Take My Taxes: Take my Freedom

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The picture to the right is that of Todd Stroger; he is the Board president of Cook County in Chicago. Stroger boast of his 1 percent sales tax increase which brings Chicago's overall sales tax to 10.25 percent. In my audio presentation this week, I make the argument that what Stroger has done is to lessen the freedom of the Cook County residents. Why as American citizens do we so easily say to the Government, "Go ahead, take more money from others, especially the rich?" Essentially saying to the government, "Go ahead, take people's freedom away." Talk about taxation without representation, this is far worse than anything England ever did to us pre-independence. England at least was a declared enemy but now this oppression comes from our fellow citizens.

I implore all of you to become more conservative in how we think of our finances and our economy as it relates to the government. Where am I wrong on this and how can I straighten you out?

Danian Michael for
Political Agenda

The Hip-Hop Mayor

Detroit's Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has just been charged with several counts of criminal misconduct and is the headline news story on The Drudge Report; he should at least be proud of that fact. As I was watching the aftermath of Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy’s announcement, I was pleasantly surprised by the city’s response. After living though what seemed like a lifetime of Coleman Young in office, like many of you I doubted the city’s ability to be objective in looking out for its own self-interest. It would seem that the city and quite frankly all of us who live in the state of Michigan are behind the Prosecutor’s decision to press charges. If you are having a tough time with life right now, these are exciting times to be alive in Michigan, because no matter how bad you think your lot is in life, at least you are not the mayor. Shortly after, the Mayor had his own press-conference; his Lawyer did most of the talking and maintained the complete innocence of his client, our beloved Mayor. Furthermore, the Mayor would remain in office.

Like many of you, I watched these announcements with a group of people. My group was quite diverse; male, female, black, white, Detroiters, non-Detroiters, republicans and Democrats (mostly Democrats). So I took the opportunity to not only observe the comments being made on the television but also the ones being made in the room. The following is what I observed:

1.When the prosecutor announced she would bring charges against the mayor, everyone, without exception, was pleased with the decision and some even did a fist pump (no I was not one of fist ‘pumpers’).
2.While the charges were being read, everyone speculated the mayor would be undaunted by what has happened.
3.One person (not me) remained objective and was able to not pass judgment until a verdict is handed down in court.
4.The Kwame Supporters (and by that I mean those who supported him in the past) became even more staunch in their disapproval of him when it became clear he would not step down.
5.While the mayor’s lawyer spoke, people’s impatience grew, across the board. The audience believed Kwame’s lawyer’s arguments were weak; they were able to see right through the lawyer’s defense, as they saw it.

I thought his lawyer said something that was just flat out wrong; he said, if the mayor were to leave office now, WE would be penalizing him before his day in court, actually he said, we would be penalizing an innocent man. Do you know what this tells me; this tells me the Mayor is not motivated by love for Detroit. In any case, what is my conclusion after observing this very diverse group of people? I honestly don’t know, if the O.J. Simpson trial and decades of Coleman A. Young in office have taught me anything it is that compelling evidence against a popular celebrity does not necessarily mean compelling evidence against that person and that blacks can be rather forgiving of one of their own as long as he plays by the Democrat play book and Kwame knows this play book well, in fact I think he wrote the Foreword. Look for Kwame to play the race card hard and often, I just hope a jury of his peers will be able to see right through this. One thing is sure however, the Mayor is in for a tough battle and I am afraid that the city of Detroit will be one of the casualties. Who knows, perhaps seeing the city suffer, as it will, will spark some empathy within the mayor’s heart to the point where he will go from being the Hip-Hop mayor to more of a traditional Jazz type Mayor. And maybe if God chooses to smile on this city, Kwame Kilpatrick will not be mayor at all and a conservative republican will take his place.

Yes, I dare to dream.

POLITICAL AGENDA COPYRIGHT © 2008

Going to Church With Senator Obama and Jeremiah Wright

Senator Obama finds himself at the center of his first real controversy. Is it fair and does his relationship with Jeremiah Wright have any bearing at all on the Senator's ability to govern this country?

Now over the weekend Senator Obama has been in damage control mode even appearing on FOX News to explain himself. Now you have to understand, a Democrat appearing on FOX news is analogous to... what can I compare this to, oh I know, Me a conservative who happens to be black; need I say more. So for senator Obama to appear on FOX News must indicate that this story is gaining some traction out there in the citizenry. So is it fair: Well I can tell you as a protestant Christian that church is an integral part of the Christian’s life. Someone who refuses to go to church on Sundays has very legitimate reasons to doubt their standing as a Christian. Furthermore and I’m just speaking as a Christian here, God through his word (the Bible) appoints Pastors as the spiritual leaders over His that is to say God’s people. Anyone who knows me personally will attest to the influence my Pastor has in my life and the amount of respect I have for him. This relationship; pastor to flock and its importance in the life of a Christian, is at the heart of protestant Christianity. I know some of you reading this are not professing Christians and if you were running for president then all this would be a moot point. Senator Obama however is a professing Christian, he says things like, and “Pastor Wright is the one that lead me to Jesus.” Now since senator Obama is a professing Christian, what his Pastor professes on the pulpit most certainly comes into play in assessing who Senator Obama is. And let’s face it; we don’t have a lot to go on, inasmuch as he does not have a track record.

Now as I see it, Senator Obama is on the horns of a real dilemma here; for if he says that Pastor Wright has no influence on him then his profession of faith is not as he says it is and his over 20 years of attendance was a waste of his time. Either way, the trustworthiness of the Senator’s word will be severely undermined. If he maintains his good standing in the church then that implies an influential pastor who he listens to. A pastor who says that the murder of over 3000 Americans’ was, “Americas’ chickens coming home to roost.” A Pastor who prays to God for the damnation of America. How could a Senator running for president hear this hatred for his country and not be affected by it. On this horn his patriotism is called into question. The first job of any U.S. President is to the protection of this country and to uphold the constitution: Article II, Section I of the constitution reads - Before he [the President] enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation: — "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." How can Senator Obama be President if his Heart does not beat with a deep love for this country?

Now Senator Obama has stated loyalty to a friend as the reason why he has not been clear and precise in denouncing his Pastor. The problem however is that Barack Obama is no stranger to protest against things he claims to love; against the United States for example when he refused to wear his U.S. Flag lapel in protest of our foreign policies. Now if he is not able to stand on principle against his pastor by leaving the church (changing the dynamics of their friendship so that the Pastor to student relationship is severed) but he is able to stand against his country then I say Senator Obama has a serious problem with priorities as it pertains to the presidency.

In the final analysis I suspect that the Senator did not leave this church or find what was being said on the pulpit deplorable because some part of him was sympathetic to what was being said.

POLITICAL AGENDA COPYRIGHT © 2008