The Problem with Election Funds and Evil

I heard a lot of people say they voted for Obama because he was the "lesser of two evils." It's sad that people had to think that any of our political were evil. Growing up we were taught to have a deep respect for the President of the United States. Times were definitely different then. Certainly no one presidential candidate collected over a billion dollars. With so many people out of work you would think that the billion dollars raised could have been used in more productive ways than launching smear campaigns. The truth is that 1 billion dollars equals about the salary of 20,000 median income families (that is families that earn 50,000 per year.) Putting that in perspective - The campaign funds from Obama could have easily housed and fed the entire population of Adams County, Wisconsin.  Mitt Romney's campaign funds, by the same token, could have supported 18,000 families. He could have given 50,000 to every citizen in Jasper, IN and still had enough left over to run some ads. But neither candidate did that. Not one penny of either candidates campaign money was used to support a needy family, raise a community center, or feed the homeless.

In turn instead of having an unbiased and fair election we had the battle of the bucks. Big bucks run elections. That's why when you mention people like Gary Johnson, Jill Stein, Laurie Roth, or Virgil Goode most Americans have no earthly clue who you are talking about. Most media outlets won't even talk to them or take them seriously. They have nowhere near the monetary backing that major party candidates receive.

The question is this: How many of you would have voted for the candidate that took his campaign money and used it to help a failing business? What if they took some of that campaign money and actually used it to support a wounded soldier pay off his mortgage? Perhaps they took a bit of the money and opened a community center in a troubled neighborhood? What type of media coverage would this have given them?

Of course neither candidate did that. There is supposed to be laws regarding how the campaign funds can be used. Yet there was proof that those legal issues of obtaining funds weren't exactly followed and there wasn't even a "bad boy" or a hand slap given for the offense. It was met with a simple "oops" and an "oh well."

I'm not angry over the election results. Honestly, it wouldn't matter which candidate won, though I wasn't even the least bit surprised by the results. The media does an awesome job of making the majority of people see and think what they want them to see and think. They seemed to even promote fallacies and twist facts in order to confuse and manipulate.

 My hope was that we had enough votes for one third party candidate to open up new options in our political system. That didn't happen.

The truth is that the only real change in this country can come from people actually waking up to realize that politics isn't about what is best for the country - it is about what is best for the party. Money and power run this country.

George Washington said, "Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." Our founding father's didn't believe in big government, and today our Federal government is growing like a wildfire out of control through each of our towns and businesses. Some of us see the scorching and realize we need to push it back before we are consumed, while others bask in the heat believing that they will never be burned. They feed the flames.

We have serious issues at home. We have high unemployment with more businesses each day cutting jobs. We have higher prices on commodities and lowering of incomes. Which brings us to remember another great insight of our first president, "Happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected." We seem to have forgotten what our moral duty entails.

What Happens When We Punish Businesses?

What happens when we overtax businesses?

First, think of a business like you would your household. This might help. You have things you can afford and then you have necessities. The only thing is when your taxes and incidentals go up you can't fire yourself, your spouse, and/or your children. 

Rent or Mortgage – a must have

Taxes – can’t get away from them

Utilities – another must have, such as phone service, electricity, internet or intranet, water, gas.

Incidentals - Furniture, air conditioning, heating.

Insurance – required by law, but businesses require a lot of insurance. Health insurance, property insurance, unemployment insurance, liability insurance, disability insurance, workmen’s compensation insurance.

Business supplies including products needed to sell or for production.

Now these are just the basics they have to meet to stay open. They can all be quite expensive. On top of these expenses they have to hire employees. So, as the economy in the US goes down sales go down. As sales go down profit goes down. What does not go down? That would be rent and/or mortgage, most likely, taxes, because they are on the increase, and insurance premiums. They also, since the economy is going down will most likely have to start paying more for supplies since cost of materials are rising.

Now, salaries have to be paid to employees because not one business I know of has people that go to work just for fun and say, “Nah, please don’t pay me. Just working here is reward enough.”

If demand for products or services is on a decline and taxes and other incidentals are going up what can a business cut from the budget to stay afloat? It can’t cut out the mortgage payments. It has to pay the taxes. Utilities can be reduced, maybe, but they can’t be cut. Insurance is required by law, so they can’t cut that out either. The only thing they can cut out is the amount of employees that they hire. On top of this they may even have to cut out rewards programs that employees were receiving before taxes were increased because profits are declining.

With the layoffs we also increase the unemployment status in the US, which is high already. Yes, the unemployment status went down slightly recently, but that is because some businesses are hiring for the holiday season. Look for the numbers to go right back up again after the holidays.

The bottom line is that businesses will not and cannot stay open without making a profit, just like a household cannot go on without an income. A profitable business will hire more people making the unemployment rates go down instead of up. More people will be able to keep their homes and food on their tables.

It’s sad when you hear that a business laid off people to rehire only part-time employees just so they don’t have to pay the added taxes set down by the government or the required increase in insurance benefits from the present administration. What happens to these employees besides just a cut in pay? They have to make sacrifices in their homes and make cuts as well, such as not spending as much and increasing the decline in American business. They also will now be required to find affordable insurance or pay a tax. Why? We have overtaxed our businesses, who are also the employers in this nation.

