Worcester County Freedom Trail

From the planning committee at the Worcester Tea Party…the next big rally. Call all your friends and neighbors. We can’t sit idly by while Beacon Hill grabs every penny they can.

Dear Tea Party Patriots:

Next week we’ll publicly announce our speakers for the Worcester Tea Party-Rally for Responsible Government, but we’re giving you the information today!  The rally will be held at Elm Park on Saturday, June 20 from noon to 3 p.m. 

Here are some of the speakers that will be featured:

- Chip Faulkner, Associate Director of Citizens for Limited Taxation

- Todd Feinburg, WRKO Radio

- David G. Tuerck, Executive Director of The Beacon Hill Institute and Chairman, Department of Economics Suffolk University

- Nicholas Sanchez, Professor of Economics, College of the Holy Cross

- Carla Howell, President of the Center for Small Government.

Professor Sanchez will also be the featured speaker at our first Worcester Tea Party Forum, to be held in the Saxe Room at the Worcester Public Library.  The forum will be held on Tuesday, June 30 at 7 p.m.  More details about this forum will follow in a couple of weeks.

What can you do to help our movement to bring fiscal responsibility to all levels of government?  Get the word out about our Rally for Responsible Government! 

We need to build our organization so that when elections come around we have the ability to provide meaningful support to fiscally responsible candidates.

Over the weekend I will be emailing you a PDF file with a full color poster for the Rally for Responsible Government.  Please print out several copies and put them up in your neighborhood and at work.  Also, please forward it to everyone you know.  Ask your friends, family, and co-workers to come to the rally and ask them to promote it. 

Finally, if you want to be involved in planning events, please join our committee.   We’ll be having our next meeting this Sunday, May 31 at 7 p.m. in Oxford.  You will need to contact me via the Worcester Tea Party web site if you wish to come.  I will respond with directions.

Thank you for supporting the Worcester Tea Party.

Ken Mandile
Worcester Tea Party Organizer
www.worcesterteaparty.com

I am very concerned that the Obama administration’s trend toward socialism is going to destroy many things, including our world-class healthcare system. Here’s an interesting column from Barbara Howard, Florida state chair for CORE, the Congress of Racial Equality, in the South Florida Times.

Recently, I had the great opportunity to spend some quality time with our healthcare system. While I had wonderful care for the three days I spent at Jackson North Medical Center in North Miami Beach, I couldn’t help but wonder: What if this had happened after Obama’s healthcare reform had taken place?

At my age, under this wonderful plan of his, I would have been left to my own devices. [He] has devised a plan to socialize medicine.

First, his National Coordinator of Health Information Technology will mandate that all my (and yours) medical records be converted into electronic data. Problem: If hackers can get into your bank files, what do you think they could do to your medical files?  Second problem: Who do you think pays for this?  Why, we do, of course.

Oh, he put some money into the budget for the conversion, but it won’t be enough. I’ve participated in conversions before, and those who plan it never know the true costs. Third problem: Once the conversion is completed, the federal government will have access to all, I repeat, all your medical information and secrets. How about your drug or alcohol treatments, your abortions, your STDs?  Of course, your doctor will be penalized if he/she doesn’t comply.

Then, after all your records are computerized and accessed by the federal government, the new Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research will review your doctors’ recommendations for treatment and medications, and decide if they are “appropriate and cost-effective.”

And, guess what? Obama allocated more money in his Economic Stimulus Bill to fund these initiatives than the funding for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, combined.

This council, made up of bureaucrats, could have easily decided that I was too old to have all the medical attention the hospital gave me, and there would have been nothing I could do about it.

Obama knows little or nothing about how to “fix” the best health care system in the world. If [US healthcare] were not the best, then people from all over the world would not be coming here for treatment. [Here in the Boston area we see people come from across the globe.]

But our new president thinks he knows more than everybody, including all 43 presidents before him.  Yet he has not run any type of organization – ever.  Not a city, not a county, not a state, not a small company, not a large corporation, not an educational institution, not a non-profit organization, not even a governmental agency.

But our lives are in his hands. And if he doesn’t change his philosophy of big government running all our businesses, including our healthcare system, we will all be in big trouble.

He may be a smart man, but having a Harvard Law School education does not prepare him to run the largest government in the world.  As my mother used to say, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.”

An update from Rep. Lew Evangelidis (R-Holden) on the apparent favoritism being shown by the Department of Education on school waivers. Swine flu is a serious issue, but so was our December 2008 ice storm crisis, during which many schools served as emergency shelters.

It was reported in [the] newspapers that the Commissioner of Education was considering granting waivers to certain schools who have chosen to close in response to the swine flu. As we all know, the Commissioner showed no flexibility with our districts following the devastating ice storm of December 11th. As a result of that inflexibility our students were required to attend an unprecedented school schedule which included Saturdays, three weeks of extended school days, and classes during vacation weeks.

