Helping Palin Shatter the Glass Ceiling

As a fellow pro-life, Christian, conservative, gun owner/ life-member of NRA and mother of five including children with special needs, I am thrilled with John McCain’s VP pick of Sarah Palin.  I had the honor and privilege to not only attend this historic announcement at the Nutter Center  in Dayton but to share it with my three youngest including my 6 year old daughter.  Hillary Clinton may have put 18 million cracks in the highest and toughest glass ceiling in our Nation but I’m excited to help Sarah Palin shatter it once and for all.  The time is now for experienced leadership in the form of an intelligent, well-spoken, professional woman as a leader for our nation.

 

John McCain’s experience and leadership is beyond question.  He has served our nation longer than either Obama’s or my own four decade existence.  Today, in his first decision as the next leader of our nation, he demonstrated “why the American people can trust him to make wise decisions and to confidently lead this country.” (President Bush)

 

Sarah Palin is the first female governor of Alaska where she challenged a corrupt system and has been a true reformer having passed a landmark bill on ethics reform.  She rejects wasteful pork spending including telling Congress “thanks but no thanks on the bridge to nowhere.”  She has taken on the old politics in Alaska.

 

Palin has reformed the state’s energy industry including challenging big oil and leading the fight for America’s energy independence.  She is the commander of Alaska’s National Guard.  Her son serves in our Nation’s military having enlisted last September 11^th and will deploy to Iraq on this September 11th.  She has served in state and local office for more than a decade with years of executive experience.  All of this, the self processed hockey mom does while raising five children.  She’s an inspiration, a role-model, and a leader.  A true multi-tasker who embodies the American Dream.

 

Adding to a day of excitement was the Straight Talk Express’ stop in my long- time hometown of New Concord for ice cream at the Dairy Duchess (aka Main Street, Small Town America).  As the Muskingum County Chair of Women for McCain, today was a historic day for Muskingum County and for women.  I thank John McCain for that and look forward to helping in paving the historic path for our next President.

 

See pictures and video from New Concord at: http://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=BA&Date=20080829&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=808290801&Ref=PH&Params=Itemnr=1

 

http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-nnco-pub01-live/current/launch.html?maven_playerId=zannewssection&maven_referralObject=836420690

Charity Begins At Home…for Conservatives

Charity or donating to those less fortunate than ourselves has been the focus of a number of studies and news reports as of late.  In the Presidential race, it was disclosed that while Barak Obama resides in a $1 million dollar home, his brother George survives in Kenya on $1 a month.  Having traveled to Africa myself on a mission trip, it was striking to me while I was there how little financially it takes to have a real impact in someone’s life.  It is also interesting to note that Sean Hannity, a conservative commenter, has said that if provided an address, he will himself send George $1,000.

 

Interestingly enough, Obama has stated “I think we should talk more about our empathy deficit – the ability to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes…the child who’s hungry, the laid-off steelworker, the immigrant woman cleaning your dorm room.”  McCain, on the other hand, is living Obama’s words 24/7/365 having adopted a medically fragile infant entrusted to his wife’s care by Mother Theresa.  The Obamas reported giving just .4 percent of their income to charitable causes in 2002, well below the national average of 2.2 percent.  In 2007, McCain donated 26 percent of his income to charity (and 18 percent the previous year).

 

A 2006 study found “that conservatives who practice religion, live in traditional nuclear families, and reject the notion that government should engage in income redistribution are the most generous Americans, by any measure.  Who Really Cares?  America’s Charity Divide: Who Gives, Who Doesn’t, and Why It Matters by Syracuse University professor Arthur Brooks as highlighted in the May 2008 Limbaugh Letter. 

 

This study found that “Conservative households in America donate 30 percent more money to charity each year than liberal households.”  This is despite the fact that the liberal households make 6 percent more than the conservative families do according to Brooks.  “If liberals gave blood like conservatives do, the blood supply in the U.S. would jump by about 45 percent.”  “The average South Dakota family gives away 75 percent more of its household income each year than the average family in San Francisco.”  People who do not think that “government has a responsibility to reduce income inequality” give four times more to charity than those who do think so. 

