerogative to ask for TIF money, but we do not have to give it to them. The Council turned down the proposal.
They now have a new proposal that asks for some special considerations which requires the support of the City. I will not support any proposal which involves taxpayer money for WalMart. I believe one of the largest corporations in the world can afford to build on their own money not ours.

However, if they satisfy all of the Planning and Zoning requirements on property in our City approved under our codes for this use and build a store using their money to build it without special considerations from the City, it would be difficult to prevent them from opening in Florissant.

So, there you have it. Andrew Podleski ladies and gentlemen.

If you would like to hear from one of the other candidates, or you are a candidate and wish to have your voice heard, please email me and I will be more than happy to interview you too.

My Interview with Robert Garrett - Candidate for Florissant Mayor

2011-03-16T21:20:00.005-05:00

First let me say this, I am not coming out in favor of any one candidate. I do not think it is my place. With that said, I feel it is very important that all of the people voting for the Florissant mayor should know something about the candidates. That is why I have chosen to get involved with this mayoral race. I said it before and I will say it again, as Florissant goes, so goes North County.

I reached out, via email, to the candidates for Florissant mayor requesting an interview. Three of them responded and said they were open to it. After reaching out to my readers, I drew up 15 questions to ask. All three candidates were sent the same questions. Below, you will find the response from Robert Garrett exactly as he responded to me, unedited and just as he sent them to me. I hope you read what he has to say and think about it as you decide and choose which candidate will best represent you.

1. What makes you qualified to be mayor of one of the larges suburbs in the St. Louis area?

I’m an attorney with deep roots in the Florissant community, some understanding of small business and the problems facing small business owners as well as the important role of business in Florissant, and extensive experience in, and understanding of the workings of, Florissant city government.

In such regard, I’m currently a self-employed patent attorney and mediator. That means that not only can I practice as an attorney throughout the state of Missouri, but that I am also licensed to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and can do so throughout the country. In addition, I am qualified as a mediator for both civil and domestic matters under Missouri Court Rules.

I’ve been married to my wife, Toni, who is a math professor at the Meramec campus of the community college district, for over 41 years, and we have 3 adult kids, Anthony, Joe, and Susan Therese, spread from coast to coast. We have lived in our current house here, in the middle of Old Town, on the same block where I grew up, for over 33 years. We bought that house from my grandfather’s estate.

I’m a Florissant native, and at least 3 of my ancestors have served as Florissant Mayor: my great grandfathers Sidney Garrett and August Albers, and my great great grandfather Charles Castello.

I attended Sacred Heart School, including classes held in the old school building, and, with the aid of some scholarships, eventually obtained Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Electrical Engineering from Washington U.

I’m an Air Force veteran and was commissioned and began my active duty service as a Reserve Officer before being awarded a commission as Regular Air Force Officer. While on active duty I served as an engineer in satellite checkout and launch at Vandenburg AFB. My duties included activities with a variety of systems and also required me to work with and to exercise oversight of contractor engineers and union technicians who were working on the satellite vehicles.

Following my active duty time, I attended, and graduated from law school at St. Louis U., using the GI Bill, while remaining in the inactive reserve as a Captain.

Subsequently, for over 31 years, until April 1, 2009, I operated and, for many years, managed the patent law firm of Haverstock, Garrett & Roberts LLP, a small to medium size patent law firm in downtown St. Louis, and, in so doing, became familiar with problems facing small businesses and their owners, including management of personnel.

During the time that I was with that patent law firm, I also served on the Florissant Planning and Zoning Commission, and was later elected to and served 6 terms on the Florissant City Council from 1984 to 2002. During my City Council tenure, I served 1 council term as council Vice-President and two council terms as President of the City Council. During part of that time, Jim Eagan was Mayor and during the latter few years Bob Lowery was Mayor.

During that same time period, I served on various committees and commissions of St. Louis County and the St. Louis County Municipal League, including the St. Louis Co. Capital Improvements Committee, the Boundary Change Committee, and the Special Laws & Boundary Changes Committee.

I subsequently also served on the St. Louis County Interstate 270/ Highway 367 Corridor Advisory Commission, and I more recently served as Chairman of an Old Town Partners committee that was addressing business development and the possibility of establishing a new improvement district that would encompass at least the Old Town business district. That particular committee included not only Old Town Partner members, but also several business owners from the Old Town area and several City officials.

While I served on Council, I was a strong advocate for infrastructure maintenance and improvement, and was the driving force behind establishment of a long-term plan for the improvement of streets in the Old Town grid. That plan has been initiated, but will take many, many years to complete.

I was also a supporter, along with various other council members, and in opposition to Mayor Eagan’s desires, of numerous creek paving and improvement programs that have proved a boon to the City and to residents along those creeks.

Although I was sometimes at odds with Mayor Eagan, I also worked with him on various matters, including the purchase by the City of what is now the Florissant Government Building at St. Francois and Florissant Road. I was the one who initially proposed that purchase, and was invited by Mayor Eagan to appear with him for the closing of that purchase.

Over the years I have been a staunch supporter of our City’s police department, and I believe that it is imperative that we maintain a strong and effective force into the future.

I have worked to try to respect the history of Florissant and its historic treasures while also allowing residents and the City to be able to undertake property maintenance and updates without undue regulation and interference by the City. In such regard, I worked for many months in meetings with Rosemary Davison, then Council member Geri Debo, and City Attorney John Hessel, and sometimes others, to develop an improved ordinance regarding historic structures throughout the City and the Historic District. Many compromises were necessary in order to develop a workable ordinance that would address not only historic preservation, but also desires of residents of historic structures and of the Historic District to be free of unnecessary regulation. Had we not worked out and adopted a new ordinance when we did, repairs, and even the scheduling of repairs, would have been significantly delayed and impacted following the hail and ice storms we experienced some years ago because of the previous requirements regarding approval processes.

I have been a strong advocate of business development within the City, not only because of the more immediate favorable tax consequences for the City, but also because of the jobs that are made available to City residents and because of the general improvement that such businesses afford all of us in our daily lives. In such regard, I, along with four other Council members and Mayor Lowery, pushed for the redevelopment of the old, outdated shopping center that had been located at Cross Keys, which has now been replaced with the Shoppes at Cross Keys development and includes, among other stores, Barnes & Noble, Schnucks, Pier One, OfficeMax and Home Depot. At the time, that action was very controversial, and I faced a great deal of criticism from various other Council members and a significant portion of the Florissant populace. In the days before the final vote for that project, I met at Sansone offices to discuss and work out with the principals of that corporation some of the final amendments and concessions to be included in the bill, and to address with them the significant possibility that the project might not be approved, and the consequences of non-approval. I ask you to consider what that area would look like today had that development not been pursued. Fortunately, the project was very narrowly approved. In hindsight, I would hope that everyone could agree that that was a good decision!

2. What advantage/skill set makes you more qualified than the other candidates?

No other candidate has the background, qualifications, and wealth of experience that I do. See the answer to Question 1.

Significantly, no other candidate has the legal training and experience that I do.

In addition, no other candidate is a trained mediator.

Additionally, while I was a Councilman, I believe that I became known for my attention to detail, my desire to “get things right”, and my ability to work with the Mayor and other council members even when we did not agree, and without the exhibition of ongoing rancor and personal animosities.

I believe that those abilities, especially when coupled with my business experience and my long service on the City Council, including as both Council Vice-President and Council President, make me more qualified and better able to address the challenges as Mayor of Florissant.

3. What is your stance on the strong mayor system that Florissant has and why do you feel this way?

Florissant has had a strong mayor system since the adoption of the current charter almost 40 years ago, and that system has served the City well over that time period.

I am an advocate of the “don’t fix what ain’t broke” school of thought. It doesn’t appear to me that the strong mayor system for Florissant is broken.

Florissant’s mayor serves not only as the chief executive of the City, but also as the chief operating officer. In council/manager systems, a city manager or administrator, typically chosen by the city council, acts as the chief operating officer.

Some argue that a city manager would be more qualified to run the day-to-day matters of city government because the city manager would be specifically trained for such a role. However, the history of city managers in numerous other communities shows that that is not necessarily the case. While some city managers do have specific college training and some previous city administration experience, others, when first hired by a municipality, have little or no previous administration training or experience. In some instances, the city manager is a previous police chief or other city official or politician who was able to secure the support of a majority of the council to be hired.

Some also argue that adoption of a council/manager system would get away from the more obnoxious “politics” associated with city government. That is clearly not the case. A city manager is a political appointee of the council, or more accurately, of a majority of the council. In far too many instances, a change in the make-up of the council may result in the firing of one city manager and the hiring of a new city manager. In some instances, especially where the council is fractious and closely split, the election of any new council member may result in a change in the council majority. In recent years, in several municipalities locally, on the East Side, in St. Louis County, and in St. Charles County, we have seen cities experience revolving door firings and hirings of city managers.

Some also argue that it would be cheaper to have a council manager than a full-time mayor because the mayor would be paid less. While I would expect a mayor in a council/city manager system to be paid less than the mayor of a strong mayor system, that does not mean that there will be an overall savings, however. If the City wishes to attract and be able to employ a well qualified city manager, the pay for that position would need to be commensurate with the pay for city manager positions in cities of comparable size and with comparable responsibilities. In many cases, that pay would need to be set as high or higher than the current pay for Florissant’s mayor. As of several years ago, the pay for O’Fallon, Missouri’s city manager was set at about $168,000, and an assistant city manger was paid an additional approximately $122,000. I don’t know the pay of other city managers and assistant city managers throughout the area, but a survey conducted by University City several years ago reflected that, at that time, there were at least 13-14 city managers in St. Louis County who were then being paid over $114,000. I think that the pay of the city manager of Hazelwood, which is considerably smaller than Florissant and which also employs an assistant city manager, is among those city managers who were then making over the $114,000, and I believe substantially more. Since Florissant is the largest community in St. Louis County, and is generally comparable in size to O’Fallon, Missouri, at least as of the time of the city manager pay referenced above, it would seem that it might well be MORE expensive for Florissant to move to a council/manager system.

If Florissant could not attract and elect qualified individuals who could act as both chief executive and chief operating officers, it might make greater sense to move towards a council/manager system instead of a strong mayor system, but that does not currently seem to be the case.

4. Younger families are flocking to St. Peters and O’Fallon. As mayor, what are you going to do to attract and retain young families to Florissant.

While St. Peters and O’Fallon have indeed grown rapidly over the past decade, as Florissant did in the 1960s, I don’t know that all, or even most, of that growth can be accurately attributed to younger families “flocking” to those communities. On the other hand, I do not doubt that such growth is, in part, due to some substantial influx of younger families into such communities.

Over the same period, while Florissant, as a more mature community, has not seen such substantial growth, it has remained a very stable community, and the latest 2010 census shows a slight increase in Florissant population over the 2000 census.

Part of the problem that Florissant faces is a perception problem—a perception that Florissant is stagnating or in a decline, a perception that North County is not a desirable place to live. This is attributable in no small part to repeated media statements that tend to paint the entire North County area as a less desirable part of the region and to ongoing, often incorrect, media reports that identify various problems, or crimes, or criminals with “Florissant” when, in fact, those problems and crimes are NOT associated with the City of Florissant.

Because a large swath of North County, from Hazelwood to the Mississippi River and generally from I-270 north to the Missouri River, is serviced by the Florissant Post Office, many people, including many journalists and members of the media who should know better, attribute almost anything “bad” that occurs within such area as being associated with the city of Florissant, rather than as something that is associated with an area, largely unincorporated, that is outside of city limits and, in many cases, many miles outside of the city limits. That type of “reporting” is grossly misleading and highly unfair to the city of Florissant.

Additionally, the media frequently ignore or don’t address “good” things that happen within such area, and especially within Florissant city limits, with the same fervor, and seem to prefer to issue praises for portions of West County and areas west in St. Charles County.

We have to take issue with those media outlets and personnel when they engage in such misleading “reporting”, such as when they state that a “Florissant apartment complex” has been closed down because of building and maintenance problems when, in fact, that complex is not within the city limits of Florissant and Florissant has no jurisdiction or control over the complex, or when they state that there has been a shooting, believed to be gang related, in a Florissant neighborhood when, in fact, the shooting occurred miles from the city of Florissant in an unincorporated area patrolled by the St. Louis County Police Department and not by the Florissant Police Department.

Florissant is still a vibrant community with many amenities. We offer an extensive park and recreation system and are one of only a handful of local communities that have NO property tax. Many generations of Florissant residents, of which I am one, remain in and return to Florissant and continue to call Florissant home.

I believe that we must emphasize the advantages and amenities available to young families, including the lack of a property tax, the ready access to interstate highways for rapid travel to the city of St. Louis as well as to St. Louis County and St. Charles County, the proximity of the Florissant Valley campus of the community college district, the many shopping areas within just a few minutes drive, our extensive parks and recreation system, our award winning police department, an our family life centered approach.

I would take issue with those who wrongly “report” about problems with Florissant, and would encourage everyone else to do the same, and would attempt to continue the tradition of providing the services and amenities that have made Florissant the great community that it is.

5. Considering these tough economic times, do you see any cuts to the city’s senior and youth programs?

Not at this moment.

However, it will be necessary to continually scrutinize our budget to make sure that we remain financially viable and self sustaining. Consequently, we will have to continually evaluate all our programs to ensure that they remain cost-effective, that they are truly addressing what they should be, and that they are being efficiently provided. If not, over time, changes of some type may become necessary.

6. The two school districts in Florissant do not have a great reputation. This is major reason people site for not moving into Florissant. While the city does not control the schools, what are your thoughts on how the city can help change this perception?

It was not that long ago that some of the Ferguson-Florissant schools were cited nationally for their excellence in education.

Within the last few years, the Hazelwood school districts superintendent was selected to become the head of Missouri’s department of education.

Despite such positives, test scores in those school districts are down in recent years and possible accreditation problems have surfaced.

Large, if not the greater, parts of both school districts lie outside of the Florissant city limits.

Part of the problem appears to me to be non-motivated students and a lack of involvement by parents in pushing their children to succeed and excel.

Another part of the problem is undoubtedly school funding, and the hit that such funding has taken in this down economy.

Because the City of Florissant forms only a portion of both of such districts, any actions that can be taken by Florissant are limited. Even if every Florissant child were a straight A student and every Florissant property had an average or higher property valuation, those effects can be diluted by the rest of the districts.

Consequently, we must work with the surrounding communities and unincorporated areas to try to maintain high property values and the availability of good jobs within the entire region, and we must try to reverse the perception that North County is an undesirable region. See also my response to Question 4 in such regard.

We must also try to instill within the families a belief in the value of education and the need for heavy parental involvement in the education of their children.

In addition, to the extent feasible and financially possible, I want Florissant to actively push the DARE program within our local schools in order to combat gangs and crime within the schools and to promote good citizenship and a respect for laws and the police.

7. What do you like about the city of Florissant?

Many, many things.

Let me list just a few of those things:

Florissant’s sense of community
Its family centered values
Its rich historic tradition, including
Old St. Ferdinand Shrine,
Taille de Noyer,
Casa Alvares,
and many other historic buildings and locations
Its extensive religious heritage, including
the many churches and denominations throughout the City
Its convenient location
Its continuing designation as one of the safest cities of its size in the country
Its many parks and recreation facilities
Its superior senior citizen programs and facilities
Popular business locations such as
Fritz’,
Doozles,
Old Town Donuts, and
Hendel's Market Café, to mention only a few

8. There are a lot of vacant businesses in Florissant. What are you going to do to fill those vacant buildings and attract vibrant businesses to the city?

As I have previously noted, over the years I have been a strong advocate of business development within the City, not only because of the more immediate favorable tax consequences for the City, but also because of the jobs that are made available to City residents and because of the general improvement that such businesses afford all of us in our daily lives.

Unlike certain other candidates seeking the office of mayor, I was an early and ardent supporter of the highly successful Cross Keys redevelopment, and worked hard to get that approved, despite criticism for my position and despite the political downside associated with strongly advocating for what was then a highly controversial project during an election year for me. Despite the political hit that I knew I would take, I pushed for such redevelopment because I truly believed that that was the correct thing to do for the betterment of Florissant. Unfortunately for me, I lost that following election. Despite that, I believe that I made the right decision when I pushed for such redevelopment, and I believe that my position has been vindicated over time.

Mayor Lowery and the administration have worked diligently for years now to try to attract additional developments and businesses, and are to be commended for their actions in such regard, which have contributed to Florissant’s stability as many surrounding communities and areas in St. Louis County have, unlike Florissant, experienced population declines in the last decade. We have to continue such activities, especially in the current economic climate, and continue to try to improve and update the City’s business base and business properties.

With regard to some of those businesses that have opened developments in Florissant in more recent years, Mayor Lowery has advised that various of those businesses report that their Florissant facilities are among the highest performing sites of those chains throughout the country. Such reports enhance the attractiveness of Florissant as a city in which other businesses will want to expand or to set up shop.

I would continue the efforts of the administration over the past few years to attract new businesses and developments to the City and the North County area.

I believe that other activities in the past few years bode well for the future, despite the more recent economic downturn throughout the country. The North Park business park near the airport holds promise for attracting businesses to the North County area. Ferguson has established an improvement district along its downtown area that has revitalized its business area. Florissant and Hazelwood have participated in beautification and improvement projects along Lindbergh Boulevard (N. Highway 67). All of these activities are helping to overcome negative perceptions about Florissant and the North County area (see responses to Questions 4 and 6), and Florissant needs to encourage such activities.

I want the City to be seen as a partner with businesses and as a location that will work with businesses to help those businesses realize success, and not as a municipality that inhibits businesses or seeks to have them jump through hoops simply for the exercise.

That does not, however, mean that I think that the City should automatically approve everything, or relax standards, or blithely ignore circumstances or situations that may properly require critical analysis (see, for example, responses to Questions 9 and 15 relative to payday loan and related businesses and to Wal-Mart).

I would continue to aggressively pursue new business development and the jobs they would bring.

