The Tea Party held in Sacramento last Friday served as an inspiration and a warning. I personally am very gratified that many Californians are speaking out for protecting their incomes from runaway Government spending and appetite for more taxation, as well as the emphasis on the usage of our state’s resources for people’s needs. Speaking as a farmer as well as a previous legislator, it is so helpful to have regular Californians stop what they are doing to come to where decisions are made and be seen and heard about these key issues.
Water usage, rights and water allocation is critical to so many jobs and the rural economy as we witness the devastation of an entire economy and 50% unemployment in San Joaquin Valley counties. These Tea Party Patriots get that, that it means our state suffers with the jobs loss, the economic loss and the pressure to then raise taxes in a misguided attempt to replace that revenue with higher taxation.
As we watch California burn once again [thank goodness so far it isn’t like last year when the statewide fire season started in June and went all summer, with brown, smoky skies for weeks even in Sacramento, not just places like Trinity County that are subject to it so often] the need to have smarter forest management becomes top-of-mind. Why breathe them as ash and CO2 when we can harvest them a bit and minimize the high rate spread of fire when it does occur? Plus, most enviro groups that stop wise forest policy are housed in buildings and homes of wood and and use letterhead printed on paper…forest products from cut trees!
These are also issues the Tea Party Patriots understand and were fighting for at this protest. Mountain community economies have been devastated as well due to misguided regulations [see: spotted owl] Again, jobs lost, economy damaged, producers become the needy…a double edged sword as burning forests also are bad for air quaility. One large fire can produce as much CO2 as a years worth of human activity of entire urban areas.
There are those that downplay the crowds, [it’s harder for productive people with jobs to come out and protest, they arent getting paid-time-off to express their views!] and the Movement in general, such as the name calling of Tea Party protesters and those speaking out on the health care takeover at town halls all over the US. Terrorists, UnAmerican. Thats pretty extreme language describing ordinary hard working Americans who are seeking better government; language that should not be forgotten by these citizens, coming from those governing them. That type of name calling seems even desperate, they must be really worried they won’t get their Government Run Health Care through in time before people wake up from the Obama Jedi Mind Trick.
Thanks to the Tea Party Patriots and others speaking out , Americans are waking up, are more aware and holding government more accountable…and that’s a good thing