Raves, Rants & Roses

Shane Fox

Last Monday, April 20, 2009, the Texas Senate, in a rare bipartisan move, voted to accept the $555-million in stimulus funds earmarked for extending unemployment benefits. Nineteen Republicans and all twelve Democrats voted to accept the money in a direct rebuff of Texas Governor, Rick Perry, who has said that the money, “has too many strings attached.”

Earlier Perry had agreed to take most of the $17-billion stimulus package.

The Texas Alliance for Retired Americans believes that the facts dictate acceptance of the entire package. The unemployment fund faces a $1-billion shortfall by October, 2009 and the state would have to borrow to cover that shortfall. State Senator, Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler, said that acceptance of the money “will immediately save the state some $80-million and lessen the burden on employers.”

The measure will now move to the Texas House, and TARA urges everyone to contact their representative and ask that they support the measure to accept these funds in order that the Governor receives a veto-proof bill. It is our tax dollars coming back to Texas to help our worthy working families during a time of need. That is the Texas way!

Sincerely,

Shane Fox
Vice President-Community Organizations
Texas Alliance for Retired Americans
Executive Board - Alliance for Retired Americans

Robert Morris

| Last Monday, April 20, 2009, the Texas Senate, in a rare bipartisan move, voted to accept the $555-million in stimulus funds earmarked for extending unemployment benefits. Nineteen Republicans and all twelve Democrats voted to accept the money in a direct rebuff of Texas Governor, Rick Perry, who has said that the money, “has too many strings attached.”
|
| Earlier Perry had agreed to take most of the $17-billion stimulus package.
|
| The Texas Alliance for Retired Americans believes that the facts dictate acceptance of the entire package. The unemployment fund faces a $1-billion shortfall by October, 2009 and the state would have to borrow to cover that shortfall. State Senator, Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler, said that acceptance of the money “will immediately save the state some $80-million and lessen the burden on employers.”
|
| The measure will now move to the Texas House, and TARA urges everyone to contact their representative and ask that they support the measure to accept these funds in order that the Governor receives a veto-proof bill. It is our tax dollars coming back to Texas to help our worthy working families during a time of need. That is the Texas way!
|
| Sincerely,
|
| Shane Fox
| Vice President-Community Organizations
| Texas Alliance for Retired Americans
| Executive Board - Alliance for Retired Americans

You support what you think is best for your group, the retired folks, and I will support what I think is best for my group, the ones still working our tails off to pay for it.

Shane Fox

Robert, retired people do not draw extended unemployment benefits, working people do. You seem, however, to think your taxes support the unemployment fund. They do not. Employers do, and if that $1-billion shortfall happens in October, they will pay higher rates to cover it and then, as always, there will be an element of pass-along to working folks such as you and I.

That is part of why both Republicans and Democrats are supporting the bill in opposition to the Governor's wrongheaded, ideologically based posturing.

It is gratifying to imply from your post that you have no fear of job loss. Many others have that fear, and for all too many it is actuality. This bill brings relief to them, their families, and employers who will have higher rates to pay if that shortfall happens in October.

The Alliance for Retired Americans, by the way, is not an organization working only for retired people. It is a progressive grassroots organization made up of retirees and community groups working on behalf of retirees and working families to preserve and protect Social Security, Medicare and to help establish a sane approach to long-term care, among other important issues confronting retirees, working families, and the next generation.

-1

Retirement is the ends and working your tail off is the means. "Retired folks" are your group but with the benefit of hindsight. They have the benefit of belonging to both groups.

This argument:

"You support what you think is best for your group, the retired folks, and I will support what I think is best for my group, the ones still working our tails off to pay for it."

is you telling someone that has achieved what you want to some day achieve that you know better how to achieve it. Respect your elders Bobby.

and FYI: You're not working your tail off. You lost it through evolution. Your ancestors didn't need it when they came out of the trees to be hunter/gatherers on the African savanna.

-1

|
|
| and FYI: You're not working your tail off. You lost it through evolution. Your ancestors didn't need it when they came out of the trees to be hunter/gatherers on the African savanna.

I stand corrected. You are right. When I am retired I will be writing the same things as Shane. But for now, I am working my tailbone off.