9. Some residents complain that there are too many check cashing, payday loan, rent to own and used card lots in Florissant. They feel that this brings in a seedier element and detracts from the city. What are your thoughts on this?

I agree with their complaints regarding many of those businesses.

When I was on the City Council, we tried to prohibit or greatly restrict some of those businesses. However, courts have directed that under Missouri, or in some cases federal, law or constitutions, cities like Florissant cannot prohibit or impose many of the restrictions that I might personally consider desirable.

Under the circumstances, Florissant is bound by such laws and court rulings and must comply with those, even when they are at odds with prohibitions or restriction that I believe would be more beneficial to the City.

10. It has been said that our current mayor can be contentious if you do not agree with him. How do you plan on working with the city council?

People will always disagree.

We all disagree at times with our spouses, children, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. Usually, we manage to limit our disagreements to particular issues and do not let those disagreements become ongoing sources of contention.

I do not expect to always agree with everyone on the City Council or in City government. I appreciate that sometimes I may even find myself in disagreement with a majority of the City Council.

From my very first Council meeting, I had significant disagreements with various other Council members. However, our disagreements over a particular matter were, more often than not, left on the floor of the council meeting. That did not prevent me and council members such as Dave Reynolds, Charlie DeMoulin, and Ken Bond, among others, from subsequently discussing our disagreements, sometimes in colorful terms and with colorful invectives, as we later met with one another and socialized--and such discussions allowed us all to gain valuable insights as to the positions and reasoning of one another, and to sometimes understand why that “ridiculous” position or proposal by that other son of a gun Council member was not really that “ridiculous”, and to also sometimes result in follow-up legislation that was better able to address all of our concerns.

On various occasions I disagreed with Mayor Eagan, with Mayor Lowery, and probably with every council member with whom I ever served. That did not mean that I thereafter acted with ill will toward those individuals on all other matters. I believe that I became known for, among other things, my ability to work with them even when we did not agree, and without the exhibition of ongoing rancor and personal animosities. I believe that my record shows that I was able to put a disagreement about a particular issue behind me and to move forward with other matters in the best interests of the City.

Over the years, I gained respect for everyone involved, even those with whom I disagreed the most, because I came to understand that, like me, they wanted the best for the City, even if their views were, in my belief, sometimes misguided.

11. Politically speaking, who do you model yourself after?

I don’t really believe that I model myself after any politician that I can think of.

Especially in more recent history, I’m not sure that the populace would consider any politician particularly worthy of emulation.

I try to represent constituents, to look out for their interests, to provide straightforward info without a lot of BS, and to take responsibility for my actions.

To the extent that such actions may be reminiscent of Harry Truman, perhaps it could be said that, at least in some respects, I model myself after him.

12. Is there anything you want to accomplish in your first year?

I want to break the pattern of personal animus and ongoing rancor that has increasingly become a part of City politics in recent years.

I want to secure passage of fiscally responsible budget that maintains our core services, such as outstanding police services.

I want to BEGIN the re-population of vacant and foreclosed houses throughout the City and to maintain property values.

To the extent financially feasible, I want to CONTINUE street and infrastructure maintenance and improvement and other successful and popular City programs, including Senior Citizen services.

I want to continue the pursuit of, and hopefully ATTRACT, additional businesses with good paying jobs for City residents.

13. What do you think people should know about you?

That I’m well qualified and will look out for their interests.

In such regard, I would hope

that they would check out my qualifications and positions as reflected by the Qualifications & Positions presentation available on the Facebook page “Robert M. Garrett (for Mayor of Florissant)”, a copy of which presentation I have provided with these responses,

that they would watch the video of the Candidate’s Forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters and the Greater North County Chamber of Commerce, as available for viewing at http://tv.florissantmo.com/Cablecast/Public/main.aspx?ChannelID=1, and

that they would carefully review my responses to these questions.

14. The trash/recycling contact will expire during the next mayor’s term. Do you want to continue with a city wide contract\ or have it go back to being resident’s choice?

At this point in time I am open to either possibility, dependent upon the desires of Florissant residents.

I have heard various complaints from people who believe that the service that they receive is not as good as the service that they were getting when they could select their own trash service.

On the other hand, many residents seem to believe that the “price is right” for the current city-wide program, especially when one considers the recycling collection and the senior citizen discount.

My present impression is that most residents favor the present city-wide program with a single hauler, and I would anticipate that, unless there is an outcry against so doing, the City will solicit bids for a new contract.

Ultimately, the bid responses, including the prices quoted, may have some bearing upon how the City will want to proceed.

15. Walmart in Florissant, where do you stand and what are your thoughts?

While I am not enthralled with the idea of a Wal-Mart development within the City, Florissant would be obligated to treat Wal-Mart the same as any other business that might want to build a new development within the City, such as a new Schnucks, a new Sears, a new Walgreens, or a new neighborhood hardware store.

So long as Wal-Mart complies with all zoning and other ordinances of the City, Florissant would probably have no legal basis to prevent Wal-Mart from opening a store.

That being said, I believe that, in many instances, Wal-Mart has proven to be detrimental to many local businesses throughout the country, which is regrettable, and has a questionable record relative to treatment of its employees.

Although development of a new Wal-Mart store within Florissant might seemingly result in some favorable tax consequences for the City, that could be offset if the result is a loss of other City businesses.

Furthermore, if the new store is simply the “re-location” of a store from a nearby community, such “re‑location” could actually be detrimental to the region as a whole and could result in regional, including within Florissant, devaluation of property values, thereby undercutting any perceived advantages associated with the new development.

Furthermore, absent other exigent circumstances, I currently see no reason why Florissant would want to consider any TIF or community improvement taxing district for a Wal-Mart development.

So, there you have it. Robert Garrett ladies and gentlemen. Robert also asked that I include a letter that he has drafted on his qualifications and positions. I have agreed to include this document to allow everyone the chance to be fully informed. You can find that document HERE.

If any of the other candidates, in the course of responding to my questions, asks the same of me, I will do so in kind.

Florissant Mayoral Debates - Some Thoughts

2011-03-10T08:57:00.005-06:00

As a North County resident, I felt it was important to attend the Florissant mayoral debates last night. My father has long said that Florissant is the anchor of North County and I tend to believe him. With Florissant's population base and size, Florissant is the largest city in St. Louis county. Considering all of this, I decided to attend this event to see what the candidates had to say and what direction they wanted to take for the future of Florissant. Afterwards, I hung out on the sidelines and listened to what people were saying to each other and to the candidates. Below is some of my observations.

Tom Schneider:

Of all the candidates, this is the man that best represents the status quo. He did nothing but talk about all of the things he has done in the past and all of his accomplishments. He looked to the past and really exemplified sticking with the current course.

After the meeting, most of the talk I heard was that people were not overly impressed with him. He did nothing but read and re-read a laundry list of his past accomplishments from his 34 years of work for the Florissant government. Best comment I heard on Tom was "Is he going to answer the questions or just tell us all he has done for the city?"

With that said, many of the seniors seemed to like Schneider. He is a known name and will continue to offer what they have grown accustomed to.

Andrew Podleski :

Podleski has a lot of good answers, but comes off as rather arrogant. He seems pro business and wants to work with business to bring more people into the area. Based upon what he said, he wants to promote the affordability of North County and Florissant to big businesses that are in the North County area so that their employees will live and work here. This would then help stimulate small business growth as their is a more vibrant population.

After the meeting a lot of people were high on Podleski. Since he ran against Lowry last election, his name is out there and it is recognizable outside of his ward. He has a strong service background and seems to be more of a fiscal minded. Many of those same people, though, said they got a negative vibe from him. One person said that they thought he was smug.

Susan Geerling :

Geerling could be the dark horse for this entire race. She came off as very friendly,sincere and approachable. Here big themes of the night were fiscal responsibility and open communication between the government and the people. Many times she talked of making people aware of what is going on and happening
so residents can be informed. She made an early splash by talking about reducing the mayor's salary and perks (a hot topic after the St. Louis Post Dispatch investigative article on Lowery).

After the meeting, a lot of people were very high on Geerling. They liked what she had to say and felt she could be bring about a new direction for the community. Interestingly enough, the people that liked her the most seemed to be women and those under the age of 55. The older community did not seem to be as on board with her. The knock against her is her experience as she does not have a college degree and seeing as Florissant has a strong mayor system, the mayor is in charge of city administration. Some people saw it as a positive and other saw this as a negative, but there were comments on how she is not an established name, she worked 8 years in city council and has volunteered, but is not someone super entrenched in Florissant politics.

Robert Garrett:

Of all the candidates, Garrett is probably the biggest fiscal conservative of the bunch. Bringing in business and balancing the budget were his biggest points of the night and they were points he continued to repeat. While Schneider touted being a small business owner, Garrett and Behlmann came of as the only two that really seemed to know and could talk to business and business creation. Garrett also sees the problem facing Florissant as being associated with the issues and violence in North City and areas like Berkley and Normandy. This was a strong statement that I noticed a lot of head nodding too.

After the meeting, a lot of people did not seem to know what to think about Garrett. He has been out of Florissant politics for awhile, but is now re-entering the field. He does not have yard signs and does not have any information out there that anyone could really find. Many people liked what they heard, but want to know more.

Mark Behlmann:

Second only to Schneider, Behlmann was probably the best known name at the debate. Behlmann brought a mix of the status quo and business know how that appealed to many people. He came off as a fiscal hawk when talking about budgets, mayoral perks and pay but came off as a status quo person when talking of city programs.

After the meeting, reviews were mixed on Behlmann. People know the name in the Florissant area and they know of Mark Behlmann due to his work on the Hazelwood School Board. That seemed to be both a good and bad thing for him. He did upset some people as after the debate, a couple of senior citizens approached Behlman and while I could not hear the conversation, there were some read faces and very upset people.

Michael Spreng:

Spreng was the most unprepared candidate. He brought nothing new to the debate and really seemed to rest on his laurels as a state rep. He did not appear to be engaged in the discussion nor did he appear alert. He seemed to flip flop between keeping the status quo and fiscal conservatism depending upon the issue, but did not have much substance.

No one, and I mean no one, talked positively about Spreng. Based upon the audience, he is, for all purposes,a non issue. One of the best comments I overheard on Spreng was," I am not going to vote for another guy that looks like he could drop dead a couple of days after winning."

So, what are my thoughts. Well, Florissant has done some good things with programs like the Cross Keys development and improvements in the roads and parks. That said, there are a lot of things that need to be improved as there are too many used car lots and vacant businesses in the area. People are not staying in Florissant and instead they are moving to St. Peters and Wentzville areas. The next mayor has to be able to attract more youth as more younger couples and families will bring more money and small business to the area. If I had to be pressed, I would say that Behlmann, Garrett and Geerling probably came away with the highest marks. Having lived in Florissant, though, I know the seniors will really sway this election which can really help Schneider.

It is my understanding that there will be another debate soon. When I know more, I will
post it here.

So, were you there, if so, comment with your thoughts.

UPDATE

I received requests for websites and email addresses. These have been added below

Name - Website - Email Address
Tom Schneider - http://schneider4mayor.net/ - schneider4mayor@gmail.com
Andrew Podleski - http://andrewpodleski.com/ - Andrew.Podleski@gmail.com
Susan Geerling - http://geerlingformayor.com/ - GeerlingForMayor@gmail.com
Robert Garrett - No webpage but you can find him on Facebook - garrettformayor@att.net
Mark Behlmann - http://hstrial-markbehlmann.homestead.com/ - markbehlmann11@aol.com
Michael Spreng - No website or Facebook page - No updated email address

Odds & Ends

2011-02-25T14:12:00.008-06:00

Coffee

I love coffee. I love the smell of coffee. I love a cup of coffee in the morning and a cup in the evening. While I have tried to cut down on the amount of coffee I consume in one day, the Mrs. and I can go through a pot on a cold winter day easily.

Now, I cannot drink my coffee black. I need some creamer and I like a little bit of flavoring. So, the wife and I would buy the various flavors of coffee creamer, trying the seasonals as well as the mainstays like French Vanilla or Carmel. When we started dieting we both found that the creamers consumed way to many points. So we had to find an alternative. Skim milk and splenda, while good in a pinch, just did not really do it for us. It was with great joy, then, that we found a perfect little "mash-up" that we really love in our coffee and does not kill our diet. The outlay of cost is not substantial and while it adds a little more preparation time, it gives us some great tasting coffee house coffee.

First, you start off by going to Amazon and buying two things, a frother and a bottle or variety pack, depending upon your likes, of Torani Sugar Free syrups. The Torani is awesome and if you get the sugar free syrups, the calories/points are very low per serving. Personally, I like the Chocolate, the Vanilla and the Carmel. DO NOT make the mistake of buying the Classic Carmel, it is just not as good. The Hazelnut is not bad, it just comes off as a little bitter to me. The variety pack is good if you like or want to try these flavors and the Irish Creme or Raspberry. You can find the variety pack HERE. The other thing you need to get is a frother. We picked up this one and it has worked out well. It is a basic, no frills frother that does the job and does it well and cheaply.

Now that you have that, go and pick up some silk or blue diamond sugar free or unsweetened almond milk. You can get the flavored, if you choose not to get the syrups, but I would suggest you go flavor free if you get syrups.

Now, measure out some of the almond milk. For two cups of coffee, I generally fill up the almond milk to the line on the frother (I do not know how much that is, but I believe it is about a cup).

Add the flavoring. I will generally use 2 tablespoons per cup of coffee.

Pour the milk-flavoring into a pot and warm it up. DO NOT use a microwave as the almond milk seems to separate in the microwave. Warm up the milk until it is hot, but not bubbling hot.

Pour the milk-flavoring mix into the frother. Froth the milk for about 10 -15 pumps. You will now have a nice frothy milk flavoring.

If you have a fresh brewed pot, pour the milk into your cups and then pour your coffee. If you have warmed up your coffee in the microwave, pour the milk mixture into the coffee and stir.

Atlas Shrugged

If you have been paying attention, you know that the movie that some said could never be made, has been made. It appears to be a pretty close adaptation to the original. In case you have not seen or heard anything about this, check out the trailer below.

Recently, the producers released a scene from the movie which can be viewed below

This movie was made, according to IMDB, with a budget of only 15 million. That is nothing by today's standards. The cast is mostly television actors but from what I have seen, read and heard from those that have seen this movie, they all do an excellent job.

We all need to support this movie. As of now, I do not know if it is going to run anywhere here in St. Louis but should it, we should organize a group to see this movie when it opens. If you are in another area of the country, please get your friends together to see this movie. The producers, director and actors of this movie will probably be ostracized for being a part of this important and relevant film and we, the movie going public, should buycott this movie and make sure we all go and see it.

Who is with me?

Comic Books

Even though I am over 35, I still love comic books. I love the art and the stories they tell. While I do not buy the monthly issues, I regularly pick up the collections and graphic novels. Additionally, I watch the cartoon movies that are put out by both Marvel and DC. It was while watching one that I came across a revelation of sorts.

I was watching a DC cartoon that was had Superman and Batman. I figured that it would be no big deal to let my 8 year old daughter watch it with me. As she is curled up next to me, I became increasingly uncomfortable with the way these artists portrayed women. It was not that they portrayed them as weak or feeble. In fact all of the women were very strong physically and mentally and could keep pace with the men. My uncomfortableness was due to the way they were drawn and the clothes that they wore. Supergirl was model skinny thin but was, well, well endowed. She always wore a half shirt and her clothes were somewhat tight and showy. Pausing the movie, I checked the rating and found that it was rated PG 13. I stopped the movie and finished after my daughter went to bed.

This whole thing got me thinking, though. Girls are reading comics now. They are not just reading Archie and such. There are many young girls and women who read Spiderman, Iron Man, Batman, Wonder Woman, Avengers, X-Men and so forth. The women, as they are portrayed in these comics, are completely unrealistic in body dimensions. While I understand that these are comics, I have to wonder, what does this do for already body conscious women. Comic books are fantasy, but the portrayal of these strong women in barely there outfits can be daunting. I know that part of it is for the male fantasy, but what about the young women?

I do not believe in censorship or in stopping these companies' right to draw and distribute comics. I enjoy these comics but what responsibility, other than slapping a rating on them, do these companies have? Do they have any responsibility? Are there other fathers out there that struggle with this too?

I would love to hear your thoughts.

Child Rights vs. Parental Rights - What You Need to Know

2011-02-16T13:04:00.005-06:00

What if I told you that there are people who are actively attempting to control the rights of parents to raise children as they see fit. To many of my readers, this comes as no surprise but many of you may not know how close we are coming to this.

If you have not heard, there is a movement for the US to ratify The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, often called the CRC or the UNCRC. The stated reasoning behind the need for this treaty is because

the child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth

That sounds great....until you read the text of the document and understand what this "treaty" is trying to do and has done to other countries.

Since its adoption by the United Nations in 1989, the UNCRC has become the most widely accepted international agreement in history and approved by every nation except for the United States and Somalia. All participant countries pledge to protect children’s rights, foster their development, and uphold their best interests by re-writing their national laws to conform to the standards set forth in the treaty.

While this sounds great, the reality is that the UNCRC allows that national governments interfere in the decisions of individual families and parents. By invoking the “best interests of the child ,” UN policymakers and government agents have the authority to substitute the decisions of the parent on behalf of the child with their own decisions if they see their decisions as in the best interest of the child. In essence, parents do not have rights to parent, and just about become only caregivers. Parents across the world are now discovering that the family is being undermined without true regard to the results for the very children they are supposed to be protecting.

