Diane Jones The Morning Show & Off the Cuff

If you've had your fill of puppies and kittens tugging at your heartstrings (and wallets), you will love this!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy2EjuAn5VI&feature=fvsr

As summer moves us into a different, more relaxed gear, we can't forget to continue to pay attention and speak our minds about what we feel is right for this country.

Thought this might be a reminder that our duty as citizens is not done, nor will it ever be--we hope and pray.

This is the text of the specch I gave at the Washington, MO Tax Day Tea Party:

Thank you!

It is great to be here on a beautiful spring evening, exercising our first amendment rights to peacefully assemble, to speak freely of our thoughts and, by the strength of our numbers here, to petition our government for a redress of our grievance.

Let’s petition them now!

Let’s let the folks in Washington D.C. hear from the folks in Washington, MO!

If you believe that the federal government is spending money at a rate that would make a drunken sailor blush, say aye!

If you believe the growing mountain of debt will ultimately rob from the prosperity of future generations, say aye!

If you believe that one trillion dollar deficits are completely unacceptable, say aye!
If you believe that the fundamental engine of our economy is the private sector, and NOT the government, say aye!

I’m no statistician, but it seems to me that the aye’s have it!

Hmmm… Opposing out-of-control spending, trillion dollar deficits, mountainous debt and overreaching government—sounds pretty right wing radical to me—don’t you think?

And yet, the tea party movement has been depicted as precisely that—an angry mob of radical right wing extremists, closet racists and homophobes, militia-like
anarchists just waiting to overthrow the government simply because it is there.

All because they have dared to speak their minds, to stand up to the spendthrifts and power brokers in Washington D.C. and say ENOUGH!

And that, my friends, is why we are standing here today, united in our concern for our country and the principles upon which it stands. We have been mocked, insulted and even called dangerous, yet we are still here, one year to the day from last year’s tax day tea party.

And we still have the same message—ENOUGH!

19th century French political scientist Alexis de Toqueville saw it coming over 160 years ago.

“The American Republic,” he wrote, “will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money.”

He also observed that, “A democratic government is the only one in which those who vote for a tax can escape the obligation to pay it.”

Those statements have stood the test of time. Because they are truths.

But the current leadership in our nation’s capitol would rather Americans not starting thinking that way. They are not interested in truths. They are interested in power.

In his inaugural address, President John F. Kennedy spoke. “And so, my fellow Americans, Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”

How quickly the tables have turned!

The other day I did a google search for information about the health care reform act, and among the first links to show up was a website run by the White House and the Dept of Health and Human Services, called healthcarereform.gov.

Prominently featured at the center of the site’s home page was a section entitled: “Health reform: What’s in it for you?”

I couldn’t help but notice the contrast. Kennedy’s words were a challenge to the makers. The website’s words were a siren song to the takers.

Unfortunately, as Mitch astutely noted, in a nation where nearly half of the citizens pay none of the taxes, yet garner an ever-increasing share of the benefits, the ranks of the takers have grown dramatically in the 50 years that separate the two presidents.

And yet, judging by the numbers here, not everybody is just looking at health care reform for what’s in it for them. There are still enough Americans out there who know that there is no such thing as a free lunch; that every deal has its fine print; that something that seems too good to be true, probably is.

It is these Americans who wrote to their members of Congress who were supporting the bill, only to be ignored; who packed town hall meetings, only to be insulted; who tried to bring their concerns to the national stage through the tea party movement, only to be threatened and ridiculed.

Funny thing is, I’ve not heard of a case of any of these members of Congress actually proving those who point out the glaring flaws of the bill to be wrong.

Rather than stand the scrutiny of debate, these members of Congress and the administration instead chose to call these concerned citizens liars.

The day the President signed the Health Care Reform act into law, he resorted to one of his time-tested campaign themes.

“Now let me tell you what change looks like, “ he said, “because those fighting change are still out there, still making a lot of noise about what this reform means.”

Is demanding to be heard, speaking out at town hall meetings last summer, just making a lot of noise—or is it daring to stand up and ask the tough questions?

Since when in the history of this government of the people, by the people, for the people, is demanding accountability and transparency—both of which were woefully lacking throughout every single step of the health care reform process—dismissed as just making a lot of noise?

They cannot discredit the truth. So, instead they discredit those who speak it.
They marginalize our movement not because we are extreme, but because, in fact, we are not. We come from all walks of life and every socioeconomic class. We lead busy lives in our homes, workplaces and our communities. We play by the rules, and, unlike some members of the cabinet, we do pay our taxes.

We are the parents worried about the debt load their children will be forced to bear; we are the workers concerned that, contrary to the President’s continued assertions, we will not be able to keep our existing doctors; we are the small business owners who fear they will have no choice but to dump their company insurance plans; we are the old, who worry about dramatic cuts to Medicare; we are the young, who wonder if they will ever see a dime from the entitlement system they are currently funding with their payroll taxes.

