Where do we stand now?

Tuesday-August 31, 2010

Where do we stand now?

As I listened to the President complain about the misinformation that is floating around out there about his religion and about the question of his personal theology I was struck by a comment that my neighbor made. My neighbor that votes both ways and who is Jewish voted for Obama. He said to me yesterday that he (OBAMA) is a disaster and that if he could take his vote back he would. I said that is impossible but you don’t have to give him your vote next time.

My neighbor Ron, went on to say that he worries about the quality or the lack of quality of life that his grand children will have. Ron is close to retirement and he says I’m through but my grand children will be left with the price tag. He went on to say that this President is ruining this country.

We have all heard this argument before. We have all heard what was I thinking by giving this guy my vote? We have heard the bellowing and the concern. I say it’s not my fault I didn’t vote for the guy. We have heard that one too.

What you might not have heard is some statistics that will help you organize those folks who want to take back their vote. While the President is complaining about misinformation I have some real information from the Presidents own government.

Since the recession started roughly 22 months ago 1 in 6 Americans are now enrolled in some sort of government poverty program.

50 million people are now on Medicaid up 17%
40 million people are now getting food stamps up 50%
10 million people are now collecting some unemployment compensation up 40%
4.4 million people are now on welfare up 18%

Since the recession started the federal program cost of Medicaid is up by 36% or 273 billion dollars.

Since the recession started jobless benefits are up $117 billion to $160 billion.

Since the recession started food stamps are up 80% to $70 billion.

Since the recession started welfare cost are up 25% to $22 billion.

This is something to complain about. This something to question and this is something to consider when you vote. This is something that occurs when people who make decisions are not capable of making the right decision or who are purposely creating a dependent class.

We have heard stories about people who are collecting this aid and refuse to work because they make more on the aid than they did by working. I have written about this as well.

I would like to relate a little story about myself. I lost my job in January of 2001. I was an executive and I had an office with a staff. I thought the rest of my career would be with the company I was employed by at the time. I made it through an acquisition and I made it through a recession. My work ethic was good and I taught many the ethics that I had.

Long story short in January of 2001 I lost my job to down sizing, reorganizing call it what you may it was a shock. I started immediately to secure interviews and during the mid point of that summer I thought a few offers would be forth coming in the fall. I was feeling good.

I was assuring myself that by fall time I would be employed. Then it happened, 911. All the offers all the promise disappeared. It disappeared in the smoke that we all witnessed. Did I complain? No, I knocked on my neighbor’s door and I said Mike I need work and your house needs painting. That created a business. I created a market and I became a general contractor. You might not have known that story. My purpose in relating that is I didn’t complain. My purpose in relating this story is that I could have gone on some government program but I didn’t it’s not in my ideology.

While we listen to the President we are witnessing what will be the tenor and the tone of the democrats as they ask for your vote in November. The statistics that I began today’s FORUM with are not the fault of you or the system. It is the fault of an ideology of a President that is reduced to complaining about misinformation. The only misinformation is what is coming from the White House. The only misinformation is the story line that says government is the way out and the way forward.

Abraham Lincoln said:”To stand in silence when they should be protesting makes cowards out of men”

Gregory C. Dildilian
Founder and Executive Director
Pinecone Conservatives

A footnote: 63 days of misinformation is headed our way. Don’t be fooled there are more people like my neighbor Ron who wish they could take their vote back. You just have to make sure they get to the polls and vote against those whose ideology is for big government