You may think that the UNCRC is just words and that the US does a very good job of taking care of children. You may even think that to worry about this treaty is nothing more than paranoia. Possibly, but here is what the results of implementing this treaty has done in some countries:

The Canadian government has taken steps toward rejecting parental discipline that conflicts with the "best interests of the child." In June 2008, a Quebec court overturned a father's decision to ground his 12-year old daughter after she posted photos of herself on a dating website, saying that the punishment was "too severe." - Full story can be found HERE.
The Canadian Senate approved a bill which would drastically restrict the right of parents to physically discipline their children. - Full story can be found HERE
The government of Brazil has prevented minors under the age of eighteen from being "criminally chargeable" at all. Under the Brazilian Penal Code, conduct that is usually a crime or misdemeanor is considered an "act of infraction" if carried out by a minor. Acts of infraction carry only minor penalties, including a warning, an obligation to repair damage caused, community service, or confinement in an educational institution. - More information can be found HERE
In France, the law also grants minors access to contraceptives without the consent of their parents, and certain medicines and contraceptives can even be obtained by minors anonymously and at no cost. A minor may also have an abortion without parental consent, so long as she is accompanied by an adult of her choice. - More info can be found HERE
In 2002, Italy’s highest appeals court ruled that parents are required by law to support their adult children until the children “find a job to their liking.”- More info can be found HERE

There are many other examples of how intrusive this treaty is. What is scary is that in 2009, the Obama administration indicated that it was reviving efforts to sign this treat.

If you think about it, though, it is not surprising. It is not surprising that this administration would want to push the concept of government control over children. If you look at it's track record with Healthcare, pushed Unionization of jobs and increased governmental dependency programs, it only makes sense that Obama and his merry band of idealists would sign on to this bill.

The portions of this treaty that are important have already independently been ratified by the US via optional protocols. On May 25, 2000, two optional protocols were adopted; the first restricts the involvement of children in military conflicts and the second bans the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography. It is important to understand that ratification of these two protocols by the United States means that the ratification of the full UNCRC will have no positive impact with these issues.

So, I think most of my readers can understand why the UNCRC is not needed and generally bad for our country. With that said, there are those that are constantly trying to get this treaty ratified by the House and Senate. In my humble opinion, there is only one way to fight this and that is an amendment to the US Constitution. As a father, parent and concerned citizen, I believe that it is time that we amened the Constitution to affirm the rights of parents over the state. That is why I am supporting and ask each of you to review the Parental Rights Amendment.

The Parental Rights Amendment is a very basic amendment that does a lot. It reads as follows:
PROPOSED PARENTAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION

SECTION 1 - The liberty of parents to direct the upbringing and education of their children is a fundamental right.

SECTION 2 - Neither the United States nor any state shall infringe upon this right without demonstrating that its governmental interest as applied to the person is of the highest order and not otherwise served.

SECTION 3 - No treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of international law be employed to supersede, modify, interpret, or apply to the rights guaranteed by this article.

This Constitutional amendment guarantees the rights of the parent to raise their children as they see fit while also guaranteeing that the government can step in only in extreme measures.

Naysayers are stating that an amendment is not needed and the US and state law already guarantee parental rights. With that said, we need to take preventative action before the courts can begin using this UN ratified treaty as a determination in their decisions. In some cases, the courts are already using the UNCRC to guide their decisions in court rulings, even though it is un-ratified. Rather than reprint what has already been written, read this full article here to understand what I mean.

So, what can you do? The first thing you can do is become informed. You can do that by going to the http://www.parentalrights.org/ web page and studying the proposed amendment. You can find details regarding why the wording used was used and how it pertains to Supreme Court proceedings already on the books. Additionally you can find Senators and Congressman that currently sponsor this bill. Here in Missouri, none of our Senators are sponsoring although Roy Blunt did support it when he was in Congress and in Congress Todd Akin, Jo Ann Emerson, Sam Graves and Blaine Luetkemeyer have all thrown support behind this. Pick up the phone and call your Senator and Congressman and tell them to support this bill. Additionally, you can help out by donating your time and/or money to the cause. You can find more info on how to help at the Parental Rights web page listed above.

With the government and the left generally trying to take more of our liberties away from us, we must now act to ensure that the rights of the parent are guaranteed. It does not take a village to raise children, it takes parents.

Missouri Education Watchdog: Perhaps Homeschooling Parents Should be Heading Up the Department of Education. They Spend Less Money for Better Test Results.

2011-02-14T21:55:00.001-06:00

Education is all about our future. Even if you do not have kids, you must realize that strong education is the backbone for sustaining our country. The fine folks over at Missouri Education Watchdog have put together a great blog posting that needs to be read by everyone.

Missouri Education Watchdog: Perhaps Homeschooling Parents Should be Heading Up the Department of Education. They Spend Less Money for Better Test Results.

Missouri is pretty pro homeschooling unlike some states. We can only hope that more state and federal politicians take a look at these numbers and begin realizing that throwing money at public schools is not the answer.

This Is One Reason Why We Are Now Homeschooling

2011-02-11T06:15:00.002-06:00

Dana's interview with Richard Dreyfuss explains just one reason why we have chosen to homeschool.

The 2011 Taurus SHO

2011-02-09T19:23:00.004-06:00

As many of my readers know, I am a supporter of common sense green technology. Any time you can make something smarter, that consumes less but gives equal or more, I am all for it. That is why I am all for anyone that wants to buy a Prius or Volt. More power to you. For me, though, I like a little kick to what I drive. That is one of the reasons why I love the new Taurus SHO.

This car just screams kick ass in so many ways it is not even funny. For a middle class dude like me, this is the perfect combination of sports and luxury. Yes, it is pricey so I will be buying a used one when it comes time. That said, I just love this car.

MCJ, why did you bring up green tech when you talked about this? you may be asking. Let me tell you. Rather than go with the V8 like previous Taurus SHO's, Ford got smart and installed what they are calling their Eco-Boost engine. For non gear heads I will keep this simple. Using two turbos that kick in at different stages of performance, the car is able to generate 365 horsepower using a 3.5 liter V6. If you want to read the details on this, go HERE. Basically, you can get a really fast sports car that gets 18 MPG in the city and about 27 MPG on the highway. Not bad. This is the type of smart engineering that I feel a lot of middle class people are looking for in a sports and/or luxury car. Speed and luxury done smartly.

The other nice thing, even though it is a sports sedan, it adds a touch of luxury but there is still room enough for a car seat or two and trunk space that a mafioso would be proud to have if you get my drift (if you don't, email me and I will explain it to you).

I like that Ford has made a car that can compare with the Audi or the Lexus as far as space, speed and styling but is American made. In fact, it is produced about 6 hours away from STL in Chicago.

As it is, Ford is on many people's list of buycotts due to them not taking a bailout from the government and being smart about restructuring before the economy went in the tank. By the way, I do not work or am in no way related to Ford or the Ford Motor Company.

This car is not cheap in any way, shape or form. A new on will run you about 36K, but in a year or two, you should be able to find a used one for 25- 30K. So, if you are middle age, middle class but want a touch of luxury and a touch of kick ass, this may be the car for you to look into. If I get the chance to drive one for a bit, longer than with a dealer salesmen, I will follow up to this post.

In the meantime, if you are interested, here are some cool videos to watch that show just how kicken this bad boy is.

So, what do you think?

Been A Long Time

2011-02-05T17:52:00.002-06:00

Hey all,

I know it has been a long time. A lot has been going on in my personal life that has taken priority over all of this. What started out as a break after the elections turned into an extended break. Throw in things happening at home and it just turned into absenteeism on my part.

I am not ready to say I am back, fully, yet. That said, I have had some realizations that I want to share, which will explain some things.

First and foremost, the rage and anger that really drew me to blogging is not there anymore. I do not like what Lacy Clay and the Democrats are trying to do, but I am not enraged as I once was. I am still concerned and at times they anger me, but any more, I pity their small mindedness and stupidity. I am also dismayed with what I see happening amongst those on my side of the political leanings. As I have stated before, I am getting tired of the "you are not a true Conservative" mantra I have heard from some on the right. No one person can say what a true Conservative is or is not. I spoke to these thoughts before and you can read them HERE

Second, there is more to life than politics. When I was writing this blog, I found myself immersed in politics and it is draining. It sucks the life and sometimes joy out of living. I still watch and monitor politics, but I cannot live it like I once did. Some people thrive on it, but I can only do so much. The break helped me realize that. I have decided to focus this blog more on the life of the Middle Class. Politics, school, finances, etc. I think it fits the big picture and will maybe help people understand our perspective. I know that there is someone from the New York Times and the House of Representatives that regularly is checking this site. Maybe they can learn something.

Third, I decided to put my money with my mouth is and started going Galt. You may remember a post I did a few months ago (HERE). My wife and I talked long and hard about it and we are now homeschooling. This is better for us and better for our children. By not relying upon the schools, we can teach our kids for knowledge, not for testing as the public schools have done. We also can teach a curriculum that is best suited for us and not for a teacher's union or an archdiocesan. I have nothing against those who choose to send their kids to public or private school, but we have the option and have chosen to go this route. Less reliance upon the Federal and State Governments is important to me.

Fourth and finally, I started living my life. That means I started doing things that me and my family want to do. Whether that is playing video games, going on mini vacations, having the occasional date nights, etc. Rather than waiting for the other shoe to drop, and thinking I had to stay hyper-alert to the goings on of the world, I started living in balance and moderation. This goes to the way I eat, drink, play, etc. If you cannot enjoy your life now, then what is the purpose.

I hope everyone still continues to read this blog. If not, oh well. It will be a mix of everything from here on out.

Take care,

Middle Class Joe

Labels

2010-12-14T21:46:00.005-06:00

Hello all,

First of all Merry Christmas, Happy Hanuka, Happy New Year and Happy Festivus.

It has been awhile since I blogged and that has been because I have been spending a majority of my time with my wife and kids. Everything I do, all of the political activism, my job, etc. is to help my family live the life that we want to live. With that said, I believe it is good for the body, mind and soul to occasionally take a step away and just relax. So, that is what I have been and will probably continue to do for awhile.

As always, with that said, there is something that I want to get off my chest that has been weighing heavily on me. I am probably going to get flamed for this, but so be it.

Maybe it is just me, but I have been noticing that people and the media are really looking to be labeled lately. It harkens back to high school and everyone wanting to choose what group you are/want to belong to. We have people saying they are Conservatives, Republicans, Tea Partiers, Moderates, Liberals, Fiscal Conservatives, Democrats, Blue Dogs, etc. Why do we feel the need for these labels? I understand that as we know it today there is a two party system and that the rule of government is broken up based upon party lines. That I can deal with, but now we are dealing with people who want to continue to fractionalize those groups. Lindsey Grahm is a RINO, Jim DeMint is a Conservative, Michelle Backman is a Tea Partier, Ben Nelson is a Blue Dog Democrat and on and on and on. Why?

Does it really matter?

There are fellow bloggers that will call out Lindsey Grahm for taking a moderate position and say he is a RINO, he is not a true conservative. There are Democrats who are calling out Claire McCaskill for wanting to ban earmarks as not a true Democrat. Whatever.

Let's face it people, there is no true conservative. There is no litmus test for being a Republican or Democrat. We need to get over the labels and the name calling. Period.

If you are fiscally conservative, but believe in gay marriage and allowing abortion in some cases, you can still be a Republican.
If you are progressive in your social beliefs but believe in a strong military and defense, you can still be a Democrat.

Both parties and its members want to say they are big tent parties. We welcome all sides and will listen to all points of view. It seems to be that way until you join, when you are told to sit down, shut up and follow our party positions.

As bloggers and as politically active members of our society, we need to each get beyond these labels and talk about the root of the matter. Say what you believe in and what you expect of your representatives. Understand that other representatives may make different decisions or have different opinions based upon the people they represent. Remember, this is a BIG country and not everyone thinks like a North County Blue Collar Republican, a South County White Collar Democrat, a St. Charles Catholic Conservative or a Ladue Jewish Progressive (Don't you just love the labels). Because of the desires of others around the country, our Congressman/women and Senators have to negotiate to get things done. Pure and simple. We cannot start calling people names and labels because they do not conform to what we think they should be.

That said, there are times when people have had enough. That is where the Tea Party came in. The Tea Party was a name for a group of people that were tired of government as is. They were a group of people that are against something. They are the party of NO. Because the Tea Party is not a true party, but a label of people that are sick of the standard government. The Tea Party should stay that way but instead it is being converted and twisted into a part of the Republican party. It is becoming and being twisted into some sort of alternate ego for fiscal and in some cases social conservatives. Those that say they run the Tea Party should be wary of allowing this. The Tea Party label, if we must have one, should continue to be independent of Conservatives, Progressives, Republicans and Democrats. It should be no different than the NRA or any other advocacy group. The Tea Party should be the label for the people who are saying NO to big government. No more, no less.

So, after saying this, let me tell you who I am. Not in a label that can be summarized, but in words.

I am someone who usually votes Republican but has voted Democrat.
I am someone who votes based upon the issues and the stances taken by the candidates.
I am someone who believes in a small and limited government.
I am someone who believes that the best offense is a good defense (and if we are talking sports a good QB or Albert Pujols helps).
I am someone that wants you and everyone else to stay out of my and everyone else's bedroom.
I do not think the government should be able to license marriage. Marriage is a religious act. I personally believe that the government can license civil union contracts between a man & woman, a man & man, and a woman & woman. Let the churches decide how they want to or do not want to define marriage.
I think the best way to have equality is to get rid of any and all social programs that push one race, gender, religion or sexual preference over another
I think America is one of the most perfect places to live because of our liberties.

So, are you just a label or are you more?

Homeland Security Intervenes on the Internet

2010-11-27T23:53:00.003-06:00

With everything else going on, this one could have easily slipped by. Luckily, I picked up on this short article while doing some research for my day job. Take a read at this.

Homeland Security Seizes Domain Names

What is scary is how much the Obama administration is getting involved in their attempt to limit the Internet. I am in no way condoning the illegal distribution of copyrighted material, but at the same time the Department of Homeland Security should not be getting involved with shutting down websites.

With all that this administration is trying to do with Net Neutrality and the FCC wanting to play a larger role in Internet traffic, this is a scary sign of what could be coming. As I documented back in May the FCC is interested in making the Internet and its providers a public utility so that they can have more control.

If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would think that this is the first step in the government taking over control of web based content. Is that too far off the mark?

Television You NEED To Watch

2010-11-15T22:07:00.003-06:00

My friends. I told you that I probably would not post unless I saw something that I thought needed to be shared. Last week, I saw such a thing.

As someone who does his research before going out with a story, I watched three hours of truly remarkable television that i want to share. Glenn Beck did an amazing three hours on George Soros AKA "Spooky Dude" and his influence, power and attempt to change the United States.

I suggest each of you watch this. Dedicate some time to it and reflect. Then as Glenn says, go out and do the research. I can tell you from a personal standpoint, there have been countless times as I investigate different things, whether it be Lacy Clay or various other things that I look into, groups like the Tides Foundation continue to come up.

This is well worth your time to watch. Please do.

Post Election Thoughts

2010-11-02T23:35:00.009-05:00

Tuesday night's election brought both joy and sorrow. I am very happy with the tsunami of Republicans that have won. With the support of Tea Party patriots, we have seen several candidates win and send packing many Congressman and Senators that needed to be sent home. I especially was happy with the wins by Rand Paul, Marco Rubio ,Pat Toomey and several other House gains. I was also very happy with the pickups in the Senate and the Governor races. More on the governor races in a bit.

I was also saddened by several things, probably most specifically the loss of Robyn Hamlin and Bill Corrigan. My wife and I are both big supporters of these two politicians. North County and St. Louis County saw fit to support the status quo instead of riding the wave of change. I expect that the union vote really helped Dooley and Clay. While Ed Martin is contesting his race with Russ Carnahan, I am also saddened with the voting issues that we saw in the third district. The issues that occurred statewide and the convenience of the additional votes appearing out of the city are truly suspect. It will be interesting to see what occurs once the vote is counted and completed.

As I write this after a long night I am listening to a replay of Obama's conference this afternoon. He takes little blame for what happened last night and he sputters a feeble attempt at an olive branch to the GOP. He refuses to admit that his administration's overreach is the reason for last nights large GOP gains. If this is what we are to expect over the next few years, it will make for a very interesting two years.

The elections are now, for the most part, over. Let's all take a breath and survey the surroundings. Let's truly look at what's ahead. There are a lot of things to consider now, including:

Nancy Pelosi and the older house reps - There are indicators that many of the older House Dems will not look at retiring since the Dems lost so handily. Many of them do not want to go back to being the minority. These departures will lead to openings in the House. How will these openings change the dynamic.
The census - The census will greatly effect the makeup of the house. As I discussed in THIS post and THIS one, the census will change the lay of the land. Missouri will probably lose a house seat as will a couple of other states.
The governors races - Governors can help set the political tone of each state. The GOP wins in these races will dramatically help Republican causes. These governors will also help set the new lines for House districts as part of the upcoming redistricting.

The legislative agenda - What will the House and Senate have as their legislative agenda. With Reid probably retaining leadership in the Senate and Boehner probably taking over the House, there are going to be two different and possibly competing agendas.

The next two years cannot be carte blanche no. Boehner cannot try and legislate from the House. Instead, the Republicans need to push for plans that lower taxes and create smaller government. I think everyone will agree that limited compromise is totally acceptable, but the Republicans cannot be obstructionists, otherwise they will get ousted in two years. If Senate Democrats and the President insist on not compromising or pushing a far left agenda, while the GOP lead House offers compromise and moderation, 2010 will be a warm up act for 2012.

Much like Boehner, Rubio and Paul all said last night, this was not an endorsement of the GOP, this was a call to action and a mandate against the president, Pelosi and Reid. I think Jamie Allman says it best, we are not married to you guys, we are just dating. We will see what happens from here on out. You better not disappoint us.

The two pet projects I would like to see addressed are some gerrymandering restrictions and Congressional and Senate term limits. I will be posting more on that in the future, but DSM over at Reboot Congress has written volumes on term limits and I suggest you take a look.

