Apples From Eloise

    

    The camera was still in her pocket. There would be no pictures today after all.

    Everything looked too desolate and lonely, too incredibly empty. Mom would rather remember it the way it was.

 
    It was late autumn and there were still apples on the trees. Ghosts of their former selves. She picked one and tasted it, but it didn’t taste the same. The trees had not been cared for in years.
She closed her eyes. What lovely orchards they once were with the Canadian workers laughing and joking with one another in their familiar Quebec patois'.
      Aunt Eloise would have been busy in the barn with the cider press and the heavenly smell of crushed apples. Eyes still closed, mom could see the trees in spring, garlanded with blossoms and stretching down the valley as far as the eye could see. Scents of May would come to her even on this cold November day. That which was in the mind’s eye was far better than the reality that was before her now. How ironic it seemed now with the trees uprooted and the names of streets like Blossom Hill Road and Cider Press Lane.
      There was no doubt it was prime land. Hopefully people would be as happy there as my mother was in her day. The homes would have a lovely view of the valley but would never see it as Aunt Eloise had. She would be the first to say, ”Share the wealth”. The farm and fields had always been open to picnickers and hikers as well as the “pick your own” section. The prime crop, though, was what was shipped and ‘Apples from Eloise’ was known everywhere.
      I never knew Aunt Eloise. I do not remember her face. But mother told me she was not a handsome woman. She was my grandmother’s younger sister and dressed plainly as a busy woman would in those days. Neat as a pin with her auburn hair gathered in a severe bun. There was a charm that one could only see late at night from the glow of a soft lamp as she let the bun fall to her waist. Her inner beauty came from her smile, the sparkle from her eyes, her voice and laugh that would chase all demons away.
      Mom was ten years old when she came to live at Burneley Farm in Massachusetts, not far from Worcester. It was thirteen years after World War I. Grandma and Grandpa had been killed in a train accident and it was to Aunt Eloise’ arms that my mother arrived.
      If it weren’t for the summers spent there it might have been hard for this sad girl. Memories of her grandparents and her own parents and the love they shared at the farm helped her adjust.
     Then, there was Aunt Maude
     .Into everyone’s life rain must fall and Aunt Maude fell into hers. Eloise practiced restraint and patience with Maude. Whenever my mother was exasperated with Maude Aunt Eloise would say that such people should be pitied because they were unhappy, but it was beyond the comprehension of a little girl.
     Now Maude was a handsome woman. She wore the latest fashions and drove the newest of Model-T's. Her critisizing started the minute her shoes hit the threshold; well heeled shoes they were. She prided herself in her home, her social position at the Ladie's Auxilliary and her two children always "away" at school. My mother never liked her cousins. That was all she would ever say about them.
       Of course, Maude gladly accepted her share of the profits and always showed up after the harvest. Within a day Maude was pulling the register handle and accounting every penny. Eloise would sigh at tax time; Maude was never to be found then.

       "You never think of your future, do you Eloise? Always the apples!"

                                        Aunt Eloise always stood firm and would just let Maude go on. But, to my mother, the thought of nothing but apples was illogical. After all, where would Maude's share come from?

               "You never go to town; a man will never settle out here. Just look at you! Dressed like a farm hand!"

       My mother would look up and see Aunt Eloise shadowed by the fireplace glow. Hair let down but still tied. A strong woman from outdoor work. Besides there were always men at the farm.
        Mother would conjure up the image of Maude's husband, Warren, who died from alcoholism and if that was what "going into town" resulted in then Eloise was better off on the farm. Years later she learned that Maude was as unloved as a wife could be and that Warren kept a mistress in another town. That was why she was to be pitied.
       Aunt Maude would always say that my mother was a good girl.

     "I'll give you that, Joanie, you are a good and obedient girl." She would say in a tone as if there was nothing else, she could be. The day soon came though when Maude tried to persuade Eloise to send my mother to school. The thought left her numb with terror.

    "You must do something about the girl!" She demanded.
Eloise realized that one uprooting was enough and at the farm my mother would stay.

    "When you are ready for college you can leave. "She told her. "Always know you have a home here at the farm." Those words comforted my mother and nothing more was said of that.

           The farm was the example of happiness. Every spring the workers returned and with them came Mr. Shipley. My mother would talk about how she remembered the first time he appeared at the door. He was a hobo, not a bum. He would laughingly say he was  "An entrepreneur of the road." There were many like him during the depression and as long as there was work on the farm to be done there was always a hot meal for all who came.
        Mr..Shipley was different than the other workers. He could speak French and Eloise needed an overseer. In addition he knew apples, wich was no small thing in those days; pruning, spraying, grafting, orders, etc,etc. Besides he was a mechanic during the war and could fix all the equipment.
       Like Aunt Eloise, he also was not a handsome man but rather chiseled and rugged from life and what it handed him. Tall,sunburnt and broad shouldered. His crinkled brow and knarled hands were an obvious feature but it was his humor that would make Eloise come to life. There was a gentleness about him that one would miss from his stature.
      Evenings were spent on the screened porch with Mr.Shipley and his guitar. The duets that he and Eloise would sing were a balm to my mother's soul. My grandparents would play piano and sing and it was comforting to her. The farm hands would gather on the lawn and light their pipes. The hired girl, Hannah,would meet her beau.
       More often than not the men would borrow a truck and go into town, but they all knew although Aunt Eloise didn't object to bootleg beer, where it could be found, she would not tolerate drunkenness. They had come from a "wet" country to a "dry" one after all and their steady return each year should be rewarded.
        Of course, Aunt Maude drove up during one of their splendid evenings. Like cold water on a campfire the warmth of their festivities evaporated.

          They were drinking lemonade and eating Hannah's delicious ginger cookies and Maude's eyes were full of eager curiousity as to who this Mr.Shipley was. He had excused himself and retired to his loft in the barn.
       "A hired hand, a common hired hand!" Aunt Maude was stiff with her shocked sense of propriety. Hannah was also insulted. "And entertaining him for all to see!"
      "No Maude, he was entertaining us." Eloise smiled.
      "Do you have no shame? What will people think?"
Eloise was angry now. Something that was seldom seen.
      "People will say nothing unless you spread your gossip all over town. He is not a suitor. He is a good man, a hard working man whose talents I need and I will not hear anymore of it."
Maude was not to be silenced.
      "He is out to worm his way in here! I've seen his type before, he knows a good thing when he sees it. You be carefull or you'll lose everything! What did the agency tell you about him?"
Eloise hesitated far to long.
       "You hired him off the road didn't you?" This was fuel to Maude's fire but Eloise had had enough.
       "Now you listen to me Maude! I have looked after this farm my whole life and I am guite able to decide who is worthy to work here. Besides, its not like you have lost anything from my decisions!"
      "Not until now, I haven't! We'll see about this. Think about that child, you are not setting a good example for her!"As if Aunt Maude had ever given a thought to my mother other than sending her away to school; this was quite amusing.
         Now, to give Maude her due; she never spoke of this to anyone.  Apples from Eloise was a cornerstone of the town, and everyone knew the love and compassion that grew there just as the apples did. If anyone was to be judged, it was Maude for her being judgmental herself. In a contest where public opinion was concerned, Aunt Eloise won hands down.
        However, some of the magic was gone. Mr. Shipley no longer came to the porch in the evenings. Eloise was quiet and sad. My mother missed the warmth that eminated from the two; whether it was close friendship or a blossoming romance it was beyond her at that age. Whatever Mr. Shipley and Eloise shared she was part of it as if she was the child they would never have. If it was play acting between them she would let the stage be set.
      Then, one day, Eloise took the bull by the horns. Mother was in the shed folding corrugated boxes for shipping. Looking out the streaked window she saw her aunt walk towards the barn where Mr. Shipley was repairing the tractor. Mother stood at the door and could see Eloise walk with steadfastness, her face flushed yet determined.

