In case you haven’t figured it out by now, I think we have too much freakin’ government in this country.  When there are warnings on a small package of tissue telling you that it is a violation of federal law for you to use that tissue anywhere on your bod except for your face, you start to get the idea that perhaps we’ve carried this government thing too far.  Come on folks – think about it a second.  In many states, including Florida, someone can’t even tell you what color of pillow would go well with your couch without a state license!  Why in the hell should I have to let the state tell me who I can and who I can’t hire to help me match colors and patterns. 

So … to begin your Monday entertainment, a few stories about government you won’t believe.

The Cub Scouts

We’ll begin in park somewhere near Washington DC.  The heavily wooded park is owned by the federal government.  Smelling trouble already, aren’t you?  So it seems that yesterday some Scout leader took his little band of six-year-old Cub Scouts to the park to collect some leaves.  The leaves, you see, are changing right now, and some of the colors are beautiful.  The Cub Scouts were going to collect leaves and preserve them for a scrapbook.  As the Scouts are walking along a trail, there being tailed by a federal employee park security guard.  She follows as the Scouts pick up some of the prettier leaves and put them in their little plastic bags.  The security guard is a security and law enforcement professional.  Surely you know that, because, as Tom Dashle told us, “You don’t professionalize until you federalize.”  Finally our stalwart professional drives up to the Cub Scouts, gets out of her car, and orders the Cub Scouts to open their baggies and dump those leaves right back there on the road.  “You can’t take them,” she said.  “This is federal property.”  Now these are Cub Scouts, not occupy protesters, so they do what they are told to do by this symbol of government authority.  As the Cub Scouts (some of them crying) left, the man who told me this story (you would know him, but I’m not going to name him) walked up the professional security guard and said “Hey; is this really worth it?”  She responded in what he describes as a harsh voice – very close to yelling – “This is federal property and those leaves are federal property and those are the rules.” 

Really, folks.  Those are the rules?  What can you say?  These kids were six-years-old.  How do you think they are going to feel on their next encounter with someone in a state or national park – whether it be a security guard or a Park Ranger?  Is this really representative of the quality of employees we are forking over taxpayer dollars to? 

The Purple-shirted Goons of SEIU in Michigan

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  So The Godfather covered this story on Friday.  Look; some things do happen after I’m off the air you know.

Here’s the deal.  You live in Michigan.  Michigan is a “forced-union” state where you can be forced to join a union in order to work.  If you elect not to actually join the union, you have to pay union dues anyway.  Quite a deal --- for unions; and for Democrats too, by the way, because Michigan unions throw almost 100% of their financial support behind Democrats every election.  No surprises yet. 

So let’s put our heads together and see how we can take Medicaid money and turn it into contributions to Democrats?  Legally, of course!  Really … there just has to be a way to do this.  And as a matter of fact, there is!  I don’t really know who cooked this mess up, but it was served by former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm!  A Democrat, of course. 

Here’s how it works.  You are a parent of a mentally disabled adult child.  You accept Medicaid payments from the State of Michigan. Governor Granholm.  As I understand the story, Governor Granholm --- and remember that she is a Democrat --- initiated a program whereby all adults in Michigan who accept Medicaid dollars for the care of their disabled adult children are deemed to be providing care for their children as employees – yes, as employees – of some government outfit called the Michigan Quality Community Care Council.

OK … so why is it so goll-durned important for the Democrats to designate these parents of disabled adult children as government employees?  Well, that would be because if they’re government employees they have to pay dues to the government employee’s union!  And that would be the wonderful Service Employees International union – the purple-shirted goons of the SEIU.  So now that you’re an official government employee – though all you’re doing is taking care of your own children – the SEIU now deducts $30 a month from your Medicaid payments for dues.  Isn’t that just great!  There’s certainly nothing else you could use that $30 bucks for, is there?  

How much does this add up for SEIU in any given year?  Try about $6 million bucks.  Is it any wonder unions work so hard to keep Democrats in office?  On average, over 90% of political contributions to Democrats or to support Democrat and liberal ballot measures like last week’s pro-government union vote in Ohio.  Want figures?  From 2007 to 2008 the SEIU gave just 3.12% of it’s political contributions to Republicans.  96.67% of donations went to Democrats or Democrat ballot initiatives.  How much money are we talking about?  $9,900,000 from the union itself, and another $25 million plus from subsidiaries and employees of SEIU.  So you know where much of that $6 million is going, don’t you?  Yup .. right into Democrat campaigns and in support of Democrat ballot initiatives. 

Suddenly it makes these making these caregivers government employees      makes sense, doesn’t it?  At least from a Democrat perspective.