Liberty Dispatch wants to thank all of the people who have been praying for Tracy Pegues, the wife of one of our contributors. Tracy’s Mom died of cancer at age 47, and because of Tracy’s family history and past test results, doctors check Tracy every year.
When this year’s initial test results came back showing Tracy had a tumor, people that knew about it began to pray. Since that time results from a blood test have lowered the likelihood of cancer, but because of her family history, doctors have decided surgery sooner rather than later is best under her circumstances.
Tracy Pegues is 51 years old. Her surgery will be in the next few weeks. The Pegues family want to thank everyone who is praying for Tracy.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
Beware of strangers (outsiders) bearing gifts...
Most people who watch Liberty Dispatch have heard of “The Outsiders” at one point or another. From their writing- they fancy themselves as some kind of great investigators with their half-baked stories of this and that.
In the beginning, Liberty Dispatch posted stories related to “The Outsiders” separate and beyond Liberty Dispatch's stories only because other news media in Liberty County would not. Once Liberty Dispatch found out that these people were mostly comprised of cult type tax dodgers and libertarians we disconnected from their story input.
The agenda of “The Outsiders” is unknown at this point but what we do know from exchanges and stories from “The Outsiders” is that they defiantly have a "secret" agenda in Liberty County and it is not necessarily a good one.
Sources close to the sheriff’s department claim that “The Outsiders” may have an even bigger interest in Liberty County than their innocuous “We want to help Liberty County”- that statement reminds us all of the old term, “Beware of strangers (outsiders) bearing gifts”. Information has been given to Liberty Dispatch that “The Outsiders” have been and continue inside the Liberty County Sheriff’s Department as advisers and/or consultants in the Joe Warren investigation and subsequent charges- among other investigations.
To support the full range of Liberty County control, “The Outsiders” also appear to be running Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson’s re-election campaign and want to attack Liberty Dispatch for most of its supporters wanting to send Sheriff Patterson packing and support prospective Liberty County Sheriff candidate, JP Bobby Rader.
It’s bizarre how “The Outsiders” are involved and trying to control anything and everything that can give them power in Liberty County, i.e. - the TEA Party in Cleveland, TEA Party in Liberty, TEA Party in Dayton and the Liberty County Sheriff’s Department. It’s alleged that they have created the TEA Party in Liberty and Dayton as a "false flag operation" to help get Henry Patterson re-elected as Liberty County Sheriff. If those "false flag operation" allegations are true, that should signal a warning to all in Liberty County of the legitimacy of TEA Party groups in Liberty and Dayton, Texas. (‘False flag operations’ have been used many times in history by combatants to appear as friend when they were actually foe to gain an advantage in battle.)
As for the TEA Party in Cleveland, it may have already been infiltrated by “The Outsiders”- it appears that Cleveland TEA Party leader Aubrey Vaughn may also be an “Outsider's” apparatus who is covertly pushing for Henry Patterson’s for re-election. In a recent TEA Party meeting, Henry Patterson, Aubrey Vaughn, and local reputed “Outsider Leader” Clifford Fuddy William and “Outsider Underling" Eddie Shauburger were all seen sitting together in solidarity.
Why doesn’t the Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson tell us all why he brought “The Outsiders” into Liberty County? Why won’t Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson tell us why he has brought in a bunch of identity cult types in to Liberty County? Sheriff Patterson, why have you sold your soul and Liberty County to this cult? We all want to know!
In the beginning, Liberty Dispatch posted stories related to “The Outsiders” separate and beyond Liberty Dispatch's stories only because other news media in Liberty County would not. Once Liberty Dispatch found out that these people were mostly comprised of cult type tax dodgers and libertarians we disconnected from their story input.
The agenda of “The Outsiders” is unknown at this point but what we do know from exchanges and stories from “The Outsiders” is that they defiantly have a "secret" agenda in Liberty County and it is not necessarily a good one.
Sources close to the sheriff’s department claim that “The Outsiders” may have an even bigger interest in Liberty County than their innocuous “We want to help Liberty County”- that statement reminds us all of the old term, “Beware of strangers (outsiders) bearing gifts”. Information has been given to Liberty Dispatch that “The Outsiders” have been and continue inside the Liberty County Sheriff’s Department as advisers and/or consultants in the Joe Warren investigation and subsequent charges- among other investigations.
To support the full range of Liberty County control, “The Outsiders” also appear to be running Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson’s re-election campaign and want to attack Liberty Dispatch for most of its supporters wanting to send Sheriff Patterson packing and support prospective Liberty County Sheriff candidate, JP Bobby Rader.
It’s bizarre how “The Outsiders” are involved and trying to control anything and everything that can give them power in Liberty County, i.e. - the TEA Party in Cleveland, TEA Party in Liberty, TEA Party in Dayton and the Liberty County Sheriff’s Department. It’s alleged that they have created the TEA Party in Liberty and Dayton as a "false flag operation" to help get Henry Patterson re-elected as Liberty County Sheriff. If those "false flag operation" allegations are true, that should signal a warning to all in Liberty County of the legitimacy of TEA Party groups in Liberty and Dayton, Texas. (‘False flag operations’ have been used many times in history by combatants to appear as friend when they were actually foe to gain an advantage in battle.)
As for the TEA Party in Cleveland, it may have already been infiltrated by “The Outsiders”- it appears that Cleveland TEA Party leader Aubrey Vaughn may also be an “Outsider's” apparatus who is covertly pushing for Henry Patterson’s for re-election. In a recent TEA Party meeting, Henry Patterson, Aubrey Vaughn, and local reputed “Outsider Leader” Clifford Fuddy William and “Outsider Underling" Eddie Shauburger were all seen sitting together in solidarity.
Why doesn’t the Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson tell us all why he brought “The Outsiders” into Liberty County? Why won’t Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson tell us why he has brought in a bunch of identity cult types in to Liberty County? Sheriff Patterson, why have you sold your soul and Liberty County to this cult? We all want to know!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Dear Liberty Dispatch,
I think I remember getting a push poll in one of Eddie Shauberger’s efforts to get elected. It really seemed more like political telemarketing masquerading as a poll. It definitely wasn’t to collect information like it tried to imply it was. I can’t imagine anyone ever analyzed the data. I remember because it contained negative information about Shauberger’s opponent – to be honest I don’t know if it was true or not.
I thought the poll was an unusual way to try to motivate voters. I didn’t care for the tone of the call and was unsure of its truthfulness. It seems like I remember they asked a hypothetical question.
I can see where push polls can easily mislead the public, and not just about the opponent. They can even mislead the public about what they are; callers claim they are conducting a poll when all they are doing is spreading negative information.
I hope these people from outside the county will now be reluctant to use this kind of campaign strategy now that you have said one of them has a track record that includes this kind of stuff. If they have as much campaign money to try and re-elect the sheriff as you say, then I guess anything might happen, but I bet your article on this stops it from happening again.
Thanks LD! Take your mask off and behave Outsider people!!
I thought the poll was an unusual way to try to motivate voters. I didn’t care for the tone of the call and was unsure of its truthfulness. It seems like I remember they asked a hypothetical question.
I can see where push polls can easily mislead the public, and not just about the opponent. They can even mislead the public about what they are; callers claim they are conducting a poll when all they are doing is spreading negative information.
I hope these people from outside the county will now be reluctant to use this kind of campaign strategy now that you have said one of them has a track record that includes this kind of stuff. If they have as much campaign money to try and re-elect the sheriff as you say, then I guess anything might happen, but I bet your article on this stops it from happening again.
Thanks LD! Take your mask off and behave Outsider people!!
WHAT WILL YOU DO WHEN THE OUTSIDERS CALL YOU...?
Whether you have one hard wired into your house or you have a cell phone, when the political races begin it will be easy for aggressive political campaigns to call on you. People who have a private and personal agenda to take over and infiltrate Liberty County.
The odds are many of our readers will get a phone call early in the 2012 election year. In fact, one group that is particularly proud that they are not from Liberty County has now publicly declared their intention to call candidates and interview them. This group is advertising to the public that they are carefully investigating many of Liberty County’s candidates as a public service to this community. They have SELF declared themselves the finder of fact and they have declared that the voter, because they have come into town and done the voters’ homework for them, will make a more informed decision. Apparently they think they need to tell the voters how to think and how to vote.
These people will probably try to lay out a seemingly logical common sense reason that their “revelations” about candidates are not mudslinging and that they have no agenda and that 'anyone that questions them does have an agenda'. But who are they? What are their names? Where do they work? How can we judge their motivations and whether they have an agenda if they are hiding in the shadows? Should candidates be concerned that if they do not consent to be interviewed by people that are not from around here that the will pay some kind of price? Should they worry that the interviews are a formality and that these people are going to try and make them look bad so they can get someone they want elected? When a candidate gets a call to come to one of their “interviews” - what do you do?
Other phone calls are being made. A great deal of work is being done by the same people to set up a political structure to support the candidates they want to be elected. These people from outside of this county have looked around the country and decided if they start Tea Parties around the county in Liberty and Dayton that they can use conservative enthusiasm to commingle and build a campaign structure that is influenced by them. To rally support they have had meetings and invited some of the more middle of the road Republicans officeholders and harshly questioned their decisions. Most of this work is being done to build trust and relationship with people who live here so they can get support for their favorite local candidates. When you get the call to attend a new Tea Party - what do you do about trusting these people from outside the county enough to allow them to convince you to vote for their local candidates?
Even more phone calls may be made. Eddie Shauberger, a former candidate for office for a decade here in Liberty County and an affiliate of these outsiders, is boasting these people have a huge treasure chest of money to spend on building Tea Parties and using other political techniques to elect the people these outsiders want elected. Shauberger, a resident of Chambers County for several years now, used phone banks in spending hundreds of thousands of contributors’ money in his past attempts to win elective office.
