Hitschmann: A Kansas Ghost Town- Part Two

It’s funny, the guy from the elevator wasn’t from Hitschmann and once I told him I used to go to school there, he started asking me what I knew about the place. I named off a few people. One of them was a kid named Jay Krier. He told me Jay lived just north of town and offered up directions to his house. I declined the offer though. I’ve always been a little worried that Jay might still be mad at me for tearing up his dad’s alfalfa field. I’ll get to that later though, like always, I’m getting ahead of myself.
I probably should have started off today by saying that if you missed last week’s column, I’m telling a story about a Kansas ghost town named Hitschman and some of the people who lived there. This week is the second part of what will probably end up being a four part story about the place.
Alright then, where was I? Oh yeah, after the guy from the elevator and I talked for a while I told him I’d noticed the side door of the school was open and was wondering if he thought anyone would freak out if I went inside to get a few pictures. He told me to go ahead, just be careful. There had been a bunch of thugs living in it and were tearing the hell out of the place a few years back until the cops finally busted up their meth lab. He said there used to be signs warning about the chemicals but they’d been gone for a long time too.
I was thinking about that story as I walked back to the school and thinking about how sad it was but I wasn’t all that surprised either, not in today’s world anyway. Oh well, what do you do?
Just inside the front doors of the school is a big stairway that leads up to the classrooms. I stood there for a couple minutes thinking back to the last time I came down those stairs, I had no idea it would be 43 years before I’d be back.
As I climbed the stairs I noticed the water fountain and remember thinking it used to be a lot taller. Then I stepped into my old classroom. I stood in the same spot my desk used to be. I could almost hear Mrs. Seimpson taking roll call, leading us in the Pledge of Allegiance, and following that up by leading us as we recited the “Lord’s Prayer.” Now that’s something you’re not likely to hear nowadays. I noticed the closets we used to hang our coats in and thought to myself how upset she’d be if she saw how messed up they were today.
As I stood there I wondered what ever became of my old classmates. I went to school there for three years and each year there were five of us in our class. Besides myself there was Jay Krier, Artie Beck, Jerry Ney, and a girl but I can’t remember her name.
I walked out of my classroom out into the hallway. I went into the boy’s bathroom and yes, I know this is going to be gross but the urinal cracked me up. It used to be taller than I was. I went into the girl’s bathroom and realized this was the first time I’d ever been in there. I don’t know what the penalty for going into the girl’s bathroom would have been but I’m sure it would have severe in those days. I went into the “big kids” room. About the only thing I can remember about this room is it was where they kept the old Xerox machine. I always loved it when I got to help make copies of whatever we were copying. How many of you remember those old machines? Do you remember the smell of the ink? I just loved that.
I went down that stairway to the basement and the first thing I noticed was the stage. That old stage provided me with one of the most embarrassing moments of my young life. It was during one of our Christmas programs. We were singing that old Christmas Carroll that went “down through the chimney with ol’ St. Nick. You know the one. When we got to the part that went “up on the house top, “click, click, click.” Well, my job was to step forward and hit two sticks together with the beat. It was going so well too. I don’t know, maybe I got a little carried away but when I smacked my sticks together for the third and final time one of them broke in two. That by itself wouldn’t have so bad I guess. But I don’t know why that one piece just had to fly out into the crowd and hit a lady sitting in the front row on the leg. All I knew was that I wanted to die. But, the show must go on. And go on we did. At the other end of the basement was the kitchen and I could almost smell the home made dinner rolls they used to make.
Guys, I’m sorry but I’m going to have wrap it up. Next week we’re going to go over to Artie Beck’s house, then walk over to Frank and Bertha’s store for a pop. Remember, if you’re interested, you can join in on the conversation by going to my blog at www.rm235.blogspot.com. I’ve already heard from a man named Al who lived in Odin and is very familiar with the places I’m talking about. It doesn’t get any better than that. Hope all is well with you and yours.