It’s nice to think that no matter what we do we can be rewarded, but that’s not even realistic. Realism comes when you stop to consider that without viable, healthy businesses this country is screwed. We only add to our increasing debt problems.

So, hate those that are touting giving breaks to businesses, but stop and think for just a minute about why it’s necessary, because right now small to moderate businesses are suffering over the increased taxes and requirements being set down by our government. If this continues you will be seeing a lot more empty buildings and a lot more people pounding the pavement hoping that somewhere there is work so that they can have a roof over their head and food in their bellies. Believe me, with the increased level of debt that this country is accruing daily welfare that we so easily take for granted may not be revamped or revised but just out and out broken because even our government won’t be able to pay and provide for the needy.

Building businesses in the country will build the economy in this country. Taxation is not the answer – it is actually one of the problems. The only cure to our increasing debt is to quit unnecessary spending.

This is why so many people are voting Republican, because when Obama gets back into office we can expect further decline in our economy, a lot more layoffs, and a lot more people needing government assistance. I don't want to vote Republican, but I live in Wisconsin, a swing state. I wanted to vote for Gary Johnson and for my principles. I don't feel I have a choice, because realistically I have to vote for one of two parties instead. This has become the American way. So, here is another vote for Romney/Ryan.

Oh, and that cheap insurance you think you'll have? Just wait, because I think you are going to find it costs a lot more than what you were promised. 

At 4:44 What is the universe saying?

I was stark awake this morning before the sun rose. I looked over at the clock and it was 4:44 am. It seemed odd to me to wake up with three fours. When I had my heart attack a few years ago it was around 4 am. I wasn't able to go back to sleep right away. I rolled one way. Then I rolled another. I woke my husband who asked, "Do you need me to move?" I told him, "No. I'm fine."

Finally I picked up my laptop and wrote out a will. It's not that I'm rich and have a lot to give, but it just seemed like the right thing to do. Afterward I drifted back off.

I didn't die. 

I think it's important here to make reference to the fact that in spite of my husband making a very good living we are having a very rough time getting ends to meet. We aren't alone. He works very hard. Most weeks he works over 40 hours per week and doesn't get overtime. Still we struggle. We have two boys at home going through school. Our mortgage is about the only bill we have been able to pay to keep a roof over our heads. We have medical insurance, but it doesn't pay all the hospital and doctor bills. The utility bills have increased the last couple of years by about 40%. Food bills have increased by 45%. Everyone knows how high gasoline prices have increased. Unfortunately wages haven't gone up with the increase in costs. Government is killing us with tax increases and all the free programs they want to give out that only those working families pay for and don't receive any benefit from. So, it's no wonder that the first thought in my mind when I thought I may be having another heart attack my thought was, "Oh, Brian can use the insurance money to help alleviate our debt!" 

I did mention this to him, but his response was, "I'd rather be totally broke without anything than lose you."

Anyway, I looked up 4:44. Interestingly enough the first hit on google was a movie starring William Dafoe about the end of the world. Okay. A little farther down we have a reference for John 4:44 which reads, "Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country." Prophet? I never thought of myself as such, however, I love my country. I just hate what the government is doing to it. But enough to make me wake up at that hour for no reason? So, I took out the colon. Here is what I found.

Spiritual meaning of 444: "The spiritual meaning of 444 is one of many repeating numbers designed to get your attention and serve as a wake up call from your spiritual guides.

444 is a very powerful number. It means that your angels are by your side and want the very best for you. They are asking that you pay attention very carefully to the signs that you see around you."

That is a much more comforting thought. It was definitely a wake up call. There are a lot of changes that have to be made. So, whatever the universe is trying to say, just know, I'm listening.

Things ARE NOT Getting Better

I do not know about anyone else, but we are much worse off now than we were four years ago.. even two years ago. Groceries have risen about 60% over the last four years. Insurance rates increased. They took all the old cars and destroyed them instead of recycling which made car repair go up. Utilities have risen by 40%. Gasoline prices have seriously increased. Income taxes increased. Homeowner taxes increased. Cost of health care is outrageous even with insurance and companies paying up to 90% of the bill. After my surgery and Aidan's illness we still owe tens of thousands of dollars AFTER insurance. I am unable to hold a full time job due to my condition, yet I have to fight to get benefits and have been denied. Wages have not risen with the price of inflation, and yet they say not to worry because things are becoming stable? Seriously? We may have to sell our home - if we can due to the housing market - or lose it altogether. This is how we know the government is lying to us. They can afford fancy parties, $500 per plate dinners, and designer clothes while we scrounge to keep food on the table. In spite of this people still keep looking with blinders on going in the same direction like sheep. I'm not asking for a hand out. I miss the days when we could pay our bills and have a chance. All this because we have a middle class income? We aren't even doing as well as the lower class who get free money for being poor while we struggle to just survive.