Techniques of the Left, by Charlie Gruner

I have to express my gratitude to Christian Schock of Galesburg. His letter in the September 17, 2011 R-M, he gives me an opportunity to show examples of techniques he uses when he runs out of facts for his arguments.

The first technique is to try to marginalize your opponent.  Near the beginning of his letter, Schock writes that I am a TEA Party leader,assuming that many people will find that enough to dismiss my opinion. Then he adds that “facts don’t matter very much” to the TEA Party. Trying to marginalize me and/or the TEA Party makes the second technique easier if you succumb to the first.

The second technique is called mis-direction. Here’s how it works: Point out an opponent’s argument and then subtly change the subject.  In Schock’s first attempt at this he calls attention to my contention that insurance company officers would be jailed if their companies were run like Social Security. Schock then changes the subject to the relative administrative costs. My observations were on the fraudulent nature of the “product” and Schock focuses on administrative costs rather than the subject of the argument.

The next example of mis-direction is when Schock talks about the amount of income that the Social Security tax was to be levied on. He discusses the effects of inflation (though this was never explained in the promises of the original act) and says that the $3,000 figure is equivalent to$45,000 today. Granting Schock’s numbers, how does he explain that the maximum today is $106,800? That’s over three times the rate of inflation. He also ignores the fact that the rate of tax has also gone up over 600%.

After running out of gas on the subject, Schock then talks about the debt incurred to Social Security and blames Republican administrations. This is another subtle change in subject because I never specified party. In fact you will find that I and most TEA Party folks hold both major parties responsible.

In no part of Schock’s argument is there any factual information refuting the actual comparisons that I made between Social Security and Ponzni Schemes. In fact, at the very end of his letter Schock says that it is not a Ponzi scheme but blames the “Bush administration” because it is one. I’m not sure how that makes any sense.

Charlie Gruner

Galesburg 9/12 Group Member

A response to: Will Schick, Tea Party book pick a great read

This letter to the editor was recently published in the Galesburg Register Mail

Thanks to Will Schick for pointing out the ant-Christian sentiments of Thomas Paine to us Tea Partiers. Apparently his point is we have no business quoting Mr.Paine as his religious beliefs are opposed to that of the vast majority of Tea Partiers. To this I would like to quote, in Thomas Paine's own words, from a section on religion in his famous treatise Common Sense. "For myself I fully and conscientiously believe it is the will of the Almighty, that there should be diversity of religious opinions among us. It affords a larger field for our Christian kindness. Were we all one way of thinking our religious disputations would want matter for probation..."  So it appears religious believers and non believers of all stripes are welcome under Thomas Paine's tent.

In reading Ed Klapp's letter of 9/20 attacking Tea Partiers I really don't see anything to respond to. Much of it was pure ranting. And yes, I am guilty as he charges. I am anti Communist anti socialist, against government intervention in business ala Solyndra and in favor of deregulation. His charge we Tea Partiers are under the influence of the Koch brothers is no different than the charge that Progressives are mere pawns of George Soros and Michael Moore. How do you disprove either charge?
 
Both his letter and that of Will Schick are really distractions from the real issues and that is what we should be debating or discussing,i.e,  how do we live with $14 Trillion and growing debt, when there is not enough wealth, not income, but wealth to appropriate to remove our debt. Further what are the consequences for our children and grandchildren if we continue on the current path of $1 Trillion or more in deficits each year to add to our debt?

 

So rather than be distracted by name calling, and charges that can be levelled at both sides and questioning the shallowness of one side's reading list, why can't we debate the serious issues that confront us? Here's a good list to start with. Does Social Security really need fixing? If so, how? We know Medicaid and Medicare need fixing. How do we do it?  Why does the Department of Justice pay $16.00 per muffin and $52.00 per person for conference coffee breaks? Who was paying for those $16.00 muffins? If Obama Care is so great why will it take 16,000 IRS workers to enforce it?  Is the cost of these IRS workers included in the Health Care Reform cost or hidden in the IRS budget?  If Obama Care is so good, why, at the latest count that I heard, are there over 1,000 entities asking for and receiving waivers from it including some of Nancy Pelosi's own largest contributors. I recently came across an alternative proposal to health care reform that on the surface looks pretty good. Yet it never saw the light of day because the then Democratically controlled congress allowed no discussion on the issue. So why is an area as important as Health Care, which represents 1/6 of our economy, not open for debate, discussion and input from both parties? Can we not even now bring this very important topic back for open discussion in Congress as well as in the public forum.  Maybe Obama care is the best solution but we will never know until it is honestly debated in the public forum.