       "Mr. Shipley? I request the honor of your presence on the porch this evening. We have--missed you.A-a-and your music."
      "Do you think it is wise, Eloise?" He replied. Mother was stunned at his use of her name. Eloise straightened herself.
      "Is it wise to deny oneself friendship at the spite of an unhappy woman? Where is it written that the Maudes of our world shall govern our actions?"
       Mr.Shipley laughed softly and looked downward. Removing his hat and wiping his brow he answered.
      "Why Miss. Eloise Burneley I would be delighted to accept your gracious invitation and shall attend this evening's soiree."

        Aunt Eloise nodded and excused herself with proper decorum. My mother had listened in without shame. Her cup was running over and her knight in shining armor was to return.
As it was, the gods were good. Maude was going on a trip to Europe for several weeks. Still, she had to show up one more time to prophesy doom and ruin.
      "I could never make you see the light, Ellie!" She started."You wouldn't sell the farm when Papa died. We both could have moved into town and set up a proper business fit for a woman. But no! You had to stay here with the damned apples with no other interests. Now you have fallen prey to the first man who looks at you!"
       Eloise was forbearing this time. "In the first place he has not 'looked' at me." A slight womanly smile appeared on her face. "Besides,if he does,I shall look back."
       "Well, God knows I have tried my best to steer you straight and do my duty as the older sister. But you choose not to listen!"

         From what I have been told, Maude truly believed this. That her duty was to be the suffering wife, mother and sister and to clutch this to her bosom with relish. Had she been born at a later, modern time she would have divorced Warren and sent him penniless to his paramour. Her energy was boundless, but only for mischief and meddling.
        Eloise and my mother often regarded Warren's girlfriend like a poor unfortunate caught up in the middle of a trap. Neither she, Warren, or Maude could ever spring from their situation no matter how hard they tried. Mother had told me she saw her only once many years later. She was a dim figure behind a tree at Warren's burial. Her face was lined with tears.
        Maude was stiff as a ramrod, no emotion whatsoever, only bitterness on her face. I was told that; not to grieve was worse than actual grieving. To be sorrowfull meant that you had once been happy and it is that loss wich you mourn. It was apparent to my mother that Warren's little lady had the larger share of the loaf.
       But, for now, the summer was at its zenith. Maude was blessedly off to Europe. There was plenty of hard work to do and well-earned pleasures. Picnics were spent at the river on the lower end of the valley. Mother, Hannah, her love and the workers all swam there on the hottest days. Mr. Shipley had built a dock and set up a rope swing. The canoes that were my Great Grandfather's had been unearthed from the barn. The workers sanded and painted them.

    The water was clear and sparkling then, the vegetation full and rich. No one canoes there anymore. Strange colors appear in the water now and is full of mud and sedge grass. Instead of the bubbling river that once was there is a sluggishness as it winds away to its destination.
    No one could have foreseen this during those lovely days. 

    The fall came and with it the last shipment of apples. Mr. Shipley packed his rucksack. Eloise remained quiet and did not ask if he was to return.
     Aunt Maude returned from Europe and gloated.

             "Well, I could have told you this would happen and now you have made a fool of yourself. Now, there is someone I want you to meet."
             That 'someone' was Floyd Ackerman. He wasn't a bad sort but Eloise never hesitated for a moment and quickly refused his proposal. The only good thing that came of that was Maude washing her hands of Eloise, and us, for good.
             Refusing Mr.Ackerman's proposal was considered foolhardy by many in town. Afterall Eloise was thirty-three and at that time was considered a spinster. As her sister was quick to remind her she was plain and could not hope for better.
          
            Christmas came and with it the roses from family down south. Those roses filled the house and sustained Eloise all winter long. All of them had quietly hoped that the spring would bring the happiness they remembered.
            When the first crocuses appeared in the snow Eloise cleared it away so they could catch the sun. Her eyes drifted to the orchard to see if any buds had formed and the promised blossoms to come. The workers returned, but not Mr. Shipley. Eloise faltered and lost her hopefull look yet roused herself to the task at hand of getting the farm ready.

               My mother was the first to see him. That familiar figure on the road greeting the workers as he passed by the trees. She shouted towards the house to Eloise who rushed to the door. Her face lit up and she shamelessly raced down the path. All the workers stopped at their tasks.

                 Eloise stopped just short of him. Mr. Shipley freed himself from his burden and opened his arms to her. She was soon folded into them and everyone looked on entranced at what they saw.

               "I have been such a fool."He said."Leaving with no word. Please tell me you are still mine. God, I could have lost you."

                 Not a chance, thought my mother, not a chance.


Epilogue

             It was a simple story of a simple life. In this farewell my mother now turned and walked the crest of the hill to look down the valley. She could still see the remains of Mr.Freedman's peach farm that abutted the orchard. What lovely peaches they were and the jam he made. Nothing since could match it.
             But the orchards were now gone. The house was gone. A new Interstate glistened in the distance and the drone of trucks and cars filled the valley. A computer plant occupied the property of Mr.Freedman's orchard. It wasn't a completely unlovely sight. Well landscaped and modern bearing nothing of Blake's 'dark satanic mills'. Somehow, though,it all seemed wrong and there was nothing my mother could do about it.
             The orchard had not been worked for years and would have taken thousands of dollars to rebuild. The land was now leased to a farmer who grazed his cows there. He too was to sell the following year. But Eloise had left her share of the orchard to my mother and, strangely enough, so did Maude.
            "I am leaving my share to you Joanie." Maude said from her bed."You are the only one who comes to visit me now."
            Later I was told that mother felt guilty about this because it was not love that made her visit Maude in the nursing home. When Eloise died she told my mother to be kind to Maude. Both sisters had asked for their beds to be moved to the window that looked out at the May blossoms.
          "What a nice memory to take with me." Eloise spoke."I shall tell Bill." She put down her tea, leaned into my mother and quietly stopped breathing, cradled in my mother's arms.

         The November wind was blowing now, and my mother was reminded that she too was no longer young. The cold in her heart was worse though. Eloise would not approve of her pessimism. She would have said to remember how lucky they were. That they had each other, the farm and those wonderful memories. She would have said this despite all the ups and downs with running a farm what with the apples, labor shortages, the war and finally losing her beloved Bill.
   
       The money gained from the sale of the farm would be in trust. We were always reminded of the love that grew there alongside the apples and that was the legacy left behind.
       My mother climbed into the car, thankful of its modern heat. As she turned toward the empty lot that was once the house, she saw them all. Eloise, Bill, Hannah, her beau and all the workers standing and waving from the porch as they did that day when she went off to college. If there was a time where one could get off at any point and remain for eternity she knew where she would get off.
     It was there amongst the May blossoms, on the hill. 

    Selling Apples from Eloise.

How To Intentionally Self Destruct In One Easy Lesson

     The propensity for the human species to screw things up for themselves just at the moment when you would least want to do such a thing is standard method of operation here on ole' Mother Earth. What usually follows is a laundry list of stupid excuses given for such an action and the fools who accept said excuses. Political parties have this down like clockwork.

     While covering this election season for my show I was struck by the amount of party infighting and back stabbing that took place in every campaign and candidate I interviewed. We expect this from Democrats. What disturbed me was that Republicans had begun eating their own.

     The potential for losing this year was ever present. Not for lack of funds, ideas, or the glaring failures of Obamunism. No, the potential for losing was because the party was fracturing and fracturing from the inside not from the slings and arrows of Democrats. It was systemic and could be found at the lowest levels right down to town committees and assemblies. I attended these meetings. People you would think are there for the cause of Liberty and the platform of Republicanism were not. They were there for their own power grab and were soon revealed to be pushing and shoving their way to those key positions.

