Compassion is Heartbreaking...Sometimes

Little did I know, this morning when I asked the Lord to use me for good today, that it would mean I would be asked to help put a suffering creature out of its misery?

On my way to work in Vernonia, I saw a small deer lying on the side of the highway. Part of its tiny body was lying in the road forcing me, and the two log trucks behind me, to swerve to avoid running over of it. About a half mile down the road I was impressed to go back; to not leave the poor thing lying in the road.

So, promising not to ignore promptings, I turned my car around and went back. I pulled into the driveway of a house not to far from where the tiny creature lay, grabbed the two plastic bags I had in my coat pocket to use as gloves, walked across the highway and approached the animal.

As I got closer I could see that the poor thing was still alive. I approached slowly, as to not scare it anymore than it already was. I was sad that I was now going to have to pull the tiny broken body off the road and cause it more pain. I apologized for what I was about to do, grabbed its two front legs and gently pulled it off the highway. Then I comforted it for a few moments. What could I do? I had no gun in my car with which to end its short life. I was impressed to go to the house across the street.

I left the poor tiny creature alone, walked to the house and knocked on the door. An elderly man came to the door. I explained that someone had hit a young deer and it was suffering. I asked if he had a gun and would be willing put it out of its misery. He said he did and quickly went to get a small revolver. I thanked him, got in my car and drove away; not wanting to watch, but knowing it was the right thing to do. I could see the man approach the tiny creature as I drove around a corner.

I found a safe place to turn my car around so I could head into town. As I approached the man’s house, he was just crossing the highway, after completing the necessary deed. I slowed down to thank him again. I’m sure it wasn’t any easier for him, but it had to be done.

As I drove away I started to cry thinking about that tiny suffering creature and wondering how long it had laid there, scared and unable to move, waiting for compassion; as loud vehicles rushed by, no one willing to stop.

Thank you Lord; for making me an instrument in your hands.

Taxing the Rich More is Common Sense?

On Monday, President Obama stood in front of a crowd of college students at a community college in Virginia to lay out his latest budget proposal…which looks eerily like his previous budget that the Senate rejected 97-0. He told his captive audience that making the wealthy pay more…to pay their fair share…was not class warfare or envy of the rich, it was just common sense.

Mr. President, it has nothing to do with common sense.

Common sense says that when you have nearly fifty percent of this country paying no Federal Income Tax…that’s zero…zip…nada…and the upper five percent paying over 58% of all Federal Income taxes collected, it is not the wealthy that are not paying their fair share.

Common sense says that maybe it is time to throw out our ridiculously complicated and unfair tax code and create a new one…a simpler one with a flat tax rate of ten to fifteen percent…a tax code with no exemptions, no deductions, no special tax credits, etc…just one tax rate for everyone. Wealthy business owners, wealthy individuals living off of capital gains, middle income wage earners, lower income wage earners, and individuals living off of public assistance would all pay the same tax rate, no excuses and no exemptions...everyone would have skin in the game for a change. Plus, this would be the most reasonable and fair way to make sure that everyone is participating in your shared sacrifice scenario.

Common sense says quit spending this country into oblivion to keep the ne'er-do-wells dependently happy. It is time make serious and necessary cuts and changes to our bloated and underfunded entitlement programs.

• Have incentives for people to get off of public assistance and make it less comfortable for them to stay on it. No one should be making more money on public assistance, than someone who is working.
• End the “tax cut” gimmick which is actually a reduction in future benefits for social security beneficiaries. We have a social security system that is under funded by trillions of dollars. It makes no sense to continue this farce.
• Restructure social security and take it out of the general fund…put it back in its own trust fund where it was supposed to be. Protect it for present, and future, retirees who paid into it. Stop using it for discretionary spending.
• Restore fiscal responsibility to the government. Don’t spend what you don’t have.

Common sense says that when the President of the United States continually uses the office of the Presidency as a bully pulpit to demonize the producers in this country, it creates envy and hatred toward those individuals. Yes, Mr. President, it is class warfare and it most definitely is class envy. And to make matters worse, the flames of discontent are being fueled by you. Your divisive rhetoric…pitting the poor against the rich, main street against wall street, lendees against lenders, unions against non-unions…is not becoming of someone holding the highest office in the land and it needs to stop before this country implodes. You’re not a community organizer any more; you’re the President of the United States…the entire United States.