Theses are questions that should be honestly and openly debated, not which book I have read most recently.

 

Dick Conklin

Soon to be retired Tea Party Sympathizer

Will’s article: Will Schick: Tea Party book pick a great read

U.S. Government Used Taxpayer Funds To Buy, Sell Weapons During 'Fast And Furious,' Documents Show | Fox News

Buy and give them to Mexican drug runners but restrict the constitutional rights of American citizens to buy, own, and carry our own.  Time for a TEA Party!!!!

Not only did U.S. officials approve, allow and assist in the sale of more than 2,000 guns to the Sinaloa cartel -- the federal government used taxpayer money to buy semi-automatic weapons, sold them to criminals and then watched as the guns disappeared.

full article here: U.S. Government Used Taxpayer Funds To Buy, Sell Weapons During 'Fast And Furious,' Documents Show | Fox News

Fair Tax Presentation @ Monmouth TEA Party Meeting 10/10/11

 

The Monmouth TEA Party Group is please to be hosting Glen Ebbing, president of the Quincy Fair Tax Group at our October meeting.  He will be giving a presentation on the Fair Tax and answering questions.

click here to see facebook event

The Obama Way: screw the taxpayers, pay off your friends

It's pretty obvious at this point that this POTUS's priorities include making sure his friends get bigger slices of pie than anyone else and making sure the taxpayers get nothing (NO piece of pie)  if his friends turn out to be not only greedy but incompetent.
  This is the Chicago way; this is the Obama way. This is the principle of governing, apparently, that has become the Way of the Weasels in this White House.
  Take, for example, the Solyndra mess. The White House was warned that the company was not solvent and could not possibly make any money, but still loaned hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to it. NRO:

Homing in on one of the several shocking aspects of the Solyndra scandal, lawmakers noted that, a few months before the “clean energy” enterprise went belly-up last week, the Obama Energy Department signed off on a sweetheart deal. In the event of bankruptcy — the destination to which it was screamingly obvious Solyndra was headed despite the president’s injection of $535 million in federal loans — the cozily connected private investors would be given priority over American taxpayers. In other words, when the busted company’s assets were sold off, Obama pals would recoup some of their losses, while you would be left holding the half-billion-dollar bag.

As Andrew Stiles reported here at NRO, Republicans on the Oversight and Investigations subcommittee say this arrangement ran afoul of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

And who gets paid back first? Why, the Obama friends! Not the taxpayers.
  To this date, we do not know (why should we be allowed, after all? This is the Obama way.) if the second loan Solyndra applied for was given by the taxpayers. Why can't we know this? Why isn't this public information? Why the secrecy, White House?
Over the weekend we learn that GM union workers are all getting an outrageous $5000 "signing" bonus with their new contract, which wouldn't be a problem if 1) cars didn't cost so much already  2)  they weren't pushing expensive inefficient crap like the Chevy Volt on the public   3) they didn't still OWE THE PUBLIC billions of dollars. Mickey Kaus:

How about paying back the $15 billion first? I’m sure there are sophisticated arguments for why the UAW members shouldn’t pay back the taxpayers who bailed their employer out of bankruptcy before they negotiate a deal that gives them each a $5,000 bonus. I just can’t think of them right now. … Just from a PR standpoint, repaying the debt would seem like a good idea. …

  So let's get this straight, GM. You still owe the taxpayers billions of dollars but you're giving every employee an extra $5000? And your union boss calls US, the taxpayers and car buyers, SOBs for wanting to reign you in?
  Of course, GM workers are not allowed to strike on this new deal as per their government takeover agreement, and that is the only leverage, Kaus points out, that the unions hold over the company, which doesn't seem to be a problem. Obviously these two are in bed.
  Then let's take health care. Unions pushed the Obamacare debacle like it was a really good thing. Mmm. Then they all applied for and received exemptions from having to be part of that program themselves. There's some panic as they realize that the structure of Obamacare will eventually force everyone into the same mess.
  So now we get the whole class warfare argument about taxes. POTUS is going to make everything better by taxing the hell out of the only people in this country making money. Something like 1/3 of 1% of the population falls into the category POTUS wants to tax. Yeah, that'll dig us out of this mess.
  And the unions continue getting away with snookering the taxpayers.
  The White House favors its friends and screw the working man. Yeah, that's right. If you're not in a union, you're a WORKING MAN or WOMAN.
  So, hey, Day of Rage protesters? You'll get right on this, right?

full article: Tea Party at Perrysburg: The Obama Way: screw the taxpayers, pay off your friends

The Old Man And The Sea - 2011 | ZeroHedge

 

Winning and losing are not what is important in life, as we all will lose out to death in the end. It is the honor gained during the struggle that matters. It’s the legacy we leave for future generations. Did we fight the good fight, or did we sit idly by while life passed by? Did your life mean something to someone? You can stay safely on the shore or you can jump into your skiff and sail into the deep water and conquer your marlin.