     The Democrats were loving every minute of this. I watched the Republican Party tear Mark Fisher apart. I watched as the candidates (Falchuk, Lively, McCormick) were summarily shut out from debates, conventions and denied their rightful place on some town ballots. The old adage of third party candidates taking votes away from the major party wasn't even on the radar screen. Republicans were doing just fine shooting themselves in the foot and screwing it up all by themselves. Charlie Baker's win was nothing short of a bloody miracle.

     Here is Massachusetts our own Republican Assembly is going through a tumultuous time. I am not at liberty at this moment to reveal what I know but rest assured M&P is going to begin an investigation and talk to the key players involved and get to the bottom of it. On January 10th there will be a convention of sorts and Gubernatorial candidate Mark Fisher will be running for the leadership of the Mass. Assembly as my good friend Dave Kopazc is stepping down. I wish Mark all the best. We will also be starting a series of short interviews with Mark on The Meat And Potatoes Show as he moves through this campaign.

     Unfortunately, there are forces at play who want to undo the hard work of Dave Kopazc and castrate the Mass. Republican Assembly. Again, not from opposing political parties but from within the Assembly itself. The gun is loaded, hammer cocked back and is pointing straight at the feet. Should these forces prevail it will spell the end of the Mass. Republican Assembly as we know it and cripple any chances of Republican wins in Massachusetts for years to come.

     We must ask ourselves certain questions when we see obvious power grabs like this. Who are these people? They cannot be individuals who crave freedom and who want to see the grassroots movement grow. Are they plants brought in from opposing political parties? Surely something is just not right here. I liken it to the hype surrounding Hillary Clinton. Who are these people? Everyone knows the history of Hillary from her lying during Watergate, Vince Foster, Rose Law Firm and Benghazi yet people are flocking to her campaign! The same types of people are jockey-ing for power in our own Assembly. They are exposed for who and what they are yet people are lining up to back their bids for the leadership... Astounding, simply astounding!

     And what is sad is that all these things do is expose the self centered malfeasance of these people. It also puts Republicans under the microscope of the media. Liberal dominated Massachusetts media was having a banner year this election season. All you heard across the state from Provincetown to Pittsfield were the echoes of gunfire as the Republican party blew off foot after foot after foot. The lies were thick as thieves. Now, even a prudent person can smell a lie a mile away but by the time it is revealed as a lie and countered the damage has been done to the victim. I will write about one particular lie as this expose' enfolds that is just reprehensible.

     We also have a propensity for blaming the whistleblower. I am sure I will be the target of those I will expose and write about. As if the corruption and scandal isn't enough? We toss the messenger under the bus. Look, dill-hole, you were the one who started this scandal. Don't go blaming me because you couldn't control it or spin it.

     As I go along broadcasting and writing this expose' I won't have to look far for the next installment. I will just wait for the metaphorical sound of a gunshot in the distance, follow the blood trail and the story will practically write itself. At worst they will try to kill the messenger. At best they just won't invite me anymore to their swanky political get togethers where the elite meet.

     But, hey, it could be worse. I could be one of those political elite at one of those swanky get togethers. You know, the one on the crutches..

.... And That Is The Diatribe....

Better We Should Be Indians

    

    My mother’s obstetrician was not a bad fellow actually, like every other male in that business he thought he understood women and had the theories to go along with it. Like women need men’s theories anyway.

     Back in that time, he had a theory about women, tension and childbirth. Something about a woman’s inability to just blithely give birth. He would carry on about how Native American women gave birth back in the day.
     "We have all seen the depiction." He would chatter on with his hands in her privates, of the Indian maiden just squatting and letting the infant come forth. Either behind a bush or in the company of other women amongst the tribe. Whatever the situation warranted.
     Spring planting, village moving to better hunting or just on the trail; it made no difference to them. The perception was that they did it without a whimper or a care about anything else. No lamazz classes. No Demoral or Epidural to dull the contractions.
     The theory is that it all had to do with a good diet of meat, fresh veggies, hard work and that old indomitable spirit that all Native Americans possess. 

     The most important factor, of course, was no tension.

     Well that all sounds nice and plausible, however, young Running Fawn never had to worry about the outdoors. 

     Why? She lived in it. One flip of the teepee flap and there she was. She was part of it. There was nothing contingent upon her getting out of the house like waiting for the cable guy or the plumber or the wash to finish. Her kitchen and laundry were outside anyway and with all that fresh O2 to take in she was energized for the day’s chores.
     The work out was constant. No need to worry about cellulite, your gym fees, counting carbs. Does this shade of Elk skin make my ass look fat?

     Fetching water, skinning, firewood, setting up the camp, breaking down the camp. Her pelvic muscles must have been like steel! True she had her problem days, but no Arapaho mother ever had to dig cereal out of the Playstation!

 
     But I do wonder if Native American women ever wondered how motherhood crept up on them. You moms know what I mean here. Like you wake up one day and the tribe is up by two?
     If the women of the tribe were so phlegmatic about babies, one reason was because the father was always there and took over the boy's education by the age of seven. No board meetings for him or Parent Teachers Meetings for her (now that’s a tension builder). Junior learned how to hunt and fish and use a bow and arrow (good to know when the Crow blew into town). 

    Imagine Cub Scouts today with that? All those release forms and lawsuits! Can you imagine a Native American child with safety glasses on and an insurance form pinned to his loincloth? Besides, I cannot picture an Indian dad having to twist his kid’s arm to go hunting. You can't get your kid today to put down the X-Box controller long enough to go outside and get the mail!

      Speaking of diet, the average Indian woman had more meat in a day that we can afford all week. Not one bit of it was USDA approved, recalled, tainted with some God-awful thing we all see today. Granted there were lean times but so also for the lodge beside you. The whole tribe suffered with no room for envy or self-pity or therapy.

    There was certainty no 'safe spaces' back in those days.
     If a man today goes off with his buddies to hunt, there is enough tension back home to sink a ship. They usually come back trophyless, hungover and sore. Yet somehow the wife is convinced her husband had a grand old time while leaving her home with the kids.
     Not so in the tribe, the hunt was the whole thing! It meant survival and the excitement and expectations back at camp would reach a fever pitch till the party returned. No stories about the one that got away but rather long and embellished tales of the one turning on the spit. Dad returning from McDonalds with a paper sack, or mom whipping out the Visa as she calls in a Domino's order just doesn’t cut it. 

     Life on the trail was one long traveling barbeque.
                                              

     And the women of the tribe knew they were married to real men. Strong and protective yet bound by tradition, passion and family. Roles may have been defined but the Native American woman was more liberated than today’s female executive. Men were too, not like the indistinct, feminized and politically correct couch potatoes of today.
     The perils of living in the wild were part of the lifestyle also. Ever try to cross a busy city street or negotiate the Sumner Tunnel at 4pm?  It strikes terror in some and OCD in others. We don’t even allow our children out anymore to play. When Running Fawn said, “Go play”, her kids literally had miles to explore, and they knew the lay of the land. No “play dates” or fenced in parks with helmeted kids, padded knees on bikes with training wheels going no faster than you can spit. No lifeguards or “floaties” at the creek (everyone learned how to swim well and early). Lacrosse (a famous Native American past-time) was without pads and took up a whole field. People got injured... A lot! Try a street hockey game today and the cops show up to tell you you're blocking traffic. Then Child Services visits you because Johnny wasn't wearing a helmet and how dare you allow him to play in the street! 

    For kids today it is more about 'rules' and not much 'fun'.
      
     Indian mothers never had to deal with balancing a budget or a late mortgage payment. The supermarket was always open with no “twelve items or less” lines. Her husband would just show up with a side of deer and there it was, dinner! A simple fifteen-minute walk through the woods and Running Fawn would have a basket full of whatever was in season.

    And the children ate what was there in the pot. No separate meals because Little Turtle had a peanut allergy. No Indian child was diabetic, picky or threw a temper tantrum over another night of bison for dinner.