For Robyn Hamling and my fellow Robyn Hamlin supporters I say this, you put up a very valiant fight. It was a fight that many people have tried to wage. All of you spent countless man hours working the phones, going door to door and educating the public. Robyn had all of the right answers for a public group that just did not care. For some, this Congressional race was just about race. For others, it was about supporting the union machine that Lacy regularly supports. Just take a look at Lacy's FEC filings and you can see the amount of money the unions poured into his campaign. He helps them out by pushing through government spending for Boeing, the Federal Government and other big union shops. This loss was probably a combination of the right candidate at the wrong time. I do take some solace that Lacy got less than 75% of the votes. This district has been gerrymandered to the point where winning would be tough for just about anyone without a D behind their name. Robyn and her team worked hard and were able to accomplish a lot. I hope that this can be the stepping stone for bigger things in 2012. Even though we did not get a win, we can continue to work with the St. Louis Tea Party and other local candidates and representatives to make North County and North City a better place. For all you have done, though, I say thank you and good job.

Tomorrow's Election - Thoughts and Recommendations

2010-11-01T21:13:00.006-05:00

To everyone that reads this blog, I first say thank you. I started it with the simple goal of venting my frustration. In doing so it has turned into a type of catharsis, a source of new friends and a way to pass on the knowledge that I have acquired through my years and my obsessive tendencies to research an issue, person, etc.

After tomorrow, I may post once or twice and then I am going to take a break. My wife and I have been busy helping raise awareness and campaigning for several candidates. Rather than go to a victory party, we are going to spend the evening, quietly, at home, watching the results. I will say a prayer for the winners and losers, go to bed, and go to work the next day. With that said, I feel the need for a sanity break and have chosen to take one after the election. Yes, I will probably post some post election thoughts, but afterwards I will be out of the loop for awhile.

Before I go any further, I want to take a moment and give a special hat tip to Darren over at Reboot Congress. He was one of the first people in the blogging community to welcome me as well as give advice. He does some great work that should be noticed by all. I love his recent YouTube video, which I have embedded below.

Now, on to my suggestions for the upcoming election. I am sticking to the first district and not including state representatives on this one.

US Senate - I am holding my nose on this one and picking Roy Blunt. This is more of a vote against Robyn Carnahan than it is support of Roy.

US Congressional Race - This is a no brainer. I am voting for Robyn Hamlin (@Hamlin4Congress )

MO State Auditor - Tom Schweich has my vote. Susan Montee is a drunk and a fool and needs to be fired and Tom has the experience needed to do this job.

St. Louis County Executive - Bill Corrigan has my vote. Charlie Doolie is as crooked as a country road. We need Bill Corrigan in there for St. Louis County.

Amendment 1 - I am voting and recommending a YES vote. Any governmental assessor, city or county, should be elected and not appointed

Amendment 2 - As much as I would like to vote yes, I am voting NO on this one. Look, we all want lower taxes, but to amend the state constitution to give tax breaks to one group of individuals over another is wrong. Everyone should have lower taxes.

Amendment 3 - I am voting and recommending a YES vote. Leaving the possibility of any additional taxes to the sale of real estate is like leaving your front door open when you leave the house and expecting yourself not to get robbed. Just because there is not one in place, does not mean there should not be a rule prohibiting it. A tax like this can kill home sales and the real estate market.

Prop A - I am voting and recommending a YES vote. Let the voters decide whether or not there should be a tax increase on the municipal level. If St. Louis and Kansas City choose to continue having one, let them vote on it.

Prop B - I am voting and recommending a NO vote. Everyone hates puppy mills but there are already laws on the books to prevent them, they are just not being enforced. A law like this, as loosely written as it is could definitely hurt any and all ranching in the state of Missouri.

If all polling is correct, tomorrow could be a very good day for the GOP and the Tea Party. With that said, those that win should know that I and other bloggers will still hold them accountable, no matter what party affiliation, to representing their constituents and acting in good faith on our behalf. If they do not, they will be fired just as many already have.

Finally, make sure you get out the vote. Over 200 years ago, many brave men and women fought and died for the privilege of voting that we have today. The simple act of voting makes your voice heard and quite frankly gives you the right to complain about those that do not act in your interest. #GOTV - GET OUT THE VOTE.

Clay vs. Hamlin - The Choice Is Clear

2010-10-28T22:04:00.010-05:00

So Lacy Clay is out stumping to retain his seat in Congress. He is trying to say that he is being misrepresented and...

My Republican opponent wants to reverse course, cancel the Recovery Act, put insurance companies back in charge of your health care, give Wall Street speculators a free handle to steal even more of your retirement dollars, and then explode the deficit by giving tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires.

Her Tea Party friends and the Republican leadership are part of an extremist partnership who want to use intolerance, ignorance and outright lies to cripple President Barack Obama, and turn America back to a much darker time. I’m confident that the voters of the First Congressional District will totally reject that.

More of this dribble can be found here. I suggest you read it and take notice to his lack of agenda or plans. He talks of job creation and building a stronger community, but he does not talk about what he plans to do about it.

As I have talked about in several posts, Lacy Clay has not done anything to truly improve the first district. In fact he refuses to hold open townhall meetings and as noted by myself and others including a letter to the editor in the St. Louis Post Dispatch, is nearly impossible to get a hold of.

As a refresher, take a look at these posts:

NEW TAXPAYER FINANCED JOBS IN ST. LOUIS
WHAT HAPPENED TO TRANSPARENCY LACY
CLAY WILLING TO GO THE DISTANCE - FOR RENT TO OWN INDUSTRY
CLAY BACKS BANKS WITH NO BUSINESS PLAN
LACY CLAY AND PAYDAY LOANS - Two articles HERE and HERE
LACY CLAY AND THE RENT TO OWN INDUSTRY

On top of this, Lacy has yet to even speak his opinion on what his plan is for the expiring Bush Tax Cuts (other than blame Republicans) and he has not yet commented on the claim that he is one of 70 members of the Democratic Socialists of America (Discussed HERE). Add to that, Lacy Clay was given a failing grade by the Center for Security Policy.

All Lacy has proven he can do is attempt to expand government to create jobs and promote himself. I give the guy credit, he comes off as a like able guy in interviews and he knows how to present himself. That said, he has had the job for 10 years and has not proven himself as a true leader for the first district or Missouri.

His opponent, Robyn Hamlin, is a small business owner who has had to deal with the concepts of job creation, health care benefits and balancing a budget. She has not done these as some ivory tower intellectual in Washington, who has never held a job outside of politics. No, she has done so in the real world, dealing with real world issues.

Is Robyn perfect. No, but I think she would agree that she is not. Does she have a better sense of what we need to do to create jobs, balance our federal budget and keep our nation safe? I think so and I am not the only one.

NumbersUSA has ranked Robyn as a "True Reformer"
Robyn is endorsed by

Robyn also signed the Tea Party Treaty

Just listen to and read her interviews, and you can see that she is the candidate that we need. You can find some HERE, HERE and HERE

If Robyn is elected, I plan, and expect each of you, to hold her feet to the fire, just as we would Lacy Clay or any other candidate.

If you are happy with things in the first district and our country, then Lacy is your guy. If you want to see a non politician go into Washington and help to clean up the corruption and politics as usual, then vote for Robyn.

Let's send Robyn to Washington as part of the Republican congressional takeover and party like it's November 1994

Yard Sign Theft

2010-10-26T20:05:00.004-05:00

All,

We need your help in the 1st district. Robyn Hamlin's office has been made aware of people stealing yard signs and in one reported case replacing them with signs for Charlie Dooley.

According to Robyn Hamlin as posted on her Facebook page:

We have a voice mail on the campaign phone and a guy says that he is removing 5
of our signs a day from St. Louis City. The call came in from Cutex Corp and I
called them and let them listen to the voicemail. The VP there assured me it was
not one of their employees. We have tracked it back to a truck driver.

And

..Just got a call from a lady who saw an elderly man taking down our campaign
signs on Shamrock at Howdershell. She said he had a lot of our signs
in his trunk and was putting up Dooley signs.

It is obvious that the opposition is afraid of the message that is being presented. Lacy is just now sending out mailers. He assumed that he was not going to get a fight and Robyn is giving it to him. Check that, Robyn is giving him a fight and YOU are not willing to sit on the sidelines and let him win.

If any of you see these things happening, take a camera phone picture or video. Call the police and email it to Robyn or me. We will post it online and get it all across the blogosphere.

Be vigilent. They are worried and resorting to illegal tactics to keep the message from getting to the voters.

It is happening in other states and we are now seeing signs of it happening here.

Do what you can to help. We CAN win this!

Robyn on Allman In the Morning

2010-10-21T21:39:00.006-05:00

On Thursday morning, Robyn Hamlin appeared in the last hour of Jamie Allman's show on 97.1 FM Talk.

It's great to hear her message getting out there and that people are receptive to her and her campaign.

Add to that the letter to the editor which just appeared in the Post Dispatch and that leads to a lot of positive momentum going into November 2nd.

There is still a lot to do and we still need a lot of volunteers to help Robyn and her campaign. If you can spare anytime during the week or weekend, do what you can to help her campaign out. Let's help get out the vote and fire Lacy Clay!

Get Out and Volunteer While You Still Can

2010-10-20T19:37:00.003-05:00

This is a quick post.

I received an email from a friend asking me where I have been. In all bluntness, I am out working the ground. My wife volunteered to work on a couple of campaigns and I am helping her. Even now there are still many people who have not made up their minds. It is our job to inform them of their options and make sure they are informed voters.

As I have said all along, it is now up to each of YOU to make sure you are working with a candidate. Are you in the second district and want to make sure that DC is not being controlled by Reid and Pelosi, then get up off your couch/office chair and volunteer.

This weekend, Robyn Hamlin, ED Martin, Bill Corrigan and the St. Louis Tea Party can all use your help.

If you want to help but don't know how check out these sites

Robyn Hamlin - http://www.hamlinforcongress.com/
Ed Martin - http://edmartinforcongress.com/
Bill Corrigan - http://www.corriganforexec.com/
St. Louis Tea Party - http://www.stlouisteaparty.com/

Also, do you live on or near a busy intersection or street. You can help out by allowing one or several of these campaigns to put out yard signs. Believe it or not, the name recognition helps.

Right now, the Dems are on the ropes and are scared. All of their gerrymandering of districts over the years is not helping them with this election. Carnahan and Clay have both voted for very unpopular bills including health care control, TARP, and the auto bailout. These bills were all passed and have done little to nothing to improve our overall economic condition.

I am signing off for now to go work the campaigns. You should do the same.

Lacy Clay's Radio Interview

2010-10-13T22:02:00.006-05:00

In case you did not know or hear about it, Congressman Lacy Clay was on KWMU on Monday. Don Marsh gave what I will call a friendly interview with Clay, not really challenging him as much as he could have been. You can listen to the interview here:

Windows Media Version or MP3 Version

Honestly, you do not really get anything new out of Lacy that we have not heard before. That said, there were a couple of things that I found interesting.

Why is it that Lacy feels the only way to creat jobs is via the government. He touts jobs saved but it was only through government intervention. He talks about 600 jobs created but it was only because of newly created government jobs. At no time did he talk about making it easier for businesses to hire new employees. He did briefly mention the small business bill, but that was in reference to his whining about Republicans being obstructionist.

When did Lacy Clay become a hawk (pro defense). This is a man who repeatedly talks about and speaks ill of going to war in Iraq and Afghanistan, yet he talked highly of the defense spending for Boeing. Maybe it is just me, but it seems hypocritical.

He talked of the cynicism and obstructionism of Republicans and how after the election they should have come together to work with Obama. Well, it seams to me that the Democrats are just as guilty of obstructionism, see Freddie and Fannie reform as covered previously, and Republicans did offer alternatives that Obama, for the most part refused to listen to.

After listening to the interview, I was able to touch bsae with Robyn Hamlin regarding his remarks about the Federal Reserve. He took some not so subtle swipes at Robyn and others regarding the Fed. This is what Robyn had to say.

He would not co-sponsor HR 1207 until Barney Frank told him it was okay and by
that time there were enough co-sponsors for the bill to pass if it made it to the floor. Clay sits on the financial services committee and they watered it down then added it to another bill. He did NOT vote for HR 1207 to Audit The Fed in it's initial wording. The Audit The Fed bill was a one page bill.

In essence, Lacy did not have the backbone to do what is right and stand up for a cause. He had to wait for others to get involved.

Lacy is lock step in with the likes of Nancy Pelosi and Barney Frank.

The Truth Behind Budget Surpluses

2010-10-10T08:32:00.005-05:00

You know how Dems are out there saying that it was Clinton and the Democrats that brought about budget surpluses. Well this great video debunks that myth with the one thing that Dems cannot argue, statistics and facts.

It was not Clinton that brought budget surpluses, but a Republican majority that forced it.

New York Times Gives Hamlin & Martin No Chance

2010-10-05T18:17:00.006-05:00

It’s funny what you can stumble across when surfing the web. While surfing through the many news websites I stumbled upon this piece of gold from the New York Times. Apparently, the grey old lady is not giving Robyn Hamlin and Ed Martin much if any chance of winning their elections. Even though their polling shows Martin and Carnahan in a tight race, they are giving Ed Martin only a 5% chance of winning. In the case of Robyn Hamlin, they are giving her no chance of winning, predicting she will only take 24% of the vote in the first district.

You can find these forecasts here and here

Now, you may be asking yourself, where does this come from? Well, the Times appears to be using a group call FiveThirtyEight. You can find out more about them by going here.

I am sure some of you will read this and immediately believe this guy, Nate Silver, to be a political hack. You know what, he may be. That said, he is a stats junkie for Baseball Prospectus and tends to be right more than he is wrong. I have read and listened to this guy on the radio and he knows his stuff. Additionally, he made some early calls on the 2008 primaries that were spot on. He tends to know his stuff given enough information.

That said, I post this as more of a wake up call to you first and third MO district residents. This information is based upon history of the area including voter turnout, etc. but is also based upon polling data. In the case of Robyn Hamlin vs. Lacy Clay, it does not appear there is any polling data to support this case, it is all based upon history. In the case of Ed Martin vs. Russ Carnahan, it is based upon history and polls from August.

What does this mean, it means the establishment is writing off the challengers for these two districts. They are saying that Robyn and Ed have no chance of winning. Do no let this get you down, though. The forecasters have been wrong and will continue to be wrong. It is up to YOU to make the difference. In the case of Robyn Hamlin, all we have is history of the district. There have been no polls that I can find to show where she is truly at. In the case of Ed Martin, even though the polls are old, the forecasts are showing a fairly close race. YOU are the ones that need to make sure you vote and get other like minded individuals out there voting. YOU are the ones who need to make sure that the uninformed are informed. Otherwise the uninformed and the like minded will get their information from the MSM and either skip voting or be an uninformed voter.

We are now less than 30 days away. Quit hitting the snooze button and do what has to be done. Let’s prove the forecasters and the New York Times wrong.

Now Playing In A Theater Near You

2010-10-04T22:17:00.000-05:00

It's Time For Us To Go John Galt

2010-10-02T17:57:00.005-05:00

My friends, whenever I go away for work I always bring a book with me. You never know if you are going to be stuck in a terminal, a hotel room, waiting room, etc. You cannot always guarantee Internet coverage on your phone or an interesting movie in your hotel room. With this past week, even though it had not been that long, I decided to pull out my well worn copy of Atlas Shrugged. It being one of my favorites, I thought I would re-read it as time allowed. Considering what was supposed to be a 1 week trip turned out to be much longer, I was glad I did.

I bring this up because as I read about this and the more I think about it, the more I think it is time for each of us to go John Galt. No, I am not saying that we need to disappear in the cloak of night and come together in some secret society. No. Instead what I feel we should each do is start to disassociate ourselves from our communities. Instead, we should make do with what we can without using that which any government has to offer. Are you or your spouse a stay at home parent, then home school and make the educational choices for your children instead of having the government make them for you. Teach them the way that you think they should be taught. Give them the education they deserve instead of the education that the school system has elected to give them. This is just one of many ways you can unplug yourself from the shackles of the government. If you can, restrict your usage of any government buildings and properties. Do not purchase from companies that support non-defense government agencies. The more you remove yourself from the government, the free-er you become.

I know this sounds seperationist, but it is not. You see, the more that you become reliant on the government, the more you become enslaved by it. That is the beauty of a book like "Atlas Shrugged". Those doers of society, those of us who work hard, pay our taxes and do what we can to improve ourselves are constantly penalized by a government that is trying to create some sort of equality that is not possible or plausible. By removing yourself and as many dependencies as you have from the government, you are taking away their power and influence.

The government, and I mean all forms of government from Federal to state and local, has made each of us dependent upon them. This was done in order to make the government and each of those government employees necessary. Unlike working in the private sector where streamlining and cost efficiency is paramount to survival, the government works with what they believe is a limitless check book. They can justify their spending because of each one of us and the way we use them. By removing ourselves from them, their need becomes less and more prevalent.

The US Constitution is a set of rules and limitations on the government, not a set of rights for its citizens. This is a powerful thing. The way the government has gotten around this is by making each of us more and more addicted to what it has to offer. As of now, there is no way that I know of to be a part of a community that completely disassociates ourselves from the government, but we can slowly remove ourselves. So, as we go into the upcoming elections, vote for smaller government, vote for less government intervention and work to remove yourself as much as you can from the use of any government program.

Go Galt.

Post Script
I wrote this article late in the evening on 9/30. I decided not to post it so I could have a close friend read this article and give me any feedback. This is something I normally do when I write an article at night. This way another set of eyes can look at it and make sure I do not ramble or I made my points. After reading this article, he called me laughing,
"So you listened to Glenn Beck?"
"No", I told him, "I could not find a station it is on down there"
"Are you sure", he said.
"Yeah."
"Well then you two must be mind melding. Check out the link I just sent you."
Opening it, I read the link and started to laugh.
"Well", I said, "Maybe Glenn just got done re-reading Atlas Shrugged too."
I am glad to know that I am not the only one thinking this way.

Robyn Hamlin Radio Interview

2010-09-21T18:30:00.001-05:00

This post marks my 100th post as a blogger. Seeing as I do not post multiple times a day this is a somewhat momentous occasion for me. This post occurs just a few weeks after my 1 year anniversary of starting this blog. No matter what happens in the coming months, I hope to continue to offer the investigative and in depth reporting for the 1st district that the St. Louis Post will not do.