Although I don’t question any districts decision on whether to keep their schools open or not, I do have concerns about what I perceive as a possible double standard from the Department of Education regarding their flexibility on the 180 day school requirement.

Today I spoke with the Chief of Staff for the Commissioner of Education who informed me that the Commissioner was inclined to grant a waiver to the schools who closed as a result of the swine flu. I had a long discussion with her about the concerns that my dist rict has regarding this decision. Our schools were closed from December 12th to January 5th and many of our schools were being used as shelters. I am writing a letter at this time along with some of my colleagues expressing our concerns about what we perceive as a double standard being applied to the 180 day requirement.

Our district has come to learn that DOE will only grant waivers in extraordinary conditions. I look forward to hearing the Commissioners rationale as to why the current conditions warrants granting a waiver.

Sincerely,
Lew Evangelidis

Great letter I just received from the Center for Small Government.

An Open Letter to the Massachusetts State Legislature

From Carla Howell and Michael Cloud, Sponsors of the 2008 Massachusetts End the Income Tax Ballot Initiative

Dear Honorable Legislators,
 
“What’s 2 plus 2?” a first grade teacher asked her students.
 
“4,” said one child.
 
“3,” said another.
 
“Peaches,” answered the third.
 
The first answer was right, the second was wrong, and the third answer wasn’t even wrong.
 
Basic Economics teaches: “If you want more of something, subsidize it; if you want less, tax it.”
 
Yet you RAISED the Massachusetts sales tax from 5% to 6.25% – at a time when Massachusetts sales are down – and fragile.
 
You RAISED the sales tax – at a time of rising layoffs and falling pay of private sector employees.
 
You RAISED the sales tax – when retail businesses are struggling to survive.
 
We need to increase sales in Massachusetts, NOT reduce them.
 
When faced with Massachusetts’ current economic recession, you had 3 ways to vote on the sales tax:
 
“Cut or End the sales tax” – the right answer.
 
“Keep the sales tax at 5% – the wrong answer.
 
“Raise the sales tax to 6.25% – the Not Even Wrong answer.
 
Your sales tax increase will make things worse for those who sell and those who buy in Massachusetts.
 
Your sales tax hike will cause more retail employee layoffs, less sales assistance for shoppers, reduced inventory purchases by businesses, and more business closures in Massachusetts.
 
Honorable Legislators, it is not enough to merely undo what you have done.
 
You must undo the sales tax.
 
On behalf of the 3,200,000+ workers of Massachusetts,
 
On behalf of those 100,000 to 300,000 employees in danger of being laid off because of your job-killing tax hike,
 
We request that you immediately repeal the Massachusetts state sales tax.
 
We request that this $4 billion tax reduction be matched by an equal $4 billion government spending reduction.
Total state and local government spending in Massachusetts – on budget and off budget – is slightly over $70 billion.
 
$4 billion tax reduction divided by $70 billion total Massachusetts government spending is a 5.7% spending cut. This will leave $66 billion.
 
We request that you instruct each government department to streamline, eliminate inefficiencies and waste, and remove the unneeded – to easily trim off 5.7%.
 
If any government department has trouble identifying at least 5.7% in non-essential spending, we will be delighted to come down and help.
 
We’ve been warned that it’s not possible to END the sales tax because you are using the tax as collateral for billions of dollars in state government bonds.
 
No problem. Simply substitute collateral for the bonds. Businesses do it all the time. You can, too.
 
ENDing the Massachusetts sales tax now will put $4 billion each year back in the cash registers of struggling retail businesses. And the pockets of hundreds of thousands of employees who work for them.
 
ENDing the Massachusetts sales tax now will make our state a fertile ground for new start-ups and small businesses.
 
ENDing the Massachusetts sales tax now will attract investors and jobs to our state.
 
ENDing the sales tax now could guarantee that Massachusetts will break out of the Recession first – that we will get a head start toward America’s next economic boom.
 
On behalf of the 3,200,000+ million workers who are aching and longing for a way out of this Economic Recession,
 
We ask you to re-think, re-vote, and remove the Massachusetts state sales tax now.

Sincerely,
Carla Howell and Michael Cloud
The Center For Small Government

We got our hands on the roll call for the State Senate vote for the increase in the sales tax. Here are the good guys, the nay’s on the vote:

- Sen Steven Baddour, D-1st Essex
- Sen Scott Brown, R-Norfolk, Bristol, and Middlesex
- Sen Bob Hedlund, R-Plymouth and Norfolk
- Sen Michael Knapik, R-2nd Hampden and Hampshire
- Sen Mark Montigny, D-2nd Bristol and Plymouth
- Sen Richard Moore, D-Worcester and Norfolk
- Sen Bruce Tarr, R-1st Essex and Middlesex
- Sen James Timilty, D-Bristol and Norfolk
- Sen Richard Tisei, R-Middlesex and Essex
- Sen Susan Tucker, D-2nd Essex and Middlesex

Please tell these guys thank you. And send a “you stink” letter to all the rest!