    She may have been (as some “educated” Europeans said) an uncivilized savage but she was a carefree one and wouldn’t know tension if she fell over it.
     When she wasn’t busy having babies or tenderizing meat, she was engaged in activities we now call “hobbies”. Basket weaving, pottery, beadwork, sewing was essential to the Homefront and Running Fawn never once felt marginalized. Trust me, she ran hearth and home. Even the Big Chief couldn't say 'boo' without his wife's permission.
     There were other things that made sense and kept Native American women relaxed. Sex for one thing was as natural and unsterilized as Nature intended. Following the moon’s cycle and/or “alternative sexual practices” kept children to a minimum. No second guessing about yourself or your man and all the phobias and sexual hangups we hold today. No Freud, Kinsey, Dr. Phil or Maury Povich pulling out the DNA results on TV. There were no 'self-help' books or stories of past abuses and "why can I not orgasm?". Sex was sweet, passionate and as one on one as could be.
     Spirituality was foremost to the Native female. Native Americans had and still have more spirituality in their pinkies than all of Christianity. To them everything had a soul, the Earth, the rocks, animals and trees. The Great Spirit put everything here for a reason and it was all to be held in reverence. The precious life inside of her never, ever had to worry about 'Family Planning.' That growing baby WAS the plan.

      I think it is telling that today we only now realize how precious and finite our world is, Native Americans (and all native tribes, worldwide) knew this over a thousand years ago. After all, the land had only been there millions of years before them. 

     Every morning the blessed mother would rise before dawn and walk in prayer to The Great Spirit asking for health and long life to her unborn. I don’t know about you, but nine months of no tension, prayer, exercise and clean living was a good guarantee of a good birth.
     That’s not to say there were never “unfortunate” events, or children born with “problems”. But the Native American had the fortitude, wisdom and, most important, the compassion to make the “ultimate” decision. No pro-choice or pro-life here. The fact was they had no choice.
    An aberrant birth meant a drag on the family, the tribe and survival. But a life worth living was a gift given by The Great Spirit and was wanted and needed and loved unconditionally. Today, whole segments of society and government grapple with this issue of divorce, fatherlessness, unwanted children and abortion. All to the detriment of our society.

     Perhaps their entire attitude towards children should give us food for thought. Children were not supposed to be anything but happy. Spoiled and happy. They had nothing to play with except that which they made themselves. No need for time outs or loss of privileges. Punishment was shame from elders or lack of respect. Until the age of training, they were indulged and pampered and faced the next phases of life armed with self-respect, emotional security and an awareness of what was expected of them and the pride of one’s accomplishments.
    Today a child is nagged, politically corrected, padded, medicated, therapied and stripped of their individuality. Then they spend their adult lives at two hundred dollars an hour telling a therapist why they hate themselves. From the day they are born children are formatted and fitted into a gauntlet of learning or quelled into submissiveness to fit some state sponsored mold. They live in houses too small, on streets too crowded.
      There were other advantages of being a Native American mother. You never had to housebreak a dog, clean the toaster, tell the plumber that the leak is here not there, find shoes on sale for four kids. No Indian mother faced Social Services for a smack her kid definitely needed. Divorce was simple. Dad came home from the scouting party to find his things outside the lodge but both parents knew their respective children were still their respective responsibility. No chasing for child support there or shame in the tribe would befall you.

     But without a doubt no Indian mother from birthing to death ever had to utter the phrase “Don’t slam the (BANG!)..door!”

Chimpanzees with AK47's

 
 " Be it resolved... (1), The rights protected by the Constitution of The United States are the rights of natural persons only. (2), Any entity, including any organization or association of one or more persons... shall have no rights under this Constitution and are subject to regulation... (3), The priveleges of any entity... organization... association.. shall not be... inherent or inalienable. (4), ... government shall regulate, limit or prohibit contributions and expenditures..... (5), .. be publicly disclosed. (6),...judiciary shall not construe spending of money to influence campaigns to be free speech under the 1st Amendment..."
                                        Excerpted from Minnesota HB 276 co-sponsored by Dem. St. Rep. Raymond Dehn.

  
    On Jan 12-13th, 2014 the Indiana State Legislature hosted a tax payer funded shin-dig to welcome other Legislators from all 50 states to attend the first Assembly of States Convention. These nitwits thought it would be cool to shmooze amongst themselves and come up with plans on how and what to amend the US Constitution. The above quoted excerpt was one of those ideas tabled during these two days. Co- sponsored by by St. Rep. Raymond Dehn he opened his speech to the assembly by calling himself ".. the most leftist guy in the room.."
    Dehn, other Legislators, private organizations and a whole host of self proclaimed egg-heads are trying to undo the Citizens United decision. Claiming that corporations are not people these guys along with their buddy from Wolf-PAC creator Cenk Uygur (Young Turks ) have gone ahead to form a corporation and political action committee  of their own to lobby Senators, Congressmen and state delegations to amend the Constitution  making it illegal for corporations and political action committees to influence elections. This way only the seated Senators and Congressmen can be influenced by corporations and political action committees.
    Yes America, let that soak in for a second while I pour myself another drink.

    Let me give you a quick run down of a small list of the corporations and political action committees and the geniuses piloting this ship of fools;

    Convention USA is a non profit corporation founded by retired Michigan Supreme Court Justice Thomas E Brennan and a few of his drinking buddies. The website is an interactive place where any joker can sign up as a delegate and propose amendments. No verification of credentials required.. The site's specific goal is ".... to generate a groundswell of public support for an Article V Convention and force Congress to call the convention.".
    Good job Your Honor! Delude the American public while giving them all the rope they need to hang themselves with.

    Then there is the University of Texas Law Professor Sanford Levinson. In addition to wondering why the state of Wyoming deserves the same equal representation in Washington DC as California does Levinson wrote in his book "Our Undemocratic Constitution" that the Constitution is very... ah.. well... Undemocratic. I am not sure where he is going with this idea but he's got one thing right in that the Constitution is (his words) "inadequate for our Democracy". Very true professor, because it was written for a Republic. That would be like using a repair manual for a Ford Explorer while trying to fix a Toyota and then calling the manual 'inadequate'.

     Lawrence Lessig, all star quarterback of the team that is funding and promoting an Article V wrote in 1993; "... the American people can no longer identify the Bill of Rights.." ( Well Larry, teaching it again in schools might be a good place to start.) "...Its meaning is no longer plain to all... perhaps it is time to amend the text... perhaps it is time to rewrite the Constitution."...
     Rewrite the Constitution? Rewrite it into what Larry?

    Next in line is this  coma patient. Professor Mary Penrose of the Texas-Wesleyan Law School... ( What is up with all these courtroom junkies?)
    Speaking at a Harvard Constitutional Conference (now there is an oxymoron) Mary said to her wide eyed room full of sheep; ".... no constitutional right is sacred... it is time today to repeal the 2nd Amendment.. I am in favor of redrafting the Constitution."

    Article V is an important tool for amending the Constitution. However, like all tools they are only as good as the people who operate them. Hell, an AK47 is an excellent tool but you wouldn't let a chimpanzee use it now would you? Cenk Uygur, Lawrence Lessig and every law professor from Connecticut to California can have all the $500 a plate lunches they want and talk all they want about calling for a Constitutional Convention. It won't amount to a hill of beans for only Congress can call an Article V. All that the state Legislatures can do through a Convention of States is 'apply' to Congress to call an Article V.
    Now this is where it gets dicey. Once Congress gets their grubby little paws on that application all bets are off. Delegates can be held to standards of conduct, the actual wording of the amendments can be polished to a mirror shine, all 50 states can agree on the language, verbiage and punctuation marks all they want. It won't make any difference.
    For in Article 1, section 8, clause 18 of the Constitution Congress has the power to "... make all laws necessary and proper for carrying into execution..". And an execution it will be. For once Congress convenes an Aricle V Convention you will have the likes of Harry Ried, Chuck Shumer and Barbara Boxer writing the amendments and the likes of  Shiela Jackson Lee, Nancy Pelosi and Elizabeth Warren voting on them.
    An entire Senatorial and Congressional delegation of chimpanzees waving around AK47's...

