On Wednesday, April 15, thousands of people are expected in all 50 states to join together for over 500 “tea party” protests. Those attending the tea parties will be standing in opposition to rising taxes, more government control over private enterprise and less individual liberty. If you agree with any of the following, you might want to join the party on April 15 to let your voice be heard.
1.You don’t mind paying reasonable taxes, but you don’t believe your wealth should be “spread around” in the manner Congress and the President are proposing.
Why are tea parties being held on April 15? John Hood wrote at Carolina Journal Online: “Informed taxpayers know that it doesn’t really matter which way the payments flow on April 15. If we ‘get’ a ‘refund,’ we understand that it only signifies the government’s power to compel us to lend it our money at zero interest. If we send in a check, we understand that it is only on top of a much-larger sum we’ve already paid…It’s not that we believe there should be no taxes. Government is a necessary institution for the preservation of our liberty. By its very nature, government is compulsory and will tax us. But the taxing power should be used only according to constitutional principles, to fund the limited, constitutional functions that private individuals and voluntary associations cannot do for themselves.”
2. You believed Democrats when they spent the past eight years criticizing President Bush for deficit spending, and you are upset that in just over three months President Obama, along with Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, have tripled the deficit.
3. You believe the “Stimulus” bill contained too much pork and not enough stimulus. You believed candidate Obama when he promised to reduce earmarks and reform the earmark process, then were outraged when he signed a bill containing thousands of earmarks.
4. You oppose the current bailout mentality and oppose the bailouts, both past and future. You not only fear the amount of debt funding the bailouts adds to your children and grandchildren, but fear the exercise of control the government is exerting over those it “bails out.”
5. You believe businesses should not be under attack by the United States government, especially during a tough economy and you oppose increased government control of the private sector. You don’t believe the way to promote and encourage strong businesses and entrepreneurial spirit is to attack CEOs for taking bonuses the government had already approved and then tax those who did not return them at 90 percent. You don’t believe the President should be asking for the resignation of the CEO of General Motors or any other American company. You don’t believe the President should be capping the salaries of American executives or of any other American working in the private sector. You don’t believe the President of the United States should be guaranteeing your car warranty.
Doug Powers explained the reason he is attending the tea parties has everything to do with “waste,” but not so much in the traditional political sense of how we view “waste” in government spending.
Powers wrote: “For me, these tea parties are about putting an end to waste. Not the waste of money (though obviously that’s a major concern), but rather the tragic waste of American ingenuity, innovation, creativity and philanthropy. Think about the monumental efforts in both time and intellect that are wasted in order to satisfy insane government demands. I attend the tea parties as a way of showing that it saddens me to know that people who might have otherwise cured a horrible disease, designed grand buildings, created art and music, invented a car that runs on kumquats that people actually want to buy, expanded their businesses, explored the farthest reaches of the universe or had more time to devote to charity are now spending most of their energy trying to figure out a way to write off their lawnmowers as dependents. It’s a waste, and it’s an insult to those who helped build this great nation, and to those who have died defending it.”
I’ll be attending one of the 25 (at last count) tea parties taking place in my state of North Carolina for all the reasons above, and then some. Stimulus bill protests and tea parties have already been held in dozens of cities across the country over the past couple of months, and thousands of people have attended, but the April 15 Tax Day Tea Party takes the movement to a whole new level.
On tax day, tea parties are planned in all 50 states, including Alaska and Hawaii, and in most states they are taking place in multiple locations and regions. Freedom Works created a map to show how widespread the events are. As of April 11, over 500 events were included on the map. The number of members signing up on the Facebook Nationwide Tax Day Tea Party page has reached almost 32,000. Check the Tax Day Tea Paty.com website for links to information for individual state events.
If you are unable to attend in person, consider e-mailing a tea bag to your Senator or Representative. You can also follow the action on Fox News which will be broadcasting live from DC, Sacramento, Atlanta and San Antonio. Another way to participate is to contact your local media outlet to find out if they will be covering the events. There is even a wiki to track media coverage. Expect online coverage at the tea party sites as well as at participating blogs such as MichelleMalkin.com, Instapundit.com, Smart Girl Politics, and Pajamas TV.
If you agree with any (or all) of the statements above and are opposed to the direction the President and the Congress are leading the country, make your voice heard on April 15.
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