We are the patriots, who are disturbed by the blatantly heavy-handed manner in which this one-party bill was rammed through Congress.

And…we are equally disturbed by the knowledge that health care reform is only one tentacle of the bloated, overreaching and corrupt government that threatens the very principles on which this country was founded.

This movement is about more than just one single issue of health care reform, cap and trade or financial reform. It is, instead, about a pattern. Of ignoring the people’s will. Of expanding the domain of government, while chipping away at the rights of the people.

It is about obscuring the truth by appealing to a “what’s in it for me” mentality of an entitlement-driven society. It is about denouncing those who dare to call it socialism, while not providing a single basis as to why it is not.

It can be easy, in such a situation to give up, either by convincing ourselves that these things really aren’t all that important after all, or by deciding that the battle is so uphill that it cannot be won.

Even the media has lost its healthy skepticism of government, instead becoming its faithful cheerleader.

It seems sometimes like David versus Goliath. The odds seemed pretty daunting back then, too.

Remember one thing. David won.

He won because he had a power backing him up which was far bigger, stronger
and unrelenting than he was.

We too, have that power.

It is called The Truth.

As in “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Take a moment right now to look all around you, see the portrait of colors as the sun begins to set on the river, see the river moving downstream, the flow of the currents, the fresh green of springtime on the branches of trees which were barren just weeks ago.

Now that is power. And it is from that power that we derive those rights. Life. Liberty. The pursuit of happiness.

By the way, these rights may be guaranteed by the Constitution, but it is up to us to actively work to keep them. Freedoms are not taken away with grand fanfare and trumpet calls, but rather they erode little by little, until one day they are gone. We must remain vigilant, we must remain vocal. We cannot let this happen.

Those at odds with us decry us as an angry mob, because that is what they want us to be. Because if we are solely motivated by anger, there are only a couple of possible outcomes. Either the anger continues to build into something more explosive, thus proving their description of us to be a self-fulfilling prophesy…OR anger fades to apathy and hopelessness, and the movement loses steam.

But, armed with the truths that inspired our founders to create a more perfect union, as set forth in the Constitution, we can be motivated by something that transcends anger. If we are motivated by positive ideals and the vision shared by those who came centuries before us, we can keep this movement alive and flourishing with joy in our hearts and a burning desire to do what is right.

Do not be ashamed of what you will believe! Instead, proclaim it with joy in your hearts to all who will listen! There is strength in numbers!

The bottom line is this, ours is a government of the people, by the people, for the people…

And WE are the people!

We are the people!

We are the people!

We are the people!

And as we feel the strength in each other’s presence and God’s presence, let’s join together in a song that is the heartfelt expression of those standing here today, one of the most moving songs ever written.

Please stand and join in the singing of God Bless America!

God Bless America, thank you very much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Looking forward to seeing lots of people tonight at Whiskey Creek Bar & Grill from 4 to 6 with the Live for the Drive crew. Then on Saturday, I'll be with James and Jammin' Jeff at the Borgia Fest for an extended broadcast of the James Strong Show from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. At 2 p.m., I'm heading over to the Lifeteen dunking booth at the fest, to be the dunkee from 2 to 3 p.m. Be nice! :-)

A few random thoughts:

Kind of amazed that Jesse Jackson referred to immigration enforcement as terrorism. Wonder what some of those 9/11 families would think of that one? Ask for papers, slaughter 3,000 Americans--same difference, right? Sheez...

Great interview today with Sandy Lucy, Washington's new mayor and the first woman to hold the post. It's always great to see new faces in office, especially those as excited about it as Sandy is. Good luck!

And what about those people who want to take the toy out of the Happy Meal? That's kind of like being the prosecutor on Miracle on 34th Street going after Kris Kringle. What's next? Toys at the dentist's office?

Great Ticked Off Tuesday a few days ago. Was very glad to hear from some people with opposing views, who spoke with civility. They are always welcomed and encouraged to the show--tell your friends!

Finally, Bob McCarty, my Wednesday guest, went to Quincy, IL with a caravan of tea partiers to make their voice heard while the president was speaking there. They were greeted by two dozen riot police in full gear. Hmmm... Check out more on www.bobmccarty.com.

Don't forget, we'll be broadcasting live from Rennick Riverfront Park in Washington, MO. We'll be calling in segments from the crowd during our Live for the Drive show, starting at 4:15 p.m. Then, we will broadcast the entire program without commercial interruption beginning at 6 p.m. CST. on the airwaves at KLPW-AM All Talk 1220 or online at klpw.com.

I'm putting the finishing touches on my speech today. I plan to address the issues of complacency, as well as how to maintain intensity and passion without letting it consume your life--obviously it involves faith!

If you haven't been to a tea party and are relying on media accounts of what they are, you will be surprised at the wonderful crowd that comes up. They are positive, cordial and optimistic people who believe in their cause. It's uplifting to be a part of. Come on down, bring your friends. There will be food available as well as some great warm up music.

There are few places more beautiful than the Missouri river at sunset...