It was Americans that were targeted on 9/11. There may have been Americans that were Muslims present, but it was Americans that were the targets that September morning. This whole Mosque issue is a travesty of justice and an insult to all Americans. This issue has nothing to do with reaching out, freedom of religion or speech. It is a simple issue of common human decency and respect.

It does not matter the biography of who is building it or where the money is coming from to build it.  Interesting points to be sure but a diversion from the real issue at hand.  Simply it is disrespectful, it is wrong to place that building there. It hurts the families of 9/11 and their fellow New Yorkers, it hurts many across this land. By the nature of this issue it renders any function of "reaching out" impossible. It leaves the argument for the freedoms of speech and religion wanting.

These so-called issues of religious or speech freedoms are illusions of the left created by the left. The above rights by law are established and are not the issue here. The law allows for cruelty and for the hard of heart. It does not regulate nor should it regulate all human interaction. It allows a teenage child to tell their parents that they are hated and reviled. It allows for the US flag to be spit upon and burned. It allows a spouse to leave their children to grow up without a father or mother. It allows for the celebration of a soldiers death by a fellow countryman based on the sexuality of others.

While none of the examples above are illegal they are unjust and immoral or at best hurtful. Just because one can do something it does not follow that one should do those things. There is no advantage to building at that location that could not be duplicated elsewhere. This project hurts too many people, it has hurt a country, and it has hurt a religion. This is the wrong place and time for this adventure in idealism and political correctness. 

This is how most of average America sees this issue.  It is well documented on how Obama and most of the Democratic Party feel about this issue.  As usual the GOP has come out on the side of most Americans and it is why I am a Republican.   Which political party best represents your point of view?   If you are like most then visit me at http://www.apoorrepublican.com

The following is currently taking place in my small corner of the world, but the story is probably the same where you live. Your corner may be a bigger city or a smaller township, but  now days tough times are to be had by all.  Many are of the opinion that even though the times are challenging, at least with the Democrats in control, a real effort is being made to make the so-called rich pay their fair share of the tab.   In reality, nothing could be further from the truth.

To illustrate the inequity of this budget, one needs look no further than the increased wheel tax.   It was increased by $15.00, which was actually less than the $23.00 dollars requested by the mayor.  This is a regressive fee that affects those of us that can afford it the least.  Whether it is a BMW or a Ford, new or old, the fee is the same.  The $50.00 now required does not mean much to someone making $1000.00 a week (and that person is by no means rich), to someone making $200.00 a week (because they can’t find a decent job) that $50.00 means a lot more.  If it hadn’t been for the Republicans on the City Council, it would have been $8.00 more.

An increased in property taxes said to be 2.1%, a reduction again from that requested by the Democratic mayor.  One not so well known fact, that by law the city must balance its annual budget and will use the property tax to address any shortfalls.   In fact the budget submitted was a million short so in reality the property taxes will have to be raised a bit more that 2.1 percent. 

This tax increase will adversely affect the homeowner that is hanging on by sheer will or the disabled/elderly property owners living on a fixed income.  People making from 12,000 to 28,000 a year will be hurt the worst, as will the families where the home was purchased with 2 incomes now supported by one.  This tax will take more than just money; it will take opportunity and hope.

This budget I speak of, as mentioned before, is the budget of many of the towns and cities of America.   The Democratic answer of more taxes is not reserved for the rich.  These increased fees and taxes do little to affect the status of the well heeled; but it is these increases, dollar by dollar, that are crushing the will out of the average American.

Given the above, it is hard to see how the Democratic Party can be considered the party of the average American.  From the Democratic policies on both the local and national level, it appears that for most of America the GOP may be the better choice.  How about you, who is representing you?  Remember, America will not and can not tax its way to prosperity.  I know and understand this, and it is why I am proud to be www.apoorrepublican.com

The poor and the lower middle class are the real victims of America's failed immigration policies.  It is this group that bears the real cost of the governments failure in this arena.  Speaking as an unemployed American from the lower middle class, it is time that this problem be acknowledged and addressed.  Most Americans now understand that the borders must be controlled.  It is a simple statement and nothing else need be added.  The methodology can be argued, but the primary statement stands.  The borders must be controlled.   Until this happens, all the rest is talk.  The United States has the resources, but has not the will.

We don’t understand this lack of will.  We do not understand why there are special programs for people that are not citizens.  We do not understand why the law that we are expected to abide by, is all but ignored when it comes to those whose very presence is a violation of that law.  We don’t understand why when it takes every penny to us survive, why the government is taking our money and giving it to people who do not belong in the country.  

Why do they get free healthcare in our emergency rooms but when we go to the same emergency room, we are billed, and if we do not pay they come after us, garnish wages, and make our life tough.  If we pay, we sacrifice something else whether it is food, clothes, or the other necessities of life.   If they do not pay, they simply go to a different emergency room.  Since they are not in the system they come and go at will, impervious to the requirements of life that most of us are forced to live by.  

This is what the common folk like ourselves understand.  We understand that if one of us makes $10.00 a hour and our illegal counterpart makes $10.00 a hour, at the end of the week, one of us takes home around $315 and the other one of us takes home $400.  We understand that while our adult visitors take the jobs that some wrongly say are unacceptable to US citizens, it is their children and young adults that are taking away the jobs from our young.  These are not the jobs that nobody wants, these are the highly desired jobs that help young men and women pay for college or help out at home.   

It is us, yes, it is you and I, the poor and the middle class that get to foot the bill, and not just in dollars and cents.  They are using our schools, every and all the public facilities that up to this point have been available only to US citizens.  They take up classrooms and facilities, making it harder for our children to get the time and attention they need to better their lot in life.  We do not understand why a college student from Iowa has to pay more to go to college in Nebraska, than a person here (illegally) from another country who for some reason is eligible for in-state tuition.

It is nice for all the Democratic politicians to have these high and lofty ideals (open borders etc...) but it is we that are paying the tab.   It is us that are having to compete for the goods and services that the government offers.  It is we that have to compete for jobs (driving wages for all lower) and opportunities that belong by birthright to US citizens.  It is our social-economic class that bear the real burden of illegal immigration.

It is the Republican Party that seeks to address the immigration issues in the way that most of us understand and agree with.  We want the borders sealed and so does the GOP.  We feel illegal’s should be given no special privileges or rights, a stand taken by most members of the Republican Party.  We do not want amnesty, and are very concerned with any so-call path to citizenship, again a position taken by most republicans.  We believe that no matter what your ethnic background, that being American comes first.  That speaking the language and taking part in the national traditions are part of your responsibility and are not optional.  Our desires on these issues are most decidedly better echoed through the Republican Party.

So if you are living week to week, making ends meet the best you can,  if you are working 50 and being paid for 40, ask yourself a couple of simple questions.   Who really shares your thoughts and opinions, what political party is right for you and which works in your best interests?  Listen to both sides of this issue and make your choice.  

My choice was made many years ago when after a heated but friendly discussion on some social issue of importance at the time.  Unable to sway my opinion this friend and mentor of mine remarked, “you are the poorest republican I know.”  At the time I laughed at the remark and the moment passed, but it was then I understood that there was a difference in political thought.  It was at that moment in time and why today, this poor republican and I might add, of Hispanic origin, is proud to be a member of the GOP.