Hitschmann: A Kansas Ghost Town- Part One

I’ve got a story to tell you. But it’s kind long and in order to do it right I’m going to have to spread it out over the next three or four weeks, hope you hang with me. It’s a story about a town that sits about 25 or 30 miles north-east of Great Bend called Hitschmann. It’s a story about a two room school house I went to Kindergarten through the second grade in. It’s about some of my old classmates, I don’t know, guys like Artie Beck and Jay Krier come to mind. I’ll probably talk about their parents too, especially Jay’s dad, Vernon. I’m going to tell you about the old general store/post office/pool hall and the couple that owned the place. I’m going to talk about my dad and his friends, my mom always referred to them as his worthless drinking buddies. Yeah, looking back, she was probably right too. But I couldn’t talk about any of that without talking about growing up in the oil fields. We’re going to talk about some of the good times as well as the bad.
So how about it? Why don’t you grab yourself something to drink and kick off your shoes for a while. This ought to be a good trip and we might as well get started.
It all started last Wednesday when I was talking to Denise Hall (the boss) on the phone from Great Bend and told her about my plans to get a few pictures of an old school I used to go to that wasn‘t very far away. I thought it would make a good story. Yeah, I got the pictures I wanted alright. I got lots of pictures that day. So I’m going to do something that so far, I’ve been reluctant to do. I’m going to invite you to visit my blog at www.rm235.blogspot.com I post my column on it every week. And as we go through this story, I’ll be posting more pictures of the things and places I’m talking about. If you’re interested, come on in and have a look around. And if you’re so inclined, feel free to post a comment or two. Just do me a favor though, keep it clean. I know I can’t control what people say. But I do control what gets posted. I’d love to hear from you.
I left Great Bend later that morning and headed north through Hoisington then east on hi way 4 through Redwing toward Claflin. About three miles west of Claflin there’s a county road that takes you north through Odin and about another three or four miles further up the road there it was, the Hitschmann intersection. I hadn’t been on this road in over 40 years.
I made that right hand turn just like I’d watched my dad do so long ago. And as soon as I’d made the turn I could see Hitschmann’s grain elevator. It’s funny too. The minute I saw it, and it’s kind of hard to explain, but everything just felt right. It felt kind of like I’d never left. Wow.
Then there it was. Coming into town from the west the first thing I noticed was Frank and Bertha’s old house. And right next door was where Art and Lucielle Beck used to live. I turned into town on the second and last street and there it was. My old school. You know, I really hadn’t expected this to be an emotional trip and it’s not like I sat around crying. It was more like all the sudden I remembered everything. The old school’s been abandoned for the last 35 years and it showed. It was weird but as I got out of the truck, I realized I’d parked in the same spot my mom used when she picked me up after school. Pretty cool. I looked across the street and saw Frank and Bertha’s old store. It’s probably sat empty almost as long as the school has. I was walking around taking a few pictures when I noticed it. The side door was open. Uh, oh, decision time. Man I really wanted to get in there but it didn’t feel right. It’s not that I worried about being arrested for trespassing. I was more worried about getting shot. I walked back out to the street and I realized there wasn’t another living soul anywhere around. The entire town was deserted.
Well almost, because harvest was in full swing there was a man working at the elevator. I went inside his office and told him who I was and that I was from Topeka. I could tell right away he wasn’t impressed. That’s when I told him I’d gone to school there in the early 60’s and really wanted to get a few pictures of the place. We had a good talk and found out we knew a lot of the same people. He showed me a book written by a guy named Daniel Fitzgearld. It was a book about Kansas ghost towns and Hitschmann was in it. Bam!
Yeah, that’s what this story’s about. It’s about more than a Kansas ghost town. It’s a story about the ghosts themselves. Hope you come along for the ride.
Remember, you can visit Kevin McGinty’s blog at: www.rm235.blogspot.com

Kansas Governor, Mark Parkinson

Mark Parkinson: Do We Trust Him or Not...

Ding-dong, the wicked witch, the wicked witch, the wicked witch. Ding-dong, the wicked witch is… Oh, never mind, you know how the rest of it goes.

