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Throwing Pearls Before Swine
I decided to revisit an old drawing about the spending habits of Congress. I'll leave the lengthy commentary on the stimulus bill to more eloquent writers. The imagery and title say it all.
As you can probably guess, I've been busy writing letters in opposition to the 'stimulus package' Obama is demanding that we swallow. I know he got into office because of banana republic voting methods, but this is still Amaerica. (I say this because a woman stood up at one of my art shows and admonished everyone to vote early and often because we need Obama.) His petulance and unprofessionalism, not to mention hypocrisy are astounding. So here is my most recent letter.
Senators Chambliss and Isakson, please stick to your principles on the
stimulus package and every other issue you address this year no matter
what the cost. President Obama is showing himself to be a petulant child
who demands his way, or else. It is disappointing to see a candidate who
ran on the promise of change, ending earmarks and wasteful government
programs, as well as the influence of lobbyists go back on his word
regarding all topics within his first month in office. This bill is an
atrocity, denounced even by the Congressional Budget Office as wasteful
and ineffective. I do not want to see future generations burdened with the
expense of this bill. Obama keeps saying he won. You did as well, or you
wouldn't be in office. Do not allow Obama to marginalize the opinions of a
large minority (48%) of voters, simply because they disagree with him. The
mantra of the left has always been 'every vote counts'. Please stand up to
these strong-arm tactics. You represent the people of Georgia, and were
put in office to uphold our principles, not Obama's wishes. Thank you for
your time, and continued efforts on my behalf.
President Obama, shame on you. Hypocrisy is not a virtue.
As you can see from my sidebar, I support the Read the Bills Act sponsored by DownsizeDC.org. The basic idea behind the proposal is that Congress should read a bill before they sign it. What a novel idea. This would have the benefit of making sure each Representative is aware of what they are voting for, as well as making them fully responsible for that vote.I find it highly unacceptable that bills are passing and Congressmen are claiming to be unaware of their contents. If they don't have time to read the bill, it's either too big or they aren't qualified for their job.
The RTBA would also eliminate 'log-rolling', which is the popular practice of lumping a bunch of bills together for expediency. This way, Congressmen feel the need to vote for a package containing pork or bad legislation because they don't want to kill the provisions of which they approve.
In the interest of brevity and accuracy, I will direct you to the following link: DownsizeDC's Read the Bills Act
I am currently working on a painting that is meant to address the most disturbing aspect of George Bush’s terms as President. As the title suggests, I feel that Compassionate Conservatism is the worst legacy Bush could have bestowed upon the people of the United States. Above all else, it is the one thing about his Presidency that has had the most affect on the most people. As a matter of fact, it is the root of all the problems in his administration. It is the compulsion that drives him to nation building in Iraq, financial bailouts, and bad economic policy at home, and environmental legislation that affects the livelihoods of many Americans.
Compassionate Conservatism, with the support of the Democratic majority in Congress have worked together to the massive increase in national debt, a huge deficit, and increased government intervention in people's lives. The spending programs alone are creating a burden that the taxpayers of today and future generations will struggle to pay.
As a result of this movement within the Republican Party toward compassion and away from Constitutional principles, we are now faced with one major party in this country that does everything in its power to keep anyone else from challenging their power. Because most voters make their electoral decisions based on Party affiliation, rather than principle, we are faced with a huge problem. The Republicans and Democrats are now fighting to spend more money on their respective constituents, rather than performing the job laid out in the Constitution.
People say W is the worst President in history. Although I find the assertion excessive, I can concede that it has some merit. My main argument is that Congress has had as much to do with the creation of the mess we are in as Bush has. They pass the Bills and write the legislation, therefore, they share the guilt. Bush’s guilt lies in his inability to stand up to his campaign promises and use his power of veto. He let the American people down by running on a campaign of reform and compromising on everything he proposed as well as signing on to huge pork and entitlement programs.
The only redeeming quality of his administration is the prevention of further terrorist attacks since 9/11. Unfortunately, that accomplishment is sullied by the abuse of civil liberties perpetrated in the Patriot Act as well as the enormous debt being incurred in Iraq. Although I supported the war, I think it is time to let the Iraqi people take responsibility for their own country and remove another source of debt from the American taxpayers.
It is not our government’s job to take care of us, protect us from ourselves, or dictate morality to us when no one else is harmed by our actions. Our government should stop trying to police the world, and let the American people choose who and how much they help with foreign aid on a personal level. There is no justification for the government dictate charity at the point of a gun.
For more information on these topics and some politically relevant art, check out http://www.machinepolitick.com/ There's new work going up all the time, and it's all about increased freedom and limited government.
