• If increasing the size and scope of government while reducing the size of the private sector improved an economy, please explain North Korea. 
  
• Please explain why Hong Kong is prosperous while France is not. 
• Please explain why the Great Depression lasted the whole of the 1930s.
  
• Please explain why a man taking buckets of water from the deep end of a pool, then pouring the buckets of water back at the shallow end to make it deeper isn't stupid.* 
  
• Please give me your top-ten-favorite-economic-success socialist/fascist countries of all time.

* I stole the essence of this line from the great Walter E. Williams.

Dear Editor:

So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is
made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear
down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't
being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and
other ports of entry.

Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like
Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind
of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all
areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a
ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented . Some
would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They
made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good
and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new
American households and some even changed their names to blend in with
their new home.

They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a
new life and did everything in their power to help their children
assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them.   No free
lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were
the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a
future of prosperity.

Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My
father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from
Germany , Italy , France , and Japan . None of these 1st generation
Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had
come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the
Emperor of Japan . They were defending the United States of America as
one people.

When we liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for
the French-American or the German- American or the Irish-American. The
people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that
represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have
thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to
represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their
parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly
knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot
into one red, white and blue bowl.

And here we are in 2008 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the
same rights and privileges, only they want to achieve it by playing
with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card
and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry,
that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the
immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve
better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising
future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those
legally searching for a better life I think they would be appalled
that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country
flags.

And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty , it
happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the
immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the
United States just yet.

(signed) Rosemary LaBonte
Orange County, California

 I used to pose the following to my college-student graduates from government schools:  I contend that there are three categories of k-12 teachers.  The first (A) has teachers who should immediately be given a 100 percent salary increase and driven to and from school each day in a chauffeured limousine.  The second (B) has teachers who should receive no raise, receive no ride, but should be mentored by Category A. The third (C) has people who should be treated as a liquor store or porn shop, i.e., never again allowed within 500 feet of a school.

            I surveyed college upperclassmen because they now had some distance and perspective on the subject.  The students would think about it, jot some notes, review their school years and the two-dozen-plus teachers each had had.  I’d then call on them individually, asking how many of each category they’d had.  Almost all said that they’d had some of each.

            The range for A’s was ten-to-thirty percent.  The range for B’s was twenty-to-sixty percent.  The range for C’s was fifteen-to-fifty percent.  So, everyone had had at least three great teachers during the thirteen years and many subjects.  And everyone had had at least five-ish awful teachers and some as many as fifteen.  At the end, I’d ask if the students agreed with my categorization and characterization.  They all did.

            If a hospital emergency room had fifteen-to-fifty percent of its nurses and anesthetists Category C, would you go there for care?  If a bank had that many tellers Category C, would you bank there?  Heck, if your meat market had that many Category C butchers, would you shop there?  If your car dealer service department had that many Category C mechanics and technicians, would you take your precious SUV there?  If the hospital or bank or market or dealership gave huge raises to their Category C personnel, would they then become Category A?  If the hospital or bank or market or dealership reduced the number of customers per employee, would the quality of performance by its C’s become A-class?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you’re a dunce, but could still have a very comfortable life and career as a Category C teacher in our government schools.  Just pay your KEA/TEA/NEA dues.  If you answered “no” to all of these questions, then we seem to be communicating.  If you answered “no”, but you keep sending your children to the governments’ schools for indoctrination and PC-mania anyway, however, maybe I’m just not communicating well enough.

Any Category A teacher at your child’s school can list the school’s Category C teachers alphabetically, chronologically, by grade level or by hair color, but most wouldn’t.  All principals could do likewise, even for other schools, but none would.  The superintendent could list them for the entire system without notes, but won’t.  When asked at a public meeting about the problem of bad teachers by a parent, Knox County (Tennessee) schools superintendent said that the real problem is when a child has two bad teachers in a row.  So principals are instructed to avoid that.

When asked why he didn’t listen to and respect parents and students more, the president of the national teachers union said that, when parents and students pay union dues, he will.  Retired lifelong union members – UAW, AFL/CIO, Teamsters – are complaining loudly at their retirement homes about the unionized staffers.  The retirees whine that staffers don’t listen to and respect them.  Paybacks are tough.  Finally, can any of you out there rattle off a list of government bureaucracies with quality customer service?

Save the children.  Kill the government schools.  Also please read and respond to SL Gordon's  Townhall blog post of today   about schools and being a teacher.  Finally, also be mindfull of the fact that "economic stimulus" moneys in billions of dollars will shortly be "invested" in government schools.  Another way of explaining that is that Democrats in the House and Senate, along with the new prexy, are really indebted to the NEA and AFT for all of their usual help this election cycle.  While the teachers remind the children to "wash your hands", they was the politicians' hands and the pols return the favor.