Shauberger had two main methods of gaining votes. One was to flood the phone lines and tell people positive things about himself. So for example, when your phone rings these people from outside the county will have a canned message aimed at convincing you that Sheriff Henry Patterson is a great sheriff. These outside people will probably follow that up with a mailer. The mailer will not mention Shauberger or that people from outside the county are spending megabucks to elect Henry Patterson. It will just try and put the idea in your head that Patterson is a good sheriff. What are you going to when they call? Why do you care what people that do not even live here say about Sheriff Patterson? Why are they spending so much money and effort on this? What will you do when they call?
Then if Shauberger stays true to past methods, these people will have prepared a “push poll” they will flood the phone lines with. The caller will try and disguise themselves as someone simply gathering information as a pollster. But in the poll there will be a very negative statement about the opponent of whoever the outsiders are supporting like Henry Patterson. For example, would you consider voting for Bobby Rader for sheriff if you knew he released some people on bond that were accused of this or that? This method is meant to be a sneaky way of putting negative mind control thoughts about a candidate in the heads of voters in a way that is not so straightforward. What are you going to do when you are cooking supper and you get this kind of phone call trying to convince you to vote for these outsider's candidate?
Statistics tell us what most voters do these days. Most voters are sick of the flood of election year “revelations” and they throw the flyers in the trash on the way back into the house. They hang the phone up early in the unsolicited call. Most people will judge these races without this kind of “help”.
These outsiders have strong ties to Sheriff Henry Patterson and they keep saying that their open records and other things they claim they worked hard to discover, are proof this candidate or that candidate is committing criminal acts. Please, someone.. anyone.. if you do stay on the phone with these people when they call in February or March, please ask them "why" the Sheriff they are almost insisting we re-elect "why doesn’t he arrest these bad people and corrupt politicians?"
What will you do when they call? We don’t know... But we do know our readers are likely to trust their own experience and what they have heard elsewhere about candidates and get back to their supper rather than visit with strangers about local politics.
Liberty Dispatch advises that no candidate talk to or meet with these outsiders even when they try to lure you in with the promise of financial support.
The odds are many of our readers will get a phone call early in the 2012 election year. In fact, one group that is particularly proud that they are not from Liberty County has now publicly declared their intention to call candidates and interview them. This group is advertising to the public that they are carefully investigating many of Liberty County’s candidates as a public service to this community. They have SELF declared themselves the finder of fact and they have declared that the voter, because they have come into town and done the voters’ homework for them, will make a more informed decision. Apparently they think they need to tell the voters how to think and how to vote.
These people will probably try to lay out a seemingly logical common sense reason that their “revelations” about candidates are not mudslinging and that they have no agenda and that 'anyone that questions them does have an agenda'. But who are they? What are their names? Where do they work? How can we judge their motivations and whether they have an agenda if they are hiding in the shadows? Should candidates be concerned that if they do not consent to be interviewed by people that are not from around here that the will pay some kind of price? Should they worry that the interviews are a formality and that these people are going to try and make them look bad so they can get someone they want elected? When a candidate gets a call to come to one of their “interviews” - what do you do?
Other phone calls are being made. A great deal of work is being done by the same people to set up a political structure to support the candidates they want to be elected. These people from outside of this county have looked around the country and decided if they start Tea Parties around the county in Liberty and Dayton that they can use conservative enthusiasm to commingle and build a campaign structure that is influenced by them. To rally support they have had meetings and invited some of the more middle of the road Republicans officeholders and harshly questioned their decisions. Most of this work is being done to build trust and relationship with people who live here so they can get support for their favorite local candidates. When you get the call to attend a new Tea Party - what do you do about trusting these people from outside the county enough to allow them to convince you to vote for their local candidates?
Even more phone calls may be made. Eddie Shauberger, a former candidate for office for a decade here in Liberty County and an affiliate of these outsiders, is boasting these people have a huge treasure chest of money to spend on building Tea Parties and using other political techniques to elect the people these outsiders want elected. Shauberger, a resident of Chambers County for several years now, used phone banks in spending hundreds of thousands of contributors’ money in his past attempts to win elective office.
Shauberger had two main methods of gaining votes. One was to flood the phone lines and tell people positive things about himself. So for example, when your phone rings these people from outside the county will have a canned message aimed at convincing you that Sheriff Henry Patterson is a great sheriff. These outside people will probably follow that up with a mailer. The mailer will not mention Shauberger or that people from outside the county are spending megabucks to elect Henry Patterson. It will just try and put the idea in your head that Patterson is a good sheriff. What are you going to when they call? Why do you care what people that do not even live here say about Sheriff Patterson? Why are they spending so much money and effort on this? What will you do when they call?
Then if Shauberger stays true to past methods, these people will have prepared a “push poll” they will flood the phone lines with. The caller will try and disguise themselves as someone simply gathering information as a pollster. But in the poll there will be a very negative statement about the opponent of whoever the outsiders are supporting like Henry Patterson. For example, would you consider voting for Bobby Rader for sheriff if you knew he released some people on bond that were accused of this or that? This method is meant to be a sneaky way of putting negative mind control thoughts about a candidate in the heads of voters in a way that is not so straightforward. What are you going to do when you are cooking supper and you get this kind of phone call trying to convince you to vote for these outsider's candidate?
Statistics tell us what most voters do these days. Most voters are sick of the flood of election year “revelations” and they throw the flyers in the trash on the way back into the house. They hang the phone up early in the unsolicited call. Most people will judge these races without this kind of “help”.
These outsiders have strong ties to Sheriff Henry Patterson and they keep saying that their open records and other things they claim they worked hard to discover, are proof this candidate or that candidate is committing criminal acts. Please, someone.. anyone.. if you do stay on the phone with these people when they call in February or March, please ask them "why" the Sheriff they are almost insisting we re-elect "why doesn’t he arrest these bad people and corrupt politicians?"
What will you do when they call? We don’t know... But we do know our readers are likely to trust their own experience and what they have heard elsewhere about candidates and get back to their supper rather than visit with strangers about local politics.
Liberty Dispatch advises that no candidate talk to or meet with these outsiders even when they try to lure you in with the promise of financial support.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Dear Liberty Dispatch,
Republicans are running our government in the black despite still having to pay for all of the democrats stupid half baked mistakes.
Recently taxpayers discovered the appraisal of the old WalMart building came in at just over $1.3 million. How many of our hard earned dollars did Democrats pay for that building? $2.1 million dollars? How many months has it been off of the tax rolls?
I am sick and tired of the never ending waste. We are still waiting to hear how we can force our District Attorney to stop buying things like the SUV parked in his driveway and spend some of his slush fund money on budget items so we can save the county some money. I bet Mike Little is a big tipper when the county is picking up the tab.
If people in the south part of this county only knew how Melvin Hunt operates, they would save some money by voting to centralize funding and decision-making by commissioners.
Republicans are making great progress. Most of them anyway But it will be wonderful for them and for all of us when they get out from underneath the cloud that was left before they took office.
Recently taxpayers discovered the appraisal of the old WalMart building came in at just over $1.3 million. How many of our hard earned dollars did Democrats pay for that building? $2.1 million dollars? How many months has it been off of the tax rolls?
I am sick and tired of the never ending waste. We are still waiting to hear how we can force our District Attorney to stop buying things like the SUV parked in his driveway and spend some of his slush fund money on budget items so we can save the county some money. I bet Mike Little is a big tipper when the county is picking up the tab.
If people in the south part of this county only knew how Melvin Hunt operates, they would save some money by voting to centralize funding and decision-making by commissioners.
Republicans are making great progress. Most of them anyway But it will be wonderful for them and for all of us when they get out from underneath the cloud that was left before they took office.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
EXCLUSIVE: JOE WARREN FIGHTS BACK
Liberty Dispatch readers will remember how the mysterious group “The Outsiders” investigated and produced a story about Liberty County ADA Joe Warren and his alleged crimes. In their story they also attached evidence of Liberty City Officials in an alleged reported cover-up of police reports and information related to Joe Warren's alleged crimes.
Readers will also remember that ADA Joe Warren's alleged crimes were brought before a Liberty County Grand Jury and Mr. Warren was no-billed of all charges.
Fast forward to the past week, Liberty Dispatch has learned that Joe Warren’s attorney- Daniel Bradley has noticed Liberty County of his intent to sue on behalf of his client Joe Warren. Attorney Dan Bradley worked for Liberty County DA Mike Little and Joe Warren as an ADA then left to practice law outside of the DA’s office. Daniel Bradley now practices law closely with Mike Little and Joe Warren separate of the Liberty County DA’s office.
Attorney Daniel Bradley has expressly noticed current Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson and Liberty County of his client’s “Intent to Sue”. Heretofore Attorney Bradley has six months to file his lawsuit which is expected to be filed in Federal Court as a 1964 Civil Rights action. The exact details of Warren’s claims are unknown at this time but apparently they are related to alleged “false charges” made by and through the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Henry Patterson which ultimately translated into a no billed or favorable grand jury decision for Joe Warren.
Who knows how/if this lawsuit - which will be filed in the upcoming election year affect Sheriff Henry Patterson’s re-election campaign?
Contributor, Ray Akins
Readers will also remember that ADA Joe Warren's alleged crimes were brought before a Liberty County Grand Jury and Mr. Warren was no-billed of all charges.