Ron Paul has a clear vision of the America our forefathers imagined. It is a vision of a people free from government control of every aspect of their lives. It’s a vision where the people keep what they earn and don’t pay half to government to be redistributed based upon a politician’s re-election aspirations. It’s a vision where the people are free to make their own choices and free to succeed or fail based on their own merits. It’s a vision where a truly free market exists and private bankers do not control and manipulate the currency. It’s a vision that calls for a strong national defense, not being the policeman to the world. It’s a vision where we follow the U.S. Constitution and the rule of law. It’s a vision where a limited government ensures the liberties and freedoms of the population. It’s a vision that calls for balanced budgets, sound money, and citizens and corporations accepting the consequences of their actions. If Santiago was a fisherman in the U.S. today, he would be required to have a license to fish, a permit for his boat, pay taxes on his catch, and probably have to release the marlin because it was endangered. Some government thug would have met Santiago at the dock and written him a ticket for being at sea too long and illegal feeding of sharks.

full article here: Guest Post: The Old Man And The Sea - 2011 | ZeroHedge

Area tea party calls out detractors - Galesburg, IL - The Register-Mail

 

“Tea partiers have the common view that we need less government, less taxes, less spending, less regulation and more personal responsibility,” Block said. “We ought to deal with our debt. The nation cant live the way we are living. We dug the hole for ourselves, and it’s time to fix the problem.

full article: Area tea party calls out detractors - Galesburg, IL - The Register-Mail

"Hardest Hit" in Illinois aren't those facing foreclosure, they're those paying taxes

 

Question is, who really is the "hardest hit" in Illinois?  Certainly no one enjoys seeing a neighborhood family be forced to pack up and move out because the recession pushed them into unemployment or underemployment and out of their homes.  But what about the folks who bought homes within or under their means, sacrificed new cars, food and clothing in order to make their house payments and pay their taxes?

How about those who are struggling with the same jobs they've had for years, but have had to make salary and wage concessions to keep their companies afloat?  And all the time, they were paying federal taxes so that hard-earned money can be dished out to neighbors through the greased palms of bureaucrats seeking political allegiance?  How about those small businessmen whose overhead has multiplied via jacked up health care costs, thanks to Obamacare?

We think maybe those good folks that "play by the rules" are once again left holding the bag - those folks are Illinois' real "Hardest Hit."  Maybe that sounds cruel and heartless, but where does this stop?

read the full article here: Illinois Review: "Hardest Hit" in Illinois aren't those facing foreclosure, they're those paying taxes

Social Security is a “PonziScheme”, says Rick Perry

This Letter to the Editor By Charlie Gruner of the Galesburg 9/12 Group was in today's Register Mail:

Texas Governor Rick Perry called Social Security is a “PonziScheme”

A Ponzi Scheme, namedfor Charles Ponzi, is a pyramid scheme where the schemer takes money form“investors” and promises far better than normal returns on that “investment”.In order to make the initial investors believe that the scheme is working hehas to pay out “profits” to fulfill his promises. He gets this money from thenext group of investors.

To keep the scheme solvent the schemer has to keep expandingthe base or increase the required investment from future investors. Eventuallythe Ponzi scheme is unsustainable and collapses.

When the Social Security Act was passed (August 14, 1935),it was sold to the American People as a form of “insurance”. (Any insurancecompany run like the SSA would be closed down and the officers jailed.) Therewere promises made to the public, among them that it would be voluntary, thatthe Social Security Number would never be used as identification, that the taxwould never exceed 2% and that only you, the SSA and your employer would everhave to know that number. Every single one of those promises has been brokenover the years.

Let’s examine Social Security against the Ponzi scheme. ThePonzi scheme is completely voluntary. Social Security is not, even though itwas originally presented as such. The Federal government does not have todepend on volunteers because it can, and does, use the power of coercion. Onceyou’re in, you cannot opt out. On this level the Ponzi scheme is the betterdeal. First, you don’t have to get in if you don’t want to. Second, you can optout at any time by simply not re-investing.