.... And That Is The Diatribe....


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvWTX8ZPSaE

Best Practices, The Politics of Experience

  " Conservatism is betrayed when it becomes the private property of a narrow economic or social minority... True Conservatism... was shouldered out of the way by moneyed groups that draped narrow interests in the finery of enduring principles... showing little understanding of its stewardship or preserving function.... only a grab bag of fetishes and stereotypes... the 'right' had muffed its big chance..."  James MacGregor Burns. Author, " Roosevelt, The Lion and The Fox."

    I was part of an interesting conversation the other day while attending the Columbus Day parade in Southborough Mass. I had been invited by a good friend who is working on the Question 1 Ballot Initiative,  Vote Yes on 1, Stop the Automatic Gasoline Tax. The President of The Worcester Tea Party, Matt O'Brien was there and we engaged in a conversation which I thought I would share.
    As another election season winds down and the political casualties are counted on the field many Conservatives are beginning to wonder about the ability to take back our country through the election process. We are getting tired of losing. There seems to be insurmountable obstacles placed in our way by both Republicans and Democrats. This season more than the last three reveals a concerted effort from both parties and government itself to unravel the Liberty Movement. No longer is it a case of battling Liberalism but rather the entire apparatus of the political system and process itself; Well oiled campaigns and candidates hell bent on preserving the status quo and maligning any attempts (by the citizens) to return the reigns of power back to the citizens themselves.
    In one part of the conversation Matt mentioned that many of us are caught up in fighting for (or against) causes and edicts handed down from on high, candidates and /or incumbents (for or against). While this is a good thing on the whole the Liberty Movement suffers from fatigue due to the scope and magnitude of the issues and officials. It seems almost every week some new front is opened up somewhere and what ends up happening is we scramble to meet that threat. As Matt said, ".. The scope becomes broad but not deep."
    I couldn't agree more. In fact, I had suggested that perhaps this is intentional. After all we are living under the Alinsky/ Cloward-Piven model to 'overwhelm the system.'

    Matt tabled the idea that we adopt a policy of 'best practices' and begin to focus on the larger picture and better organize the various Tea Parties. Combine our forces, combine the various causes under some sort of cohesion. This has proven difficult from our experience in past conference style meetings. I had attended one such meeting last year where we worked to develop what I called 'A Blueprint For Engagement'. The link to that blog posting is here:
http://thelexingtongreen.blogspot.com/2012/12/blueprint-for-engagement.html

    It was a great idea! It was a perfect plan! Unfortunately very little ever came of it. Matt described to me one time where he sat for twelve hours at one 'conference' style meeting and he suggested they all meet again in 100 days to lay out a platform of some sort to be debated and adopted. No one showed up after the 100 days.
    As JM Burns said, ".. the right had muffed its big chance."

    While we can look at the 25% of votes gained by Mark Fisher as a 'win' in so far as nobody expected THAT big a turn out. I, for one, am not satisfied with nothing less than total victory. It is the same for the Tea Party in my book.
    It is vitally important that we band the TP groups together. The opposition has us running around putting out brush fires while the forest burns down around us. The 'loose affiliation' that defined us at our birth must now be outgrown at some point. The opposition is betting on that not happening. They are betting on us remaining loosely affiliated for it will allow them to continue to fracture the organization and pit one area TP against another. While TP 'A' in one town supports a particular candidate or cause, TP 'B' the next town over supports some one else or something else. We already see this in how politicians and PAC's are forming Tea Party caucuses and special interest groups that operate above and beyond the interests of the local chapters.
    Enter Reed Chambers Jr. from Nebraska;

    Reed is a future guest on the M&P2012 Show and he has developed and implemented a successful way to organize TP groups across his state. The neighboring state of Oklahoma is working to do the same thing under his model. He is also beginning to coordinate on a national level. What Reed calls for is that we organize as a political movement and develop platforms that are to be adopted on a County level first, State level second and then a national level. Mr. Chambers has a long history of working in political groups. He was a Selectman for his town and has been in the tax business since he was a teenager. His family started their business over 75 years ago. Mr. Chambers has seen time and time again the one fly in the ointment of TP's when it comes to filing their tax exempt status.

    Essentially, they are all filing under the wrong code.

    TP's should not be filing under their current 501 status. 501's are specifically designed for 'educational' or 'social awareness' causes. This is possibly why the IRS was so hot on our trail after the 2010 elections. In 2010 TP's scored major wins from local town committees to Congressional seats. Doesn't sound like an 'educational' or 'social awareness' group to me does it? 501's also limit the ability of a TP group to lobby, raise funds, officially back candidates, or front one themselves. It limits our ability to openly advertise as a political group and to directly engage a candidate in order to defeat them. This is what the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth were able to do in helping to derail the Kerry campaign in 2004 because they filed, under what Reed called a 527 political organization. They were ABLE to do everything I just listed above. This will empower the TP to work off a central platform and directly engage in the election process.
    Now, this might not sit well with some TP groups who wish to not back a candidate. I understand. What if the TP backs a candidate and that (then elected) candidate persues their own political agenda? Reed has an answer for that.
    We put up our OWN candidate.

    One of the lynch pins of putting together the conferences is that platforms are adopted. We then send those platforms to seated Legislators and candidate hopefuls and (quite simply) ask them if they will adopt these platforms as part of their agenda. If they do not then the TP Conference puts up their own candidate who WILL run on those platforms. Since all the TP's are now 527's they can raise money, file papers for the campaign, run advertisements, get their candidate on the ballot and directly affect the outcome in November. It makes the TP a power player without compromising the founding principles that define the organization: Limited Government, Unapologetic American Soveriegnty and Constitutional Originalism. Considering that virtually every city and town in America has some sort of TP group the possiblities are unimaginable.
    Interestingly enough this might explain the constant media/ governmental drumbeat to denounce the TP. They know that if this were to happen then it would signal the end of Liberalism and Big Government in America.  They have to continue to fracture the organization. For imagine the impact of the 200+ TP groups in Massachusetts alone all filed as 527's and financing their own candidate for Governor.

    It is important to stand up for something and if you do not then sit down. It is important that we begin the process of turning the TP into a mass movement that is well funded, sustainable and carries clout. I wrote in another past blog about NOI The New Organizing Institute. These are some scary characters who are organized, filed as a 527 and actively backing Democratic, Socialist, Progressive causes and candidates. They are actively recruiting people. I signed up under a dummy account while researching for the blog post. I get e-mails and web alerts every week from them. Here is the link to that posting:
http://neworganizing.com/

http://thelexingtongreen.blogspot.com/2014/01/in-world-of-idiots-intelligence-is.html

    In 2009 the Tea Party was born and by the following year elections were being decided as a result of the awakening in America. I remember the rallies in 09 and 10, even Glenn Beck with his 9/12 project, the mall in DC was packed with hundreds of thousands of people each and every rally. By 2012 that pendulum had swung back as the movement floundered. This was also the time when the IRS began its targeting of TP groups. In 2013 when I attended the Defund Obamacare rally in October we were lucky to fill the Capitol Hill lawn with a few thousand people. The co-opting of the movment by PAC's and the stack of election losses in 2012 began to affect the movement. The members responded by pulling out.

    Noted British Psychiatrist RD Laing wrote in his 1967 book, "The Politics of Experience";

    " No group can be expected to be held together for long on the pure flame of such unified experience... Groups are liable to disapear through attacks from other groups... But, the simplest and perrenial threat to all groups comes from the simple defection of its members... the danger of evaporation.."

