Letter: Tea Party wants to restore accountability

There were two letters to the editor in the May 27 Herald Times that particularly caught my eye. The first letter concerning the Tea Party asked questions that, in my opinion, the author knew the answers, but in the interest of extolling the party line feigned ignorance. I will attempt to clarify the questions in little words that he might understand.
The largest misconception of the general public is the Tea (Taxed Enough Already) Party is against all taxes. This thought is promoted by the same people who can take the statement “They’re our next-door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from an island in Alaska” and turn it into “I can see Russia from my house.” This is, like Mr. Kuhn’s letter, a perfect example of using both synecdoche and eisegesis in an attempt to further their agenda. Oops, said I would use little words for his comprehension. That would be hold out a part as if it were the whole and reading into it what they want it to say.
Asking where cuts might be made, he includes a laundry list of programs he knows cannot be eliminated but fails to mention some programs that could stand a close look, billions in foreign aid, TARP or Obamacare perhaps? Mr. Kuhn labors under the notion that the Tea Party is enamored with the Patriot Act. That was just one of the things that started nationwide discontent with the Federal government.
The American public voted the present administration into office on the premise that they were telling the truth when the claimed they would “repair the worst economy since the Great Depression” and have “the most transparent administration ever,” but it has been anything but transparent or fiscally responsible. To quote an e-mail currently making the rounds, “This administration is giving drunken sailors a reputation for frugality.”
We in the Tea Party movement are concerned that after the takeover of the House and Senate by the Democratic party in January ’07 and then of the White House in January ’09 we have seen the stock market plunge from 14,000 just months into their reign to a low of 6,600 in March ’09 and unemployment going from 4.6 percent to 9.8 percent in the same period and still not improving. In fact some experts are now predicting the Dow, while back up to around 10,000 currently, could drop back to 6,000 and are recommending investors to sell. This combined with federal spending per household going from $24,000 annually in ’07 to a projected $31,000 in ’10 gives conservatives cause to wonder where all the bucks are going and how much of the bloated budget could be trimmed. Oh, excuse me, no budget yet this year. Guess you can’t trim what isn’t there, now can you?
Mr. Kuhn cites roads, bridges, etc. as tax funded, as they should be, along with schools, city, county and state governments and hospitals to name a few legitimate entities that should receive tax money. Most of these should be funded with state taxes but the federal government continues to take over more and more states rights thereby trampling on Amendment 10. There are many areas of waste that are obvious to the taxpayer and many more that are hidden from the general public. When John Q. Public runs low on money he curtails his spending habits and learns to live within his means. When Washington, D.C. runs low on money they just raise taxes and pick up another gear, debt be damned. If people don’t take a lesson from what we are seeing in Greece right now, then our children, grandchildren and their children and grandchildren will never see the standard of living that the U.S. has been enjoying for the past 65 years since the end of World War II. I would invite those who are still questioning what the Tea Party is about to attend a meeting, either in Meeker or Rangely and educate yourselves about our purposes. While there are various ideas and proposed agendas regarding the direction we should go, we do share the common goal of restoring accountability and bringing some sanity back to Washington with the election of fiscal conservatives, be they Democrat, Republican or Independent. No, we are not an extension of nor supported by any political party.
The second letter was from Mr. Love, a college student. While his letter was well written and compassionate concerning illegal immigrants, as one would expect coming from a student enrolled in the bastion of liberalism, I would advise him to do some research on the Arizona law. It was written to enforce a federal law already on the books and mirrors a California law that has been in effect for several years. The operative word here is “illegal.” I welcome legal immigration whether it be from Mexico, Canada or any place else. I have several friends who either carry green cards or have obtained citizenship. These people are hard-working, honest folks whom I have the greatest admiration and respect for. But those who wish to come to the U.S. should make proper application to do so. Legal immigration serves multiple purposes. Authorities can limit the entries to a sustainable and acceptable level as well as screen out those undesirables who have criminal backgrounds or might have terrorist ties. It should be obvious that when President Calderone of Mexico tries to influence U.S. border security that therein lies a problem. It is estimated that over a billion dollars a month flows from illegals in the U.S. to Mexico each month, without which, the Mexican economy would be many times worse than it is and that would put Calderone in the hot seat. We should feel sympathy for those who want to move north and make a better life for themselves but, in lieu of this, it would behoove them to clean up the corruption in their own country and establish a decent economy. Not an easy job nor done overnight, but at this point I see a country run strictly by drug cartels and nothing being done about it.
Gordon Byers
Rangely