Fast forward to the past week, Liberty Dispatch has learned that Joe Warren’s attorney- Daniel Bradley has noticed Liberty County of his intent to sue on behalf of his client Joe Warren. Attorney Dan Bradley worked for Liberty County DA Mike Little and Joe Warren as an ADA then left to practice law outside of the DA’s office. Daniel Bradley now practices law closely with Mike Little and Joe Warren separate of the Liberty County DA’s office.
Attorney Daniel Bradley has expressly noticed current Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson and Liberty County of his client’s “Intent to Sue”. Heretofore Attorney Bradley has six months to file his lawsuit which is expected to be filed in Federal Court as a 1964 Civil Rights action. The exact details of Warren’s claims are unknown at this time but apparently they are related to alleged “false charges” made by and through the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Henry Patterson which ultimately translated into a no billed or favorable grand jury decision for Joe Warren.
Who knows how/if this lawsuit - which will be filed in the upcoming election year affect Sheriff Henry Patterson’s re-election campaign?
Contributor, Ray Akins
Dear Liberty Dispatch
I have heard some Democrats criticize the efforts being made by conservatives to save money. I have a hard time stomaching people that have no respect for taxpayer money. But if you will permit me I wanted to address one area the local Democrats are griping about.
Recently, Liberty County judiciary, all Republicans, reviewed the county’s practices by using empirical data regarding the amount of time people accused and arrested of a crime spend in our jails at taxpayer’s expense. They discovered that taxpayers were spending hundreds of thousands of dollars housing people that were awaiting trial rather than using their judicial discretion and the bail process.
I can only assume complaints by local Democrats are purely for political purposes since they do not have a reputation for being tough on crime. After all where were their complaints when Democrat Judge Rusty Hight was allowing convicted criminals off in his infamous “Wednesday court”/ Nevertheless, let’s review what the law says is the proper use of judicial discretion as it applies to bail.
The law says the court should take into account the:
1. Nature and seriousness of the offense or default (and the probable method of dealing with the defendant for it);
2. Character, antecedents, associations and community ties of the defendant;
3. Defendant's bail record;
4. Strength of the evidence.
In fact, Texas courts have leeway to set bail amounts as they see fit, as long as it is not excessive. Of course, we could write a whole other story about how politics and excessive bail were used by the afore mentioned Judge Hight against one of the contributors to this website, but for now let’s stick with how judges can properly use discretion to save the county money.
Most felony cases are originally filed in the Justice of the Peace Court. While JP’s do not conduct trials of felony cases, they do handle several felony matters before the case goes to a Grand Jury. The primary purpose of the arraignment is for the judge to make sure the defendant understands the nature of the offense against him, the charges, and his rights. The defendant may ask the Judge questions about the charges or his rights at arraignment. The Justice of the Peace sets bonds at arraignment. In most other counties, an arrest warrant carries a bond recommended by the District Attorney and/or a District Judge. The Justice of the Peace is usually not an attorney in Texas courts and frequently they defer to or are guided by those people who are and all of the factors listed above are part of the proper use of judicial discretion.
Of course while I am sure Liberty Dispatch’s conservative readers are not for just turning everyone lose with a promise and a prayer, there are safeguards. A bond means you are putting up cash or surety (often through a bail bond company) to promise that, if you are released from custody, you will show up for all subsequent hearings and trials related to your case. Failure to do so means your bond could be forfeited to the State of Texas, and can lead to another warrant for your arrest. Failure to respect the conditions of a bond can result in a third-degree felony if the original charge was a felony is punishable by 2 to 10 years in a state prison.
So the new found tough on “law and order” position liberals are claiming to criticize saving money sounds a great deal like a pure political attempt to discredit the attempt Republicans are making to dig our county out of the hole they dug.
We can be sure these same people critical of the use of judicial discretion would prefer a tax hike.
Recently, Liberty County judiciary, all Republicans, reviewed the county’s practices by using empirical data regarding the amount of time people accused and arrested of a crime spend in our jails at taxpayer’s expense. They discovered that taxpayers were spending hundreds of thousands of dollars housing people that were awaiting trial rather than using their judicial discretion and the bail process.
I can only assume complaints by local Democrats are purely for political purposes since they do not have a reputation for being tough on crime. After all where were their complaints when Democrat Judge Rusty Hight was allowing convicted criminals off in his infamous “Wednesday court”/ Nevertheless, let’s review what the law says is the proper use of judicial discretion as it applies to bail.
The law says the court should take into account the:
1. Nature and seriousness of the offense or default (and the probable method of dealing with the defendant for it);
2. Character, antecedents, associations and community ties of the defendant;
3. Defendant's bail record;
4. Strength of the evidence.
In fact, Texas courts have leeway to set bail amounts as they see fit, as long as it is not excessive. Of course, we could write a whole other story about how politics and excessive bail were used by the afore mentioned Judge Hight against one of the contributors to this website, but for now let’s stick with how judges can properly use discretion to save the county money.
Most felony cases are originally filed in the Justice of the Peace Court. While JP’s do not conduct trials of felony cases, they do handle several felony matters before the case goes to a Grand Jury. The primary purpose of the arraignment is for the judge to make sure the defendant understands the nature of the offense against him, the charges, and his rights. The defendant may ask the Judge questions about the charges or his rights at arraignment. The Justice of the Peace sets bonds at arraignment. In most other counties, an arrest warrant carries a bond recommended by the District Attorney and/or a District Judge. The Justice of the Peace is usually not an attorney in Texas courts and frequently they defer to or are guided by those people who are and all of the factors listed above are part of the proper use of judicial discretion.
Of course while I am sure Liberty Dispatch’s conservative readers are not for just turning everyone lose with a promise and a prayer, there are safeguards. A bond means you are putting up cash or surety (often through a bail bond company) to promise that, if you are released from custody, you will show up for all subsequent hearings and trials related to your case. Failure to do so means your bond could be forfeited to the State of Texas, and can lead to another warrant for your arrest. Failure to respect the conditions of a bond can result in a third-degree felony if the original charge was a felony is punishable by 2 to 10 years in a state prison.
So the new found tough on “law and order” position liberals are claiming to criticize saving money sounds a great deal like a pure political attempt to discredit the attempt Republicans are making to dig our county out of the hole they dug.
We can be sure these same people critical of the use of judicial discretion would prefer a tax hike.
Friday, October 21, 2011
SHERIFF’S FRIENDS AIMING TO SHOOT DOWN JUDGE
Patterson vs. Rader
If sources close to Liberty Dispatch are right, so much for a friendly contest between two Christian men who both would like the support of their fellow Republicans in their quest to serve the next term as Liberty County Sheriff.
According information revealed in a meeting some time back, supporters of Henry Patterson have already laid out their attack of his potential rival. In uncharacteristic candidness for politics, Patterson’s supporters are saying potential Sheriff’s candidate Justice of the Peace Bobby Rader and anyone who is close to him “better watch out”.
In that recent meeting with a past supporter of Rader who now supports Patterson said: “Judges have records. All of the decisions Rader has made over the years are subject to investigation and, even if the decisions are legal, in politics it is the appearance that can be used against a candidate. It doesn’t matter what the rest of the facts are in a Judge’s decisions, it only matters how it is portrayed to the public.” (This is a paraphrase of the strategy LD has been told is being planned by Patterson supporters).
The mentioned Patterson supporter has bragged that anyone related to any case Rader has had anything to do with is fair game. They have expressed the idea that they could care less about Rader’s reputation for looking at circumstances and listening to witnesses because without context the Judge can be made to look bad in the next election.
This kind of negative campaigning is unfortunate, especially against a JP who was not only the breakthrough winner a few years ago for Republicans when all office holders were Democrats, but he has been the public official we have heard the fewest complaints about – none from the Sheriff until his supporters starting preparing for this next election.
As previously mentioned, this person who is one of Patterson’s most well known supporters is a former supporter of Bobby Rader and now he is now pushing hard to help re-elect the current sheriff Henry Patterson. This person is also affiliated with "The Outsiders" and a close adviser to a Sr. member of "The Outsiders" not only active in efforts to re-elect Patterson, but also active in decisions having to do with the Joe Warren case.
This turncoat supporter of Patterson boast that he will get the Tea Party behind Patterson and they will be unbeatable. No rationale has been offered by "The Turncoat" or any of "The Outsiders" about why Tea Party activists would favor Patterson, who was a Democrat four years ago, over Rader. There is also no indication that people joining local Liberty County Tea Party groups are aware that they are viewed as recruits for the Patterson re-election bid.
It is my hope that "The Outsiders" mind their own business and stay out of Liberty Politics but... their agenda will not let them stay out of the Liberty County politics. Bobby Rader and Henry Patterson should be able to run a quiet and peaceful race but readers should understand that the battle lines and tactics have already been drawn by "The Outsiders" & Company. It is believed that the only way Patterson can get the voters attention after years of apathy and inaction is to go negative.
Contributor, Richard Pegues
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Dear Liberty Dispatch
Ive noticed in a press release on another Liberty County website that past County Judge Phil Fitzgerald made a plea deal to get himself off easy. I have to write you and your readers to let you know how disgusted Iam with this whole saga.
Some of the local news media is reporting former Liberty County Judge Phil Fitzgerald has entered into a plea deal with federal officials. Readers can find some of the interesting facts that are not being reported by local media below.
Fitzgerald is accused of fraud connected to FEMA and the Hurricane Ike debris removal contracts worth a reported $611,000 to Fitzgerald’s bank account, but on Wednesday, Oct. 19, Fitzgerald allegedly appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Keith F. Giblin and voluntarily entered a guilty plea that only admits to making false and fraudulent claims for FEMA reimbursements for fuel used to power a generator. If this is true, Fitzgerald is admitting nothing about the other counts listed in the 27-count indictment. His plea deal simply focuses on the one part of the indictment that District Attorney Mike Little tried to cover up.
