Virginia Libertarian

boortz.com: Nealz Nuze Today’s Nuze

Yesterday in the Senate, an amendment failed that would have cut government funds (your tax dollars) to provide healthcare for middle-income children and adults without children under the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. The program was originally supposed to cover poor children, not middle income children. Now the Democrats want to expand this coverage, and Republicans have failed to block it.

Meanwhile, in the House, the Democrats are trying to expand the SCHIP program to middle income families.. including parents. The effect of this expansion would be twofold: First, many middle income families who already carry health insurance would drop that insurance like a radioactive roach and sign on the toe SCHIP welfare version. Second, costs would soar .. into the hundreds of billions of dollars in no time flat.

In the House the Democrats have been trying to ram through these changes without allowing the Republicans to offer any amendments to the bill, and without affording the opposition any meaningful time to argue against the bill on the floor.

What we’re seeing here is simply an attempt to bring Hillarycare – socialized medicine – quietly through the back door. The couldn’t do it in one swell foop under Hillary, now they’ll just try to do it incrementally.

Remember the prime motivation here. It is NOT to provide health care to children. No children are denied healthcare under our present system. The motivation is to make more and more people dependent on government for their health care. That is exactly what happens when millions of Americans drop their privately held health insurance plans and opt to go into a government welfare health care plan like SCHIP. Once these people are dependent on government, instead of themselves, for their healthcare, politicians have them by the short hairs.

Something that Neal forgot to mention, just remember that it’s not only those that opt into plans like these that have put themselves on the short leash, but they are also putting you on the leash as well.  How, you ask?  Well, you do pay your taxes like a good little citizen don’t you (how can you not, they have the guns)?  Where do you think the money to pay for these people who have opted into these programs comes from, a money tree out back of the white house?

Citizens Against Government Waste: Cost of Government Day, 2007: Taxpayers Released from State Servitude

Cost of Government Day for 2007 is July 11. Americans now work more than half of the year - 192 days to pay their share of the cost of government with 84.5 of those days due to federal spending alone. This year, the average American will need to work an additional 6 days out of the year to pay off his or her cost of government compared to 2000.

Citizens Against Government Waste: FEMA’s Ice Outrage: The Meltdown
The Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) has decided to liquidate nearly 85 million pounds of ice, worth about $24 million, left over from the initial 224 million pounds it had purchased in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. The agency had anticipated keeping the ice in reserve to address shortages during the 2006 hurricane season, but there were not as many storms as predicted.
So far, it has cost the agency $12.5 million to warehouse the ice in 23 facilities across the country. Paying to store the ice for two years is especially inexcusable since FEMA’s contract with the Massachusetts-based storage contractor, AmeriCold, mandated that the agency dispose of unused ice within three months of purchase.
Initially, FEMA attempted to donate the extra ice to another federal agency, but could not find any agency willing to take it. There was talk of giving it away to the public, but FEMA officials worried that, after so much time in storage, the ice might not be safe for human consumption. The idea of selling the ice, even at a discount, to willing industrial buyers in order to recover at least some of the costs was apparently never seriously considered. Instead, FEMA is paying $3.4 million to melt the ice, which is expected to take 11 months.

See, isn’t government great, look how well they manage!  Now consider, if a private company were to pull stupid stunts  like this one, how long do you think they would be in business?  Not long, I’d wager, but with your friendly federal government running the show, you can’t get rid of agencies like this.  Once they’re created, they’re here to stay.

Everybody should have one of these:

Among other issues, Paul also voiced support for abandoning the war on drugs, allowing gold and silver to serve as legal tender, repealing the Seventeenth Amendment - which lets voters directly elect U.S. Senators - and ending the practice of withholding taxes from one’s pay. Instead, taxpayers would have to actually write checks to pay their taxes, a move Paul figured would soon end what he called the present tax-and-spend philosophy of government.

VOTORS - Virginians Over-Taxed On Residences

Urgent Action Needed

Dear VOTORS:The 2007 session of the Virginia General Assembly has begun. Our real estate property tax issue is represented by bill number H.J.R. 559, patroned by Del. Jeff Frederick (District 52), that will reform Virginia’s property tax system to one based on acquisition value and limit annual increases in assessments and tax rates.

H.J.R. 559 will be debated in the Privileges and Elections Committee beginning Wednesday, January 17, 2007, in Sub-committee #1 chaired by Del. Bob Marshall. The Delegates on that sub-committee need to hear from you before they debate our bill. Please send an email to each of the Delegates in the list below. For your convenience, I have provided three things: a brief email text for your use, a list of the sub-committee Delegates with their respective email addresses and a copy of the sub-committee agenda containing information about H.J.R. 559. Del. Johnny Joannou does not have a listed email address, so I have provided his capitol office phone number instead.

Email text:

Dear Delegate ________________________:

Please support and vote for H.J.R. 559 when you begin debate on the issue of real estate property tax reform in Virginia.

We have been suffering for years from a capricious and arbitrary property tax system with annual property tax increases that rise without limit due to market forces beyond our control. Families have had to drastically reduce spending and savings levels in order to cope with tax increases. It is not uncommon for families to be forced from their homes in search of more affordable property taxes.

Please help us by supporting H.J.R.559.

Sincerely,

List of Delegate email addresses (Frederick not listed because he is the patron):

Marshall, R.G. (Chairman) DelBMarshall@house.state.va.us
Del. Ingram DelRIngram@house.state.va.us
Del. Cole DelMCole@house.state.va.us
Del. Hugo DelTHugo@house.state.va.us
Del. Fralin DelWFralin@house.state.va.us
Del. O’Bannon DelJOBannon@house.state.va.us
Del. Phillips DelBPhillips@house.state.va.us
Del. Alexander DelKAlexander@house.state.va.us
Del. Joannou (804) 698-1079
Del. Sickles DelMSickles@house.state.va.us

Agenda:

House Committee on Privileges and Elections
Subcommittee #1 (Marshall, R.G.)

Marshall, R.G. (Chairman), Ingram, Cole, Hugo, Frederick, Fralin, O’Bannon, Phillips, Alexander, Joannou, Sickles

Date of Meeting: January 17, 2007
Time and Place: 5:00 p.m. — 4th Floor West

H.J.R. 559
Patron: Frederick
Constitutional amendment (first resolution); real property assessments and tax rates. Provides that assessments of real property shall not increase annually by more than one percent plus the percentage increase, if any, in the rate of inflation. Increases in the rate of taxation on real property are limited to one percent per year.

Thanks to all of you VOTORS for your commitment to Virginia’s real estate property tax reform. The Delegates will give us the property tax reform we seek, but only if they are convinced how important it is to us.

Al Aitken
Chairman
VOTORS
chairman@votors.org
www.votors.org
540.825.1057
540.729.0536

Yes, I know it’s a little late, but it still wouldn’t hurt to send correspondence to either these or your own representatives.  I doubt that they have completed debating the issue yet.