Who do they represent you
or special interests?
For the last few years we have presented many
facts and issues where various elected officials are faced with a
choice of representing the citizens or the special interests. Only
the naive would claim that our elected officials do not have to
make that choice. This is not a choice that is limited to Georgia
or American politics, it has existed throughout the history of
mankind.
Throughout history this theme has occurred time
and time again. The siren call of special interests, the money,
the power and the egos have been major factors in the rise and
fall of nations. Nations that are Blessed and nations that are
condemned.
Thomas Jefferson also had some words about the
struggle between special interests and the citizens:
"The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all
history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be
ruled by a small elite."
- Thomas Jefferson
As we near the end of two years of Republican
control of the State House, Senate and Governor's office and -
four years of Republican control of the State Senate and
governor's office - it is time to evaluate if the Republican "revolution"
in Georgia has been a good thing. In the ongoing struggle
referenced by Thomas Jefferson, are the citizens of Georgia or
special interests better off?
We will focus this series on five issues:
-
The State Flag - 79% of Georgians have shown
interest in a FAIR vote.
-
Ballot Access Reform - The current Georgia law
is the hardest in the country. Ironically, it was passed in 1943
by the Democrats to keep the Republicans off the ballot. Have they
taken action to allow competition or are they now doing what they
condemned the Democrats of doing?
-
Outsourcing jobs to foreign countries - Most
Georgians would be shocked to find out that their tax dollars are
being used to send jobs to India.
-
Immigration - Is Georgia pursuing steps to
eliminate this problem or just giving the issue lip service?
-
Eminent Domain - Once again are the rights of
the citizens being truly protected by closing the loop holes that
permit abuse or are elected officials just posturing?
On each issue we will provide the information
that we have, including sponsorship of legislation, actual votes,
campaign reports (who is buying influence from who), behind
the scenes information and our recommendations for the upcoming
elections.
Based upon the feedback we receive from this
website, it is apparent that many if not most are not satisfied
with the performance of the government they are paying for. We
hope that our look at each of these issues will be of interest and
informative.
Our Founding Fathers established American
Liberty based upon recognizing that power corrupts and greed is a
temptation that many fall victim to. They established many
principles in The Declaration of Independence, Articles of
Confederation and then the Constitution of 1787.
These Principles have
served us well, but they are being lost.
It is not the corrupt, or special interest
pandering politician who are destroying Our Founding Principles,
it is the citizens. Now many will object to that statement and
blame it all on the politicians. Benjamin Franklin had some
inspiring words on this subject:
At the close of the Constitutional Convention
of 1787, Benjamin Franklin was asked the following question as he
left Independence Hall on the final day of deliberation—in the
notes of Dr. James McHenry, one of Maryland’s delegates to the
Convention.
“Well, Doctor, what
have we got—a Republic or a Monarchy?”
“A Republic, if you
can keep it.”
"A Republic if you can
keep it." Those are words that every American and
especially every Georgian - should etch in their memory as we
approach another election. It is up to us - the citizens - to hold
our elected officials to the standard of the principles upon which
our country was founded.
It is our government - not theirs! It is our
duty to hold them accountable - not theirs!
If you are not satisfied with the performance
of the government that you are paying for, we hope that this
series of articles will give you a better insight into why your
government is falling short. More importantly, we hope that we can
provide some insight into what can be done about it.
To receive a notification when the analysis of
each of these issues are posted, click
here and signup for
the 2005-6 Watch List from the
options presented. This will send you a brief text email message
when each is posted. Each message has an unsubscribe link at the
bottom so don't be bashful about signing up.
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