Yes, I’m talking about Kathleen Sebelius. And yes, I know that was a cheap shot. Sorry.

Quick question though: According to almost every media outlet to ever report on her, what was her one defining strength? You know, the one they all reported on? Give up? Okay. It was her ability to reach across party lines to find workable solutions to issues that affected all Kansan’s. Yeah right.

Maybe it‘s just me being cynical and all, but what really important issues did she ever reach across party lines to address? It certainly didn’t happen any time the legislature tried to strengthen and close loopholes in Kansas’ late term abortion laws. She vetoed these bills every time one crossed her desk. I didn’t matter to her that Kansas has become the late-term abortion capital of the world. And it didn’t matter how much support the bills had from the citizens of Kansas or how much support there was in the legislature. In the end, it was either her personal beliefs or her political future that dictated which bills survived and which one‘s fell victim to her veto pen.

How about the Holcomb power plant? Did you see her reaching across party lines to work out any kind of compromise to this issue. No, it never happened. It didn’t make any difference to her how much support there was in the state or the legislature. It didn’t make any difference to her how much revenue the project would produce for the state in this time of economic chaos. It didn’t matter how many jobs this project would bring to an area of the state that has been losing jobs and people for years now. It didn’t even matter to her that her own K.D.H.E. approved the permits to allow the project to proceed. Again, it was either her personal beliefs or her political plans that got in the way of reaching a compromise and keeping the state moving forward.

Hopefully, that kind of partisan crap is now behind us and we can get on with our lives again. Five days into his new job, our new governor, Mark Parkinson and Sunflower CEO Earl Watkins worked out a compromise solution that so far, seems to make everybody happy.

Well, everybody but the enviromental groups like the Sierra Club and a few other like-minded groups. Go figure, personally I believe the only thing that’s ever going to make some of these people happy is if we all end up eating berries and living in cave somewhere.

I know, it’s still early in Parkinson’s administration and he certainly deserves the benefit of a doubt. But let’s not get all googlie-eyed over the guy just yet.

Remember, first and foremost, he’s a politician. There was a time he headed up the Kansas Republican Party. Remember that? Remember how he used to hammer Democrats and how he especially hammered Sebelius back in the day? Remember how he turned his back on his own party to join her to become Lt. Governor in the first place? Remember how many bridges he burned in the process? I do.

Maybe he’s on the up and up here and once again, I’m way off base. Nothing new there. But have you considered the possibility that this was Parkinson and Sebelius’ plan all along? There was no way Sebelius was going to get an Obama, Cabinet position if she allowed the Holcomb project to move forward. So it is possible they agreed that once she was gone, Mark Parkinson would come riding in on his white horse and save the day. Hey, it's a pretty good strategy. I wonder if the Republicans are smart enough to pay attention.

What do they get in return? The Democrats will score huge political points, plain and simple. They’ve known all along that once Sebelius leaves us for Washington, the Kansas Democratic Party would be in trouble. And what better way than to solve one of the biggest issues we face durning his first week in office?

I know, I’m not supposed to think that way. I'm sure it's going to land me on some governmental watch list somewhere for thinking the wrong way. Anyway, we're all just supposed to take things at face value and not ask questions. But here’s the deal. I’ve seen way too many politicians saying one thing and doing another. I’ve seen way too many of them who only seem interested in promoting their own political future or that of their political party, whether it’s in the best interests of the people they’re supposed to be looking out for or not.

In the mean time, Governor, you've hit the ground running and for that, I am impressed. Not that matters anyway, but you gotta remember, you’ve made an awful lot of enemies over the last couple of years. Be careful out there.

Okay. You've gotten this far, so you might as well tell us what's on your mind. Maybe you agree with me or maybe you think I'm out of my mind. Say so. You're only a click away.

What are you waiting for...

Maybe One Day, You'll Wake Up...

