The Mommy Tsunami
Recently, there have been several groups that have joined to call themselves "Mommy Tsunami." Now, this group was formed prior to the tsunami that was the result of the earthquake in Japan last month. So one, let alone us, can fault them for using the name "Tsunami" in their title. Just what is this group? What are their goals? We will examine them and present a solution to their problem that will make the "Mommy's" happy and the taxpayer as well.
As one already knows from their casual reading of the news, the state of California is, once again, in a heated budget battle. Every year, each and every group wants their share of the budget pie. The Police/Sheriffs/Prison Guards cry they are out there protecting the public. Fire Departments say we fight fires. Then there are the nurses, teachers and just plain old civil servants (like the people that you see working at your local Department of Motor Vehicles), that want their share of the pie. Then you have those on Welfare/Food Stamps/W.I.C., they want their money. Public Schools, thanks to the dishonored former State School Chief Bill Honig, get fifty percent of the California budget, right off the top, before anyone else, either mentioned or un-named above, gets a seat at the budget table. That is due to Proposition 98 and its mandatory spending apparatus. With all that "mandatory" spending, there is little left for anyone else. Enter the Lanterman Act.
First, a word about compassion. No one can doubt the Lanterman Act, which calls for financial aid for individuals with special needs is compassionate. The problem is when the government gets involved in the "compassion" business there are two ways this is demonstrated. The first way is this: people who believe in wealth re-distribution believe that "compassion" is demonstrated by how many people they can get on the rolls. The more the better. Why? Because these people translate into votes to keep them (and people of their ilk) in power. The second type of compassion is that of people who believe in liberty. Compassion, to a Libertarian is how many people you can remove from government aid and on the path of individual self sufficiency.
The Lanterman Act (herein called "The Act") calls for mandatory spending for the disabled. Now this all sounds all well and good. Every year the local news shows people that are in really bad shape, many through no fault of their own, in motorized wheelchairs, in front of the Governor's Office, decrying the "cuts" in their funding. Then the camera will go outside the Capitol Building and show a group of unwed mothers decrying their cuts in funding. Everyone wants their piece of the pie, and they demand a bigger slice each and every year. The State of California, either through altruism or idiocy, wants to be everything to everyone. The State of California, instead of doing a few things great, they want to do a whole bunch and they really do not do what they do very well. Then the politicians get into the act, and proudly announce during a press conference, "We restored funding to program 'X'." The Unions, specifically the SEIU (Service Employees International Union), gets to keep their State of California jobs and in turn, run solid gold "Get out the Vote" campaigns to return their favorite candidates to office. If you do not think that is true, look at the number of incumbents (87.5%) that kept their elected offices in the last election.
Our question we have for the Mommy Tsunami organization is as follows. What happened to personal responsibility? A member of our group had a brother that was born with cerebral palsy. Her parents, a one income family, did just fine without any government interference. There was no benevolent government agent showing up at their door handing the family a check each month. According to this person, when they needed something, Dad went out and worked harder and or the family prioritized their spending. When the family needed a new wheelchair (cost $350 in 1970), our group member told the parents "I don't need a store bought shirt for church for my birthday, use the money to help purchase Nick's wheelchair." This was from an eleven year old. That may sound trite to some people, this demonstrates a level of personal/family responsibility that is absent from people today. People want the State of California to be their Mommy and Daddy. They do not want to go out and work. They want to lay around, wait for that government check and the accoutrements that go with that little green check. This type of attitude must stop.
Mommy Tsunami "Die In" You Tube Video
Just go to You Tube and enter the term Mommy Tsunami. You will see videos of some well dressed people. Their clothing was not Nordstrom's, but they were not wearing soiled, thread bare rags either. Regarding the lament of "we are starving;"; one of the people in the first part of the Mommy Tsunami walk looked like he weighed in at about 250. It costs $$$ to carry that weight around. One member of our group saw the video of the "Die In" held at the Hyatt during the Republicrat Convention. All those video cameras and not a single one caught what was supposedly said by by-standers in the lobby during the Mommy Tsunami die in. According to the aforementioned video people in the lobby were calling the demonstrators "scum," "retards," "idiots." If those people did make those statements...then shame on them. Then the "die in" participants complained about being "kicked out" of the lobby. Well, this speaks legions regarding the morality of these people. They want....and want.....and want a little more. They had little or no respect for private property or those within the property the ability to earn a living through their own labor and providing goods and services. The lobby area of the Hyatt is private property and the owners have the right to ask people that are disrupting or disturbing the patrons to leave. The end of the tape/video is priceless. There is a woman calling for, in essence, wealth re-distribution. "Tax the Rich." Well, I am rich and I want to keep my money, thank you very much.
A member of our group separated the audio from the video during the clips of the "die in" and guess what? Did we hear the "offensive language" reported by the Mommy Tsunami spokesmen? NO!!!!! If that had happened, it would have made the News at 5 on every station in Sacramento. This is a typical tactic of the progressive left. They claim "We were called names," but can provide no evidence. This was the same tactic progressives used during the Health Care demonstrations which happened about a year ago. A certain group claimed they were called (forgive us) "Niggers." When called to the task, specifically show us a video or produce a recording that can be validated, those groups could not produce a single piece of video/recording. On the other hand, we have a tape recording of Jerry Brown's wife calling Meg Whitman a "whore," and all is well with the progressive/collectivist left. We could go on, but we want to offer a substantive solution to the Mommy Tsunami group.
Solutions to State Interference/Money
GET A JOB. Yes, it is a little hard to get up in the morning and go to work. The rewards are legion. The Mommy Tsunami people will not have to worry about more government funding. Which brings me to another point. These people are using iPhones to record their terrorist style campaign. Those cost big money!!! I will bet you they also have high speed internet and premium cable in their homes. Even the cheapest package from Comcast costs about $100 per month. That is money these people could use for the care of their disabled family members. I do indeed, feel sorry for these people. But my tax dollars should NOT be used to provide succor for the disabled. Families should be responsible for caring for their own. One of the Mommy Tsunami group members stated (on the Page), "I didn't want to be born this way." This may be true. But your parents should pay for your care, NOT ME! Just like we told a bunch of people (unwed mothers) a long time ago, "I am sorry you made a stupid decision and got knocked up......but the state should not be paying for your lack of control....the State can't be your Mommy and Daddy." No more nanny state! The wealth re-distribution the Mommy Tsunami group calls for does not work. We have transferred close to $3 trillion dollars from the rich to the poor since Lyndon Johnson's Presidency and guess what, we still have poverty has not dropped one percentage point since 1967.