In the voluntary plea agreement, Fitzgerald wheels and deals with the misappropriation and lying about the FEMA generator he represented to the government was being used for the benefit of Liberty County while it was actually being used to benefit one of Fitzgerald’s businesses.
It has been previously reported that District Attorney Mike Little at the time all of this was happening allegedly told law enforcement officials to shut up when they reported to him that Fitzgerald was using a FEMA generator to operate his truck stop in Moss Hill instead of aiding Liberty County. If the plea deal comes to pass this alleged criminal act that Little is said to have tried to keep quiet will be the only part of thing Fitzgerald will go down for. I n addition, Little and County Attorney Wes Hinch refused to take the Fitzgerald-Groce FEMA fraud case when given the opportunity.
Interestingly enough, in the plea deal the maximum financial penalties for the $611,000-plus acts that Fitzgerald’s lawyers are negotiating about is $250,000. That is a smooth difference of $361,000 ! However, as some have pointed out, there are no documents on file to show that the government has accepted the plea agreement.
Another interesting aspect of the same incident is that Chip Fairchild is alleged to have been one of the law enforcement officials who found the FEMA generator at Fitzgerald’s business and we have not heard a word of righteous indignation from Chip. But, Mike Little did hire Chip’s wife, Terry not too long after the incident. And she is not the most highly qualified person for the job Little gave her.
I also heard from the Constable up in Cleveland that like Liberty County DA Mike Little, the current sheriff Henry Patterson passed on investigating and referring charges against Fitzgerald too.
Interesting, isn’t it?
The comments in the opeds posted on Liberty Dispatch may or may not represent the thoughts and/or belief's of Liberty Dispatch contributors and are posted as a courtesy to public information and diverse discourse.
Some of the local news media is reporting former Liberty County Judge Phil Fitzgerald has entered into a plea deal with federal officials. Readers can find some of the interesting facts that are not being reported by local media below.
Fitzgerald is accused of fraud connected to FEMA and the Hurricane Ike debris removal contracts worth a reported $611,000 to Fitzgerald’s bank account, but on Wednesday, Oct. 19, Fitzgerald allegedly appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Keith F. Giblin and voluntarily entered a guilty plea that only admits to making false and fraudulent claims for FEMA reimbursements for fuel used to power a generator. If this is true, Fitzgerald is admitting nothing about the other counts listed in the 27-count indictment. His plea deal simply focuses on the one part of the indictment that District Attorney Mike Little tried to cover up.
In the voluntary plea agreement, Fitzgerald wheels and deals with the misappropriation and lying about the FEMA generator he represented to the government was being used for the benefit of Liberty County while it was actually being used to benefit one of Fitzgerald’s businesses.
It has been previously reported that District Attorney Mike Little at the time all of this was happening allegedly told law enforcement officials to shut up when they reported to him that Fitzgerald was using a FEMA generator to operate his truck stop in Moss Hill instead of aiding Liberty County. If the plea deal comes to pass this alleged criminal act that Little is said to have tried to keep quiet will be the only part of thing Fitzgerald will go down for. I n addition, Little and County Attorney Wes Hinch refused to take the Fitzgerald-Groce FEMA fraud case when given the opportunity.
Interestingly enough, in the plea deal the maximum financial penalties for the $611,000-plus acts that Fitzgerald’s lawyers are negotiating about is $250,000. That is a smooth difference of $361,000 ! However, as some have pointed out, there are no documents on file to show that the government has accepted the plea agreement.
Another interesting aspect of the same incident is that Chip Fairchild is alleged to have been one of the law enforcement officials who found the FEMA generator at Fitzgerald’s business and we have not heard a word of righteous indignation from Chip. But, Mike Little did hire Chip’s wife, Terry not too long after the incident. And she is not the most highly qualified person for the job Little gave her.
I also heard from the Constable up in Cleveland that like Liberty County DA Mike Little, the current sheriff Henry Patterson passed on investigating and referring charges against Fitzgerald too.
Interesting, isn’t it?
The comments in the opeds posted on Liberty Dispatch may or may not represent the thoughts and/or belief's of Liberty Dispatch contributors and are posted as a courtesy to public information and diverse discourse.
Monday, October 17, 2011
EVIL EMPIRE???
Dear Commissioner Hunt:
In a recent quote from you in a Cleveland Advocate story, you-commissioner Melvin Hunt refer to commissioner Todd Fontent, Lee Groce and past county judge Phil Fitzgerald as the "evil empire".
What you don't want prospective voters to know is how you also voted with your so called "evil empire" most of the time over the past decade.
Commissioner Hunt- we might have accepted you as a Republican in your upcoming re-election bid but... this kind of disembowelment of your kindred Democrat spirits after you voted with them more times than Carter has pills isn't the Republican way.
If you would have admittedly owned up to your wrong Democrat behavior and going forward pledged to do the "right" thing for the future of Liberty County, we would have accepted you, but not now. It is so very convenient for you to blame your official past voting record and acts on people who cant or wont defend themselves.
Im sure that Phil Fitzgerald's and Lee Groce's loved ones really appreciate you kicking them when they are down.
Go plead your case to Ken Coleman and Nancy Archer- we will support your opponent/s "vigorously".
LD Contributor, Ray Akins
In a recent quote from you in a Cleveland Advocate story, you-commissioner Melvin Hunt refer to commissioner Todd Fontent, Lee Groce and past county judge Phil Fitzgerald as the "evil empire".
What you don't want prospective voters to know is how you also voted with your so called "evil empire" most of the time over the past decade.
 |
| Melvin Hunt October 12, 2011 talking about the "evil empire". Courtesy Cleveland Advocate, Melecio Franco. |
If you would have admittedly owned up to your wrong Democrat behavior and going forward pledged to do the "right" thing for the future of Liberty County, we would have accepted you, but not now. It is so very convenient for you to blame your official past voting record and acts on people who cant or wont defend themselves.
Im sure that Phil Fitzgerald's and Lee Groce's loved ones really appreciate you kicking them when they are down.
Go plead your case to Ken Coleman and Nancy Archer- we will support your opponent/s "vigorously".
LD Contributor, Ray Akins
HELP WANTED: LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO DO THE COUNTY ATTORNEY JOB
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS!
The main duties of the person elected Liberty County’s County Attorney is to represent the state in criminal cases in county and justice of the peace criminal courts and to serve as legal adviser to county officials. The county attorney works with law enforcement officers in the investigation and preparation of cases to be heard before the criminal county courts. Sign ups for any attorney interested in running for this position begin November 12th and end December 12th. Republican candidates should contact interim Republican County Chairman Ken Coleman (and we would like to hear from you too), and Democrats should contact Democrat County Chairman Nancy Archer.
Liberty Dispatch would like to put a call out to any local attorney that wants to provide these services to the Liberty County community. We need someone that will be pro-active in dealing with the growing juvenile concerns of the county and we need someone who will work with our judges and our law enforcement. Also someone who will clear and deal with the mounting lawsuits backlogged against Liberty County.
The main duties of the person elected Liberty County’s County Attorney is to represent the state in criminal cases in county and justice of the peace criminal courts and to serve as legal adviser to county officials. The county attorney works with law enforcement officers in the investigation and preparation of cases to be heard before the criminal county courts. Sign ups for any attorney interested in running for this position begin November 12th and end December 12th. Republican candidates should contact interim Republican County Chairman Ken Coleman (and we would like to hear from you too), and Democrats should contact Democrat County Chairman Nancy Archer.
Liberty Dispatch would like to put a call out to any local attorney that wants to provide these services to the Liberty County community. We need someone that will be pro-active in dealing with the growing juvenile concerns of the county and we need someone who will work with our judges and our law enforcement. Also someone who will clear and deal with the mounting lawsuits backlogged against Liberty County.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Liberty County Sheriff's Office News Feed
Liberty Dispatch has created a feed burner RSS news feed for news coming out of the Liberty County Sheriff's Office and other Liberty County Law Enforcement.
You can click on the news links you see update on the Liberty Dispatch news feed -or- you can subscribe to the news feeds and have them update on your website, desktop or smartphone via our app..
A Liberty County news first...
You can click on the news links you see update on the Liberty Dispatch news feed -or- you can subscribe to the news feeds and have them update on your website, desktop or smartphone via our app..
A Liberty County news first...
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Dear Liberty Dispatch
Many of us may not know enough about what the current Sheriff is doing to defend him, but regardless of what the new guy has done we remain happy about the drumming the last Sheriff got in the 2008 election.
No one can seriously argue that Sheriff Greg Arthur and his sidekick Chip Fairchild are the best we can do when selecting a sheriff and leadership in our county’s law enforcement. Many of us remember seeing Arthur loading up his boat and headed for the lake on a week day or running around with his latest mistress, Vita Whatshername. And who doesn’t know about Chip Fairchild being morally challenged and him even alleged to have had sex with minors?
So when I hear these people are attacking Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson, I am not moved. As a Democrat I voted for Patterson both times. I voted for him when he ran as a Democrat in 2004 and I voted for him again when he ran as a Republican in 2008. And given a choice between Arthur or Fairchild or Patterson, I will vote for Patterson again.
The Arthur/Fairchild fans that have pointed out that Patterson’s spokesman has been lying and greatly embellishing the arrest and convictions of criminals in our county are really pushing it to even bring up the topic. I got so sick of Fairchild and his “news reports” by his buddy at i-dineout that I stopped looking to see who was in the most car wrecks for months! Arthur arrested people who were his political enemies and portrayed that as crime fighting and a benefit to you and me. The fact of the matter is that some of Arthur’s and Fairchild’s time and efforts were as big a waste of taxpayer money and as personal a benefit to them as them chasing women who loved a man in uniform.
