Recap

Infrastructure for Victory.

A lot of people in America, In Michigan, in Muskegon are angry with government. Ask 100 people and you’re likely to get 100 different versions of people saying they don’t like government.

Recently there has been an explosion in the spending government is doing which happens to coincide with an explosion of anger towards the government. This anger is not because government is trying to help. First it is because government is using our own money to do that and secondly people are starting to wake up to the idea that the government, no matter how much they spend can’t seem to get it right, then asks for more money so they can.

People have come to the realization that the difference between Big Government Republicans, and Big Government Democrats is mainly in their rhetoric; much like the difference between buying something at either Lowes or Home Depot. Not much. Both the Parties and the big box stores spend fortunes in advertising trying to convince people that there is a difference. There isn’t much difference, but a big waste of money.

Some of us are starting to figure out that if all that money was spent on creating newer and more efficient products, maybe we would have more of a choice; maybe something would get done. There have been scattered pockets and small groups of people that are trying to do that.

An infrastructure of sorts is slowly starting to form. These groups such as the Mackinac Center, Heartland Institute and recently Americans for Prosperity have been spending their money directly on research to develop solutions to the problems we face; (alternative to “big government” solutions”) then sharing the information gleaned with the policy makers. They have been doing this for a long time.

The slow build up of anti government feeling over the last 3-4 decades has recently popped up dramatically in the Tea party protests. A barrage of small new local groups has sprung up from that. These groups started with disgust over government and formed around anti government rhetoric. Disorganized and chaotic they nevertheless were loud and quite large. They were large and loud enough that even the “big government” politicians stopped making fun of the protesters at least in public.

The Republican Party too at last is showing signs of doing more than spitting out rhetoric about how good they are. John Boehner has started forming “solutions groups” that are coming up with specific solutions to some of our problems. People appreciate real and specific alternatives to what is out there now. Do not be fooled however, both parties are run by an elite political class that doesn’t want change. They must be forced.

The force for change whether in the form of John Boehner’s efforts or at the local tea party level, has to come from outside that political class; John Boehner knows this and is capitalizing on it. There is a vacuum out there asking for change. It elected a President; however the change he is pushing is in the wrong direction of what was promised.

The change has to come from the Bottom Up. The Infrastructure has to come from the Bottom Up. The people have to remain loud and Large. They have to learn to work together and we have to educate ourselves.

In Michigan, in my experience trial and error is the key phrase. Idealistic people are finding out that freedom has to be fought for. Not fought for just by the military or by the politicians; it has to be won through the efforts of a lot of people talking and leading by example down in the trenches of daily life. We all need to stand up not just at rallies but at our place of work, social gatherings etc. Join your party, get knowledgeable and vocal. Don’t be a bore about it but simply and shortly give a rebuttal to the liberal mantra out there. Politics is personal, time to get personal.

To do this better, I have started to try to educate myself. I went to Grand Rapids Wed. for a roundtable talk about National Health Care put on by Heartland Institute, Mackinac Center and Americans for Prosperity. These groups are setting up through this type of event a broad loose coalition of groups with smaller government and Free Market ideals in mind. They are exhaustive in their research and in coming up with new solutions. These get-togethers are starting to have an impact. Let me try to explain what the difference is.

These groups always have lobbied the legislators with their research and made slow progress; but the seeds are planted. The meeting I attended however was aimed more at the disgruntled voters to let them know that there are solutions and resources to use in our fight. The politicians that attended were the ones running for office. That was encouraging. This was one of the newer efforts by groups such as this to reach out to the public and become a resource to that public as well as to the legislature. They saw the vacuum and are trying to fill it.

I call this the start of an infrastructure to gather people with small government in mind together and make research available for our education.

While the audience was filled with a lot of insurance people, there were doctors also bloggers like myself and just plain folk who were there to simply get some ideas about how to fight the juggernaut that has become government.

At one point I asked the three listed below a question. The question was; I'm poor and only have a hundred dollars to spend to try to change government, how best should I spend it? I complimented Jack McHugh when he said he was obviously not unbiased in how I should spend my money.

I would like to say however that any size donations to the groups mentioned, is well spent. In the example above I will give $75 to a local candidate of my choice along with all the volunteer effort I can; but I will and have already given $25 to these groups. The information they develop is the backbone on which to build any type of consistent useful alternative to what we have.

Below are some Pics the three guys are from L/R Scott Hagerstrom, Jack McHugh, and Jack Hoogendyk. There were a little over 100 signed up. Most came.




<<<<<<<<<< Thursday >>>>>>>>>>>>>

Our regular Thursday morning meeting at the Carmen Group was full and refreshing.





Our Chair David Farhat was there just a week after his back surgery and moving around well. State Rep. Goeff Hansen came early,visited, looked like he was enjoying himself and stayed. Marve our county commissioner too was there. Later, in came our past Chair and County Commissioner Bob Scolnik fresh from the hospital and in a wheel chair after suffering injuries in a motorcycle accident. Vice Chair Susie Hughes came later and Jon Dewitt from Pete Hoekstra’s office also showed up. Both are not in the pics below.

As always no speeches allowed, just some Republican camaraderie over good food. It was good to see Bob Scolnik back. Though in a wheel chair, he seemed full of piss and vinegar and ready for business.

Don’t forget to click the pics to enlarge.

Regards, Live Dangerously Be A Conservative