Tic Toc. Time’s running out boys and girls. If you remember, Al Gore told us back in May of 2006 we only had ten years left to save the planet from global warming. He said if we didn’t get it fixed by then, it’d be too late. You know, it’s a settled science and all.
Evidently, Team Obama’s paying attention to his good friend, Al. Get ready, Cap and Trade’s coming to a utility bill near you. Let’s see if have this whole Cap and Trade thing right. The plan is to punish coal fired powered plants, you know, the one’s that every single one of our lives depend on, right? The plan is to tax them for their CO2 emissions, right? They’re planning to tax something that in all reality, is essential for life to even to exist on this planet, right? You understand that, don’t you. Hmm, weird.
Oh, and let’s not forget about the cow farts they’re planning to tax too. What do you think’s going to happen once they get this insanity passed? Do you really believe the world’s going to suddenly be a better place? Fat chance. The only thing that’s going to happen is that we’ll be a poorer nation. And when it comes right down to it, that’s what the environmental wack-jobs want anyway. That way they can all sit around, holding hands, and pretend they’ve finally saved Mother Earth from mankind.
I know, I’m not supposed to talk like that. I’m supposed to blindly follow the cult of global warming. That, and I’m supposed to be scared. It cracked me up during the last Presidential election. Every time a republican brought up the very real possibility of another terrorist attack, they were branded a “fear monger.” Give me a break.
I realize a lot of the younger people nowadays are just too young to remember the, life-ending, global cooling hysteria of the 60’s and 70’s. I’ve dug up a few quotes from that time period to remind you why I’m just not buying into the hoax of global warming. It’s the same crap, from the same people, who want you to believe we’re all going to die from some kind of invisible boogie man. You want to talk about fear mongering. Try some of these on for size.

The world’s climatologists are agreed… Once the freeze starts, it will be too late: Douglas Colligan (1975)

The threat of a new ice age must now stand alongside nuclear war as a likely source of wholesale death and misery for mankind: Nigel Calder (1975)

Global cooling has already killed hundreds of thousands. If it continues and no strong action is taken, it will cause worldwide famine, world chaos and world war, and this will all come about before the year 2000: Lowell Ponte (1976)

The rest of these are all from a guy named Paul Ehrlich. He was an especially cheerful kind of guy.

I would take even money that England will not exist in the year 2000 (1969)

In ten years all important life in the sea will be extinct. Large areas of coastline will have to be evacuated because of the stench of dead fish. (Earth Day 1970)

The battle to feed humanity is over. In the 70’s and 80’s hundreds of millions of people will starve to death. (1968)

This tragedy is nothing compared to the nutritional disaster likely to overtake humanity in the 70’s or the 80’s at the very latest. A situation has been created that could lead to a billion or more people starving to death. (1969)

Five years is all we have left if we’re going to preserve any kind of quality in the world. (1970)

A more recent quote also caught my attention too. Actually, it’s an AP headline warning us about global warming: Omama left with little time to curb global warming… “Cooling” trend illustrates how fast the world is warming. Yeah, that makes sense.

Bear with me here, one last quote, I promise. This one kind of brought the whole thing together.

The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of liberalism, they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until America will be a socialist nation without knowing how it happened. (Norman Thomas, former U.S. Socialist Presidential Candidate)

And in a nutshell boys and girls that’s what it‘s all about. Maybe one day, you’ll wake up.

Stop by the blog this week, I know some of you think I’m out of my mind: www.rm235.blogspot.com or e-mail me at www.kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

We Will Take Our Country Back...