How about expanding the base that is continually bringing inmore money to pay out on the earlier investors? Social Security has increasedthe base in at least three ways. First, the people who were specificallyexcluded originally (including self-employed, professionals, certain governmentworkers, higher-income citizens, etc.) were required to join. I was required toget my Social Security card when I was 16 years old and got my first job. Nowyou cannot bring your new-born child home from the hospital without the card.

The second way that the base has been expanded is simply byincreasing the Social Security tax rates. Since 1937 these tax rates haveincreased 19 times. Third, the base was expanded by increasing the amount ofincome the tax applies to. In 1937 the rate applied only to income up to $3,000per year. This has been increased 42 times until it now applies to income up to $106,800.

The Social Security tax rate was decreased exactly once inthe last 74 years, by one-tenth of one percent, the exact amount of theincrease in Medicare tax. The Medicare tax was implemented in 1966, which couldaccount for 12 of the rate increases because Medicare and Social Security werededucted under one entry on your pay stub. That changed in 1991 when it wasdecided that the increases in the tax might be noted by the public easier ifthey were given one number rather than if they had to add them together, so nowthere are two line items. Medicare has worked in a way similar to SocialSecurity in that the base kept changing. The difference is that in 1991 thelimit on earnings was changed to No Maximum. Social Security taxes are appliedto income up to a maximum of $106,800 this year but there is no limit for Medicare.

A while back we all watched the news as Bernie Madoff wasconvicted of fraud. We were told that he built the biggest Ponzi scheme in thehistory of the world. Actually, Madoff’s scheme pales beside the fraud of SocialSecurity. Even the Social Security Trustees have been saying that the systemcannot be sustained for too many more years. But even that isn’t all. Rememberthe trillions of dollars that we are in debt? Social Security owns much of thatdebt. It’s not just China and Japan; it’s everyone in the country who has aninterest in the Social Security system. That means almost all of us.

Something has to be done to insure that people who aredependent on the system will not be abandoned, but it cannot go on forever.While it may be comforting to know that the government is going to look out foryou in your future, the reality is it can’t. What we as citizens have to do isbe vigilant and not vote for anyone who promises something that has to be paidfor by someone else or that offers us something for nothing. Now as always, “there’sno such thing as a free lunch”.

CharlieGruner

Knoxville, IL

Letter to the Editor: Farmland Fines

Dear Editor –

If you come toward Monmouth and you smell an odor, it isn’t coming from Farmland’s hog processing plant. It is coming from the federal government! We read that on August 22, 2011, the Justice Department settled with Farmland for, what seems to us, following the law!!!

The settlement of $290,400 was because Farmland was essentially protecting itself from litigation if they hired illegal aliens to work at the plant. The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 established a prohibition on employers from hiring unauthorized workers and established criminal and civil sanctions. The lawsuit sited Farmland for “imposing unnecessary and excessive documentary requirements on non-US citizens and foreign-born US citizens when establishing their authority to work in the United States.” It seems to us, Farmland was covering itself because of all the fraudulent documentation that is available to illegal aliens.

Part of the problem is that on August 24, 2009, Illinois enacted S1133 prohibiting the state or localities from requiring employers to use an employment eligibility verification system. As of June 15, 2011, Illinois is the only state to impose limited usage of the E-Verify system. E-Verify was implemented by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA) to help employers determine employment eligibility of new hires and the validity of their Social Security numbers. How else is Farmland to determine eligibility other than asking questions of potential new hires? Farmland is a private company. Where does the government get off thinking they have the right to control a company? The company has all the risk and provides a service to the community – jobs. What is government’s contribution? Uncertainty about the future.
To add to the uncertainty and confusion, IL passed HB 1743, which creates privacy and antidiscrimination protections for workers if employers participating in E-Verify do not follow the program’s procedures. Is your head swimming yet?

Government says it is OK to be here illegally but damned the company that works to have a legal operation.

Western IL can not afford to lose industry which in turn causes a loss in jobs!!! I’m not sure President Obama or Governor Quinn makes that correlation when they add more tax and regulation to companies, sign wishy-washy legislation and sue those companies that are needed to provide jobs. Western IL does not have an over abundance of industry. When one shuts down, the effect is devastating. Just ask Galesburg after Maytag left.

