Saturday, May 21, 2005

My taxes support our troops

I've been struck with awe at an amazing coincidence. As I drive about, I've noticed that all the cars sporting the "Support Our Troops" ribbons (I wonder where that money goes) also still sport their "W '04" stickers. Somewhere else, they may have their flag decal. Good patriotic Americans. Yet when it comes to taxes, these are the same people who gripe the most! I guess they feel they don't owe anything to the land of opportunity, no duty to provide for the common defense, as if they can just take what they need from this country and not give any thing back. And it's not like they can claim taxation without representation! Now, I don't make a lot of money. I know that some day when I do, I'll be happy, no, proud to pay a lot of taxes. I just ask that my tax monies not be used to fund illegal wars of conquest. I'd rather pay $22 Billion to eliminate poverty in this country, or to be put towards the national debt, than to pay to Halliburton in no-bid contracts to put back together a country that we shouldn't have blown apart in the first place.
Then these very same flag waving America Firsters have no problem with American manufacturing jobs being moved across the border. Or to China. Look at how they solved their labor problem. The well compensated American worker was the backbone of the consumer driven economic booms in this country. Now all those jobs are going. And the American worker is taking the blame, because they all want to be "rich". Well, if a doctor, making $350,000 a year doesn't consider themselves "rich", then how can a worker who wants to make $40,000 be getting rich? The workers only want to be able to take care of their families and enjoy some of the benefits of living in the greatest country in the world.
What I really don't get is how Bush supporters can claim he supports our troops when he and the Republicans slashed VA funding. These are our troops, some of them having lost something defending our flag, and now the Republicans want to take from them benefits they rightfully earned fighting in the wars that Bush and Company were too chicken to fight.
No, if you really supported our troops, you would ask that our leaders never send them off to fight other peoples wars. Or fight illegal wars of conquest.

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