 

In fact, data from the nonpartisan Catalogue For Philanthropy ranked states by a “Generosity Index.”  Of the top 28 most charitable states, 27 voted for George W. Bush in 2004 and thus, are considered Red or Republican.

 

Conservatives understand that we, as individuals, are best equipped to see the problems around us and meet those needs.  A large, inefficient governmental bureaucracy is not the solution.  Hurricane Katrina demonstrated the ability of individuals and faith-based organizations to step in and effectively make a difference.  We need to keep national leadership that understands this as well.

 

See: http://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008808240312

Penalizing Marriage: Harming Women and Children

As the owner of a small business, issues related to business and taxation are by necessity important to me.  Moreover, my husband and I are both included in the more that 230,000 who work for women-owned businesses in our state.  In fact, as of 2007, there were an estimated 10.4 million privately held businesses in our nation in which one or more women owned at least 50 percent of the company.  This accounted for 41 percent of all privately held firms.  These firms employed 12.8 million people and generated $1.9 trillion in sales.  Majority women-owned firms (51% or more) employed more than 7.1 million workers and generated $1.1 trillion in sales. (As reported by the Center for Women’s Business Research)

 

Between 1997 and 2006, the number of majority women-owned firms grew at twice the rate of all U.S. privately-held firms.  In fact, between 1997 and 2002, an average of 424 new women-owned firms were started up every day, with nearly 775,000 start-ups per year and amounting to 55 percent of all new firm start ups.

 

Recently, Barak Obama’s tax increase plan was unveiled in the Wall Street Journal.  “His plan would not raise any taxes on couples making less than $250,000 a year, nor on any single person with income under $200,000.”  Thus, his “plan” “amounts to a war on two-income families, a marriage penalty of punitive proportions.  If those two single persons with income under $200,000 get married, Mr. Obama is going to hammer them with a huge tax increase.  If the second earner, who in many cases is the woman, is going to have to give 54% of what she earns to the government, she might as well stay home with the children.  Mr. Obama may be able to get away with symbolic slights to women, such as not picking Senator Clinton as vice president.  But punishing them with confiscatory taxes for participating in the workforce at a high income level moves the slight into the realm of substance.” http://www.nysun.com/editorials/obamas-war-on-women/83871/

 

Now you can say that the income levels involved don’t concern you but the real issue goes beyond that.  We have created, through a welfare system that forces fathers out of the home, a culture adverse to marriage.  This taxation plan adds a marriage disincentive at high income levels as well.  Our society has reaped the results of single parent households.  In fact, children who live without their biological fathers are, on average, at least 2 to 3 times more likely to be poor; use drugs; experience educational, health, emotional, and behavioral problems; be victims of child abuse; and engage in criminal behavior than their peers who live with their married biological (or adoptive) parents. http://www.fatherhood.gov/statistics/index.cfm#father

 

Can we really continue to sit back and let our governmental leaders force people to avoid marriage for financial reasons when marriage has been shown to create the framework that is best suited to launch children into productive, responsible members of society?

 

Where is the incentive for women and others to start businesses if they must turn over more than half of their earnings in taxes?  Staying at home with children is admirable and rewarding however, it should be a personal, value-based decision.

 See: http://www.daily-jeff.com/news/article/4298272

The Constitution and the Candidates

As the election looms nearer, we must all prioritize what issues we hold most important in determining which candidates to vote for.  Recently, I attended the Ohioans for Concealed Carry Party in the Park.  This event was the first time all three of Ohio’s Attorney General (A.G.) Candidates appeared and spoke together. 

 

Republican Mike Crites focused on his more than 20 years of experience as a prosecuting attorney on a state, local, and federal level.  He noted that he is a career prosecutor, not a career politician.  He spoke of his experience in enforcing laws regardless of political affiliation or the individuals involved.  Crites also spoke of our God given right to bear arms that the Constitution states “shall not be infringed.” 