Thank you America. It’s about time, too. It’s about time the silent majority stood up and found their voice again. It’s about time we told the idiots running our country into the ground, that we’ve had enough of the insanity.
From here on out, April, 15th will take on a whole new meaning. It was the day we stood up against an out of control government, and said in one clear voice, that we’ve had it. We’re sick of it and we’re not going to take it anymore.
We’ve had it with the crazy government spending. There’s no way in hell that borrowing trillions of dollars from China, an amount we’ll never be able to re-pay is ever going to be okay. Simply put, we’ve had it!
But the left-wingers and the one-sided main stream media just don’t get it, do they? It’s not just taxes we’re sick of. We’re sick of being ridiculed. We’re sick of being called names. We’re sick of being marginalized. We’re sick of being attacked if we dare to mention the name of God in public or that we believe abortion is wrong. We're sick of being attacked simply because we believe that marriage should remain between one man and one woman. Not all of us, but a hell of a lot of us are sick of our tax dollars paying for abortions all over the world.
We’re sick of left-wing loons telling us that illegal immigration is a good thing and that the illegals are only doing the jobs Americans won’t. Tell that to the millions of Americans that are now out looking for work. Go ahead, tell that to a guy who’s just been laid off from a job he’s been at for 20 or more years. Go ahead, tell him. Just don’t be surprised if he knocks you on your ass when you do.
We’re already sick and tired of Obama and the socialist agenda he’s cramming down our throats. Think I’m exaggerating? Think again. The government is now in the process of taking over the U.S. Auto industry. Remember when GM stood for General Motors? Now it stands for Government Motors. How about them taking over the banks and insurance industry. And no, I’m not out of my mind. All you need to do is to take off your stupid, political blinders and pay attention to what's going on.
We’re sick of idiots like Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano telling law enforcement officials to be on the lookout for right-wing groups and veterans returning from Iraq because they might be prone to violence. Also on her list, are people who oppose restrictions on firearms, people who oppose Obama’s social programs, people who oppose some of the crazy free-trade agreements we’ve entered into, and those who oppose same-sex marriage.
Her list includes people who oppose a one world government, people who bemoan the decline of U.S. stature in the world, and those who are upset with the loss of millions of jobs to countries like China and India. I’m almost certain I'll end up on that list somewhere. Hey Janet, how about you getting your people down on the Mexican border and do something useful for once in your miserable life.
We’re sick and tired of the elite left-wing, self important news paper and TV reporters, news commentators, politicians, late night comedy show hosts, comedians, and actors around the country looking down on us little people as though we’re somehow less important than they are.
Did you happen to see the interview on MSNBC, where comedian, Janeane Garofalo, appeared on Count Down with Keith Olbermann? She sat right there and called every one of us a bunch of redneck racists. Good ol' Olbermann was right in there too. And the left cries about Fox News being partisan. Whatever. Check it out on the blog this week. This is exactly why we’re so pissed off. She portrays exactly what the left thinks of us. Yeah, we’re sick of that too.
Here’s the deal. We’re by far the majority in this country and because of the Tea Parties, the left is now in full blown, panic mode. They’ll do everything they can to attack us. They’ll call us every name in the book, hell, that’s the only thing they know how to do.
But know this. April 15th, 2009, there were 6 million of us standing up for what’s right about this country. Next year there will be more. And come election day, 2012, we “WILL” take our country back. And that my friends, you can count on!
I know for a fact, there are a lot of you who believe the way I do. And if you haven’t seen the interview I mentioned, check it out on the blog and see what I mean at: www.rm235.blogspot.com or you can always e-mail me at: www.kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

President Wonderful...