I don’t know enough to defend Henry Patterson or his relationship to the Kelly man and the stolen guns case, but I know Arthur seem to be in a mutual admiration society with indicted former County Judge Phil Fitzgerald and indicted former County Commissioner Lee Groce.
I don’t know about all of the Democrats hollering Liberty County’s dislike of Obama rather than their trust in Henry Patterson is why Arthur got beat. All I know is the people who knew Arthur best, the ones that lived down the street from him in his precinct, those people went down to the polls and voted for his opponent. Surely, they knew their next door neighbor was on the ballot!
I agree with Greg Arthur’s neighbors. They joined the rest of the voters in this county and decided he had been sheriff long enough. I don’t know how this sheriff’s race will go, but I do know Liberty County voters are not so hard up we have to go back to the old Arthur/Fairchild days.
NAME WITHHELD TO PROTECT THE WRITERS FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS.
No one can seriously argue that Sheriff Greg Arthur and his sidekick Chip Fairchild are the best we can do when selecting a sheriff and leadership in our county’s law enforcement. Many of us remember seeing Arthur loading up his boat and headed for the lake on a week day or running around with his latest mistress, Vita Whatshername. And who doesn’t know about Chip Fairchild being morally challenged and him even alleged to have had sex with minors?
So when I hear these people are attacking Liberty County Sheriff Henry Patterson, I am not moved. As a Democrat I voted for Patterson both times. I voted for him when he ran as a Democrat in 2004 and I voted for him again when he ran as a Republican in 2008. And given a choice between Arthur or Fairchild or Patterson, I will vote for Patterson again.
The Arthur/Fairchild fans that have pointed out that Patterson’s spokesman has been lying and greatly embellishing the arrest and convictions of criminals in our county are really pushing it to even bring up the topic. I got so sick of Fairchild and his “news reports” by his buddy at i-dineout that I stopped looking to see who was in the most car wrecks for months! Arthur arrested people who were his political enemies and portrayed that as crime fighting and a benefit to you and me. The fact of the matter is that some of Arthur’s and Fairchild’s time and efforts were as big a waste of taxpayer money and as personal a benefit to them as them chasing women who loved a man in uniform.
I don’t know enough to defend Henry Patterson or his relationship to the Kelly man and the stolen guns case, but I know Arthur seem to be in a mutual admiration society with indicted former County Judge Phil Fitzgerald and indicted former County Commissioner Lee Groce.
I don’t know about all of the Democrats hollering Liberty County’s dislike of Obama rather than their trust in Henry Patterson is why Arthur got beat. All I know is the people who knew Arthur best, the ones that lived down the street from him in his precinct, those people went down to the polls and voted for his opponent. Surely, they knew their next door neighbor was on the ballot!
I agree with Greg Arthur’s neighbors. They joined the rest of the voters in this county and decided he had been sheriff long enough. I don’t know how this sheriff’s race will go, but I do know Liberty County voters are not so hard up we have to go back to the old Arthur/Fairchild days.
NAME WITHHELD TO PROTECT THE WRITERS FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS.
COMMISSIONER MELVIN HUNT’S DESPERATE HUNT FOR VOTES
When at a meeting in Cleveland, Melvin Hunt referred to three commissioners, Fitzgerald, Lee Groce and Todd Fontenot, as “members of the evil empire” and two members, which included himself and Norman Brown, as “two of the good guys,” everyone in the room should have pulled their breeches up knowing he was filling the room up with verbal manure.
Commissioner Hunt has long been the voting partner of former Commissioner Lee Groce. That is a fact and not debatable among those whom have attended court the last two decades. But Hunt faces re-election, while Groce faces a possible prison sentence. Even though Groce is reported to have cut a deal with the feds, Hunt still feels a need to try and cut a deal with voters. His deal evidently is that in the post Groce and Fitzgerald era, he will distance himself by re-writing history and therefore save the Cleveland area some of the embarrassment they may feel by having a commissioner who has slipped by five Grand Juries by the hair on his chinny chin chin.
But Hunt goes much further than asking his community to ignore the fact that he and Groce scratched each other’s back and cut deals to get what they wanted. He hopes to use his speaking opportunity in Cleveland to launch a new image. He spun himself last week as someone who hoped that the cuts in county spending would have be more than the recent budget. He ties himself to the one proven conservative on the court, County Judge Craig McNair. But Hunt has been one of the biggest proponents of spending money we don’t have for many many years. He has used the commissioner’s ability to create bonded indebtedness time and time again through the years.
Commissioner Hunt has been in a unique position in the last ten years to have stopped the runaway spending, but he has done just the opposite. He has declared in public for years that the roads in his precinct are the best in the county, but instead of using his strong position to stand against unnecessary spending, Hunt has used bartered to allow others money for their roads if his budget was increased also.
Hunt has been the epitome of a tax and spend Democat, but he obviously has noticed taxpayers are voting his kind out of office. So he is re-casting himself as something other than what he has been. He has even twice set a date to switch political parties and act like he is a Republican. The same party he has spent a lifetime denigrating. He is even trying to tie himself to Commissioner Norman Brown even though Brown’s conversion to the Republican party has not been accepted by many Republican activists because of similar patterns of wheeling and dealing and ignoring the best interest of taxpayers.
Commissioner Hunt is desperate to find votes in a community that has rejected his old worn out type of politician. Hunt could have been more careful with taxpayer dollars over the years and he wasn’t. Hunt could have joined the Republican party when he saw which direction Barack Obama was taking this country. But Hunt continues to resist any change in actions and continues to hope political deception will keep him in office. He can call his old buddies part of an “evil empire” but anyone that keeps up with commissioners’ court knows his name is called when they are calling roll in that empire.
Commissioner Hunt has long been the voting partner of former Commissioner Lee Groce. That is a fact and not debatable among those whom have attended court the last two decades. But Hunt faces re-election, while Groce faces a possible prison sentence. Even though Groce is reported to have cut a deal with the feds, Hunt still feels a need to try and cut a deal with voters. His deal evidently is that in the post Groce and Fitzgerald era, he will distance himself by re-writing history and therefore save the Cleveland area some of the embarrassment they may feel by having a commissioner who has slipped by five Grand Juries by the hair on his chinny chin chin.
But Hunt goes much further than asking his community to ignore the fact that he and Groce scratched each other’s back and cut deals to get what they wanted. He hopes to use his speaking opportunity in Cleveland to launch a new image. He spun himself last week as someone who hoped that the cuts in county spending would have be more than the recent budget. He ties himself to the one proven conservative on the court, County Judge Craig McNair. But Hunt has been one of the biggest proponents of spending money we don’t have for many many years. He has used the commissioner’s ability to create bonded indebtedness time and time again through the years.
Commissioner Hunt has been in a unique position in the last ten years to have stopped the runaway spending, but he has done just the opposite. He has declared in public for years that the roads in his precinct are the best in the county, but instead of using his strong position to stand against unnecessary spending, Hunt has used bartered to allow others money for their roads if his budget was increased also.
Hunt has been the epitome of a tax and spend Democat, but he obviously has noticed taxpayers are voting his kind out of office. So he is re-casting himself as something other than what he has been. He has even twice set a date to switch political parties and act like he is a Republican. The same party he has spent a lifetime denigrating. He is even trying to tie himself to Commissioner Norman Brown even though Brown’s conversion to the Republican party has not been accepted by many Republican activists because of similar patterns of wheeling and dealing and ignoring the best interest of taxpayers.
Commissioner Hunt is desperate to find votes in a community that has rejected his old worn out type of politician. Hunt could have been more careful with taxpayer dollars over the years and he wasn’t. Hunt could have joined the Republican party when he saw which direction Barack Obama was taking this country. But Hunt continues to resist any change in actions and continues to hope political deception will keep him in office. He can call his old buddies part of an “evil empire” but anyone that keeps up with commissioners’ court knows his name is called when they are calling roll in that empire.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Liberty County Sheriff's Captain found passed out.
(10/11/2011, Liberty County, Texas) This morning Liberty County Sheriff's Captain Rex Evans was found face down passed out.
Liberty Dispatch readers will remember the wrongful and unmerciful recent attacks by Allen Youngblood and his associated commentors on i-dineout - "directly against Evans" and the whole Liberty County Sheriff's Department. It is unknown yet what role the continual scurrilous attacks by Youngblood and company may have played in the circumstances leading up to Captain Evan's health issues.
Captain Evans is the public information officer for the Liberty County Sheriff's office and also a detective.
Liberty Dispatch hopes Captain Evans gets well soon along with the many readers of Liberty Dispatch who have voiced they will be praying for Captain Evans.
Contributor, Ray Akins
Liberty Dispatch readers will remember the wrongful and unmerciful recent attacks by Allen Youngblood and his associated commentors on i-dineout - "directly against Evans" and the whole Liberty County Sheriff's Department. It is unknown yet what role the continual scurrilous attacks by Youngblood and company may have played in the circumstances leading up to Captain Evan's health issues.
Captain Evans is the public information officer for the Liberty County Sheriff's office and also a detective.
Liberty Dispatch hopes Captain Evans gets well soon along with the many readers of Liberty Dispatch who have voiced they will be praying for Captain Evans.
Contributor, Ray Akins
REPUBLICAN PRIMARY ENDORSEMENTS
Before the old Liberty County Republican Party Chairman even leaves town, the new one’s plea for keeping everything “positive” among Republicans may be tested. But I hope not.
