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Published Brownsville Herald  February 8, 2009

Recently, As a representative of the Libertarian Party, I was invited by Sergio Sanchez to join him on his “Open Phones” Radio Show, to comment on the Economy Stimulus Package.

The turn in discussion was quite critical and gave support to the idea that it was mostly a spending package designed to repay the political idealists for the votes in the last election.

The discussion substantially focused my previous concern at the impact of the package in specific and the trends towards socialist cultural engineering they portend.

I have long thought that helping our sick and poor neighbors was primarily the responsibility of their neighbors usually through local religious institutions. I believe that time and resources I provide are best and most efficiently managed locally and by the church or charitable organizations that are most knowledgeable about the real needs. The elites and rulers in Washington do not care as much for the people as they do about getting reelected where the charity only cares about satisfying all the needs.

Currently, the United States Government is the largest charitable organization in the World with the Catholic Church in second place.

It would seem that the government is trying to displace religion in our culture and the churches are even helping by begging the government to send checks and supporting the political agendas that would absolve their responsibilities to their flocks.

Many of the recipients of the government largess see the checks as payments due them not as charity designed to help the real impoverished and those temporarily disadvantaged. In fact the government is becoming the religion of socialism, seizing resources from those who have been more successful, to pay their constituency, with the goal being to remain in power.

The founders of our country designed the nation to prevent the government from becoming and specified limitations to the government so that we would not again be controlled by the imperial government we are supporting today.

The solution is coming in just over a year and one-half when the members of the House of Representatives will be up for election. All we need is to, not elect any incumbents!

My Libertarian political beliefs are being proven to me more and more every day as I see this group or that placing all their hopes in getting that government check that will make the world, as they see it, well again.

Then the political players say “if you do this or pay this we will get you that. We only have to look to the debacle with the governor of Illinois to see the world as those in the halls of power see it. If the bribe for a seat in the National Senate is worth $1,000,000 what would you think the Senator can expect as a result of his office? Perhaps the tax issues of Senator Daschle, which resulted in the disclosure of millions of dollars earned in just a few years after his last public office, will give a hint of the payback.

This is what happens when being a representative of the people becomes a profit making business.

The offices should all have term limits of no more than two tours and the pension benefits should be limited to social security.

Consider; What is the administration’s view of bi-partisanship? Several nominees for office with specific issues that prevented approval of officials in previous administrations are being approved. Somehow the rues have changed = I wonder why!

Some actions are leading me to believe our rulers are trusting our enemies more than each other.

Others try to convince me that the government can run business better than businessmen; when people who have proven to be of questionable trust are placed at the highest positions – Sec of Treasury didn’t pay self employment tax and then accepted reimbursement for it. He blamed TurboTax software for not warning him and got off without even a penalty. I have used Turbo Tax since the first issue and have found that self employment tax is automatically computed, you have to override the situation to avoid payment.

The folks are becoming more and more discouraged with their current political leadership, which has resulted in more media interest in alternate political thinking. Just in the last few weeks Libertarians like Vice-President candidate Wayne Allyn Root,  Ron Paul and Penn Jillette were interviewed  on the mainstream media for Libertarian views.

2008 was arecord-breaking year for the Texas Libertarian Party.  Not only did two candidates break the million-vote mark, it was also the first time in the Party’s history that our presidential vote total went up in three consecutive presidential elections.
Indeed, the foundation is set for the Libertarian Party to become the nation’s leading political party fully dedicated to the principles of the Constitution, and the philosophy of liberty.
One of the core victories for the Libertarian Party in 2008 was the retention of ballot access status in Texas.  Instead of the thousands of signatures to get Libertarians on the ballot; in 2012, it will take 0. 

Renewals on membership are up 108 percent compared to the same time period in 2004 election period.

People are looking for an alternate to the current missrun government.

I join the Libertarians and ask Congress to give everyone a “Tim Geithner tax break”