Tale of Two Presidents

Wow, who’d have thought that our very own Governor, Kathleen Sebelius, would have been less than forthcoming when asked about her relationship with, and the money she’s accepted for her various campaigns from her pal, George Tiller.
Sorry Governor, and not that it matters to you, but a lot of us just aren‘t buying it. Just like we didn’t buy it we when you said it was just an over-sight when you had to catch up on the back taxes you owed. If a regular guy like, say, myself were in such position, we’d probably be sitting in jail right now. But I know, like always, you’ll be given a pass. No matter what you do or what you say, your supporters are okay with it. Whatever.
Sorry, I just wanted to get that off my chest. What I really wanted to talk about today is our new president and his predecessor. You know, President Wonderful and President Horrible.
Remember after the attacks of 9-11 when President Horrible authorized the use of wiretaps in an effort to ward off future terrorist attacks. Remember that? Remember how he was accused of trampling our constitutional rights and all that stuff. Remember how he was compared to Hitler and Joseph Stalin once the media got wind of this practice?
It’s funny. Now that President Wonderful is doing the exact same thing, and some even say he’s expanded the program, and all of a sudden, it‘s okay. President Wonderful’s supporters are saying things like, well, it only makes sense that the President should have the ability to track groups of people that want to do us harm. Hmmm, weird.
How about President’s Horrible’s out of control spending. His administration spent money like there was no tomorrow. The country was outraged. Remember that? Remember how they stood shoulder to shoulder from the rooftops to denounce our crippling national debt? Remember how they cried at the top of their lungs that it was unfair to dump such a burden on future generations.
Now we have President Wonderful’s economic policies that have already tripled if not quadrupled, President Horrible’s national debt (can you say, multiple trillions) that will probably be passed on to our great-great-great grand kids and somehow, it just makes sense. President Wonderful’s supporters love to claim he’s doing the only thing he can and is only digging his way out of President Horrible’s mess.
Now I’m not an expert on digging holes and it’s very possible I’m wrong here, but to me it just makes sense that if you start digging in an already huge hole, the only thing you’ll end up with is a bigger hole.
Remember when President Horrible authorized the use of force after the attacks of 9-11? Remember how most of the country stood with him in that decision? Remember when all the politicians, Republican and Democrats alike were lining up to give their speeches? They all wanted to be seen as being tough on terror. Remember that?
And now all the sudden, President Wonderful has authorized the use of force against a bunch of ignorant pirates who believe that somehow they have a right to take over ships at sea and demand millions of dollars for the return of the ships and crews. They’re used to getting their way. They’re used to the crews of the ships they attack just giving up. They’re used to companies simply paying the ransom as a way to get their crews and ships back.
Here’s what these ignorant fools aren’t used to though. They’re not used to dealing with Americans. And they’re sure as hell not used to dealing with the United States Navy and the Navy Seals that brought an abrupt end to their little party earlier this week.
And it was all brought directly to them by our very own, President Wonderful, who ordered the use of force and the U.S. Navy, who executed that order.
Mr. President, thank you, you definitely got this one right.

Maybe you agree with me. Maybe you’d like to call me out on something I’ve said. Stop on by the blog and tell me so at: www.rm235.blogspot.com or e-mail me at: www.kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

The Results Are In...

You know, it’s really too bad that only a measly 23% of us could even be bothered to get off our butts long enough Tuesday to cast a vote. But what are you gonna do? I guess you can’t force people to pay attention or for that matter to even care.
I would like to congratulate Bill Bunten as he gets ready to serve his second term as the mayor of our great city. I don’t agree with him on everything he supports, especially the sales tax increase. But here’s the way I see it. Mr. Bunten is an honest man and cares deeply about this community. He’s a stand up guy and doesn’t get involved in the gutter politics that so many politicians get caught up in today. And by looking at the huge margin of his victory, I think most people see it that way.
That being said, Mr. Bunten, you got the tax increase you’ve wanted all along. Now it’s going to be up to you to see that the money’s spent the way it was sold to us in the first place. A lot of people, including myself, trust that you’ll do the right thing. But just so you know, there’ll be a lot of people watching, you know, just to make sure.
It was very heartening to see the voters overwhelmingly reject racism. They sent a very clear message to Betty Horton that we don’t need her or her racist views. Maybe next time she throws one of her famous hissy fits and tells a colleague she disagrees with, that they “whited out” on an issue, she’ll have enough sense not to repeat it to Barbara Hollingsworth, a very respected reporter from the Capital-Journal. I doubt it though. So to Ms. Horton, all I can say is, good luck, good-bye, and good-riddance.
Alright, I want to talk a little bit about last week’s column. I’ve caught quite a bit of flak because of my opposition to the sales tax increase. People have asked me how I could possibly be against taking care of our city. I’m not. I’m also not against taking care of people who can’t take care of themselves. I’m against taking care of people who won’t take care of themselves. Big difference.
I look at my pay check every week and the first thing I notice is the fact that before I get a dime of it, the government gets their share. And their share amounts to about 23% of everything I make. And that’s just the beginning. Next we add in the sales tax added onto every single purchase we make. Let’s not forget about the property tax we must pay each year on our houses and automobiles, we just think we own them.
I guess if that were it, I wouldn’t be so mad. Take a look at your water bill, light bill, and phone bill. See all those “fees” added in. It’s just more taxes we’re forced to pay. How about the taxes we have to pay on our investments. How about the death tax. Yeah, that’s a good one.
Back in November, America voted for a change. Well, you’d better hang onto your butts, we’re going to see changes alright. Do you really believe the government is going to take care of every one of us from womb to tomb and do you really think it’s going to be free. Do you not see the massive tax increases that are coming with a 10 trillion deficit our country is facing?
How about the Cap and Trade scam the Obama administration is going to ram down our throats. What do you think that’s going to do to your light bill. We’ll be lucky if it only doubles it. What do you think it’s going to do the price of literally everything we buy. Same thing.
Anyway, I’ve had a few people tell me I should just quit complaining and do my part. Believe me, I do my part and then some. I think some of these people need to pull their heads out of the sand and pay attention to what’s going on around them.
Yeah I know, some of you disagree with me. Tell me so on the blog www.rm235.blogspot.com or e-mail me at www.kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net