Sadly, the State Senate passed the tax increases last night. State Senator Bob Hedlund (R, Weymouth) calls this the “New Hampshire Economic Stimulus Bill.” That’s for sure. All my friends in NH are quite pleased with the development. I’m too bummed to write any more at the moment, so I’m going to borrow some well chosen words from a fellow blogger, Tina Hemond.

The Massachusetts Senate approved new taxes last evening – including a rise in the state sales tax from 5% to 6.25% and an increase in taxes on retail alcohol sales. Other taxes passed by the senate, are at the discretion of cash-strapped municipalities – a 2% increase on hotel and restaurant taxes, and most disconcerting, Telecommunications tax on personal property: allowing “cities and towns to assess personal property taxes on poles and overhead wires owned by telecommunications companies on public streets and property.” This will mean an increase in both telephone and Internet charges to consumers that can ill afford yet another “fee”.

Additionally, it appears that an increase in the gas tax was still on the table: according to the Boston Globe: a first round of votes shot down the 19 cent per gallon increase proposed by Governor Deval Patrick, an 11 cent per gallon tax was then rejected. Expect the Gas Tax Increase to be readdressed in some not to distant “Emergency Session”.

The Senate passed the bill with only 10 members voting against any increases in State taxes, the 5 Republican State Senators, and those Democrat members that either grew a conscious or are in districts where any tax increase may allow a Disney Character to replace them in the next election.

From WRKO, individuals within the Commonwealth who still have a sense of humor left, dubbed the Massachusetts Senate Bill: “New Hampshire Economic Recovery Act of 2009”. No Kidding. Increasing the State income tax by 25% will only serve to drive retail sales over the border to friendly New Hampshire, with the possibility of job losses from retailers watching sales decline even further during this recession. Additionally, the added tax burden will be passed onto those consumers who can least afford yet another financial woe, those on fixed incomes. Food prices have already risen approximately 15% in the past year alone, add the 25% increase which applies to all paper products, and seniors will be making the tough choice between a pound of hamburger and a package of toilet paper.

The State expects to generate millions in new revenue from these taxes, but one can bet the house, as in previous fee hikes and tax increases, as long as there are no reforms in the excesses of Beacon Hill, or the people revolt and look at Republican and Third party candidates as viable alternatives to those Democrats on the Hill who are so entrenched, they will have to pry their cold, dead bodies, out of their House and Senate seats, this new tax increase will not eliminate a debt or stem the tide, but give these fiscally irresponsible keepers of the Public Trust, even more incentive to pad the budget.

Thanks to Jim for pointing out this great article in the Wall Street Journal. Wish the Beacon Hill Senate would read it before they begin their deliberations about how many ways they can raise our taxes…in the middle of a recession. You can be sure I’ll be buying a lot less of whatever they raise the taxes on!

And I’m thinking Texas is looking like a good place to relocate — lots of high tech and much friendlier to residents and businesses.

With states facing nearly $100 billion in combined budget deficits this year, we’re seeing more governors than ever proposing the Barack Obama solution to balancing the budget: Soak the rich. Lawmakers in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York and Oregon want to raise income tax rates on the top 1% or 2% or 5% of their citizens. New Illinois Gov. Patrick Quinn wants a 50% increase in the income tax rate on the wealthy because this is the “fair” way to close his state’s gaping deficit.

Mr. Quinn and other tax-raising governors have been emboldened by recent studies by left-wing groups like the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities that suggest that “tax increases, particularly tax increases on higher-income families, may be the best available option.” A recent letter to New York Gov. David Paterson signed by 100 economists advises the Empire State to “raise tax rates for high income families right away.”

Here’s the problem for states that want to pry more money out of the wallets of rich people. It never works because people, investment capital and businesses are mobile: They can leave tax-unfriendly states and move to tax-friendly states.

And the evidence that we discovered in our new study for the American Legislative Exchange Council, “Rich States, Poor States,” published in March, shows that Americans are more sensitive to high taxes than ever before. The tax differential between low-tax and high-tax states is widening, meaning that a relocation from high-tax California or Ohio, to no-income tax Texas or Tennessee, is all the more financially profitable both in terms of lower tax bills and more job opportunities.