 

Independent Robert Owens spoke on behalf of gun rights.  He noted during his speech that despite the fact that he is seeking to be elected as the top law enforcement official in the state of Ohio, that in certain situations, he would break the law.  As A.G., he would be charged with enforcing all of Ohio’s laws.  It is deeply concerning that he would seek an office where he must hold others accountable to the very laws that he is willing to break. 

 

Democrat Richard Cordray spoke of his experience in government and friendship with Governor Strickland.  As to the issue of the 2^nd amendment, he merely said that the Constitution will “inform” his decisions.  What exactly that means, is apparently open to interpretation.

 

When considering 2^nd amendment rights, it is important to note the recent Supreme Court decision of Heller vs. D.C.  This case determined that individuals have a constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms.  The decision was by a 5-4 margin thereby highlighting the importance of judicial appointments in our current Presidential race. 

 

John McCain, a veteran, states that he believes that the right of law abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right that we have a scared duty to protect. http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Issues/77636553-6337-4ecd-b170-49e1c07d2fbd.htm  He has also stated that he will appoint judges that “take as their sole responsibility the enforcement of laws made by the people’s elected representatives.  Judges who can be relied upon to respect the values of the people whose rights, laws and property they are sworn to defend.”

 

Barack Obama’s website has no issue link to the 2^nd amendment.  Further, he characterized Americans in small towns as “bitter” people who “…cling to guns or religion…”  As President and currently as a U.S. Senator, he has taken an oath of office to uphold the Constitution which includes protections for both guns and religion.

 

I encourage you to: 1. educate yourself; 2. know the issues; and 3. be an informed voter.

 

See: http://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080813/OPINION03/808130336

Headline Tragedies: A Call to Action

Pictures of little Caylee Anthony fill news reports.  Her mother is locked behind bars as a person of interest in the 2 year old’s disappearance weeks ago.  There are highlights of stories involving a pregnant Marine, Megan Touma, allegedly killed by her unborn child’s father.  Each depicts a tragedy, a family suffering, and a child harmed or presumed harmed. 

Each also raises questions.  There are thousands of tragedies that affect numerous families every day.  The vast majority are deemed unnewsworthy, particularly at a national level.  What is it about some fact patterns that catch the media’s attention and ours as the viewer, and what is the outcome of that attention?

We all know the stories that fill the news and are shouted across the headlines such as the JonBenet Ramsey case.  Yet, there are similar events in our nation, state, and community to which few pay attention.  The only defendant to receive the death penalty in Guernsey County in recent years, murdered a 13 year old boy because he knew his ex-girlfriend, the child’s mother, would suffer more if he killed the child than if he killed the mother, herself.  The defendant’s statements and conduct in the courtroom were outrageous and inflammatory and yet only local news coverage occurred. 

When a story garners national attention, if that attention were to highlight a particular problem and provide people with a means to affect solutions, such coverage would serve as a benefit to society.  Too often though, the stories are reported so narrowly that there is no bigger picture presented and certainly no call to action to prevent a similar occurrence in the future.

National attention on missing children has lead to the Amber Alert system, which allows the public to be instantly notified.  Additionally, all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico now have clearinghouses for sharing information on missing children.  Approximately 800,000 children are reported missing each year with less than 10% being non-family abductions.  Less than 1% are the most serious kind involving the child missing long-term and/or being killed.  However, time is of the essence in all of these cases and the Amber Alert System is a welcome tool to protect our children.

In our own community we have children who are at risk in their own homes.  We each have the opportunity to make a difference.  Foster families provide safe havens for children as parents seek to work case plans to reunify with their children.  Thousands of Ohio children wait for adoptive families to give them a place to call home forever.   These children deserve families of their own (learn more at http://jfs.ohio.gov/oapl/).  Organizations such as Big Brothers, Big Sisters provide role models and mentors.  Other organizations and churches seek to feed positive influences into children’s lives.  The opportunities are limited only by your personal interest and available time.

Each of us has the ability to play a role and make a difference.  The fact that it may be too late for the child or mother splashed across the headlines doesn’t mean that there isn’t another child or mother with just as great a need.  I encourage you to look beyond the next headline tragedy and find a way to be part of the solution.