-1

My ancesters never had tails...those who believe in evolution live in the same fantasy world as those who believe people are essentially good.
Socialism will never work because we all want what is best for ourselves.
I don't think that it is disrespectful to expect our elders to allow our generation and those that follow to live in the same free market economy that allowed them to succeed.

-1

The way I figure it, a person that believes their ancestors spoke with, and listen to the advice of, snakes really shouldn't be in the business of telling others they live in a "fantasy world".

I can show you wear the tailbone or coccyx (curved, semiflexible lower end of the backbone in apes and humans, representing a vestigial tail is. It is composed of three to five successively smaller caudal vertebrae). The word "vestigial" refers to an organ or body part that is degenerating from an earlier form. Encyclopedia Britannica and Webster's Dictionary <<<evil books

Can you give me any trace evidence of snake language? Maybe talk to a snake for us on the downtown square? Maybe just a "hello" or maybe "hey lady eat this fruit"? Now you wanna talk fantasy world?

You do live in a free market economy. I understand that you have to pretend (fantasy world) you don't in order to propell the accusation that Obama is a "socialist". You can buy and sell freely. You can choose where you buy things based on prices set through competition. What part of your market is not in the free market? Maybe you need to go to North Korea for a year and stand in a rice line for 4 days to get 2 cups of rice to appreciate it?

This is the problem with basing what is "real" on your politics and/or religion. What is reality and what is "fantasy world" becomes subjective to personal preference. In reality, you have a coccyx. If you ever break it you will know for sure, ouuuuch. In reality, you can try to explain to me how we don't live in a free market economy when ...

you get back to the computer you freely chose to buy from many options that is running off of electricity that you get from varying electrical markets competing for your business in the house you freely chose to buy in the car you freely chose to buy from many foreign and domestic options from one of many many many markets you freely chose to shop at.

The Republicans are going about it all wrong. If Republicans want to return to a place where more than 21% of Americans take them serious they have to convince people of what they are and what they offer, not what Obama is or what he offers. When you do that, it makes you look petty and more concern with winning politically over being successful as a nation. The GOP is degenerating into a radio talk show party where the goal is to make the other person wrong and natural selection is chewing the party up and spitting it out.

-1

Robert, retired people do not draw extended unemployment benefits, working people do. You seem, however, to think your taxes support the unemployment fund. They do not. Employers do, and if that $1-billion shortfall happens in October, they will pay higher rates to cover it and then, as always, there will be an element of pass-along to working folks such as you and I.

That is part of why both Republicans and Democrats are supporting the bill in opposition to the Governor's wrongheaded, ideologically based posturing.

It is gratifying to imply from your post that you have no fear of job loss. Many others have that fear, and for all too many it is actuality. This bill brings relief to them, their families, and employers who will have higher rates to pay if that shortfall happens in October.

The Alliance for Retired Americans, by the way, is not an organization working only for retired people. It is a progressive grassroots organization made up of retirees and community groups working on behalf of retirees and working families to preserve and protect Social Security, Medicare and to help establish a sane approach to long-term care, among other important issues confronting retirees, working families, and the next generation.

-1

| Robert, retired people do not draw extended unemployment benefits, working people do. You seem, however, to think your taxes support the unemployment fund. They do not. Employers do, and if that $1-billion shortfall happens in October, they will pay higher rates to cover it and then, as always, there will be an element of pass-along to working folks such as you and I.
|
| That is part of why both Republicans and Democrats are supporting the bill in opposition to the Governor's wrongheaded, ideologically based posturing.
|
| It is gratifying to imply from your post that you have no fear of job loss. Many others have that fear, and for all too many it is actuality. This bill brings relief to them, their families, and employers who will have higher rates to pay if that shortfall happens in October.
|
| The Alliance for Retired Americans, by the way, is not an organization working only for retired people. It is a progressive grassroots organization made up of retirees and community groups working on behalf of retirees and working families to preserve and protect Social Security, Medicare and to help establish a sane approach to long-term care, among other important issues confronting retirees, working families, and the next generation.

Who says I'm not the employer and that I am not concerned about having to lay people off? Hmmmmm?

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