Over the last few months it has become more and more obvious that some of the most outspoken activists in Liberty county will differ on who they want to win between two potential primary opponents in two different races. My hope is that the group known as The Outsiders who now count former Republican candidate Eddie Shauberger among them, will promote their choice for sheriff and for district attorney in a positive race with no negative campaigning. I am urging Shauberger and The Outsiders to join me in following County Chairman Ken Coleman’s directive and just lay out to the public their view of why they plan to vote the way they plan to vote. I hope they can express why they believe Henry Patterson deserves to serve four more years and why attorney James Farmer should serve the next four years as district attorney while people like me do the same thing on behalf of our choice for these positions.
As for me, I solicited both of the leading candidates for sheriff to run for office years ago and hope they will both discourage negative campaigning as our primary is conducted. Years ago I was the county chairman when Bobby Rader decided he wanted to run for JP and that despite a streak of over 100 years of Democrats holding the position he was running for, Bobby wanted to run as a Republican. Around that same time, I was invited to try and persuade Henry Patterson to run as a Republican for county sheriff. That position had not had a Republican win in over 100 years either and I liked Henry and wanted to help a small handful of people talk him into running in our party. Of course as many of you remember, we were unsuccessful and Henry ran the first time as a Democrat Unfortunately Henry was defeated in the Democrat’s primary by one of the Republican party’s most notorious foes, Greg Arthur. Thankfully, Henry changed his mind four years later and ran as a Republican and beat Arthur. Though I am supporting his primary opponent, I must say that anyone who knows Henry Patterson knows he is a true Republican. Both men are fine family oriented church-going Christians and surely would like a primary race like Chairman Coleman envisions.
Though I like both men and have friends that will support both men, I have come to the conclusion Bobby Rader would be the best man for the job the next four years. I appreciate both men’s contribution to the local Republican Party and wish them both well. Of course I am just any one person and am not sure anyone will really care who I support, but in the tradition of Liberty Dispatch and with the freedom I now have because I do not hold any position in the party, I hereby endorse Bobby Rader for sheriff.
In the primary for district attorney it again is my hope to promote the idea of being “positive” in our primary as I differ from Shauberger and The Outsiders and choose to back Assistant County Attorney Karen McNair rather than James Farmer they have said they will be promoting. I have met James Farmer and in my two brief conversations he seems to be a very capable and very charming person. Over the summer I have been very pleased to get to know Karen McNair and find out who the person that has been working so hard the last few years to help build a stronger local Republican party. The truth is I was very suspicious of Karen before I got to know her, and I have really enjoyed finding out she is a good ole common sense conservative Republican just like her parents and that she is the kind of person who is motivated to do whatever she feels like is best for our community. Again this is just one man’s opinion, but at this time... I will be urging Republicans to choose her as our candidate for the general election.
These endorsements represent the views of Richard Pegues. The former three term Liberty County Republican Party Chairman is one of Liberty Dispatch’s and Liberty County’s most politically knowledgeable contributors .
Over the last few months it has become more and more obvious that some of the most outspoken activists in Liberty county will differ on who they want to win between two potential primary opponents in two different races. My hope is that the group known as The Outsiders who now count former Republican candidate Eddie Shauberger among them, will promote their choice for sheriff and for district attorney in a positive race with no negative campaigning. I am urging Shauberger and The Outsiders to join me in following County Chairman Ken Coleman’s directive and just lay out to the public their view of why they plan to vote the way they plan to vote. I hope they can express why they believe Henry Patterson deserves to serve four more years and why attorney James Farmer should serve the next four years as district attorney while people like me do the same thing on behalf of our choice for these positions.
As for me, I solicited both of the leading candidates for sheriff to run for office years ago and hope they will both discourage negative campaigning as our primary is conducted. Years ago I was the county chairman when Bobby Rader decided he wanted to run for JP and that despite a streak of over 100 years of Democrats holding the position he was running for, Bobby wanted to run as a Republican. Around that same time, I was invited to try and persuade Henry Patterson to run as a Republican for county sheriff. That position had not had a Republican win in over 100 years either and I liked Henry and wanted to help a small handful of people talk him into running in our party. Of course as many of you remember, we were unsuccessful and Henry ran the first time as a Democrat Unfortunately Henry was defeated in the Democrat’s primary by one of the Republican party’s most notorious foes, Greg Arthur. Thankfully, Henry changed his mind four years later and ran as a Republican and beat Arthur. Though I am supporting his primary opponent, I must say that anyone who knows Henry Patterson knows he is a true Republican. Both men are fine family oriented church-going Christians and surely would like a primary race like Chairman Coleman envisions.
Though I like both men and have friends that will support both men, I have come to the conclusion Bobby Rader would be the best man for the job the next four years. I appreciate both men’s contribution to the local Republican Party and wish them both well. Of course I am just any one person and am not sure anyone will really care who I support, but in the tradition of Liberty Dispatch and with the freedom I now have because I do not hold any position in the party, I hereby endorse Bobby Rader for sheriff.
In the primary for district attorney it again is my hope to promote the idea of being “positive” in our primary as I differ from Shauberger and The Outsiders and choose to back Assistant County Attorney Karen McNair rather than James Farmer they have said they will be promoting. I have met James Farmer and in my two brief conversations he seems to be a very capable and very charming person. Over the summer I have been very pleased to get to know Karen McNair and find out who the person that has been working so hard the last few years to help build a stronger local Republican party. The truth is I was very suspicious of Karen before I got to know her, and I have really enjoyed finding out she is a good ole common sense conservative Republican just like her parents and that she is the kind of person who is motivated to do whatever she feels like is best for our community. Again this is just one man’s opinion, but at this time... I will be urging Republicans to choose her as our candidate for the general election.
These endorsements represent the views of Richard Pegues. The former three term Liberty County Republican Party Chairman is one of Liberty Dispatch’s and Liberty County’s most politically knowledgeable contributors .
NO RED-LIGHT CAMERAS!
My name is Byron Schirmbeck. I was the petition organizer for the vote against red light cameras in Baytown. I also recently addressed the Dayton city council as they have placed the question of whether or not Dayton will install red light cameras on the November ballot. Considering the HCRP and Texas GOP have placed a statewide ban on their platform, that the programs are run by corrupt companies and politicians and make the streets less safe from this money grab and citizens have voted out cameras each and everytime this should be something your site should publicize.
Here is the background info http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/cleveland/news/article_72e075a2-a508-528c-a12d-f7117b7fa9db.html
Also, democrat harris county district judge Mike Miller, who is up for re election in 2012 signed an order declaring our election in Baytown void. Any judge that would sign away our votes does not deserve to sit on the bench. Please consider giving these two issues coverage on your site. Please call or email me with any questions. You can see more info at www.saferbaytown.com and www.citizensforsaferstreets.com
Byron Schirmbeck
Proposition 1 passed, the cameras are coming down! Thank you Baytown! www.saferbaytown.com
Here is the background info http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/cleveland/news/article_72e075a2-a508-528c-a12d-f7117b7fa9db.html
Also, democrat harris county district judge Mike Miller, who is up for re election in 2012 signed an order declaring our election in Baytown void. Any judge that would sign away our votes does not deserve to sit on the bench. Please consider giving these two issues coverage on your site. Please call or email me with any questions. You can see more info at www.saferbaytown.com and www.citizensforsaferstreets.com
Byron Schirmbeck
Proposition 1 passed, the cameras are coming down! Thank you Baytown! www.saferbaytown.com
Monday, October 10, 2011
“Fallacious Rhetoric against the Tea Party & the Demise of Civilized Discourse” By David Pring-Mill September 19, 2011
LD Supports Mr. David Pring-Mills
I. Slander against the Tea Party
I. Slander against the Tea Party
At the time of this writing, the current U.S. national debt is $14,699,021,631,213.05[1]. The nonpartisan CBO recently noted, “The $1.3 trillion budget deficit […] for 2011 will be the third-largest shortfall in the past 65 years (exceeded only by the deficits of the preceding two years).”[2] With a startling lack of transparency, trillions of government dollars have been spent to bail out and support the financial institutions that recklessly wreaked havoc upon the U.S. economy.[3] In 2009, President Obama signed a stimulus bill that cost $787 billion.[4] Following that first year in office, the Obama administration has shown no signs of mitigating its urge to spend, and an aspect of Obama’s healthcare plan, the mandatory insurance provision, has been judicially deemed to be unconstitutional. Obama now wants to pass a jobs bill that will cost $447 billion. During his September 8th address to Congress, he repeatedly demanded “pass this jobs bill” and “you should pass it right away.” This refrain was uttered 17 times. [5] The veracity of these figures is undisputed, and the implication of these figures is clear – under the President’s leadership, our government is spending money that it doesn’t have and justifying this spending with an increasingly dubious, ineffective ideology and macroeconomic theory. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 46.2 million Americans lived in poverty last year – a record high. The bureau noted that this is “the largest number in the 52 years for which poverty estimates have been published.”[6]
Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, author of The Tea Party Goes to Washington, recently provided a reporter with a concise description of the political movement referred to as the Tea Party. He stated, “What the Tea Party stands for, and what unites everybody in the Tea Party I think, is their concern about the debt, and the concern that we're borrowing so much and printing so much to pay for our debt.”[7] After considering the aforementioned figures and the stated goals of the Tea Party, one would presume that the Tea Party reflects the sensibilities of almost all citizens – and 30% of Americans do support the movement[8], yet to keep that number from growing further, certain leftists seem determined to depict the movement as a mob of fringe lunatics suffering from simmering, unspoken racist motivations. Rather than engage in a substantive economic discussion, these leftists have chosen to try to malign and marginalize the Tea Party. There is cause for concern here – the national debt is approaching fifteen trillion dollars and the people who want to cut spending are routinely labeled as racist and crazy. This has led me to wonder whether I am living in a farfetched political satire that has somehow risen from fictitious origins into reality.