With that said, I do not know if anyone caught it, but Robyn Hamlin was a guest on St. Louis NPR yesterday morning. Here is her interview with Don Marsh from this morning. Robyn makes up the first 23 minutes of this recording.

Windows Media Version or MP3 Version

While NPR may not be the most hospitable crowd for Robyn as a candidate, I was glad to hear that someone gave her a chance to talk on the radio. We all need to make sure that we listen when Lacy Clay is on so that we can ask him the questions that we would normally have at a town hall, if he were to ever have one. We must be respectful but at the same time ask him the hard questions he should be asked and hold him accountable for his actions and inactions in the House of Representatives.

Additionally, everyone needs to recognize that part of politics is getting your name out there. Lacy Clay has had it easy since he can ride on the coattails of his father. Robyn does not have that luxury. If you know anyone in the radio, TV or print business, work with them to get Robyn's name out there. Ask them to do an interview with her, do a piece on the small businesswoman running for office, etc. This is the type of press that she needs and is not getting. Lacy Clay is smart and his inaction during recess means that the press does not have to look for opposing viewpoints. We need to get Robyn and the first district on every one's minds. This blog can only do so much.

Do You Know Your District? - UPDATED

2010-09-19T10:17:00.003-05:00

As I talked about in an earlier post HERE, the census is very important to politicians. Yes it gives government an idea of who lives where and all sorts of statistical data, but it also plays a very important part to the House of Representatives. After the 2000 census, St. Louis was re-districted.

Here is what the 1st, 2nd and 3rd districts looked like pre-redistricting. Maps courtesy of the US Census

The districts were changed after the census to look like this.

The third district saw some changes, but the second and first districts were changed the most. Parts of north county as well as a decent chunk of west county were all taken from the second district and moved into the first. This change was done in such a way to almost guarantee the status quo, thus meaning the first district would be represented by a Democrat.

The sad thing is, a lot of people do not know that they were moved around. This became very apparent when a co-worker who lives in Maryland Heights was complaining that she had no one to vote against Todd Akin (she is a yellow dog Democrat). When I challenged her on whether or not she was in Akin's district, she swore she was. I had her go to this tool HERE. Low and behold she found out that she is in fact in District 1. She was not even looking because she was sure that she was in the 2nd district. This got me thinking, so I started asking more and more people that live in Maryland Heights, Hazelwood area and many, not all, thought that they were still in the second district.

So, it was with great surprise that I received an email with the following video.

Take the time and learn what district you are in and make sure you cast your ballot come November 2nd.

Fannie and Freddie and the art of Hypocrisy

2010-09-09T11:49:00.009-05:00

I have seen it in my own neighborhood and you probably have too. People quickly and quietly packing up their houses, putting everything they can in cars, trailers and trucks, suddenly leaving the neighborhood they called home. Why were they doing this, because they were being foreclosed upon.

The market crash of 2008 was one of the worst that this country has seen in a couple of generations. Today, we are still suffering the repercussions of that crash. Many people are still out of work, many houses sit empty due to foreclosure and 401K’s were greatly diminished. The reason, or much of the reason for this is due to the gross mismanagement of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.

I was reminded of this topic while going through my emails and looking at an e-newsletter I had received from Lacy Clay. His letter read as such:

Thank you for reading another edition of my e-newsletter.
In the wake of our nation’s current economic crisis, I strongly support the establishment of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to hold big banks and Wall Street accountable. Congress must ensure that taxpayers will never again be forced to bail out big banks and huge firms because they are "too big to fail."

Financial reform is vital to ending the reckless schemes and outrageous abuses that nearly caused a second Great Depression and contributed to millions of Americans losing their jobs.
As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, I am committed to working with my colleagues and President Obama to adopt strong, common sense rules that will protect our economy and working families.
Honest and transparent financial reform will help create a stronger financial sector so that small businesses can get loans, families can get affordable mortgages, and entrepreneurs can create the jobs of tomorrow.

Consumer financial protections are currently spread across seven different government agencies. Our objective is to create one single Consumer
Financial Protection Agency -- tasked with preventing predatory practices and
making sure you get the clear information you need to understand your personal
finances.

You can learn more about the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that I strongly supported by clicking here.
For additional information on Financial Reform and many other topics, please visit my website at http://lacyclay.house.gov/.
It is a great honor for me to represent your interests in Congress. Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts and concerns. I value your views, as your input helps me to better represent the people of Missouri’s 1st District.
Sincerely,
Lacy

Re-reading this, I had to laugh to myself as he is trying to talk of economic reform and ending the reckless schemes that hurt our nation. It was with great amusement, then, that I stumbled across this you-tube video featuring Lacy and several other Democrats railing against those trying to create oversight over Freddie and Fannie.

I find it funny that Lacy and others try and make this into a racial issue rather than deal with the facts from those that know what they are talking about. While not coming out and saying those suggesting oversight were racist, they used words like “..the political lynching of Franklin Raines” and such. This is the standard move by Democrats when they cannot discuss things using logic or are proven to be wrong, throw out the race card.

Now, of course, the Democrats want to point the blame at the Republicans for all of this. They talk about how this could have been avoided when the Republicans had control if they really knew there was an issue. Never mind that even Bill Clinton had concerns about the size and power of Fannie and Freddie. This is just pure hypocrisy on their part; complain about wanting regulation and then when things fall apart, blame those who tried to implement it for not doing so. That said, the Republicans do have some blame in this. They could have pushed more to get something done. Yes, the called for regulation, but did not really push the matter as far as it could have gone. In this case, the Democrats were the obstructionists that created much of the mess we are in now.

This is just another thing for everyone to think about when it comes time to vote. Sure, they are claiming they are for oversight now, but where were they before the crisis? I am sure this is another question that Lacy does not want to have to answer at a town hall or a debate.

Skip Starbucks Week

2010-09-05T10:44:00.002-05:00

In the theme of helping those candidates out, I am starting Skip Starbucks Week. I have nothing against Starbucks. In fact, I love Starbucks coffee. This week, though, I want everyone to skip out on their Starbucks fix and use the money saved to help a candidate of their choice.

I have posted the following on my Facebook status:

This week is skip Starbucks this week. Take the $25.00 and donate to the candidate of your choice. There are a lot of good campaigns that can use the funds.
Did you know that 5 day's worth of Starbucks coffee can buy a campaign about 625 flyers, 3 - 4 campaign shirts, 2 yard signs or 59 bumper stickers.
If you like this post, copy it and make it your own!

So whether it is via Facebook, Twitter or word of mouth, pass the word on and get everyone to skip their Starbucks, QT soda/coffee, morning donut, whatever and donate that money to the candidate of their choice.

With this being a short week for most people, it should make it that much easier. You already have a jump start with no work on Monday.

Pass the word on.

Political Donations and You

2010-09-01T18:51:00.007-05:00

What does a donation mean to a political candidate? Well, if you are challenging an established incumbent, it can mean a lot. In St. Louis, we have two candidates that are challenging established incumbents with decent war chest funds. These challengers need YOUR time, effort and yes money to be able to succeed.

Why do they need YOUR donations, you may be asking. There are two reasons.

Candidates need donations of time and money. They need:

time because they cannot be at all places at all times. They need people to help organize fundraisers, drop literature, assist at events, make phone calls, make mailers, answer the phones, etc. A volunteer, a true volunteer and not one of the Democrat paid volunteers, is worth their weight in gold to a candidate. They are the lifeblood of a challenger and can make the difference in a tight election.
money because that is what it takes to get their name out. Money is needed to register to run, print flyers, run advertisements on radio and TV, get a web page made, have a phonebank make calls and even rent and operate a headquarters.
stuff. You would be surprised what kind of stuff a candidate needs. They need computers and printers. If they have printers, they need toner and paper. If they have a headquarters, the need furniture. They need yard signs, bumper stickers, buttons, shirts and hats. They need all of the things that a normal business needs to operate, but they need it quicker.

If the money comes from you, the candidate is being paid for by you. If the candidate gets their money from PACs and companies, they are indebted to these companies. Not all candidates are this way. There are several out there that do what is right for the people. That said, there are many that are willing to do what is right for their campaign contributors. Do you think Lacy Clay would give a care for the Rent to Own industry if they did not pay him or his personal PAC so much money? If you want a candidate that is going to represent you and not have to make deals with companies and PAC's to get money, then YOU have to donate and not leave it to the interest groups

Based upon the current, as of data available today, Federal Elections Commission information, here is how the two races look in regards to donations. Both Russ Carnahan and Lacy Clay have received more money from PAC's than they have from individuals. Don't believe me, click on the images below to see for yourself. These come straight from the FEC website.

If you want to do your own homework, click HERE to go to the Missouri page.

To add insult to injury, of Lacy Clay's $185,642 in individual contributions, $89,420 is from people out of the state of Missouri. In the case of Russ Carnahan, $96,510 out of $575,207 is from people out of the state of Missouri. While Russ has a higher percentage of Missouri donations, both seem to be receiving a lot of money from out of state interests.

In the interest of fairness, I have to say that Ed Martin has received a considerable amount of money from out of state individuals too. Of his $820,064 in individual donations, $101,916 comes from individuals out of state. Robyn Hamlin does not have any individual donations listed, meaning that she has not received, any individual donations over $200.00.

Across the board, people agree that it is time to get rid of the established and entrenched Democrats that have sat in the Senate and Congress for years and done nothing for their constituents. If you really want this to occur, the candidates need your help. They need your financial support and they need your time.

Now, let me say something for those in Missouri in and out of the MO first district. Robyn Hamlin needs your help. There has been no time within in recent history that we have been this close to being able to get rid of Lacy Clay. While many are focusing on the Russ Carnahan vs Ed Martin fight, Robyn is getting ignored. She needs your help too. Lacy Clay is beatable. If you would just please give her a few dollars, it can go a long way. Skipping Starbucks or brown bagging lunch for a week for one person can by some additional flyers, yard signs or bumper stickers. If you can, please go to her website at http://www.hamlinforcongress.com/ and make a donation.

Lacy - I have a simple question

2010-08-29T00:21:00.002-05:00

OK, in case you have not heard about this, there is a chain email going around stating that there are 70 members in the US Congress that are a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. A copy of the document can be found on Scribd HERE

Now, I am not one to forward rumors and such, but there is something very interesting about this email. Why has no one that has been listed on this email stood up and said that it is not true? There is no way that they do not know about this email chain. It has been picked up by bloggers all over the US. I know that someone from the US House of Representatives hits my blog at least once a week, so you know that Congressional members are having their staff surf the net to look for news on them. How could they claim they have no knowledge of this.

There are either two answers:

It is completely true and the seventy members listed cannot stand up and deny it.
It is not true, but since the MSM will not run with the story, they are not going to answer it.

While I am not the mainstream media, as a voter I will ask the question. Lacy Clay, are you a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, their PAC, caucus or any related group?

Look at the list and see if you have a Congressman or Congresswoman on that list. If so, call up their office and ask them or their staff to answer this question. Post a comment or email me with the answer you get.

Space Exploration - The REAL Stimulus Plan

2010-08-25T16:26:00.004-05:00

Space

A little over 41 years ago, man first walked on the moon. For the first time in probably centuries, a human being was walking on terrain that had never been touched by a human being. And during that time, the whole world was united in watching as a man gently floated down to the surface of the moon, implanting his footprint into the dusty surface.

As we all should know, the lunar race was sparked by a call to action from John F. Kennedy. He called for man to break the bonds of Earth and move into the stars. Unfortunately he was not able to live to see that, but his call to action was answered. That call to action also brought forth economic prosperity and technological advances that are still in use today or spawned greater advances in technology. I could write a whole post on that, but Computerworld did a great article on this which I will occasionally reference. It can be found HERE.

The beauty of the 60’s space program was that it was similar to the early days of America. It is almost fitting that popular culture moved from Westerns to Science Fiction/Space. I say this because; space exploration is the wild west of now. Much like the early explorers of the Americas, whether it be the Spanish and French explorers, discovering the new lands or those on the East Coast looking for land and prosperity and exploring the “wild west”, the journey into space is the journey into the unknown.

With the journey into the unknown, there is a price. This price is an investment in the future and an investment into discovering the unknown. Much like the Spaniards of old, they invested gold into exploration of the western hemisphere. The reward, they believed, would be faster trade routes. What instead they found were lands full of riches. These riches included new foods, animals, minerals and land. Seeing the investment pay off, the kingdoms increased their investment and expanded their expeditions. These early kingdoms, Spain, France, England, etc., saw the value of investing in these ventures as they provided benefit for now and the future.

Fast forward several hundred years and we see that our government is not looking towards the future. Since mothballing the Apollo program, NASA has been asked assigned to manage flights for the delivery of satellites and to limit the true exploration to the use of satellites. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is smart to use satellite technology to act as our “scouts”, but we are not following that scouting up with additional exploration. The investment in space exploration and colonization is essential for our long term growth.

First, let’s talk turkey. Space exploration is expensive. It is really expensive. It is really, really, really expensive. That said it is completely worth it. According to Scott Hubbard of Stanford University where he is a professor in the aeronautics and astronautics department, $7 or $8 in goods and services are produced for every $1 that the government invests in NASA. Scott should know, he used to work for NASA for 20 years. Right now, NASA is set to receive just 0.52% of the overall national budget or 18.7 billion dollars. Imagine what could happen to our economy if the US Government were to initiate a true space exploration program or an aggressive lunar or mars mission. The money needed would be great, but the rewards could be tremendous.

NASA does it right when they work with various companies. They provided some “seed” money to get the various companies to solve various needs. In doing so, these companies are allowed to keep the patent on whatever they create. In 1998 a study was done on the impact of this process. Of the 15 companies that agree to participate it was found that NASA gave $64 million, these companies invested and addition $200 million and the return on that investment is conservatively estimated at $1.5 billion. This does not even include the social benefits that come from these discoveries. That means that about $23.4 dollars per dollar was generated off of NASA’s initial investment. More information on this can be found HERE

In regards to MO 1st district, McDonnell Douglas played a big part in the early space program. All of the Mercury and Gemini space capsules were actually built by McDonnell Douglas here in St. Louis. Specifically, they were engineered and built at the MD facilities just north of Lambert Airport. While I could not find any studies done to give specific impact, I would have to believe there was some. Personally I know of many former McDonnell engineers and technicians who do or used to live in the North County St. Louis area. Anecdotally, those people lived there because it was close to work.

Just think of what advances and economic stimulus the country would have if the government were to truly re-invest in space technology. All presidents have spoken with words, but few have chosen true action. An aggressive space agency would help bring major innovation to technology, bio-science, aerodynamics, and propulsion technologies, just to name a few. By letting these companies keep the patents, we could see consumer ready variations of these products in the market in just a few years. An investment in an aggressive space program, similar to what NASA received in 1966, 5.5% of total budget, would give the US space program $198 billion dollars which is less than the total committed to TARP.

This type of funding would help employ jobs at all levels and should yield substantial increases and technology.

Moving beyond the economic impact, think of the social impact that this type of program would bring. With the jobs, would come greater prosperity for many people. Using the current NASA model, many companies would be able to offer additional services. Daniel Lockney, the editor of Spinoff, NASA's annual publication that reports on the use of the agency's technologies in the private sector, said the advancements during the Apollo missions were staggering.

"There were remarkable discoveries in civil, electrical, aeronautical and engineering science, as well as rocketry and the development of core technologies that really pushed technology into the industry it is today. It was perhaps one of the greatest engineering and scientific feats of all time. It was huge. The engineering required to leave Earth and move to another heavenly body required the development of new technologies that before hadn't even been thought of. It has yet to be rivaled."

Imagine what would be created for a manned mission to Mars, or a true lunar base. We would need to create all of these things along with green, renewable energy and more importantly sustainable nutritional technology to sustain such missions.

Instead of looking to future, our government and politicians have grown short sighted. Rather than looking at investments, they are too worried about the here and the now, the special interest groups and the party politics. During the 60’s we were united on a cause of reaching where no human had gone before. When Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped on the moon, all of mankind watched. It was a spectacle to behold. It was to be the first step of many. It was a promise to the future.

That promise has turned into a lie. Instead of moving forward, we have become stale. Rather than moving out the way, government has made spaceflight a bureaucracy. Rather than see the potential for jump starting innovation, we have become mired in the politics of it. In regards to blame, it is across the board. Both Republicans and Democrats have cut funding to this agency, routing it instead to their pork barrel projects or social programs.

If the government is not going to move forward, then they need to get out of the way and let private enterprise move forward. The problem is private enterprise can’t. In the United States, there is so much red tape that someone has to go through to test and launch a vehicle; it becomes nearly impossible to do it without government intervention.

While kingdoms sponsored the early exploration to the western hemisphere, it was the small groups, individuals and private industry that helped pave the way to western America. These explorers and pioneers went west to discover and lay claim to the untapped land and resources that were out there. These people/parties did so by financing projects on their own and just moving forward. It was their work that helped pave the way for the rest of the country. They were able to do so because the government encouraged them and staid out of their way. The same could be done for the space program.

By loosening up the restrictions on space flight, allowing companies access to closed military bases for storage and launch sites or even allowing limited land, discovery or mining rights for interplanetary travel, companies would be willing to invest in space exploration using their own money.

While we may not see the economic increase that a government sponsored program would bring, loosening restrictions as well as incentivizing participation would create opportunities that many companies would be willing to take the risks on.

Now, there will be some that say that this is too risky and dangerous and not worth the costs. Space travel should be limited and left to the government. To that I say this. If we had lived by those standards over all these years, we may just now be discovering the Americas.

Man is a wanderer and explorer by nature. We yearn to see what else is in store for us and what is on the other side of the mountain. Curiosity is part of our makeup. You can see it in babies. They take their first steps and immediately begin going to the places they were told not too. They do this because they want to see and know more. Space is the next frontier. It is an infinite place, filled with wonder and danger, where we can go, “what’s next.”