    The press is watching us and so is the opposition. They see the dwindling numbers and know their tactic is working. They see their policy of divide and conquer creating results. The 'loose affiliation' that was once our strength is now our Achilles heel. Before we could not be pigeonholed on a particular issue or candidate. Now, people are asking. " Well then, what DO you stand for? Who DO you support?" Because our committment is very broad but not very deep we are being ".. shouldered out of the way.." as author JM Burns wrote. We cannot sustain on the "pure flame"  of our cause or we will face the danger of complete evaporation.

....And That Is The Diatribe....

Clusterfuck!!

   
    " ...But when once a standing army is established in any country, the people lose their liberty...Give me leave.... to warn you of your present danger...Recollect the history of most nations...  havoc, desolation and destruction.. by standing armies.." George Mason, the Constitutional Convention of 1787.

    ".... Where-ever standing armies are kept up.... liberty, if not already annihilated, is on the brink of destruction..." Jurist George Tucker, Blackstone's Commentaries


    In two weeks the Westford Massachusetts Police have stolen $480.00 from me for offences that were long since paid and adjudicated yet... Never entered into the system. Thanks Massachusetts' Court System Computers.. I, am now officially broke for the next week.
    I cannot get any of that money back until October 31'st when the case is finally dismissed. Even though it was dismissed years ago..
    Are you as ready as I am to kick something?

    Perhaps this should be another addition to a series I wrote here known as "Welcome To Bizarro-World"? Because, that is where I am once more. Hell, even Alice soon learned she was deep in the rabbit hole.. I HAVE NO FUCKING IDEA WHAT IS GOING ON!

    The cars are black, sleek, stealthy and souped up beyond what your dad could ever imagine while working on his 72 Nova. According to a recent John Birch Soc. Magazine article published in late September 2014 police cars are required to be DHS compliant in order to receive Federal grants. Chrysler (big recipient of bailout money) now builds a special police package Charger for cities and towns. All of them funded in 'Fusion Centers' under grants from DHS. In the next three years all of our plates will be scan-able from these new cars. All of your life's crap will pop up on the police computer screens in their cars. Not that anything from a terrorist will come up because that will be profiling but your failure to pay some fine or a lapse in insurance payment will warrant a pull over and an arrest of you.. The AMERICAN citizen.
    Oh, and yeah.. Your car gets towed at $200 and $100 a day storage fee.. How the fuck is a working man (or a poor, working, single mother) supposed to pay for this?.. I was under the impression that Liberals were all about the dis-enfranchised...
    Apparently I was mistaken.
    Case in point; My own Chief of Web Security for M&P2012 was arrested and jailed last year. His van was towed. After his release he found out his van was sold at auction because (duh) he was in jail and after 30 days they sell the vehicle because it is de-facto declared as 'abandoned'.  Do these people check records? No. He had personal property stolen by the police and the tow companies contracted by the police from his van. Actual property that was inside that vehicle! Never mind that my friend has (still) the title to his van.
    It was sold at auction. This man is on State Disability. He works on my show under a volunteer basis. I do not pay him.
    Case in point #2; Another good friend bought a used car. It was found to be defective. Under the Lemon Law she sought out to have it repaired (which it was-thank God). However, she was pulled over because her sticker was expired. Under new mandates a car with an expired or no inspection sticker is a tow-able offense.
    I think you all know what happened next.. Yup, it was towed..
    But here comes the rub..

    You cannot get back a vehicle until all claims from the police are met. Insurance, registration and.. A valid inspection sticker.. But, how does one get a valid inspection sticker if you do not have the vehicle that which needs said inspection? Don't you have to drive it INTO an inspection place to be thus inspected?
    Oh, do not be afraid, they have that covered..
    She had to have it fixed and repaired right there at an incredible cost before she could drive it away... All the while being charged each day for storage..
    Nice system we have don't we?  Single mother, low pay, on EBT.. Ya' know.. The whole demographic Liberals are betting the farm on?

    Getting back to my story.. The police in Westford told me point blank that if they see me here again they will tow my truck.
     I work there for a company I have been recently been hired by. I am trying to get back on track but I will not be able to thanks to these tools of the Federals. I explained this to them. Once, long ago, we could tell a police officer our story and he/she would grant us some slack. Sure, they would catch us and catch up on what our status was but we could always go home after we talked and explained.
     No longer.. You are arrested. Property stolen, fines paid out your ass and you still are no closer to SOLVING those problems for which you were stopped for in the first place.
    Clusterfuck!!


....And That Is The Diatribe....

Freedom's March

"This Town Needs an Enema!!" Jack Nicholson, from Batman.

    And a full flushing I would add! Good God in Heaven this state has gone "straight into the dumper", said Archie Bunker.
    Where in the world does a Republican dressed as a Democrat get all the press?

    We have watched this time and time again. We see the one hopeful up on the stage under the lights, in front of cameras, captured on Youtube. A guy from Worcester Mass with a shoe string budget gets candidates to show up for a forum just by posting a Facebook page (me). Yet the massive party money and massive press jilts the grassroots candidates to a 'spoiler level'.. Who decides this crap?
    I have to take off my hat to all of those candidates who stick out their necks, take out loans and put up their house as collateral. Why? Because they believe in this notion of Constitution, of Republic, of service over self to run for office.. I know. I interviewed many of them from across this nation since 2010. It is almost bitter sweet.
    Bitter sweet in that so many step up over and over and over again yet get shafted by the process each and every time. We talk about an election process being the secure foundation of our continued freedoms yet we are all well aware that process is rigged and flawed. We hear about the ocassional 'upset' and we have that collective moment of hope. But, for every 'upset' there are countless losses. Countless losses from candidates who reflect, and carry on, what our Founders envisioned what public service should and must be.

    Public service is NOT a career. It is a calling, much like what a person would do for the church or a missionary. As we get molded deeper and deeper into Socialism that calling becomes clouded amidst the lights, camera and pay scale of such a position. A newly elected official soon learns the money must be mined and generated for the next election. It jades and impedes upon an idealistic candidate who wishes to fix what is wrong. I covered this with my good friend and former candidate for Congress Pat Barron in 2011. I also spoke to Geoff Deihl after my Symposium privately and he admitted that it is all well and good to have these moral compasses.. Then you get elected.. And, you end up in a world of shit creeks and (quite literally) without a paddle. You are left with dealing with what is on the docket and your specific idea gets shifted down the pile somewhere. You are busy raising funds and have little time (nor clout) to put forth your ideas. Vote 'no' on everything and you are seen as an 'outsider'. No one will work with you.  Vote 'yes' and try to compromise on some bills and the constituency that got you elected views you as a turncoat.
   Either way you are screwed as a Legislator. Look at Scott Brown..
   I view Scott Brown as a man of integrity trying to navigate rough waters. He soon learned in his short stint as Senator that this process is a friggen nightmare! To make matters worse? When you wake up from that nightmare you discover that your constituents are sending you e-mails telling you that you betrayed them.
    Either way, you are screwed!

    So, what is the  incentive for a local man/woman to run for this higher calling? In short, there is none save the moral compass of the individual who decides to get hung out to dry in the process.
    Case in point, my good friend and 2014 candidate for State Rep. for the 13th District Worcester, Jackie Kostas. This woman had nothing to gain from tossing her hat into the ring. She could walk away from this tomorrow and no one who would blame her. But she could not stand by one more day and watch her adopted nation slide into the very same nation she escaped from. I covered her campaign earlier this year and here is the link below. I also had the honor of her coming onto my show for an interview and that link is below as well.

http://worcesterherald.com/2014/08/the-campaign-of-jackie-kostas/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DonYphn_iqs&index=72&list=PLU_Z4p-v1UQZSKw62f2lfyrEoRg1xxWNb


    Has she been written up in the local Liberal dominated press? One would think they would, right? She has all the right credentials; Latino immigrant, escaped Communism, took the oath of citizenship. A typical American/immigrant success story. Sounds good, except for one slight problem. She is running as a Republican. More to the point, she is affiliated with a local Tea Party organization. Well, we can't have that now, can we?
    Interestingly, the seated Democratic Rep. Mahoney didn't think he would have to face a challenger (par for the course here in ole' Taxachusetts). Once he got wind of Jackie knocking on doors though he opened up his DNC war chest. But, don't expect Mahoney to be knocking on your door any time soon folks. He'll send some one to do it for him. Jackie, on the other hand, will be glad to meet with you personally.
    These are the people I am talking about. The ones who beat the bricks. They meet so many people they go home exhausted and then: Get up to go to their jobs all day and go back to hit the bricks again.. And Again... And Again..