To All My Valued Employees,

There have been some rumblings around the office about the future of  this company, and more specifically, your job. As you know, the economy has changed for the worse and presents many challenges. However, the good news is this: The economy doesn't pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is the changing political landscape in this country. However, let me tell you some little tidbits of fact which might help you decide what is in your best interests.

First, while it is easy to spew rhetoric that casts employers against employees, you have to understand that for every business owner there is a back story. This back story is often neglected and overshadowed by what you see and hear. Sure, you see me park my Mercedes outside. You've seen my big home at last years Christmas party. I'm sure; all these flashy icons of luxury conjure up some idealized thoughts about my life.

However, what you don't see is the back story.

I started this company 28 years ago. At that time, I lived in a 300 square foot studio apartment for 3 years. My entire living apartment was converted into an office so I could put forth 100% effort into building a company, which by the way, would eventually employ you.

My diet consisted of Ramen Pride noodles because every dollar I spent went back into this company. I drove a rusty Toyota Corolla with a defective transmission. I didn't have time to date. Often times, I stayed home on weekends, while my friends went out drinking and partying. In fact, I was married to my business -- hard work, discipline, and sacrifice.

Meanwhile, my friends got jobs. They worked 40 hours a week and made a modest $50K a year and spent every dime they earned. They drove flashy cars and lived in expensive homes and wore fancy designer clothes. Instead of hitting the Nordstrom's for the latest hot fashion item, I was trolling through the Goodwill store extracting any clothing item that didn't look like it was birthed in the 70's. My friends refinanced their mortgages and lived a life of luxury. I, however, did not. I put my time, my money, and my life into a business with a vision that eventually, some day, I too, will be able to afford these luxuries my friends supposedly had.

So, while you physically arrive at the office at 9am, mentally check in at about noon, and then leave at 5pm, I don't. There is no "off" button for me. When you leave the office, you are done and you have a weekend all to yourself. I unfortunately do not have the freedom. I eat, and breathe this company every minute of the day. There is no rest. There is no weekend.  There is no happy hour. Every day this business is attached to my hip like a 1 year old special-needs child. You, of course, only see the fruits of that garden -- the nice house, the Mercedes, the vacations... You never realize the back story and the sacrifices I've made.

Now, the economy is falling apart and I, the guy that made all the right decisions and saved his money, have to bail-out all the people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed a decade of my life for.

Yes, business ownership has is benefits but the price I've paid is steep and not without wounds. Unfortunately, the cost of running this business, and employing you, is starting to eclipse the threshold of marginal benefit and let me tell you why:

I am being taxed to death and the government thinks I don't pay enough. I have state taxes. Federal taxes. Property taxes. Sales and use taxes. Payroll taxes. Workers compensation taxes. Unemployment taxes. Taxes on taxes. I have to hire a tax man to manage all these taxes and then guess what? I have to pay taxes for employing him. Government mandates and regulations and all the accounting that goes with it, now occupy most of my time. On Oct 15th, I wrote a check to the US Treasury for $288,000 for quarterly taxes. You know what my "stimulus" check was? Zero. Nada. Zilch.

The question I have is this: Who is stimulating the economy? Me, the guy who has provided 14 people good paying jobs and serves over 2,200,000 people per year with a flourishing business? Or, the single mother sitting at home pregnant with her fourth child waiting for her next welfare check? Obviously, government feels the latter is the economic stimulus of this
country.

The fact is, if I deducted (Read: Stole) 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? That's nuts. Who wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, I agree which is why your job is in jeopardy.

Here is what many of you don't understand ... to stimulate the economy you need to stimulate what runs the economy. Had suddenly government mandated to me that I didn't need to pay taxes, guess what? Instead of depositing that $288,000 into the Washington black-hole, I would have spent it, hired more employees, and generated substantial economic growth. My employees would have enjoyed the wealth of that tax cut in the form of promotions and better salaries. But you can forget it now.

When you have a comatose man on the verge of death, you don't defibrillate and shock his thumb thinking that will bring him back to life, do you? Or, do you defibrillate his heart? Business is at the heart of America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate it, not kill it. Suddenly, the power brokers in Washington believe the poor of America are the essential drivers of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is the type of change you can keep.

So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple. If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, my reaction will be swift and simple. I fire you. I fire your co-workers. You can then plead with the government to pay for your mortgage, your SUV, and your child's future. Frankly, it isn't my problem any more. Then, I will close this company down, move to another country, and retire. You see, I'm done. I'm done with a country that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, will be my citizenship.

If you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the economy; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept through this country, steamrolled the constitution, and will have changed its landscape forever. If that happens, you can find me sitting on a beach, retired, and with no employees to worry about....

Forlornly,
Pete