Those who participate know the danger they are exposed too. Those brave men and women who have died in the name of space, knew the dangers that were inherent with space travel. They knew it and went anyway. We cannot and should not try and overly protect those who are willing to go forward. We should encourage that growth and discovery balanced with safety, whether it be via a government sponsored program or private industry. I long for the day that I can sit on my sofa and watch as a human being takes steps off of some Martian lander and makes the first imprint on Martian soil.

In closing, I ask you to think about this as budgets and politics are discussed. Think about tomorrow and the greatness that could be achieved. Think about the potential that an aggressive space program could give us. And think of the promise of a future among the stars for our children. While you are doing that, watch the following videos and just think of what could be.

Pics from the North County GOP Rally

2010-08-22T20:19:00.005-05:00

Thanks to one of my readers, I am posting pics from the North County GOP rally.

Unfortunately I was not able to make it due to prior commitments, but thankfully one of my readers sent me some pics. It appears to have been well attended with some good conversation.

A couple of cars with some good bumper stickers on them. Go figure at a GOP rally : )

While Roy could not make, apparently his RV did. I hear the Blunt campaign had a lot of people there.

The organizers for the event.

Bill Corrigan talking to the crowd about the race.

Tom Schweich came to the event to talk to the crowd as well as have lunch with some of the attendees.

Robyn Hamlin go up and talked to the crowd about the importance of her race to beat Clay.

MO state Senator Jane Cunningham got up to talk on behalf of the Blunt campaign

Some of the attendees talking before the festivities got started.

I am sure that there was a lot more that went on. If you have some pictures or want to mention more about what occurred at the event, please email me.

Also, I would remiss for not mentioning the following:

Robyn will be having a U-Stream town hall discussion on Wednesday from 7 - 8. You can get more info HERE
Thursday night the North St. Louis County Republicans will be having both Robyn Hamlin and Bill Hennessy speaking. The meeting starts at 7:30 on August 26th, at Yacovelli’s Restaurant located at 407 Dunn Road in Florissant.

Just a Couple of Things.

2010-08-17T19:03:00.008-05:00

NEW TAXPAYER FINANCED JOBS IN ST. LOUIS

So, did you hear that 500 million dollars in stimulus money was used to create 200 new jobs here in St. Louis. That means that it cost the government $250,000 per job to create these new positions here locally. And you will love this, these are not private sector jobs. No, these are Federal Government jobs and are a part of Social Security. You can find more on this story HERE

Isn't it amazing that the government can spend $250,000 per person to create 200 new jobs. While I understand they had to renovate an empty building to create the offices, it took 500 million to do so? Really. I would think that they could outsource this to a qualified company for a lot less money. Don't you.

And I love Lacy's quote

“Any time we can do a better job at serving and saving taxpayers money at the
same time, that is a double win,” said U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay.

It's a shame that he does not know anything about budgeting money and such. I think a regular business student from UMSL would realize that the private sector could probably do this job cheaper and just as efficiently as the Federal Government. That said, people like Lacy only know how to make the government bigger and make more people dependent upon the government for their livelihood.
NEW PICS

As I drive around St. Louis, I like to take pics of things that I find amusing. Here are a couple from the past few days.

I really hope to start seeing more of these soon.

In case you cannot read it, it says - FREEDOM LIBERTY NOT MORE GOVERNMENT
Even though it is out of the way, I make sure I patronize this establishment.
They are located on Howdershell near 270

If you have any pics from the 1st District you would like to share, send them my way.

FACEBOOK

I am now on Facebook. If you want to friend me please do. You can of course find me as MiddleClass Joe. I will be posting pics, links etc.

A Message From Candice

2010-08-11T18:48:00.003-05:00

Candice Britton contacted me and asked that I pass the following message on to all of you:

Thank you to all that cast your vote for me on August 3, 2010.
I am sorry I did not get the job done for you.
The people spoke and they hired Mr. Clay.
I respect their vote.
Congratulations’ Mr. Clay.
God Bless to all,
Candice “Britt” Britton
http://www.candicebritton.com/index.html

The Bush Tax Cuts and You

2010-08-08T14:41:00.008-05:00

A lot has been made about the Bush tax cuts. Paul Ryan, God love him, has been on just about every pundit show expressing and emphasizing the need to extend the Bush tax cuts. Although he has not said so lately, to my knowledge, Lacy Clay voted against making the Bush tax cuts permanent in April 2002 (107th Congress (2001 - 2002) H.R.586).

We all know that President Obama promised not to increase taxes for anyone making less than $250,00 a year. So I had to find, how do the Bush tax cuts effect MO 1st District.

Here are the parameters I set for this exercise. I assumed I am dealing with a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 children under 17 who make whatever the median household income is for the 1st district. I also assumed that they filed using the EZ form and did not take out advanced deductions.

To start, I had to find out what the average income was for all of the first district. For this, as I do not pay for the latest and greatest information, I referred to CQ Politics and their page on MO 1st. Their information was all based upon the 2000 census. Based upon their information, the median household income was $36,314. Assuming that the range would be the same, I adjusted for inflation and came to a 2010 median household income of $44,796.

Taking, that $44,796 I calculated the MO income tax using the MO Dept of Revenue page. Based upon the calculator, this family would pay $1,272 in income taxes each year.

Using this information, I plugged these figures into the calculator at MyTaxBurden.org and here is what I found. (CLICK THE PIC BELOW TO ENLARGE)

As you can see, a family making $44,796 would see them owe $2,000 in taxes , while they would pay nothing in and get a $93 return should the Bush tax cuts continue. The proposed Obama proposed budget would give this family a over $1,000 tax return. That said, the Obama proposed budget has not been passed, therefor it is truly difficult to assume that these figures would remain the same once put in place.

Focusing back on the difference between the expiring cuts and extending them, we are looking at some pretty substantial changes should these cuts not continue. This includes

Tax Rates. The top tax rate will go from 35% to 39.6%. In addition, if nothing is done, it will mean higher taxes across the board. See the proposed 2011 tax rates for more information.
Capital Gains. The 0% long term capital gains rate will go away. Capital gains rates will go up to 10% for lower tax brackets and from 15% to 20% for higher tax brackets.
Dividends. Dividends will be taxed as ordinary income, with the new higher rates. Right now the dividend tax rates are 10% and 15%.
Child Tax Credit. The child tax credit will return to $500 from the current $1,000 per child. In addition, it may not be refundable for some taxpayers.
529 Plans. 529 plan withdrawals will not be allowed tax free for computer or Internet access.
Business Taxes. In addition, various business taxes will change including the payroll tax credit and section 179 expense deduction.
Estate Taxes. Without any action, the estate tax (or death tax as some like to call it) exemption will go back to a $1 million exemption.
Other Tax Credits. The tuition credits will be limited, as will the earned income tax credit.
Mortgage Premiums. You will no longer be able to deduct mortgage insurance premiums after December 31, 2010.
Return of the Marriage Penalty. Married couples filing jointly will no longer get equal tax breaks compared to non-married couples who file separately.

Based upon these facts, expiration of the Bush tax cuts will have a dramatic affect on many of the people in the first district. Looking at the 2000 census statistics alone, you see that 42.2% of those living in the first district will see an increase due to the return of the marriage penalty. Using those same numbers, 62% live in owner occupied housing. You would have to assume that at least 5% of that 62% (3.1%) pays some sort of mortgage insurance which would increase their tax burden. Additionally, 26% of the total population of the first district is under the age of 18. This means that a good chunk of the taxable population would lose the additional child tax credit. The amount of people is difficult to estimate due to not knowing how many children there are per household and whether or not those children have both parents living at home. That said, even if somehow every household had just 2 children per household, this would affect 91,109 households or 14.7% of the district.

The numbers I have put up here are staggering. In this day and age, $2,000 can still mean a lot of money. It can mean being able to afford sending your kids to private school or even homeschooling your children. It can mean being able to afford a home improvement. Or it could just mean padding your savings account for a rainy day.

Without a budget in place, it is imperative for the first district and the country that the Bush tax cuts continue.

Run the numbers for yourself using the calculator. It WILL scare you.

Now is the time to educate your friends and family. Don't trust that the Congress will do something. Get on the phone and demand to know what your representative is going to do. Demand to know if they are going to push to extend the tax cuts or what their plan is. Let them know that you WILL hold them accountable come November if they do not take care of you, their constituent.

Now On To November

2010-08-04T22:04:00.006-05:00

First off, I want to congratulate Robyn Hamlin on winning the primary to run against Lacy Clay. She and Martin D. Baker both had good primary showings. I talked to Martin earlier today and he wanted to "thank all of the wonderful people who helped through this adventure and will continue to support the conservative movement and true conservative candidates". Martin had more to say which I will discuss in an upcoming post

I also want to take a moment and congratulate Candice Britton on a well fought race. Candice had the tough challenge of taking on an incumbent within her own party. Candice was able to secure 19% of the Democrat vote during this primary. With few funds and a lot of hard work, she was able to do a lot. I think this shows the level of dissatisfaction voters have with the current Congress.

With that said, it is now on to November. Robyn Hamlin vs. Lacy Clay will be on the ballot for the November election in the first district. Not to be a wet blanket, but we need to now talk facts. Here are the numbers being reported for Tuesday's vote.

Name	Party	Votes	Vote %
Clay, Lacy (i)	Dem	36,762	59.549%
Britton, Candice	Dem	8,488	13.749%
Hamlin, Robyn	GOP	10,231	16.573%
Baker, Martin	GOP	4,509	7.304%
Works, Marshall	GOP	1,457	2.360%
Stone, Julie	Lib	149	0.241%
Cunningham, Robb	Lib	138	0.224%

As you can see, Lacy has a commanding lead in the vote totals. He took nearly 60% all votes coming in. I know he is the incumbent, but that means we are going to have to work harder and be even more diligent.

The public needs to be made more aware of how he is not working for the people, but instead for special interests and himself. There is enough out there to show his ineptitude. Simply look at:

his convienent relationship with the rent to own and cash advance companies
his desire to not be held accountable by the Congressional Ethics Committee
the documented waste of money in this years census of which Lacy is the Congressional chairman of the committee in charge
His support of the Federal Health Care
The mysterious campaign payments to his sister
His lake of ethics when it comes to taking corporate campaign contributions from companies he rallies agains.

My friends, now is the time to unite and bring down Lacy. We can bicker with one another about certain policies, fiscal reform, etc. I welcome those debates. I encourage those debates. But now is not the time for people to take their ball and go home. We have a candidate in Robyn who has the potential to bring Lacy down. We are all responsible adults who love our country and want to see it prosper. We want everyone to have the chance to succeed and fail. Lacy wants everyone to have guaranteed success by making those that have succeeded fail. We can't afford that. Let us all stand together to help and support Robyn.

Let me tell you a quick story. At my work, there is a small group of us that are all varying degrees of right of center, some more than others. On the day of the elections, a couple of people were talking about voting for Ed Martin. I was asked if I voted for Ed and I explained that I was in the 1st district. Both of them basically sighed and said," ooooh, that's Lacy Clay. You will never be able to get rid of him."

That statement right there is why Lacy continues to win. The perception is that he is a guaranted win for the Democrats. In Robyn, we have a politically active, small business owner, who can step up and talk about everyday scenarios. She can talk to the issues everyone is facing because she is facing them too. Lacy wants everyone to think he is unbeatable, so no one tries. Those that do are not able to get the support needed because everyone thinks it is a no win situation.

So, here is what we need to do.

Everyone needs to call Lacy Clay's office and ask for debates between him and Robyn.
Everyone needs to start talking up Robyn as the alternative to Lacy
Donate. Donate. Donate. We all need to donate either our time, our money or both. Pick up a yard sign, a car magnet or something.
Stay alert to what is going on. Lacy and his team will be out there robo calling or making statements about Robyn. If you hear these things or see them, pull out your cell phone and take a picture/video. Email me and we will get it out among the people.
Host a get together and invite Robyn or one of her staff. If you are having a big enough get together, call a Jamie Allman, Dana Loesch or Gina Louden and talk about it on one their shows.

These are just a few things that we all can do. This is our district, not Lacy's. Let's take it back for all of the people and not just a select few.

So, what do you think? Are you in?

One Week Till August 3rd - What Have You Done

2010-07-26T22:07:00.003-05:00

It is one week till the August 3rd elections. If you STILL have not done your homework and do not know what is going to be on the ballot, click HERE to be directed to the StlToday article on what is being voted on.

While all of the measures, primaries, etc. are important, I believe there are two that are of most importance to anyone living in Missouri and specifically the first district. Those are Prop C and the Congressional House of Representatives primary. By now, I have bent over backwards to give you information on the candidates. That said, once again, here are my interviews with the three running against Lacy Clay

Candice Britton interview - HERE
Robyn Hamlin interview - HERE
Martin D. Baker interview - HERE

I will say it one more time. We HAVE to get rid of the Clay political dynasty. The Clay's have done nothing but run on their name and empty promises that the populace of north city and county continue to accept. Ask yourself one question, what has Lacy Clay done to make north city and county of St. Louis a better place. Sure, he coordinates a job fair, but that is it. He has done nothing to help bring more jobs, he has done nothing to promote economic stimulus. Instead, he is for taxation and unbridled spending. Tax the "rich" is what he wants to do.

Let me tell you who the "rich" are according to Lacy Clay. The rich are the small family run businesses all over the area. These are the franchises like the Shell stations, or the local dry cleaners, the mom and pop restaurants and sports bars, the shaved ice stands, the local electricians and plumbers, etc. These are the "rich" according to Lacy. Of course, Lacy has never really worked a job so he would not truly understand earning a living or working for his money. Instead, he sees himself as duke that can take money from lobbyist so he can pay his dues while at the same time blasting companies. Just check out these two videos.

With the first one, Lacy blasts WalMart for their employee practices

With the second one, he says he is going to keep their lobbying money anyway

This is the hypocrisy that we have in office right now. If this was a Republican, Lacy and the press would be all over this issue.

Do the right thing and vote this clown out. Let's have a November election that pits Candice Britton vs either Martin Baker or Robyn Hamlin.

In regards to Prop C. I simply say this. Do you want the option to participate in Federal Healthcare plan or do you think participation should be mandatory. That is it. If you think that it should be optional, then you should vote for Prop C. I could go on and on, but the fine people over at Citizens Commission on Human Rights of St. Louis have put together a very good piece on this that you can find HERE.

In closing, in the end it is up to you. It is up to you to show up at the polls and it is up to you to vote. Men and women for the last 200 years across the great country have died for your rights. Those rights include your right to vote. Please do so and do so intelligently.

P.S - If you have already made up your mind, please consider donating your time and or money to a candidate. $5 can make a difference. Buying a yard sign or bumper magnet can help get the word out. If you have an available day and cannot afford to donate money, donate your time by handing out leaflets or working a phone bank. Please help out however you can. I can say I have. Can you?

So Lacy Wants To Talk About Hypocrisy

2010-07-19T15:40:00.004-05:00

So Lacy came out today and chided the Republicans for not wanting to extend jobless benefits. He believes that it is hypocrisy on the part of the Republicans for wanting to a way to pay for this extension. This is, of course, the new strategy from Obama, Pelosi and such. We sawe Clair McCaskill saying the same thing last week. All I can say is, oh Lacy and company; how little you seem to understand the problem.

Let me explain it to you and I will try and use basic terms so you can understand it. I would not want to talk over your head.

You are upset that the Republicans voted for two “unauthorized wars” as well as the Bush tax cuts. - There are a couple of problems with this statement.

Congress authorized the President to go forward in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Just because you voted against it does not mean it was unauthorized.
The Bush tax cuts were not to blame for the fiscal problems; it was Congress spending above the budgeted baseline. Additionally, the original Bush tax cuts helped bring the economy back after the 2001 economic downturn.

You also stated, "The people objecting to the extension of unemployment benefits because they're not paid for never talked about that when they passed two tax breaks for the rich.” - The reality is the tax cut actually benefited the lower income brackets more than it did the rich. In 2007, according to CBO and Joint Committee on Taxation data, the increased child tax credit, marriage penalty relief, 10 percent bracket, and AMT were to have a combined budgetary effect of $114 billion. By comparison, capital gains, dividends, and estate tax cuts were projected to reduce 2007 revenues by just $36 billion. Based upon that alone, you can see that tactic of pitting the Republicans as pro rich does not really apply.
You stated “I know that there are thousands of Missourians who need their unemployment benefits”. – I have no doubt that there are many people who are in need of some form of wages. That said, these benefits have been extended several times. We CANNOT continue to extend these benefits without end. Let’s face it. Many of these jobs were eliminated. They are no coming back. As long as the government continues to dole out money for free, there is no reason for these people to go and find another job. And don’t you dare say there are no jobs because that is an outright lie. There are plenty of jobs available, unfortunately too many people are not willing to take an entry level position with a company or they are not willing to take the money they have been given to get job training.

Lacy, the American people are tired of government reckless spending. This is not just a Republican thing, this is across the board. There is a reason that Republican and Democrat incumbents are being booted from office. The government is not living within its means.

Think of it this way. My family and I have a budget. We use it to pay our bills, donate to charity and do fun things like rent movies, etc. When we want to make a purchase, we have to save money to do so. If we have to make a purchase, like our furnace goes out, etc., we will either put it on the credit card or work out financing terms. When we work out financing terms, we know that we will have to pay it off within a time limit. Now, if we have too many things on credit, we cannot get credit anymore and have to either do without or get rid of one set of payments to deal with making another set.

The American people are demanding that our government do the same. We are tired of all of Congress running reckless with our hard earned money.

So yes Lacy, is there a bit of hypocrisy among some Republicans. Yes. But they are at least learning their lesson. The American public will not stand for it.

Oh and by the way. I do not know if your mother ever told you this, but two wrongs do not make a right.

Latest and Greatest and More

2010-07-14T20:51:00.003-05:00

I just want to start this entry by first thanking the three candidates for their response to Jeremiah. While I have not heard back from Jeremiah, I am sure he was pleasantly surprised and is now well informed.