... And That Is The Diatribe....

The One Trick Pony-Healey Imposes TCI for Massachusetts. Part I

       

     The article piece below was written by James Aloisi on sustainable funding for transportation. It is an admirable attempt at finding a solution to a problem that should not exist in the first place. Failing to make that connection puts the remainder of his thesis in doubt. His use of the standard divisive terminologies in describing the efforts of citizens to reign in an out-of-control tax policy lends further credence to where his political ideologies lie. That ideology being that bigger government is better government.

    Behold the one trick pony.

" In Massachusetts, raising the gas tax in any meaningful way is politically difficult to do. As a result, its purchasing power has significantly deteriorated over time. I tried unsuccessfully in 2009 to raise the gas tax by 19 cents a gallon; last year the Legislature enacted a paltry 3-cent-per-gallon hike - the first such increase since George H.W. Bush was president. Also last year, for the first time, the Legislature acted to allow the gas tax to be automatically adjusted for inflation. That commonsense notion is now under attack by right-wing activists who have placed a repeal proposition on this year's general election ballot. The fight over the gas tax inflation adjustment, while important in the short term, is a distraction to the conversation that needs to take place regarding finding a long-term fair and sustainable approach to transportation funding. One thing seems certain: the gas tax is not the future of transportation funding. As automobiles become more fuel efficient and hybrid/electric oriented, the gas tax will diminish as a reliable source of transportation revenue. We need to find sustainable alternatives, derived from transportation sources. First, though, we need to put an end to the old habits of evading responsibility by turning to political slogans, financing gimmicks and excessive borrowing."

    And just who is James Aloisi? (from Wikipedia)

James A. "Jim" Aloisi Jr. is a Boston-based writer, lawyer and consultant with a specialty in transportation planning and policy. Aloisi is secretary of Boston-based transit policy advocacy group TransitMatters and a lecturer at the MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning.^[2][3].

    

                    So, Jimmy here is a classic policy wonk. I mean.. Look at that guy!

    Wikipedia goes on to list his accolades as Chief of Massachusetts Revenue back in the 80's! The guy never met a tax hike he didn't like.

    Having stated himself and his tenure in government only magnifies his inability to understand the economic crush of mounting taxation upon the working poor of the state. Taxation for taxation's sake does not produce sustainable revenue for a specific agency (in this case transportation). The history of government mismanagement of tax revenues is as old as government itself.

     At the original writing of this blog piece the tax revenue surplus in Massachusetts was in the billions of dollars. At no point in time was there talk of plugging the transportation gap with that surplus, nor paying off deficits, nor any tax relief for the taxpayers. However, the legislators granted themselves pay raises, remodeled the State House corner office and laid the plans for a billion+ dollar Convention Center.     

    The unfunded liabilities in the transportation sector went, well. Unfunded.

    The automatic gasoline tax would do nothing to address this problem. Just as the DMV rate hikes of 75% will never go to fixing roads and bridges. Mr. Aloisi conveniently neglects to mention that all tax revenues now go into a general fund. So, the ruse of an indexed gasoline tax being the panacea to our transportation woes is simply not true. 

    I personally filmed the DMV dog and pony show and I personally worked on the Repeal petition of the automatic gasoline tax. Once the public was informed on the ramifications of such a scheme many became upset and educated themselves even more. I spent most of the fall of 2013 educating the signers of the first round of petitions. By the summer of 2014 when we gathered the second round of signers, I ran into more and more people who saw the plan written up in newspapers, local news stations and many articles online. By this time, it no longer mattered what side of the political aisle you sat on, this policy was going to affect Democrats and Republicans alike. Basically, anyone who drives a car or drives as part of their job, business or vocation.

      People of every ilk just signed the petition.

    This brings me back to the disconnect that Mr. Aloisi seems to have. Increased costs of gasoline mean increased costs of goods and services. This is called inflation. And since the gasoline tax is indexed on inflation the tax will rise incrementally each and every year.
     But that was the whole plan to begin with, wasn't it?

   Well, that was some years ago. Today in 2024 we have a Democrat in the corner office at Beacon Hill. Our esteemed rug munching Governor has dusted off the shelf and is re-introducing TCI once more upon the citizens of Taxachusetts.

Healey math means more money out of your pocket – HCRN (howiecarrshow.com)

     And it is all about transportation. She has commissioned a "Task Force". I am sure Climate Change will enter the picture sometime soon.

    

     In the Howie Carr piece, he asks the basic questions of any cognizant person who a turnip is NOT. Where did the other money go?

    

    I wrote a blog piece years ago about Worcester getting lots of that Cigarette money from the Congressional hearings. Apparently, Massachusetts was to get $64 million for X amount of years for health care and the whole 'Stop Smoking" campaign. But only $8 million was actually targeted and spent.

    Where did the rest of the money go?

    And true to any Democrat policy that cannot defend the merits of their case Healey waited until the filing for ballot question opposition had passed. So, don't be looking to voice your opinion on this wallet grab in the little red cookbook the Sect. of State sends out this November.

    The current Google search puts the Massachusetts Federal and State gas tax at just shy of .45 cents/gallon. According to the link below Massachusetts is responsible for .24 cents of that. And the Healey Administration has not disclosed any numbers as far as I can see.

https://www.salestaxhandbook.com/massachusetts/gasoline-fuel

    As a political writer and former radio producer from 2009-2019 I have had the unique opportunity to speak with candidates, authors, activists, business leaders and Tea Party members on my show. I have conducted hundreds of interviews and never heard anyone tell me that higher taxes translate into a better economic model.

    So, what does this leave us with? It leaves us with an underemployed population struggling to stay afloat amidst staggering inflation fueled by (pun intended) indexed gas taxes, net job losses and an increasing inability to make ends meet. Currently there are well over 1 million Massachusetts residents on some sort of state aid/ food stamps. That is roughly 1/6th of our population.

    And now we have another un-knowned number of illegals our Governor has let in. Maybe they will be buying gas!
    As I spoke to candidates from the western part of the state, they made me aware that they have to drive several miles just to get to work, the store, a hospital, school. Hell, anywhere due to the rural countryside. And jobs aren't exactly growing on trees out there in the Berkshires. 

     An indexed gasoline tax would cripple these people.
    OH, and Mr. Aloisi? The T doesn't run out there so what good would it be for these people?

    While the left claims that higher taxes forces the wealthy to pay more of their fair share the reality is that the major burden of taxes are borne by the working poor.

     And let me point this simple model out.

    Higher taxes reduce purchasing power on middle- and low-income workers. Higher DMV rates forces a working poor single mother to choose between a $50 inspection sticker or gas money. High fuel and DMV rates make automobile ownership virtually impossible for the working poor and they are just one break down, one cancelled high-rate insurance policy or one police pull over away from being screwed financially.

    The car is towed at $200 and stored at $200 a day. 

    The poor suffer.

    Higher costs mean businesses cannot pay decent wages to loyal employees and forces many to lay them off. The entire climb up the socio-economic ladder collapses. Food costs more because it takes fuel to get it to the store.