In political debates, fallacious straw man arguments are sometimes used to misrepresent an opponent’s position, quote the opponent out of context, and oversimplify the opponent’s position, etc. These days, members of the left have gone one step further in the direction of slanderous discourse. As the result of unspecified telepathic methods of espionage, they now have the gall to state what is in their opponents’ minds, including the thoughts that their opponents’ minds conjure up but subsequently suppress. Biased left-leaning media outlets have bestowed undue, copious amounts of airtime upon those willing to slanderously mischaracterize Tea Party supporters in this manner. Comedian Janeane Garofalo was allowed a platform on MSNBC in which she bashed the movement by saying, “Let’s be very honest about what this is about. It’s not about bashing Democrats, it’s not about taxes; they have no idea what the Boston Tea Party was about. They don’t know their history at all. This is about hating a black man in the White House. This is racism straight up. That is nothing but a bunch of tea bagging rednecks.”[9] For Ms. Garofalo to imply that there are no valid grounds to oppose the president and conclude that the sole motivation for the Tea Party’s opposition to him is race may suggest that she herself views Obama as a black man and nothing else, and is consequently in a state in which she is somehow oblivious to his policies and the controversies therein. HBO-appointed political pundit Bill Maher said, “And ever since Obama came on the scene, there is a word that has been sticking in their throats that they would love to say, but they can’t ‘cause it’s not the 1950’s. They would love to say this word, it begins with ‘N’ and ends with ‘R,’ and it’s not ‘nation builder.’”[10]
Furthering this disturbing trend in which leftists try to develop their ability to read minds, writer Aaron Sorkin criticized Tea Party leader Sarah Palin in a Huffington Post article[11], in which he took aim (no pun intended) at her for hunting a moose while being filmed for her reality TV show. He wrote, “You weren't killing that animal for food or shelter or even fashion, you were killing it for fun.” After shaming her for the sadistic pleasure that he decided had occurred inside of her mind, he went on to state that he eats meat and uses animal products but doesn’t “relish the idea of torturing animals,” and therefore feels “no pangs of hypocrisy.” To be clear, Sorkin was angry at Palin because of what he thought that she’d been thinking while she hunted a moose that lived in the wild, but he claims to be on higher moral ground than her because he merely passively pays to have animals confined for their entire lives in factory farms and then subsequently slaughtered. And he does, after all, feel lingering guilt about it. When Mr. Sorkin eats a burger, he never thinks of it as fun – it’s a solemn duty.
This trend of fallacious criticism cheapens the political discourse. We must ask ourselves why we support media outlets that support these tactics when the outlets could instead publicize and disseminate discussions of intellectual merit. If our political debates will henceforth be based upon feigned mind reading, perhaps the next step is to use Tarot cards to pass legislation. Yet there seems to be no sign of these tactics relenting. At a closed-door Democratic Caucus meeting, Vice President Joe Biden reportedly said that members of the Tea Party “acted like terrorists” by being uncooperative with the administration’s efforts to raise the debt limit.[12] In a Salon article, Michael Lind, the Policy Director of the Economic Growth Program at the New America Foundation, wrote that, “The mainstream media have completely missed the story, by portraying the Tea Party movement in ideological rather than regional terms.” He went on to state that “Tea Party conservatism speaks with a pronounced Southern drawl,” and he provided a pie chart to convey the Tea Party’s regional distribution. Mr. Lind thinks that the geographical location of Tea Party supporters somehow proves that the Tea Party is a continuation of historical Southern racism.[13] Be careful where you stand – that is to say, where you stand physically, not politically, because, according to Mr. Lind, if a group is centralized in one physical location then that group must be of a similar mindset with the people who historically did things on that same piece of Earth.
Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar, a professor and associate dean at the University of Connecticut, wrote an article in which he asserted that Rep. Michelle Bachmann, notorious for her uninformed verbal gaffes, is in fact a “master manipulator.” Preceding this description of Bachmann, he linked to and quoted from a white nationalist site as part of his effort to claim that conservatives are actively stoking racial fears.[14] After refuting the claims made on the unequivocally racist site, he sloppily transitioned into criticism of Bachmann, ergo equating overt white nationalism with Rep. Bachmann, the Tea Party, and the far-ranging spectrum of the political right. The professor resorted to these smear tactics because he was hard-pressed for citable evidence that racism is explicitly promulgated by mainstream Republican leaders.
Yet there is no lack of evidence that loud and prominent voices on the left have utilized fallacious tactics akin to the professor’s. Only fringe elements of the Tea Party have been explicitly racist and those fringe elements have been denounced by Tea Party leaders, whereas the vitriolic sentiments and smear tactics of celebrities, pundits, and lower ranking leftists is consistent with the rhetoric of elected congressmen and the Vice President. Their shared objective is seemingly to discredit the Tea Party movement and to further engage in high levels of government spending, and there doesn’t seem to be any sense of moral restraint when uttering rhetoric as a means to attaining that end. These tactics are sickening. They’re sickening to a political atmosphere that is already sick, and divisive to a country that is already divided. The Tea Party critics pretend that unspoken and imperceptible thoughts and motivations exist within their opponents’ minds; then these critics disparage the Tea Party on the basis of their own overreaching pseudo-psychoanalytical theories. In condemning the Tea Party movement as racist, these critics rely upon the very mechanisms of racism – Mr. Lind made a generalization based upon a geographic area, and other critics are willing to point to a proportionately small number of racists within a crowd of thousands as an excuse to speak ill of the entire crowd. Racism is not exclusive to any geographic region or political party. Racism is pernicious and pervasive. To invoke the topic and ascribe racist views to political opponents without sufficient evidence shows a blatant disregard for fair and civilized democratic discourse. I have no doubt that there are individual Tea Party supporters who are racist, and I have no doubt that there are individual members within all political parties and movements who harbor racial biases. I have no doubt that some Tea Party supporters have protested with offensive signs and chanted vile slogans and shouted racial epithets, and I have no doubt that some protestors held offensive signs and chanted vile slogans and shouted their own brand of hatred while opposing the Bush administration. Individuals are responsible for themselves. A political movement is responsible for its primary unifying message – and the message of fiscal conservatism prompted the Tea Party’s founding.
II. Partisan Maneuvers & Methods
Liberals have long argued that fiscal conservatives are racist because many of them want to change welfare from a system of dependency into a transitional measure. Opposition to an unreformed continuation of institutionally flawed welfare programs may affect minority recipients, but such opposition does not necessarily imply a racist motivation; such an opposition can also be prompted by a more general ideology towards government spending. Whether you agree or disagree with that ideology, and the contradictions therein, is the subject of a separate discussion entirely – and that is the discussion that this country should be having. Unable to prove that Tea Party leaders or mainstream GOP policy is explicitly racist, the only way for leftists to substantiate the racism claim is to dubiously plumb the depths of their opponents’ psyches and ascribe racist motivations to Republican opposition to Democratic legislation, though it is my understanding that opposition to another party’s legislation is a fundamental tenet of partisanship. In response to Tea Party critics making unsubstantiated racism accusations, I have pointed out that prominent black Republicans such as Michael Steele, Condoleezza Rice, Herman Cain, and others would be interested in learning that they are being racist against themselves, as would Tea Party-supported Congressmen Tim Scott and Allen West. The response has been the oft-repeated liberal refrain that the Republican Party has tricked many Americans into “voting against their own self-interests” and has likewise bamboozled its own minority elected officials into legislating against themselves. A fair-minded person would note that all people of all races are entitled to their own political opinions – black people can be for the Tea Party, and black people can be against the Tea Party; such is the nature of our modern democracy. I make arguments in favor of the Tea Party, but I am also receptive to any opposing arguments provided that the arguments are supported by facts and aren’t maliciously false. The Tea Party critics with whom I have spoken seem to have no interest in respecting their fellow citizens in this manner. A simple internet search of this “voting against their own self-interests” phrase will reveal the staggering extent to which the line has been used. Leftists can dismiss the many minorities in the GOP as being ignorantly self-destructive and gullible, and it is evident that many leftists have no reluctance in doing so, but it isn’t actually the left’s prerogative to determine other people’s “self interests.” This parental approach to America in which liberals tell poor and minority Americans “I know you think you want that, but it’s actually bad for you” is appallingly condescending. It also presumes that lower income conservatives ought to be single issue voters – with that single issue being the amount of personal monetary benefit that they stand to gain from government policy; all other components of party platforms should apparently be disregarded. If you are a poor conservative, leftists will accuse you of voting against your own self-interests; in essence, you are not being selfish enough – stop being selfless. If you are a rich conservative, those same leftists will accuse you of being selfish for not favoring policies that would result in your own taxation – be more selfless. However, contrary to Democrats’ expectations and the bitterness that results when those expectations are not met, the Democratic Party is not actually entitled to the votes of any economic class or demographic. If a party feels entitled to your vote and chastises you by specifically telling you that you have been foolishly hurting yourself, then it is clear that the party doesn’t have a very high regard for your intellect.
