photo from Poverty in America

There are some fundamental facts that shouldn’t be ignored. We have 9+ percent unemployment in this country and people are scraping by. Last week, I saw a man but exactly $3.41 in his car. It paid for exactly one gallon of gas. He looked exhausted. I watched him count the change carefully before giving it to the attendant at the store, who he apparently knew. All he said to the man behind the register was that it had been a tough week. It appeared that amount of change had been budgeted into the day’s travel.

These stories are not unique. These are the real faces of people who have had to sacrifice.

There is this story from yesterday that made the online rounds which is worth noting from Rep. John Fleming (R-LA). You can also see the video at the website of several statements that the congressman made.

Fleming is himself a businesses owner, so Jansing asked, “If you have to pay more in taxes, you would get rid of some of those employees?” Fleming responded by saying that while his businesses made $6.3 million last year, after you “pay 500 employees, you pay rent, you pay equipment, and food,” his profits “a mere fraction of that” – “by the time I feed my family, I have maybe $400,000 left over.”

And that is the chasm and divide that exists in this country. No one I know begrudges people that have means. What does bother them is when legislators willfully take food off their table while keeping the extra bank in their own pockets citing that is fair.

Addicting Information analyzes some of the frustration with Fleming’s comments quite pointedly.

Fleming told the Wall Street Journal that “he spends very little time on day-to-day management, though he weighs in on broad strategy decisions. I monitor the reports. I’m certainly in communication with the managers.” In other words, Fleming is lazy and sits on his a** while his employees do all the work to make him rich. Meanwhile he’s in Congress fighting to lower average household income for the middle class and fighting to kill Social Security and Medicare. At a time when most average Americans are struggling to pay their bills and feed their own families, Fleming has the audacity to complain about having only $400,000 in his fancy wallet after feeding his own. Does this make you angry?

This is a good example of the haves and the have nots, and being out of touch with real Americans who were asked to sacrifice. The bottom line is that everyone was asked to do their share, not just one cross-section.

On to today’s links:

Cup of Joe Powell tells us not to be fooled by national stories regarding Pres. Barack Obama and gives a lesson that most politics are local. Much of this is coming from ALEC, he writes, and we need to have an eye on legislators in our own backyards.

And as always, Americans most often forget that the decisions made at the state and local level are the ones which determine much of the way we run our education and economic systems. Blaming all ills on one single elected official is juvenile, whether the blame is aimed at a Democrat or Republican. Our job forever remains holding the highest standards of performance and accountability for all our elected officials.

LINK

ALEC, photo ID voting mandates and Tennessee’s push comes from interests that go back to 2006, according to this story by Tom Humphrey.

“I think they’re genuinely trying to disenfranchise people they think tend to vote for Democrats,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Turner. “It’s a national Republican thing. I guess it’s something people of wealth and power have always tried to do.” LINK

Rep. Stephen Fincher has won a dubious title that I don’t believe he is probably very proud of which is one of the most corrupt politicians in Washington. LINK Memphis blogger Steve Ross delves in deeper looking at some of Fincher’s legislation. LINK

Tennessee House and Senate democrats were in parts of west Tennessee yesterday and will continue to the northwest portion of the state tomorrow on its Tennessee Job Tours. The Jackson Sun caught up with them in Haywood County.

The four state leaders were joined by Haywood County Mayor Franklin Smith and Brownsville Mayor Jo Matherne as they drove through the 1,741 core acres of the megasite and viewed construction of the solar farm. Monday’s group hopes the megasite can attract an industry that could bring 1,500 to 2,000 jobs to the area within the next five years. The megasite is off Interstate 40′s exit 42 and is bisected by Tennessee 222. LINK

A new strong voice from the west side of the state at a website called Yeah and Another Thing breaks down the recent funding shuffling of Planned Parenthood to another entity. She also talks about civility in public discourse and keeping mindful of mainstream media.

I don’t believe we’re a nation of extremes. I really don’t. Squeaky wheels get press. People who believe passionately in something but who are rational and level-headed don’t get the air time zealotry does. How many people know who Michelle Bachmann is? How many know who Elizabeth Warren is? I’d love to see that poll.

By the way, as I sit here writing this, something interesting came up in my Twitter feed. A CNN poll shows 78% of the country is pro-choice. So it just goes to show you that even though the anti-choice voice might be loud and well-funded, it’s not the majority’s voice.

Read Bergsie and put her in your RSS feed because she is knocking out of the ballpark. LINK

Photo credit here.

Quote of the Day

You must accept that you might fail;then, if you do your best and still don’t win, at least you can be satisfied that you’ve tried.  

If you don’t accept failure as a possibility, you don’t set high goals, you don’t branch out, you don’t try – you don’t take the risk. 

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter

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TRUE BLUE PARTY

The Rutherford County Democrats are holding a True Blue event Thursday night at Fanatics at the

DoubleTree Hotel in Murfreesboro.

 This month we are privileged to have Murfreesboro’s finest, The Eclectics, entertaining us courtesy of Carl and Carol Berning. 

Suggested donations are $10 and $5 for our “younger” Democrats which all goes to the support of our RCDP.

For more information, contact 615-962-7594  

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 The Madison County Democratic Party

For more information about this event on Saturday, call

 For more information:

call 731-423-3300