I’ll be 63 soon. Except for one semester in college when
jobs were scarce, and a six-month period when I was
between jobs, but job-hunting every day, I’ve worked,
hard, since I was 18. Despite some health challenges, I
still put in 50-hour weeks, and haven’t called in sick in
seven or eight years. I make a good salary, but I didn’t
inherit my job or my income, and I worked to get where I
am. Given the economy, there’s no retirement in sight, and
I’m tired. Very tired.
I’m tired of being told that I have to “spread the
wealth around” to people who don’t have my work ethic. I’m
tired of being told the government will take the money I
earned, by force if necessary, and give it to people too
lazy or stupid to earn it.
I’m tired of being told that I have to pay more taxes to
“keep people in their homes.” Sure, if they lost their
jobs or got sick, I’m willing to help. But if they bought
McMansions at three times the price of our paid-off,
$250,000 condo, on one-third of my salary, then let the
leftwing Congresscritters who passed Fannie and Freddie
and the Community Reinvestment Act that created the bubble
help them—with their own money.
I’m tired of being told how bad America is by leftwing
millionaires like Michael Moore, George Soros and
Hollywood entertainers who live in luxury because of the
opportunities America offers. In thirty years, if they get
their way, the United States will have the religious
freedom and women’s rights of Saudi Arabia, the economy of
Zimbabwe, the freedom of the press of China, the crime and
violence of Mexico, the tolerance for Gay people of Iran,
and the freedom of speech of Venezuela. Won’t
multiculturalism be beautiful?
I’m tired of being told that Islam is a “Religion of
Peace,” when every day I can read dozens of stories of
Muslim men killing their sisters, wives and daughters for
their family “honor;” of Muslims rioting over some slight
offense; of Muslims murdering Christian and Jews because
they aren’t “believers;” of Muslims burning schools for
girls; of Muslims stoning teenage rape victims to death
for “adultery;” of Muslims mutilating the genitals of
little girls; all in the name of Allah, because the Qur’an
and Shari’a law tells them to.
I believe “a man should be judged by the content of his
character, not by the color of his skin.” I’m tired of
being told that “race doesn’t matter” in the post-racial
world of President Obama, when it’s all that matters in
affirmative action jobs, lower college admission and
graduation standards for minorities (harming them the
most), government contract set-asides, tolerance for the
ghetto culture of violence and fatherless children that
hurts minorities more than anyone, and in the appointment
of US Senators from Illinois. I think it’s very cool that
we have a black president and that a black child is doing
her homework at the desk where Lincoln wrote the
emancipation proclamation. I just wish the black president
was Condi Rice, or someone who believes more in freedom
and the individual and less in an all-knowing government.
I’m tired of a news media that thinks Bush’s fundraising
and inaugural expenses were obscene, but that think
Obama’s, at triple the cost, were wonderful. That thinks
Bush exercising daily was a waste of presidential time,
but Obama exercising is a great example for the public to
control weight and stress, that picked over every line of
Bush’s military records, but never demanded that Kerry
release his, that slammed Palin with two years as governor
for being too inexperienced for VP, but touted Obama with
three years as senator as potentially the best president
ever.
Wonder why people are dropping their subscriptions or
switching to Fox News? Get a clue. I didn’t vote for Bush
in 2000, but the media and Kerry drove me to his camp in
2004.
I’m tired of being told that out of “tolerance for other
cultures” we must let Saudi Arabia use our oil money to
fund mosques and madrassa Islamic schools to preach hate
in America , while no American group is allowed to fund a
church, synagogue or religious school in Saudi Arabia to
teach love and tolerance.
I’m tired of being told I must lower my living standard
to fight global warming, which no one is allowed to
debate. My wife and I live in a two-bedroom apartment and
carpool together five miles to our jobs. We also own a
three-bedroom condo where our daughter and granddaughter
live. Our carbon footprint is about 5% of Al Gore’s, and
if you’re greener than Gore, you’re green enough.
I’m tired of being told that drug addicts have a
disease, and I must help support and treat them, and pay
for the damage they do. Did a giant germ rush out of a
dark alley, grab them, and stuff white powder up their
noses while they tried to fight it off? I don’t think Gay
people choose to be Gay, but I damn sure think druggies
chose to take drugs. And I’m tired of harassment from cool
people treating me like a freak when I tell them I never
tried marijuana.
I’m tired of illegal aliens being called “undocumented
workers,” especially the ones who aren’t working, but are
living on welfare or crime. What’s next? Calling drug
dealers, “Undocumented Pharmacists”? And, no, I’m not
against Hispanics. Most of them are Catholic and it’s been
a few hundred years since Catholics wanted to kill me for
my religion. I’m willing to fast track for citizenship any
Hispanic person who can speak English, doesn’t have a
criminal record and who is self-supporting without family
on welfare, or who serves honorably for three years in our
military. Those are the citizens we need.
I’m tired of latte liberals and journalists, who would
never wear the uniform of the Republic themselves, or let
their entitlement-handicapped kids near a recruiting
station, trashing our military. They and their kids can
sit at home, never having to make split-second decisions
under life and death circumstances, and bad mouth better
people then themselves. Do bad things happen in war? You
bet. Do our troops sometimes misbehave? Sure. Does this
compare with the atrocities that were the policy of our
enemies for the last fifty years—and still are? Not even
close. So here’s the deal. I’ll let myself be sub je cted
to all the humiliation and abuse that was heaped on
terrorists at Abu Ghraib or Gitmo, and the critics can let
themselves be sub je ct to captivity by the Muslims who
tortured and beheaded Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, or the
Muslims who tortured and murdered Marine Lt. Col. William
Higgins in Lebanon, or the Muslims who ran the
blood-spattered Al Qaeda torture rooms our troops found in
Iraq, or the Muslims who cut off the heads of schoolgirls
in Indonesia, because the girls were Christian. Then we’ll
compare notes. British and American soldiers are the only
troops in history that civilians came to for help and
handouts, instead of hiding from in fear.
I’m tired of people telling me that their party has a
corner on virtue and the other party has a corner on
corruption. Read the papers—bums are bi-partisan. And I’m
tired of people telling me we need bi-partisanship. I live
in Illinois , where the “ Illinois Combine” of Democrats
and Republicans has worked together harmoniously to loot
the public for years. And I notice that the tax cheats in
Obama’s cabinet are bi-partisan as well.
I’m tired of hearing wealthy athletes, entertainers and
politicians of both parties talking about innocent
mistakes, stupid mistakes or youthful mistakes, when we
all know they think their only mistake was getting caught.
I’m tired of people with a sense of entitlement, rich or
poor.
Speaking of poor, I’m tired of hearing people with
air-conditioned homes, color TVs and two cars called poor.
The majority of Americans didn’t have that in 1970, but we
didn’t know we were “poor.” The poverty pimps have to keep
changing the definition of poor to keep the dollars flowing.
I’m real tired of people who don’t take responsibility
for their lives and actions. I’m tired of hearing them
blame the government, or discrimination, or big-whatever
for their problems.
Yes, I’m damn tired. But I’m also glad to be 63.
Because, mostly, I’m not going to get to see the world
these people are making. I’m just sorry for my
granddaughter.
Robert A. Hall is a Marine Vietnam veteran who served
five terms in the Massachusetts state senate.
Keep smiling,
George
Errabundi Saepe, Semper Certi