We are now less than three weeks from the August primaries. Do you know who you are going to vote for? Have you done your research? If not, do so now. Know full well who you are voting and what you are voting for. We are now baring witness to what happens when people vote for someone without really listening or researching what that person is all about.

Now, on to some other things. Depending upon where my research takes me, I may be out of the loop for a bit. I am digging into some things that MAY turn into something or nothing at all. Of course, if it is something, you will read about it here. That said, I am also thinking about expanding the offering of this blog.

While I have mainly focused on the issues of MO 1st district on a federal level, I would like to expand out and talk about some of the local issues. Specifically, I would like to tackle some of the issues affecting areas like Florissant, Hazelwood, Maryland Heights, Ferguson, Jennings, and just north St. Louis County on a state level. So, I am reaching out to you, the readers of this blog and making an offer. If you would be interested in participating by writing on issues at a city, county or state level I would welcome it. If you are interested or would like to help in some way, please email me so we can discuss further.

Nearly 1 year ago (7/23/09) I started this blog. I was not sure anyone would even read it. But as I stated then, I was tired of not being listened to. I wanted to make a difference and did not know how. In the past I had donated to campaigns and talked up candidates, but it had grown beyond that. With this tiny blog, I have been able to bring to light many of the things that the St. Louis Post Dispatch just will not report. No one else was reporting on Lacy's tight relationship with the Rent to Own and Payday Loan industry. No one else was highlighting the HUGE campaign payments Lacy is making to his sister. With a little research and the willingness to do so, I was able to uncover these things and bring them to light. You too can do the same. If you want to be a part of this movement, a movement to bring back fiscal responsibility and small government to the citizens of North St. Louis City and County, then help me.

A Letter From A Reader - UPDATED 7/11/10

2010-07-11T22:20:00.000-05:00

With primaries less than a month a way, people in the first district are starting to take notice. Personally, I have seen an increase in my traffic; especially the interviews I conducted with Candice Britton, Robyn Hamlin and Martin D. Baker.

It was with great luck that I received the following email from a reader.

Dear Middle Class Joe,

I recently began reading your blog and could not agree with you more about Clay. He and his father before him have been a bane to St. Louis and need to be ousted as soon as possible. I must tell you though that this will be a rough thing to do. Much like his daddy, Clay plays dirty. He has also made it so that he has a built in demographic in North St. Louis city. With all of these things said, I hope there is still a chance that he can be removed from office this year.
I have been talking to people at my church and office about voting for someone else as I plan to do. I do not know who I will be voting for but it will not be Lacy. As I talk with my collegues and friends I keep hearing people say things like they would rather deal with the devil they know than the devil they don't know or Lacy has not really hurt us, so why should I remove him from office?
I try and explain some of the things you have said on your blog, but it takes some knowledge of government that these people either do not have or do not care to know about. I want Clay out of here, so what can I tell these people in very basic terms as to why they should not vote for Clay and vote for someone else.
Thank you and keep up the good fight,

Jeremiah

Originally, I was going to reach out to Jeremiah myself but after giving it some thought, I sent this email out to the three candidates I have interviewed and asked each of them to answer Jeremiah's question.

Prior responses are below.

Next, we have Martin D. Baker's response. Martin is running as a Republican in the upcoming primary. His response to Jeremiah is as follows:

The simplest answer I can give is a phrase that Ronald Reagan was fond of saying..."are you better now than you were four years ago?" During Congressman
Clay's regime (its in my opinion a regime because he was handed the seat by his
father, which makes it an aristocrical regime) North St Louis and the district as a whole has seen property values drop, unemployment rise, and the quality of life decrease. The Clays have built their reputation on fear mongering and also continuing the lie in North City. They have went into the black community acting as though they were one of us, yet have not once attempted to allay the fears of the area. Because he shows up at the churches and community centers he gives the impression he cares. I can say without any fear, HE DOES NOT CARE. He doesn't
care because he will always poll well within the community so why should he make
any effort to meet the needs of the constituency. I would say long ago he forgot who he works for , but he never learned in the first place. When you have a built in group that will deliver percentages in the near 80 to 90 percent range you think thats a mandate when its just lack of knowledge. When I visit people in North City on a practically daily basis, I tell people how their taxes have increased, how the value of their dollar has decreased and how its apparent that jobs are leaving because many of them dont have one now. This cannot stand anymore. The time has come for the people to take their government back from the stewards who have not shown fitness nor worthiness to continue to serve. I humbly ask for your support with the promise and commitment to bring government to the people and to never forget who I serve.
Martin D Baker
Republican Candidate US Congress Missouri First District

Next, we have Robyn Hamlin's response. Robyn is running as a Republican in the upcoming primary. Her response to Jeremiah is as follows:

Lacy Clay is in office because his father was very well known and name recognition is what many people vote for while in the voter booth. Unfortunately, this has not been good for our area. Lacy Clay votes for "entitlements" very consistently which have the effect of economically enslaving many in our area. Look around the area and you will see more and more businesses that have left over the last decade.

Lacy Clay finally signed on as a co-sponsor to Audit The Federal Reserve when he realized that there were enough to pass the bill then he worked hard and voted against it.

If you look at his voting record many times he does not vote on controversial issues if his vote is not needed by the democratic progressives. He is very savvy when it comes to keeping his area "in line". He has to pay the national democratic committee $150,000 a year from his campaign contributions to keep his job.
We need job friendly legislation here for small Main Street businesses. Our country prospers when people are allowed to follow their dreams, not when congress decides what business is allowed to win or decides what businesses will lose.

Lacy Clay thinks that partial birth abortion is okay and that everyones tax dollars
should support it. I could go on and on.

It is important that people look at the overall game that he is playing with us. When checking his votes when he votes against his party to keep our area "in line" just check to see if he voted that way because his vote was not needed to pass it and he was given the okay by Barney Frank and/or Nancy Pelosi to vote against it.

Another thing, when he votes to increase our debt do we ever hear what the terms for repayment are? He is on the financial services committee. Why do we never hear
about the repayment terms?

On Independence Day, we take note that this country was founded because people were being taxed without representation. We must remember when we ask our government to take out more loans that the children forced to pay for that debt are not getting representation. Instant gratification at the expense of our children and grandchildren is nothing to be proud of. It's time to pay our own debt. Let Independence Ring!
Robyn Hamlin St. Louis, MO http://www.hamlinforcongress.com/ 314-867-8881

The first response is from Candice Britton who is running as a Democrat in the upcoming primary. Her response to Jeremiah is as follows:

Jeremiah,

I said I would run a clean respectful campaign I meant it. Some of your friends said “they would rather deal with the devil they know than the devil they don’t know”. I would not try to convince them to vote against Mr. Clay. I would provide them with information on the candidates running for the CD1 seat. If you have chosen a candidate tell them why. For the first time in a long time you can vote for a candidate. You don’t have to hold your nose or not vote at all. All of us are not out of the same mold. You have real choices this time we all are not devils, there are some good folks running in the August 3, 2010 Primary.
I would ask:, “Are you happy with the path our Country is on?”
I would ask:, “Who do you think got us into this mess “career politicians maybe?”
I’m running for public office because I feel that our great Country is headed in a bad direction. I feel this way because of the following reasons:
A. Government spending is out of control.
B. Both parties are responsible for the huge Debt and Deficit.
C. Senators and Congresspersons have forgotten whom they work for, they no longer work for us. We the people.
D. Democrats and Republicans refuse to work together to set a good example for our children. The deliberate feud between the parties keeps this great Country and her people divided. Due to this, they are free to do as they please, such as, enact legislation the majority of the people are against.
I’m a Democrat, who believes that one must live within one’s means (income), except in an emergency. That includes our government. I believe that we must help those who can’t help themselves, such as, senior citizens, disabled, veterans, children, homeless, mentally ill, working poor and middle class. I also want equality for women.
I believe that we must bring back our manufacturing base. No Country can survive without making its own goods. We are held like captives with our hands tied behind our backs to foreign countries (i.e. China). These foreign countries don’t have the American people’s best interest at heart. Bringing back America’s manufacturing base would also provide the jobs we desperately need. All Americans can’t go to college. Many people just want to learn a trade, work hard, have a family and live a financially secure life.
There are so many areas to cover as far as legislation that affects our lives that I can’t possibly cover everything in answering the question put to me. If you give me the privilege to serve you in the U.S. Congress, I will be 1 out of 435 Representatives. I get only one vote. I can promise you that I will fight for you and vote for your interest and not for a political party or for a personal gain.
I’m asking you to send me, Candice Britton to Washington D.C. I believe that we must set an example for our children. You don’t have to be a Millionaire, a Lawyer, a Doctor, Career Politician or have gone to an Ivy League College to run for public office to serve the citizens of this great Country.
I believe that I cannot ethically ask anyone else to do something that I would not do myself.
Therefore, I’m running for the U.S. House of Representatives. I need the support of ordinary citizens that are ready for changes. We the people need to take back our Government.
It’s up to you.
It’s in your hands. Resend “the same old thing” or send me, “fresh and new.” Before I would vote on ANY legislation, I would read the legislation with my staff. I would research the legislation to make sure that I have a good sound knowledge and understanding of the legislation before I voted. If the majority leader would not give sufficient time to research and understand the legislation before a vote, I will vote “NO”. I will use common sense and NEVER forget whom I work for…YOU the people.
Thank you,
Candice “Britt” Britton
http://www.candicebritton.com/

TOMORROW, WE WILL HAVE THE RESPONSE FROM ROBYN HAMLIN

Lacy's "IMPORTANT" Piece of Legislation

2010-07-06T10:14:00.002-05:00

On June 29th, Lacy Clay sponsored a piece of legislation. Is this a piece of legislation to impact our federal deficit? Is this a piece of legislation that will bring much needed jobs to the area? Is this a piece of legislation that will audit the Federal Reserve, as he had previously committed to? No. Instead, Lacy presented H.R. 1486. This “important” bill would recognize June 11th 2011 as National Minority Golf Awareness Day.

Take a minute and think about that. Lacy Clay is sponsoring a bill to make people aware of minorities playing golf. If you want that kind of awareness, turn on SportsCenter. My God, Tiger Woods is talked about at least once a week.

This is ridiculous.

Knowing that Lacy does nothing without his personal interests at heart, I did a little bit of looking. It just so happens that 6/11/11 is around the time of year that the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation does their annual Mervin L Jones and Stephanie Tubbs Jones Annual Scholarship Golf and Tennis Classic. I say this because in 2010 this event was held June 12 – 14th and 2009 it was held June 6 – 8th. This information is easily available by doing a search on the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation website and doing a search for Golf.

A further search found that some of the contributors to this charity golf tournament were Lacy’s friends at the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations (APRO). We all know by now the close relationship Lacy has with these people.

I am sure that with the passage of this bill, Lacy and crew will milk this tournament for more money. Heck, maybe Obama will show up. God knows he has to get his down time with all the economic turmoil and all.

This is just another reason why Lacy needs to go.

St. Louis - The Democrats' Paradise?

2010-06-28T22:55:00.003-05:00

This is an older article that I stumbled upon that I thought I would share. Even though it is four years old, it brings up several points that are still relevant today.

American Thinker: St. Louis:The Democrats' Paradise

Here is a little snippet from this article -

.....Democrats have had complete control of the apparatus of voting here with the expected results. Vote fraud has been rampant for as long as I can remember, going back to the election of 1980 and before. Considering the fact that a Republican couldn't get elected trash collector here, it is absolutely amazing the amount of fraud which occurs. Remember the election of 2000 when 247,135 of 258,532 adults registered to vote? This 95.6% voter registration is a ridiculous number, clearly illustrating a massive effort to defraud.
In fact, deceased Alderman Albert 'Red' Villa was registered, as was a Springer Spaniel named Ritzy Mekler. A Judge friendly to the Clay dynasty in north St. Louis ordered that the polls be kept open late (allowing the busloads of voters to be shuttled from polling place to polling place) in a redux of then—Governor Kit Bond`s re—election campaign. A couple of days before the elections, future Congressman Lacy Clay was quoted as saying in 2000,
'If it requires keeping the polls open a little longer, we're going to get a court order to do it....'
Strangely, the polling places were flooded with voters, many of whom looked suspiciously like people seen at other polling stations. Anyone having trouble with their registration was sent to the Board of Election Commissioners to vote (no
questions asked), where they were given a ballot. Remember, the election
board is dominated by city Democrats.

So now, the question really is, are YOU ready to do what it takes to start taking our city, our county and the country back?

Attention MO 1st District Readers

2010-06-21T20:28:00.004-05:00

I get emails and talk to people all of the time regarding their dislike of Lacy Clay. People on both sides of the aisle lament their disdain for him. Republicans complain a lack of qualified candidates and Democrats complain that there is just no one to run against him. This is the year to take action.

Whether you do not like Lacy Clay because of his stance on abortion, his stance on illegal immigration, his stance on health care, something else or all of the above, there are several candidates that are running to oppose Clay this year. I have interviewed three of those candidates on this blog and posted those interviews online. I know you all reading them because I have seen the hits. August 3rd is fast approaching and all of the candidates can use your support.

If you can skip the Starbucks coffee for a few days, you can donate $20 to one of the candidates. This will buy some yard signs or car magnets. If you cannot donate your money, donate your time by helping with flyers or make calls. DO SOMETHING. If you ARE doing something, talk to your neighbors, friends or fellow parishioners who you talk to. I know I talk to these people and hear their complaints. Usually they say they guess that will just not vote on that. Not now, not this time. Tell them to take a stand. If they are a Democrat and do not like Lacy, tell them to vote for Candice Britton. If they are a Republican, tell them to vote for Robyn or Martin. If they do not know who to choose, send them to this blog so they can read the interviews. I will re-post links to each interview at the end of this blog entry.

My friends. Lacy Clay is the type of politician we need to get out of office. Now, more than ever, we have the momentum on our side to get him out. He has proven himself to be a part of the machine that is ruining America. His support of Health Care, manipulation of the Census, attempts to circumnavigate the House Ethics Board and continued support of the Rent-to-Own and Payday Loan groups who victimize the lower income community are just samples of what he stands for. Everyone is sick and tired of his holier than thou attitude that has been documented all over the place. Please, work to support a candidate. Lacy can be defeated but it takes more than just complaining to do it.

Candice Britton interview - HERE
Robyn Hamlin interview - HERE
Martin D. Baker interview - HERE

What Happened to Transparency, Lacy?

2010-06-03T21:37:00.006-05:00

If you were not paying attention, you may not have heard about this. Apparently, a new resolution has been submitted by half of the Congressional Black Caucus that would change the rules of the Ethics Committee.

On May 28th, Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, and 19 fellow Congressional Black Caucus members quietly introduced House Resoltion 1416, right before the Memorial Day weekend, that would limit the powers of the new independent Office of Congressional Ethics.

The Office of Congressional Ethics was formed by Congress in 2008 and is run by a panel of private citizens. The office, which doesn't have the power to sanction lawmakers, essentially serves as an advisory board to the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. The House Standards Committee is run by lawmakers who are charged with policing their peers.

The citizen-run Office of Congressional Ethics is far more open than the notoriously secretive Congressional Standards Committee. The Ethics Committee publicizes its referrals to the Standards Committee even when the Standards Committee finds no violations.

Fudge's proposal would remove that power, and allow lawmakers on the Standards Committee to seal from public view the ethics office's findings on matters deemed meritless. Also, the resolution would make it harder for the Ethics Committee to initiate investigations, requiring a sworn complaint from a citizen claiming personal knowledge of an alleged violation. This change could prevent complaints from watchdog groups as well as investigative bloggers.

Another interesting tidbit is, it would prevent the Standards Committee from taking a referral from the Ethics Committee within 60 days before an election in which the subject of the case is a candidate. It does not specify if Primary Elections count or if it only a general election. If primary elections count, this means that a Congressman or Congresswoman would be void of jurisdiction for 120 days out of the 730 days of their elected cycle or roughly 1/6th of their term.

So what does any of this have to do with Lacy Clay? He appears to be one of the members that signed on to this resolution. A copy of this bill can be found HERE.

Why would Lacy Clay support a bill like this? Is he fearful that people are on to him and his shenanigans? Is he afraid of a Congressional body investigating his cozy relationship with the Rent-to-Own and Payday Loan groups? Or is he concerned about the large campaign payments he has made to his sister's law group? Is he fearful that something may come out during his divorce proceedings? Is he fearful that one of his competitors has something on him that could be used to muddy the waters of his re-election campaign? You have to wonder.

Stay tuned. With everything else going on in Lacy's world, this could get interesting.

Lacy Clay and the Census

2010-06-01T22:51:00.004-05:00

Lacy Clay is in chairman of the subcommittee in charge of the US Census. He touts this on his webpage and in many interviews that he has done. He talks about the importance of the census and how it is well worth our tax dollars..
What does it say about Lacy Clay that this kind of fraud and incompetence is allowed under his watch.

Just remember, the commanding officer is always the one ultimately responsible. That goes for you too Lacy.

Let's see if Lacy will man up and do something about it or blame the beurocracy that he is a part of. I expect him to try and setup a commision or a "blue ribbon" committee to investigage the matter. Even more likely, he will blame James O'Keefe for this.

This and That on the Media

2010-05-24T19:32:00.006-05:00

Having studied Journalism I find it interesting to view it from afar. Speaking from experience, it is difficult to critique a profession when you are a part of it. When you are a part of the machine, it is harder to separate yourself from it. You tend to come up with excuses for certain actions or behaviors. When you are a part of the machine, you do have a perspective that outsiders do not have, but it rarely gives you the type of objective viewpoint that is needed.

