”The image is one thing and the human being is another. It’s very hard to live up to an image.”
-Elvis Presley
Is that our problem? Did the King (Elvis, not Obama) manage to sum up the entire scope of American politics and maybe even our society there in that simple, lip-curling, quote? Setting aside Elvis’ affinity for Quaalude flavored doughnuts, there actually is some sense in the words above. Especially when compared to the predicament in which we currently find ourselves.
Today, image seems to be everything. Everybody’s a star and nobody’s unique. Everybody’s better than everyone else so no accomplishment is worthy of praise. In fact, a genuine accomplishment is often frowned upon simply because of public opinion. Greed and an overwhelming sense of self-importance have taken over the very fiber of our country. We say that we want better for our children. We say we don’t contribute personally to the creeping kudzu of fabricated warfare, yet abstinence from combat is often not an option. Our brains simply won’t let us accept what we interpret as inferiority. The noblest of men in our country have, at one time or another, fallen prey to the proverbial “I want what he’s got” mentality. Entire industries have been built upon the notion of attaining what can’t currently be afforded. Our government essentially operates under this mentality.
Whatever happened to saving and yearning for something you can’t currently afford? It’s called entitlement and if you are in favor of getting life handed to you for little to no effort, perhaps this would be a good time for you to catch some form of public transportation right on out of this conversation. For those who believe in working your butts off and only going after that which you can currently afford with what is currently yours to give…..please read and share the following examples of desired image being provided to those who have done nothing to earn it.
- We’ve all heard about the expansion of fraud within the major entitlement programs. Medicare, Medicaid, housing services, food stamps have topped the GAO’s list of waste, fraud and abuse for decades yet they have grown exponentially. In other words, more and more people have figured out that taking something for free is easier than working for it. I’m not saying that no one deserves welfare so put that ridiculous, race-baiting, victim creating nonsense back in your tent and take a little weed-nap, occupier! What I am saying is that the loopholes which allow such abuse are being ignored by those who could close them and exploited by those who gain from them. Our government is hemorrhaging money and all we hear from our
leadersPresident and Congress is “it’s all his fault” or “it’s because {insert manufactured oppressor here} hates the {insert manufactured voting victim here}.” - Take a look at the so called Buffett Rule Obama is so excited about. Every time he gets to talk about increasing the tax burden of the “rich” or forcing the wealthy
to pay their “fair share” he gets visibly giddy. We, as a country, are trillions of dollars in debt. The Buffett rule, over the next decade, would bring in an estimated $46.7 billion. Under Obama’s proposals, our debt would increase by $7 TRILLION over that same decade. The Buffet Rule would make up exactly .667142857% of the money Obama plans to spend over the next decade. The men that Obama parades out onto the stage with him when he promotes this ludicrous idea are men who, like Mitt Romney, earn the majority of their income off of capital gains and dividends, not taxable wages. Notice no one is suggesting that those rates be touched. You know who will be affected the most by these new rules? It’s the young pro-athlete who is out there blindly promoting Obama because of a shared skin tone. He’s the one who earns over a million dollars a year in taxable income. It’s the idiotic little actress who uses her fame to promote Obama as the Messiah. Those people are the ones that Obama counts on in November. Those are the people that will promote Obama’s message of “fairness.” Their fame provides all the authority that will be needed to make them credible supporters in Obama’s constant campaign. In a society where disrespectful sound-bytes equal power and credibility, Obama has inserted himself as King.
- This morning, I heard the delightful tale of another blatant misuse of a once noble idea. Kimball Clark, a 45 year old Boston man who has had a long history of “disagreement” with the police, was once again locked up for selling heroin. His “disagreement” stems from the fact that he believes he should be able to sell heroin while the police maintain that it’s still illegal and punishable by arrest. During the booking process at a Dorchester, MA Police Lockup, Clark was overheard making his one phone call to tell someone to “go get {his} EBT card and go to an ATM to get cash and bail him out.” He used his taxpayer funded EBT card to post bail for drug distribution. Now, I’m sure I will be called a racist for bringing this topic up in such a light but where in the hell does a man’s skin color give him the right to use MY money to bail him out of jail for selling drugs? I don’t care if Kimball Clark was as green as Gumby or as blue as a Smurf, he abused a system whose scope was never intended to cover his illegal activities and inherent lifestyle.
- EBT Cards began replacing food stamps in the 1990’s. They essentially work like an ATM card only it’s you and me working for the money that goes into the accounts, not the cardholder. Since cash can be obtained from the cards, we are essentially funding whatever the cardholder chooses to do. Drugs, and porn all the way to tithing and baby formula. The intent of the program, like so many before it, was heartfelt. Unfortunately, loopholes are exploited and broadcast long before authorities can close them up.
- Social Security Disability fraud is rampant yet very little seems to be done about it. In July of last year, Judge David Daugherty of West Virginia stepped down amidst an investigation into the fact that he approved almost every disability claim that came before his court. Eighteen months of Social Security disposition data show Daugherty decided 2,104 disability cases between Sept. 26, 2009, and March 25, 2011. He denied benefits in four cases. That equaled an approval rate of 99.8 percent. Anybody hear about this? No matter what was found in the course of that particular investigation, it points to a much bigger, systemic problem in our culture. It points to the fact that a judge was rumored to be giving out free money and 2,104 people lined up outside his court for their “fair share.”
Entitlement programs do not need to be expanded. They need to be enforced. The government does not need to support those who are simply lining up for a handout. If someone is truly unable to provide for themselves, then I praise God that we live in a country willing to step in and help. That’s what these programs were designed to do. That’s great. What I don’t agree with is this mentality that nothing is out of reach for anyone in this country.
I want to take my family to Hawaii for about ten days next year. Is there a government program I should ask to provide this trip or should I just buckle down and save my money and earn the trip? Remember when attaining the goal was as important as the goal itself? Remember when the struggle and the journey enriched the achievement?
“Fair Share” does not mean “free.” By living in this country you are given the fair share of the freedom due to you, but you are also expected to maintain your fair share of the responsibility. You don’t get the money without putting in the work. You don’t get to waste our precious electoral system by voting for the candidate you feel will give you the most free stuff. You don’t get to discredit the intentions of our Constitution by manipulating it to serve only your personal interests. Don’t expect His Barackness or any of his little handbag Chihuahuas to attack this issue. Don’t expect any politician to attack this issue. Doing so will immediately cost them votes. Besides, I’m not sure we want to know the entire scope of the fraud that has ruined our country’s initiative, motivation, and net worth. The change in this arena will come from a constant and impossible to ignore outcry whenever abuse is suspected. Politicians are afraid of losing the votes of those who benefit from fraud but why are those votes they depend on? Why is more not being done to bring shame onto those who are essentially robbing each and every one of us? Stand up and fight, dammit!
As always, thanks for playing!
J Robert Giles
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