    The poor suffer.

    The crazy, suggested solution to this problem was that we raise the minimum wage. Not that it would do any of the wage earners any good if they knew they had to pay more of that 'imagined' raise in fees, fines, taxes, fuel costs, insurance hikes, never mind that any wage increase puts a person into a higher income tax bracket and may force their employer to lay them off because the employer simply can't afford it.

    But Mr. Aloisi wouldn't know anything about this. Or our Governor.

    To quote his own article; " having spent many years in and out of government." 

The One Trick Pony.

    This guy has no idea what the working poor have to deal with just to survive. Government agencies exist only for the perpetuation of those agencies, NOT to serve the public trust. 

     I attended the DMV hearings. I noticed the majority of audience members were union workers for the state. All their well-appointed cars were parked in the Union Station parking garage proudly displaying the state worker license plates. 
    The insurance, gas, maintenance, inspections, even the weekly wash and wax are performed by other people and paid for by you and I.  

    Hell, when I grew up in Northborough the police drove the squad cars home at the end of their shifts. Talk about transportation costs.

    So, before we begin to lament on the condition of our transportation system, we should take a critical look at the agency that oversees it. Mind you, the original 500 million back in the Doolittle Deval Administration wanted for Mass Transit was supposed to plug the pension gap; not to lay more track to western Mass or Fall River as he opined. Worcester alone had over 100 million in unfunded pensions, most of it centered around the transportation sector. Amazingly the city was still able to redesign and remodel the sidewalks and Worcester Common with expensive paving stone and a marble entryway sporting the city seal. Never mind the money spent on the new Hub and the new multi-million-dollar bus maintenance facility.

    And let us not forget Polar Park.

    The article Aloisi wrote and the comments he made for The Commonwealth Magazine is what I call The One Trick Pony. 

    He uses the same rhetoric we hear all the time. 
   
    Repeal The Automatic Gasoline Tax.


.... And That Is The Diatribe....

What The Hell Just Happened?

      Apparently Massachusetts voters never learn a lesson. Mass voters are like the consummate newbie in a prison full of hard core lifers. The established GOP and DNC  purposely drop the 'issues' soap and we just bend right over (like idiots) and WHAMMO! Fucked again!
    The crooks don't even give us the courtesy of a reach around to delude us into thinking we made an 'informed' decision.
    I will tell you who made an informed the decision, though. It was the voters who voted for the outsiders who lost. Well, in most cases. Warren Tolman WAS and idiot!
    The upside of all of this was at least the Communist Party.., excuse me. Democrat Party ended up with a split vote. Neither Coakley, Grossman or any other Dem won a decidedly majority of the votes. The only disturbing aspect of that fact is it is obvious that Massachusetts Democrats could give a rat's ass where their Socialism comes from. More taxes, more regulations, more rules, mandates, laws, ordinances. It doesn't matter who is in charge. Massachusetts Democrats love to show off their designer shackles.
    Can I get those engraved? Oh, for an extra fee? How silly of me!

    But how the hell did Charlie Baker make the grade? I watched Mark Fisher crisscross this state from Pittsfield to Plymouth attending every single event he could cram into a 24 hour day. I ran into Mark several times during the election and each time he remembered who I was and greeted me warmly. He attended my Candidate's Symposium and every answer he gave was direct, simple and to the point. Come to think of it? He was destined to lose on that principle alone.
    I also ran into Charlie Baker several times during the campaign. Each time he would stare at me like a gaunt concentration camp victim. There are only so many times you can say, "The Meat And Potatoes Show" before you realize either some one is just not listening to you or they are dumber than a box of donuts. In Charlie's case I think both axioms apply. Come to think of it? He was bound to win on that principle alone.
    Although I invited Mark to my show every time we met, I understood he was busy. He was always gracious and apologetic for not being able to come on. The day he personally sent me a message that he would attend my Symposium I was happy and left the poor guy alone from then on. No one from Charlie's team returned the half dozen invites I sent them. I personally spoke to Karyn Polito at the Automatic Gas Tax party in Shrewsbury and (again) invited them onto the show. Karyn turned to one of her staffers (who was shitfaced) and told them to give me a business card and to call them tomorrow...
    No one remembered me. No one knew what I was talking about. Mind you, this dynamic duo could potentially be our next Gov. and Lt. Gov. Scary isn't it?

    I will tell you an interesting story associated with the Baker campaign. I will disclaim here and now that this has nothing to do with Charlie or Karyn. So, I cannot blame them. I will also include a link to another blog post I wrote some time ago about another incident I experienced while interacting with their campaign staff. Both this story and the related link should give you a good idea of what we are dealing with here.

    While in the early stages of planning my August 30th Candidate's Symposium my buddy Wayne and I attended a Republican Town Committee meeting at 18 Grafton St. on the first floor office. This was late June of this year. After the meeting I motioned to Wayne to follow me into a back storage room. There, I pointed to about two dozen stacked chairs that were stored. I said to Wayne that we need to remember these chairs and be sure to get them prior to the event so we could use them. I knew the chairs were there because I have been attending meetings and events at 18 Grafton St. since 2010.
    Sometime between late June and late August the Baker team arrived and set up a call center in that first floor space. At that same time I was conducting sit down interviews for my show on the fourth floor at the Liberty Clubhouse. I was there almost every other day and on weekends. I conducted around a dozen interviews there.
    Each time I was there I would check to see if anyone was at the Baker office so I could speak to them about the event and the chairs.
    No one was ever there. I was there in the mornings, afternoons, evenings, weekends.. All times and days. I would even peer into the windows and knock on the door to see if any one was home. No one.. Ever!
    So, as the Symposium drew closer I began to get concerned and asked the building manager if he could get in touch with any one from the Baker team downstairs. He gave me the phone number of a guy named Ryan from Mass GOP. So, I called Ryan.
    Naturally I went instantly to Voicemail. I left him a detailed message explaining the situation and my number. About ten minutes later Ryan called me back.
    " Did you listen to my message?" I asked.
    " No, I did not." He replied. I then repeated the message to him.
    " I don't know about any chairs.." He interjected during my explanation. I further explained how I knew they were there and where they were. I even told him I would return them promptly after the event so as to not upset his staff's schedule.
    " How do you know this? Have you been in our office?" Ryan was starting to get testy at this point.
    "Yes!" I said. " I have been to many events down there and was there last June at an RTC meeting. I made a point of seeing if the chairs were still there and they were."
    "Well, I will have to check with my boss and besides, Saturdays are one of our busier calling nights and we will need all of the chairs.."
    At this point in time I realized that Ryan was just plain lying to me. As I said a few paragraphs ago I was constantly at the building and never saw any one there on a Saturday night. In addition how was it that Ryan suddenly needed all the chairs he just told me he knew nothing about?
    I asked him to please check with 'his boss' and to get back in touch with me. I thanked him for his time and hung up.
    Ryan never called me back.

    The next day I ran into Brad Wyatt (building owner). I explained the situation and Brad gave me the best response I had ever heard.
    " You know why he did that don't you?" He asked. I was at a loss.
    " It is because they know Mark Fisher is showing up at the Symposium."
    Brad could not have been more correct.

    In fact, of all the candidates who signed on for the Symposium none of the candidates riding Baker's coattails (who agreed to attend) bothered showing up. All of the grassroots candidates who put their own necks, their money and good names on the line DID show up.
    This may be the last time we see a candidate like Mark Fisher run for office in Massachusetts. Given the way he was treated at the convention, treated by the Mass GOP, the press during his legal battle to get on the ballot and the complete lack of support from the GOP itself in general will exclude any and all possibility of a meaningful outside candidate with straight answers to ever choose to run for office ever, ever again.

.... And That Is The Diatribe....

P.S. Here is that link.. http://thelexingtongreen.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-baker-campaign-wants-no-press-at.html