And it is with that same spirit of condescension and the same we-know-what’s-best-for-you philosophy that the Democratic President, having secured the votes of poor people whose homes were foreclosed on, proceeded to bail out the financial institutions that caused the housing crisis in the first place, all the while saying that he knew that what he was doing wouldn’t be popular with the American people. Biden and Pelosi laughed in the background as Obama addressed the public in his first State of the Union speech by saying, “We all hated the bank bailout. I hated it, you hated it; it was about as popular as a root canal. But when I ran for President, I promised I wouldn’t just do what was popular. I would do what was necessary.”[15] The patronizing attitude could not be more apparent – it is heard in statements directly from the President. Americans who had lost their jobs and homes had been angry when they’d learned that their own tax dollars were being used to bail out the banks that significantly contributed to their country’s economic problems. And then they sat and watched as their President compared the bailout to a root canal and suggested that his policies, like trips to the dentist, are hated but necessary. This same attitude was evident in Obama’s recent jobs bill speech when he dismissed the public’s political awareness by outright saying, “The millions of Americans who are watching right now, they don't care about politics. They have real life concerns.”[16]
The demeanor of certain members of the left is derisive, their tactics are immoral. In addition to being fallacious, fear-instigating, and inflammatory, the left’s race baiting tactics happen to be unnecessary. There are valid grounds to criticize conservatives. Fiscal conservatives weren’t sufficiently vocal in trying to reclaim the libertarian component of the Republican Party when George W. Bush, a Republican President who campaigned on his opposition to nation building, proceeded to overthrow and then rebuild the governments of Afghanistan and Iraq throughout the duration of his presidency, incurring a war debt of $3 trillion.[17] Furthermore, Rep. Bachmann’s homophobia is undeniable and clearly spelled out in her public statements. Honorable leftists will oppose her on the basis of homophobic statements that she has actually made instead of repudiating racist thoughts that they think that she is thinking.
I can’t speak definitively as to why the racist accusations have in numerous instances been made apart from condemnation of some conservatives’ anti-gay stances for one would think that anti-racism pretensions would be more convincing if made as part of an overall depiction of conservative bigotry, but this oddity may in fact be a political maneuver. Historically, the Democratic Party was pro-slavery and anti-civil rights, yet the Southern strategy represented a shift in the political loyalties of the black community. Perhaps shouting “racism” is a way for the Democratic Party to solidify its base, garner more support, and divert attention away from the fact that real median income for black households has significantly dropped during the Obama administration. The evils of racism are widely condemned, yet most state governments won’t acknowledge that gay citizens have the right to wed on terms equal to those of heterosexual couples. This dismissal of the devotion of gay couples invalidates their orientation in a fundamental way, causing a homophobic ripple effect throughout society. It is widely perceived that homophobia is particularly rampant in the African-American community[18] – therefore, the attempts to shore up black support and gay support are often distinctly separate endeavors. It would of course seem appropriate for Professor Ogbar and Policy Director Michael Lind to follow up their unsubstantiated racism charges with substantiated charges of homophobia, but when it comes to the latter subject and its comparatively less broad appeal, they fall conspicuously silent in the aforementioned articles. It is a lot harder to fight on behalf of a minority group that is still actively harassed and discriminated against than it is to speak on behalf of a minority group that still encounters adversity but has nonetheless won the toughest of its civil rights battles. Granted, fighting on behalf of gay people won’t get the Democratic Party as many votes, and opting to instead label opponents as racists may cause others to gather within the party out of a fear of the validity of the repeated accusations or a fear of becoming subject to the accusations – but at least Mr. Ogbar and Mr. Lind wouldn’t have to resort to fallacy.
And why do Mr. Ogbar and Mr. Lind bash the Tea Party as being covertly racist when the birther movement has been overtly racist? There may be some overlap in the belief systems of self-described birthers and tea partiers, but the Tea Party was founded with clear motives of fiscal conservatism and libertarianism, and the birther movement has been explicitly racist in its efforts to discredit the legitimacy of Obama’s presidency. However, the birther trend, while disturbing, merely threatened to harm Obama’s reelection campaign whereas the Tea Party has been successful at wielding legislative influence that has partially thwarted the full implementation of his policies. Therefore, the need has remained to condemn racism while mentioning the Tea Party by name – ergo, the object of condemnation is not racism generally but the Tea Party specifically.
Some of the leftists utilizing these dirty tactics seem to be aware that they are in the wrong. Vice President Biden later denied that he said that the Tea Party members were acting like terrorists in spite of the fact that sources from within his own party had provided the information. During a controversial speech, Rep. Carson of the Congressional Black Caucus said, “Some of them in Congress right now of this Tea Party movement would love to see you and me ... hanging on a tree.” On CNN, he later backpedaled to a more moderate tone by saying, “Well, I wasn't talking about the entire Tea Party. I think the Tea Party is absolutely right when they call for increased transparency in government, when they call for a cutback on excessive government spending. I am deeply concerned about some elements of the Tea Party who are extremist.”[19] Instead of being self-righteous for partisan purposes, perhaps our politicians should do the right thing by uniting behind practical cost-cutting measures. During the CNN/Tea Party debate, Newt Gingrich said, “If you simply had a serious all out effort to modernize the federal government, you would have hundreds of billions of dollars of savings.” He cited Strong America Now, a bipartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to the elimination of wasteful government spending.[20] [21]
III. Maintaining Tea Party Ideals & Moving Past Partisanship
It should be noted that my intention in this essay is primarily to discourage dirty politics and to encourage a productive and independent mentality that can lead to actual solutions. It is time to reduce, reform, and reprioritize government spending not for the sake of partisanship but for the sake of the country. The Tea Party must hold steadfast to this task because the movement is at risk of becoming a mere reflection of the full spectrum of the Republican Party, distinguished only by the ardency of its members. The movement will always have some extremist members with unfortunate fringe views, but this reality applies to every political movement in the history of the world.
I would like to conclude by explaining that I am a registered independent, and furthermore, I am a human being, not a political ideology. As a human being with an independence of thought, I feel no need to make generalizations about an opposing party, though I will point out observable and overt partisan trends. I do not feel compelled to defend the thoughts, words and actions of every member of a party with which I am aligned, for I am aligned with no party. I am aligned with my fellow people and I want an economic environment in which people do not suffer. Our President campaigned on the virtue of hope. And I do hope that Obama’s economic policies won’t cause stagflation. I hope that the jobs bill, if passed, will put some unemployed people back to work and reunite them with a sense of professional worth and fulfillment. I hope that Obama's proposed multi-billion dollar high-speed trains will take Americans back to a time when Americans took trains. But just as offensive allegations need to be substantiated, political appeals to the virtue of hope need the accompaniment of substance in the form of policies and economic ideologies that have a demonstrably positive impact on the country as a whole.
The bureaucratic structure of our government has become large and corrupt, and our nation in its current state is a sharp departure from the vision of our founding fathers. Lobbying efforts, corporate influence, and huge campaign contributions and the resulting tax credits, subsidies, wars, and policies have tilted the government’s overly complicated workings towards epic dysfunction. We have a national debt that is skyrocketing towards fifteen trillion dollars, additional massive spending is being proposed, and some proponents of the Obama administration are now making the argument that the massive stimulus package didn’t work because it wasn’t massive enough.[22] [23] But does the electorate have the objectivity necessary to set the country on a more promising path, and more importantly, does government still contain the institutional capacities that would enable us to do so? Most Americans identify themselves as being independent-minded – but in reality, many of them gravitate towards one of two contradiction-riddled, all-encompassing partisan ideologies that will assuredly be justified, promoted, and defended on the behalf of all adherents.[24] Too many Americans, in practice, define themselves by association and by opposition. Partisanship has led people to think of the Tea Party and gay rights as being mutually exclusive political positions, and yet in this very essay I have written favorably of both – and it is completely valid to do so because, upon disregarding partisan packaging, it becomes apparent that there is no innate contradiction between the two positions. (It is this lack of inherent incompatibility between the two positions that has allowed for the formation of the Log Cabin Republicans.) When leftists mock the partisanship of the right, they habitually suggest that conservative followers have either been tricked into “voting against their own self interests” or haven’t thought things through because, according to President Obama, millions of Americans don’t care about politics. The truth is more complicated: Democrats and Republicans alike start thinking in narrow-minded ways because they are partisan, and people are partisan because they live in a country with an entrenched two-party system, and they think that it is more effective to pick the side that they deem to be the lesser of two evils within that system than it is to resist the system. However, with a nearly fifteen trillion dollar national debt, it is exceedingly apparent that partisanship is ineffective and our reality is such stuff as satires are made on. Therefore, I do not impugn the ability of people to form sensible opinions – I impugn the two-party system that constricts the people’s opinions and intellectually corners them; at present, the people evaluate the party platforms, determine which positions resonate most within their hearts, and then choose accordingly. Most of them are aware of the constrictions imposed upon them. Neither Democrats nor Republicans have chosen wrongly per se with regards to their partisan preferences; all have been born into a flawed system. Open up democracy to once again respond to the will of the individual and individuals will be more open-minded. Keep democracy crudely fashioned towards the will of a corporately influenced two-party system and peoples’ minds will remain crude, and as the apparatus of government moves in its characteristically slow and sudden tectonic shifts, citizens will fall through the chasms, casting aspersions as they plummet.
Both parties got us into this debacle and systemic changes are necessary for the wellbeing of this country. The Tea Party has proposed systemic changes. It is time for people to part with their partisan biases in order to consider all of the ideas on the table without fallaciously disparaging the other people sitting at the table. We are all here together, and we need to act in the togetherness of America towards the grand plans and purposes innate within the Constitution of the United States.[25] We need to urge our elected representatives to reduce, reform, and reprioritize government spending.
David Pring-Mill is a writer, independent filmmaker, and activist. He lives in New York City. He can be contacted at pringmill@gmail.com. Follow Dave’s tweets at twitter.com/davesaidso.
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