I bring this up because I have seen some interesting things with the main street media (MSM). On a national level, we can see that they are starting to turn on the Obama administration. Don't fool yourself and think they are going to start espousing the ideals of the Tea Party or that they have become converts to fiscal responsibility. No. The MSM is still going to go after Rand Paul, Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck and such. But, they are now going after Obama and his minions because they are not being served the way they expected. Obama ran on an open government and led them to believe the press would have access like never before. That is not happening. Instead, they are seeing a president that is refusing to answer questions, a White House PRess Secretary that gets flippant if you dare question a policy decision or question administrations thought process, a bullying Chief of Staff and nonsensical policies. As I said back in January (article HERE) and before that October (article HERE) the media is biting the hand that fed it. The media, especially the national media, is a vindictive bunch who will sell their grandmother for a story that could win them a Pulitzer Prize. It is no great surprise that the MSM is going after Obama now.

That is why I had to chuckle when I saw this on DrudgeReport
And now, according to Breitbart TV, the WHPress Secretary, Robert Gibbs, is privately chastising reporters for going after the administration on the BP oil spill.

This all will not last, though. As the elections get nearer, the administration will reach out to the national MSM and do what it can to make them happy in hopes of using the MSM to sway public opinion in favor of Democrats. Obama and team know there are going to be losses and they know they need the press to help sway opinion.

My prediction is this - Barring any further scandal, the press will have a field day over a good part of the summer on the BP-Gulf Coast crisis. Many will compare it to Katrina with talk of it being called Obama's Katrina moment. Late this summer, after vacations and primaries, the administration will start to make nice with the press. Obama will probably do some one on one interviews and may well have a press conference or two. This will lead to the press and non-Fox News pundits, starting to speak highly of the president and his administration. They will try and take off the toxic image he currently has so that he can help with the November campaigns.

Possible Game Changer - All bets are off if Dick Morris is right and someone starts sniffing around and finds something with Joe Sestak's claim that he was offered a position in the administration if he did not run. IF this gets any legs, this will last a long time and could be big. Remember, the press will do anything for a Pulitzer and most papers and national news need ratings.

On the local front, I once again look at the St. Louis Post Dispatch and just shake my head in wonder. This paper bewilders me, yet I really should not be surprised as this is how they have been since I can remember.

All indications are that the Post is willing to let Russ Carnahan go down in defeat. While they are not actively pursuing Russ as much as some of our local bloggers and radio personalities, they are running stories that do not put Russ in a great light. That said, I find it interesting that they have not done anything on Lacy Clay. Lacy has a person within his own party running against him and a search on StlToday.com of Candice Britton yields no results.

If you do a similar search for Martin D. Baker, you will find 1 story from 2008. If you do a search on Robyn Hamlin, you will find press releases that her campaign has sent out. That is it. No stories or profiles on mentions of any of these candidates.

Add to that, why is it that myself and other bloggers are the only ones doing any reporting on Lacy and his associations with the Rent to Own groups as well as the large campaign payments to his sister. I know times are tough, but the Post could at least follow up to some of these stories much like they did the with Bob McCarty's story on Celeste Finkenbine. You can find the Post's version of the story HERE.

What is it about Lacy that the post is not willing to go after him. Is it a race thing? Is the Post worried about claims of racism if they legitimately go after him? That is the only thing I can think of. If that is the case, it is a sad state of affairs for our town and our only daily print newspaper.

What are your thoughts and/or predictions?

More Big Government Via the FCC

2010-05-11T10:35:00.004-05:00

The FCC now wants to make the Internet a public utility. Interesting. The same thing that the president so effectively used to get himself elected and now is coming back to haung him. Now that he is President Obama and not candidate Obama, those working under him want to now change it so that it can be regulated by the US Government. Never mind that a US Court of Appeals struck down Net Neutrality. For those of you who do not know about Net Neutrality, it can best be shortly defined as

Regulations that would allow federal officials to determine how internet service providers could manage the networks they built and own, ostensibly in the “public interest.”

For more detailed information, you can go HERE.

Since the FCC did not get its way, it has now decided that it wants to make the Internet a public utility. They want to do this using the Title 2 of the 1934 Communications Act. This title was originally created to handle monopoly based telecommunications companies and force them to open up their networks to competition as well as regulate pricing. For more information, you can go HERE. In the past, the FCC was able to control the Internet providers using Title 1 of the 1934 Communications Act. You can review Title 1 HERE.

So what is the difference you may be asking. It is huge. Title 1 gives the FCC the right to intervene when necessary. Title 2 mandates the FCC regulate internet service providers. With this type of power, the FCC could force net neutrality regulations, they could tax internet services under the Universal Service Fund and even regulating Internet pricing.

Historically speaking, public utility regulation restricts entry into an environment and regulates prices to prevent firms from charging excessive prices. It’s typically used in situations where competition is believed to be impossible. Think of the classic Ma Bell (click HERE if you are not old enough to know what this reference means). Sometimes it is also used in situations where pre-existing policy decisions have created monopolies that aren’t going to go away very soon. Note, soon is a relative term.

Broadband access is in no way monopoly. We no longer live in the time where you have to purchase your Internet access through one of a few companies like AOL or Prodigy. While locally in St. Louis, many people purchase their Internet through either AT&T or Charter, you are not required to purchase it through them, you can also purchase it through a wireless company like Sprint or one of many resellers that offer equal to or discounted prices.

While ISP’s are aplenty, the network backbone is essentially an oligopoly. As defined by Dictionary.com an oligopoly is:

When a particular market is controlled by a small group of firms.

The network backbones are maintained by large telecommunication firms like AT&T, Quest, Verizon, Comcast, etc. These carriers are the ones who have laid and maintain the lines. For the small business or residential customer, they basically sell portal access to their backbones. Midsized and larger companies are a different story. Due to the nature of their business, some businesses must align directly with the telecommunications/backbone companies rather than going through a reseller due to the volume of data they will be using. For these companies the prices are dependent upon the total network traffic. These companies would then work directly with one of the backbone companies like a AT&T or Quest.

Basically put, if I am a large company and I need a lot of data, I will purchase access to the Internet that will give me plenty of bandwidth to meet my needs. That purchase may have some limitations on total data where I have to pay a penalty if I exceed the total size during a monthly, quarterly or even yearly period.

Contrary to the perception by some, oligopoly is not synonymous with “evil.” Although both monopoly and oligopoly end in “-opoly,” that doesn’t mean they are the same. Broadband providers do not charge monopoly prices. In fact, the competition to the consumer has probably had the opposite effect and driven costs down even further. Just look locally, AT&T offers a bundle discounts to residential customers and Charter does the same. Charter offers higher speeds for lower prices and AT&T matches. For business, these larger companies are all competing for these high priced contracts. While their prices may be similar they compete by offering additional services, equipment, etc.

This is not a bad thing. Residential customers, who for the most part are using a low volume of broadband, compared to companies, get the benefit of lower prices via competition. These large companies are dealing with the companies that own and maintain that line. If there are problems, there are guarantees that the providers will have the line up and running in a certain length of time, otherwise they have to pay the customer back. The larger backbone companies, while their prices may be similar, are competing on their services. There is nothing wrong with this style and companies have been doing it this way for years.

Once again, historically speaking, there is hard evidence that surface from economic literature on public utility regulation. Just about every time the federal government has tried to impose public utility regulation on an oligopoly, it has ended up enforcing a cartel. This is what happened in the past with railroads, trucking, airlines, and brokerage firms. There are a few times federal price regulation did not enforce cartels for oligopolies or competitive industries. In those cases, it usually created shortages — most notably gasoline and natural gas in the 1970s.

History shows that there is nothing that is working fine that the government cannot screw up when it gets involved. In this case, the Internet providers and backbone is working fine. Sure, we all want higher speeds and it would be great if more people in outlying areas could get easier access to the Internet but that is not something the government can fix. Should the government get involved, it will force these companies to lay cable and give high speed access to those in outlying areas and do so at either a loss or at the cost of those in larger cities. The same is true for corporations. Should net neutrality be enacted, the government will force these backbones to charge a flat fee, equally to companies no matter if they consume a large amount of bandwidth or not.

If this type of government control is to go forward, let it do so through Congress. Using the FCC to sidestep legislative and judicial authority reeks of Chicago style thuggery. Of course, should we expect anything less from the Barack Obama – Rahm Emanual style of politics which is currently in play in Washington?

Now, let’s bring this all together. Recently during the commencement speech at Hampton University in Virginia, President Obama had these two gems.

With so many voices clamoring for attention on blogs, on cable, on talk radio, it can be difficult, at times, to sift through it all…to figure out who’s telling the truth and who’s not. ..Even some of the craziest claims can quickly gain traction. I’ve had some experience with that myself.

And

You’re coming of age in a 24/7 media environment that bombards us with all kinds of content and exposes us to all kinds of arguments, some of which don’t rank all that high on the truth meter. With iPods and iPads; Xboxes and PlayStations; information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment. All of this…is putting new pressures on our democracy.

When the President of the United States is saying things like this and his FCC Chairman is trying to control the Internet, it is no wonder that people start becoming a little paranoid.

The Arizona Immigration Bill

2010-05-02T20:45:00.003-05:00

OK, I have been sitting on this one for awhile. When it came out, I wrote a whole column on it and decided to sit on it. Why? I wanted to see what the response would be. Let's just say I was not surprised. People all over the place are running around screaming that this is an attack on civil liberties, it is anti-Hispanic, etc. Here's the rub, this law does nothing but reiterate the federal law. In other words, there will not be people asking to see your papers as you try and get on a commuter train like Nazi Germany.

The left are once again overreacting to a law that HAD to be made. The federal government was not taking action. Instead both the Bush and Obama administration want to look the other way. There are some who just want to grant them amnesty because it is easier and a good way to buy votes. Any time someone wants to really do something about it people the likes of Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton go on the warpath claiming it is Jim Crowe law, etc.

Think about this for a second. Michigan has a high Middle Eastern population. Some of them are here legally and some illegally. The state legislature comes out and says that we are having too many issues and cannot afford to offer free health care to the illegals. In addition, they are taking jobs for lower than standard living wages, which are keeping legal residents from obtaining these jobs. So, if this law was passed, do you think there would be as much of a stir up? Sure, the ACLU would be out there protesting this as would some of the hard core liberals, but do you think people would be talking about boycotting visits to the state of Michigan? Do you think that people would be trying to get the NFL or MLB to not hold major sports activities there? Of course not. Because in this example I am talking about people who are from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, etc.

The only reason Democrats and the MSM are making such a big deal about this is because Arizona's issues are with Hispanics. The Hispanic population is the fastest growing population in the US. The culture of the Hispanic community is one that tends to have the same ideals as those of many moderate and conservative Republicans. Hispanics tend to be religious, have a strong sense of both nuclear and extended family and have a sense of pride in their work and performance at work. What we are seeing here is the Democrats and the MSM lap dogs attempting to sway and eventually indoctrinate the Hispanic community into voting Democrat. No more, no less.

Will there be bad cops who take advantage of this new law to harass Hispanics. Yes. Believe me, though, that happens now anyway. There will always be bad cops. Just as there will always be good cops who will follow the law and sometimes take the extra steps to make sure justice prevails on the correct side.

The Arizona immigration law is needed and just. Let the liberals wine and cry, but at the end of the day it will remain law and other states will be doing the same thing. Hell, you know you are in trouble when Caffferty is slamming you.

Lacy Clay's Campaign "Payments" - UPDATED

2010-04-20T18:50:00.006-05:00

Hi all. I cannot say that I am back with avengance, but I am back. Without going into it, I have some ongoing things with my family and work that have been preventing me from being able to blog as much as I have wanted. I have still been keeping active in the community, attending some of the Tea Party events and such. I have not reported on them since Adam Sharp from Sharp Elbows, Jim Hoft from Gateway Pundit and Darren from Reboot Congress, to name a few, have done such a good job in covering those events, I did not want to inundate everyone with repeat coverage.

That said, I have been doing what I normally do and digging through the various muck that is out there. Specifically, I have been looking over the Federal Elections Committee reports. Specifically, I checked the first quarter reports for 2010 and I found something rather interesting. For those of you not familiar with it, campaign law requires that along with major contributions, all major spending be documented. Looking over Lacy Clay's report for the first quarter of 2010 found that he has spent $17,650 on fundraising fees to the Law Office Of Michelle C. Clay, LLC. This just happens to be Lacy's sister. According to this article, this appears to be an ongoing practice.

Rep. William Lacy Clay’s (D-Mo.) campaign has paid his sister, a former lobbyist, more than $40,000 in fundraising and legal fees so far this cycle, roughly 20 percent of his campaign’s overall receipts, according to CQ MoneyLine.
In this year’s third fundraising quarter alone, Clay’s campaign paid $12,527 to the Law Office of Michelle C Clay LLC, whose Silver Spring, Md., address is listed as her house, according to public records. During the past six years, campaign finance records indicate that Clay’s campaign has paid his sister $231,000 in legal and fundraising expenses overall.
According to lobbying disclosures filed with the Secretary of the Senate, Michelle Clay once represented the municipal government of her family’s hometown, St. Louis. Both Clay’s campaign and Michelle Clay declined to comment.

Wow, that is very interesting. Lacy is using about 20% of his campaign contributions to pay his sister for "fundraising" fees. I wonder what all of those people who have contributed to Lacy think of him paying his sister for fundraising fees. What is she doing to earn those fees and why won't Lacy or his sister comment on it? Where is all of the money going?

I am sure Lacy does not understand this, but this is the type of thing that people do NOT want. This type of backroom deal. If the payments are legit, explain their purpose. Is his sister the best person to help his campaign. Is Lacy really being fiscally responsible with his contributions?
I guess the voters will decide this in November.

UPDATE - Based off of numbers from OpenSecrets.org, Lacy Clay has disclosed 12 payments to his sister totaling $78,142 for this current election cycle. That is more than two times the amount of money than he has paid to Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. It took the top 13 contributor groups (combining individuals and PAC's together) to pay Lacy's sister for her fundraising services. What is it that Lacy's sister is able to do that he is willing to spend that much money on her?

Please Vote

2010-04-05T22:17:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow is voting day here in St. Louis. The much talked about ballot measure, Proposition A is up for a vote. I ask everyone to please take the time to research this matter and vote accordingly. Simply ask yourself, is Metro proven themselves to be a responsible steward of our tax dollars and vote accordingly. I cannot say anything more than what the good people over at 24th State have not already said.

Also, due to some issues at home, I am taking some time off. My reporting has been scarce as of late due to these issues. I am going to take a few weeks off to take care of them and hopefully will be back and better than ever. I will Tweet as time allows.

Thank you,

Middle Class Joe

The Dangerous Next Steps of This Administration

2010-03-30T21:17:00.006-05:00

Health care passed without one Republican vote. Hundreds of thousands of voters, Republican, Democrat and Independent shout and plead their opposition. Obama, Pelosi and Reid shrug. Why do they shrug? Because they do not understand or care what we think. People, we need to wake up. The leaders within our government think they know better than us. They went to ivy league schools and many of them lived a privileged life or lived a life of politics and academia. Since they do not understand the real world, they are saying, "Let them eat cake."

Barack Obama and his various minions have long said that once health care legislation passed Congress and it was signed into law, the people would rally around it. This is dangerous thinking my friends. These highly educated politicians think the know better than the populace. History has seen this before and it was called an Aristocracy. Aristocracy is close relative to Socialism or a Communist state. These elitist think they know what is best for us and are forcing it down our throats and they are doing so with well though out and funded marketing packages.

Health care is the first step in a well thought out plan to change the way this country functions on a day to day basis. Had the economy not been tanking, there would have been no way for the government to take ownership stake in private industries. With the US in major recession, it was easy to sell the concept of the government owning stock in major corporations, or in the case of GM, a complete takeover of a publicly traded company. Had the recession not been in full effect and GM on the verge of bankruptcy, the first thing he would have gone after would have been health care. Why is that, because it is easy to paint anyone who is against health care for all as uncaring. It is also easy to make comparisons between universal health care and things like civil rights or medicare.

Now that health care has passed, it legitimizes government intervention into other areas. Just look at the student loan process. Even though it had nothing to do with health care, Congress and the Senate saw fit to add having the government run this program. This was done supposedly to save millions of dollars. That is until you find out that the payback program.

The bill will lower the monthly cap on loan repayments from 15 percent to 10 percent. Beginning in 2014 students will not be required to spend more than 10 percent of their income on loan payments. In addition, loans issued after 2014 will be eligible for loan forgiveness after 20 years rather than 25 years. As long as students make their payments in a timely manner for 20 years they can be forgiven of the remaining balance. This has the potential to cost even more money and cause continued job loss in the financial sector. In addition, it is another piece of the pie that the government is now controlling.

Next the Obama administration wants to tackle the financial sector. Of course this is done all in the name of protecting the populace. Consider the comments of VP Joe Biden in an interview with Aaron Task

"It's a simple proposition to us: Everyone is entitled to adequate medical
health care," Biden says. "If you call that a 'redistribution of income' --
well, so be it. I don't call it that. I call it just being fair -- giving the
middle class taxpayers an even break that the wealthy have been getting."

The VP of the United States is legitimizing the redistribution of wealth under the guise of fairness to the middle class. You have to wonder, though, what this administration considers middle class.

This is why it is not too far of a stretch to imagine the government trying to dictate who we can purchase vehicles from. Can't you see the government demand that all new cars be a Chevy Volt as part of some new climate change or green technology government package. What

Representative Michael Burgess had to say this week is not that far off.

The point is, the leaders in Washington are not looking out for us. They believe they know more than each of us and can tell us how to live our lives. The Republicans were just as responsible for maleficence as the Democrats are now. The difference is the Democrats are quickly making up for lost time.

There are many incumbents who are good Congressmen and Senators, both at the state and federal level. We need to support these people as candidates. In this upcoming election, each one of us needs to take a long hard look at the candidates and determine whether or not they are politicians looking to live off of the public teat or are they public servants who want to perform the act of representing the constituency. I do not know about you, but I would rather have a Congressman or Senator that I disagree with, who at least listens to and acts upon the needs and desires of his constituents versus a politician who caters to special interests, their own self interests or what they think is the best.

And since I know that you and or your staff read this website Lacy Clay and Russ Carnahan. Yes I am talking about you two and I look forward to you two being private citizens come January of next year.