Updating some research from Richard Vedder of Ohio University, we found that from 1998 to 2007, more than 1,100 people every day including Sundays and holidays moved from the nine highest income-tax states such as California, New Jersey, New York and Ohio and relocated mostly to the nine tax-haven states with no income tax, including Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire and Texas. We also found that over these same years the no-income tax states created 89% more jobs and had 32% faster personal income growth than their high-tax counterparts.

How sad is this? Beacon Hill can be very creative when it comes to raising our taxes. But they have no clue how to cut spending.

From the Worcester Telegram:

The state Senate today will have no shortage of choices on which taxes to raise as it seeks to beef up revenues for the fiscal year beginning in July.

Scattered among more than 600 budget amendments filed Friday are a variety of tax-increase proposals, including options to raise the sales tax from 5 percent to either 6.25 percent or 6.5 percent starting July 1; a 23-cent hike in the gasoline tax; new taxes on alcohol and tobacco; and adoption of a national system that would allow the state to track and tax Internet sales.

Other local option taxes aimed at boosting the bottom line for cities and towns include proposals for an additional 2 percent local tax on meals, new local lodging taxes and eliminating the property tax exemption on telecom and telephone equipment.

While one senator filed an amendment to hike the state income tax from 5.3 to 5.9 percent, that option has been all but ruled out by Senate leaders, including Senate President Therese Murray, D-Plymouth. She has said she favors a sales tax increase over an income tax hike.

Either increase would be a historic tax hike, raising the sales tax for the first time in 34 years.

Critics, including the state’s retailers’ association, oppose the sales tax increase, arguing it will push more consumers to shop in tax-free New Hampshire and cause job losses, especially in border areas.

But state workers unions and groups trying to avoid deep cuts in health and social service programs are pushing for new revenues from taxes.

On that note…the next Worcester Tea Party protest is on June 20, 2009, 12 noon to 3 pm at Elm Park in Worcester. Bring your frustration, bring your signs (and bring a picnic lunch)!

I’m confused — if abortion isn’t wrong, as President Obama claims, then why does he say he wants to see less of it? I she simply pandering to the pro-life voters or is there really something wrong with abortion? (rhetorical question)

From OneNewsNow:

More than two dozen pro-life protesters were arrested at Notre Dame University Sunday as President Barack Obama told a graduation ceremony at the Catholic school that both sides in the abortion debate must stop demonizing one another.

Obama acknowledged that “no matter how much we want to fudge it … the fact is that at some level, the views of the two camps are irreconcilable.” But he still implored the University of Notre Dame’s graduating class and all in the U.S. to stop “reducing those with differing views to caricature. Open hearts. Open minds. Fair-minded words. It’s a way of life that always has been the Notre Dame tradition.”

One of the noisiest controversies of his young presidency flared after Obama, who supports abortion rights but says the procedure should be rare, was invited to speak at the school and receive an honorary degree. “I do not suggest that the debate surrounding abortion can or should go away,” the president said.

Ahead of Obama’s address, at least 27 people were arrested on trespassing charges. They included Norma McCorvey, the plaintiff identified as “Roe” in the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. She now opposes abortion and joined more than 300 anti-abortion demonstrators at the school’s front gate.

Below is Norma McCorvey, the Roe in Roe v. Wade who is now pro-life, on the right arm of Father Weslin, who was arrested at the protest.

Well, this is certainly good news for the strained Worcester City budget. I just hope the City doesn’t use these payments as an excuse for trimming the fat and getting a handle on the out of control Worcester Public School budget, which currently accounts for about 60% of the City’s budget.

From Worcester Business Journal:

Worcester Polytechnic Institute will pay the City of Worcester $9 million over the next 25 years under a voluntary “payment in lieu of taxes” agreement announced this afternoon at the Worcester Public Library.

The money, starting with $270,000 this year, will go directly to the library and Institute Park, a public park located near the university. The first payment will promote improvements at the park and allow the city to restore Wednesday and Sunday hours at the library, according to City Manager Michael O’Brien.

WPI President and CEO Dennis D. Berkey said funding the park and library is an extension of its work as a community-minded educational institution.

“The notion of lifelong learning is so central to our mission at WPI,” he said.

WPI is the second city institution to agree to a PILOT. The Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences announced in November that it would pay between $1.25 million and $1.5 million to the library over 25 years.

WPI took pains to avoid setting the new agreement up as a precedent for other colleges and nonprofits in the city. In a statement released at the announcement, Berkey said that the college “does not intend for the agreement to serve as a model” for others. But after the event, City Councilor Philip P. Palmieri, who has pushed for PILOT agreements as the chair of the city’s economic development committee, promised “others to follow.”

The PILOT payment will increase by 2.5 percent each year, averaging $360,000 over the life of the agreement. The agreement also formalizes a college policy of paying some taxes on properties that qualify for tax exemption. That accounts for $180,000 this year.