No New Taxes...

Taxes. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m really getting sick and tired of politicians telling me it’s my duty to pay (all) my taxes when they don’t even do it themselves until they’re forced to do so. You know exactly who and what I’m talking about too. So there’s no need to mention names here today.
I’m also a smoker. Ask any smoker how we feel about getting hammered on the latest round of increased taxes we‘re being forced to pay. In all their infinite wisdom, these politicians who can’t be bothered to pay own taxes have decided smoker’s should be responsible for providing health care for the kids of parents who either can’t provide this care because of the cost. Or the kids, whose parents could afford it but choose to let people like myself do it for them.
I’d really hate to think that someone might actually have to give up their new boat or something in order to provide health care for their own kids.
All I can say is, enjoy your free ride while you can. Sooner or later this plan is going to fall flat on it’s face and we all know it. Eventually, the politicians will spend this money on something else. Then what are you going to do? Almost every state in the nation was in on the lawsuits against the tobacco companies. Remember how all that money was supposed to towards education? You know, it was all “for the kids.” It’s the same thing here. Most of the money raised through this new extortion plan will go straight into the costs of running an ever expanding government.
How about the lottery? Remember how that money was supposed to go toward education? Again, it was for the kids. How could you be against that one? So, where’d that money go? Again, it went straight into the costs of running an ever expanding government.
Now the City of Topeka wants us to believe that in order to have decent streets in Topeka we need to come up with even more in the form of new and higher sales taxes. They want us to believe they’ll get it right this time around. Whatever.
Why is the Chamber of Commerce, Go Topeka, and other tax-supported organizations allowed to rake in and sit on literally millions of dollars while they have their hands out begging for more. Why can’t they turn lose of some of that money to take care of our streets. It’s not like they’re doing anything for us anyway. I know, they’re all patting themselves on the back because of the Home Depot thing. What’s that going to bring us, 3 or 4 hundred semi-decent paying jobs? How about the 8,000 jobs we’ve lost in this community since we began giving them 5 million dollars a year to turn this community around? What exactly are they doing for us to warrant a 5 million dollar a year budget in the first place? Oh yeah, some of the head honcho’s are taking in more than a quarter million dollars a year for themselves. It’s pretty good work for those that can get it, I guess. Hell, I wouldn’t want to give it up either.
I know. There are a lot of people out there who support a sales tax increase to fix the streets. What about the timing though. I’m not sure if there’s a worse time to raise taxes than in the middle of a recession. You guys do whatever you want. I’ve already voted and yes, I voted against it. There’s a lot of us out here that are just sick and tired of politicians telling us we need to do more while they can’t seem to do anything to get their own spending under control.
Check out the blog this week: www.rm235.blogspot.com I’ve posted a video of a guy named Joseph Ledbetter on it. I think he does a much better job of explaining the whole sales tax issue than I ever could. Or like always, you can e-mail me at: www.kevinmcginty@sbcglobal.net