Businesses are there to make a profit. When they hurt, the entire community hurts along with them.

D. M. Wasson and C. J. Parrish
Monmouth Tea Party

link to the original article: http://www.galesburg.com/news/business/x1153511442/Farmland-to-pay-290-400-in-penalties

Roundtable: How to create U.S. jobs? - Galesburg, IL - The Register-Mail

QUESTION:

WASHINGTON D.C. —

What strategy would you suggest for creating jobs in the United States?

Remove onerous regulations, cut waste
Some large corporations at least appear to have a lot of cash on hand. Consumers seem to be willing to buy although without using their credit cards quite so recklessly. The hang-up is uncertainty. From large corporations to small businesses there’s a wait-and-see mentality. The key, therefore, is to remove the uncertainty.

Last week the president announced the elimination of some of the government regulations. Not as many were removed as were added. As long as the uncertainty remains, jobs will elude us unless we start reversing the situation. I would suggest: Start eliminating the most onerous regulations. Next, start eliminating the waste and redundancy that was reported by the GAO last March. They can be done simultaneously. Once this is seen as a serious effort confidence will begin to emerge and hiring will begin again. If no serious effort is seen, employment will remain stagnant at best.

Charlie Gruner

Galesburg 9/12 Group Member

To read the full article follow the link below:

Roundtable: How to create U.S. jobs? - Galesburg, IL - The Register-Mail

Letter to the Editor: Congressional Black Caucus Attacks Tea Party

 

This is a letter to the editor sent to the Register-Mail on Wednesday. It has not been in the paper yet.

I am writing about the 3 recent attacks on the Tea Party by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC).

1) Rep. Maxine Waters , California Democrat, while addressing a community summit, said the Tea Party can go straight to Hell. Rep. Waters is currently under an ethics probe for obtaining $12 million in TARP money for One United Bank. Her husband Sidney Williams was a former director of the bank and owned $350,000 in bank stock.

2) Rep. Andre Carson, Indiana Democrat, while addressing a CBC event in Miami, said that some Tea Party affiliated Congressmen would love to see you and me (blacks) hanging on a tree. I would suggest Rep. Carson identify these Congressmen so we can vote them out of office.

3) Rep. Frederica Wilson, Florida Democrat, while addressing a jobs fair in Miami, said the real enemy is the Tea Party.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson also jumped on the Tea Party "dog pile". Jackson was speaking at a Martin Luther King luncheon and said the Tea Party is not new. It is reminiscent of the States' Rights groups of the past that fought federal integration. In case you forgot, Rev. Jackson was the one caught on an open microphone saying he wanted to neuter then candidate Obama.

I have been to a few Tea Party rallies and several Tea Party meetings. I have never heard a racist comment. When I attended my first Tea Party meeting, I was not greeted by a "Grand Inquisitor" at the door asking if I was a racist, homophobe, gun owner, Christian, pro life, right-wing extremist, big oil and corporate jet owner lover. I was merely welcomed to the meeting. The Tea Party has 3 core values - limited constitutional government, fiscal responsibility, and free enterprise. Our monthly meetings are educational in nature. Our members are encouraged to do research on pertinent issues affecting our Country such as social security reform, health care, immigration, tax reform, deficit reduction, etc. and present position papers to the group for open and honest discussion. Although many Tea Party members are already active in community service, we have been exploring ways to increase the service by possibly partnering with other groups.

I have found my fellow Tea Party members to be well-informed individuals who care deeply about the Country. I would like the CBC to adhere to Dr. King’s ideals of judging people by their character.

Kirk Heller

Galesburg TEA Party Member

Knoxville, IL

Galesburg Tea Party 2nd Annual Rally - Sept 15, 2011

Galesburg Tea Party
2nd Annual Rally
Thursday, Sept 15, 2011
6:00p.m.
Lake Storey Pavilions 1,2 & 3

“We the People” - What We Stand For!
Fiscal Responsibility, Limited Government & Free Enterprise

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2011 Master of Ceremonies
Judge Harry Bulkeley & Rick Welty
2011 Guest Speakers
John Block, Former Secretary of Agriculture
Darin LaHood, Illinois State Senator
Dick Johnston,
Professor Monmouth College
Joe Mangieri,
Mangieri Electric

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Enjoy patriotic music, singing and
reciting the Pledge of Allegiance!

FREE TO THE PUBLIC!

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Bring your own lawn chairs,
refreshments & umbrellas!

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Visit our Website
www.galesburgteaparty.org