Notes From a Texas Patriot
July 4, 2010 - Independence Day

Today is the 234th anniversary of the adoption and publication by the Continental Congress of the United States of America of these words that never fail to stir my soul:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --
The conception of the vision was stained with hypocrisy from the beginning, most especially by the Continental Congress's submission to the evil of slavery. Although Thomas Jefferson's original draft of the Declaration contained a passage denouncing the slave trade, the delegates to the Congress removed that passage over Jefferson's strenuous objection. Also hypocritical was the failure of the men who adopted the Declaration of Independence to extend the vision of equality to females, as well as their blindness to the humanity of indigenous American peoples.

One can but hope the next time Governor Rick Perry visits the Gulf Coast he has a window installed in his stomach so he can clearly see the environmental disaster BP of America, which he called “An Act of God”, has wreaked upon the area and its people.

Further compounding his ignorance of the situation Perry proclaimed BP had an excellent safety record. Did someone in his office failed to inform him in October last year BP paid the largest fine ($87,430,000) ever handed down by OSHA for the company's failure to correct potential hazards faced by employees at BP's Texas City, Texas, refinery. A disaster caused by BP’s protection of its bottom line as opposed to correcting potential hazards. A profit verses willful violations of employee safety that cost 15 Texans their lives and injured another 170.

Congressman Michael Burgess M.D. on his face book page has asked the folks of the 26th district to contribute $5, $10 or $20 to his campaign today. To help keep the fight going in Washington.

We have to pass the health care bill so that you can find out what is in it.
Nancy Pelosi ~ Speaker of the House

No matter where you sit in the aisle on this (Democrat, Republican, or Independent) can, anyone say that we as a country should expect a bill that will be finish later. How can anyone say we as a country should accept this kind of garbage from any side of the aisle?

Could we have helped you? Probably, but we didn’t even try. ~ Congressmen Mike Burgess to one of his constituents’

Received by email today

A modest proposal...

January 22, 2010 12:16 PM

The following was sent by a Holmes County (Florida) businessman for your consideration...
For too long we have been too complacent about the workings of Congress. Many citizens had no idea that Congress members could retire with the same pay after only one term, that they didn't pay into Social Security, that they specifically exempted themselves from many of the laws they have passed (such as being exempt from any fear of prosecution for sexual harassment) while ordinary citizens must live under those laws.

The latest is to exempt themselves from the Healthcare Reform that is being considered...in all of its forms. Somehow, that doesn't seem logical. We do not have an elite that is above the law. I truly don't care if they are Democrat, Republican, Independent or whatever. The self-serving must stop. This is a good way to do that. It is an idea whose time has come.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution:

"Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States."

Unfounded comments and bill harmful to LGBT equality
Denton, TX --- Stonewall Democrats of Denton County denounced the recent actions of Representative Michael Burgess (R) in regards to President Obama’s “Safe Schools Czar” Kevin Jennings.

“Congressman Burgess has again taken the opportunity to distort the truth in a manner unbecoming an elected official,” said SDDC President John McClelland. “After the accusations made against Safe Schools Czar Kevin Jennings were proven inaccurate several months ago, Dr. Burgess is again wasting time and taxpayer dollars by accusing Mr. Jennings of inappropriate relations and associating him with organizations he has no part of.”

Rep. Burgess sent a letter dated December 9 to President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan, accusing Mr. Jennings of promoting sexual relationships between school aged children and adults. He was one of 53 House Republicans who sent a similar letter October 15. Rep. Burgess also sent the recent letter and other statements via the taxpayer funded House email system to subscribers of his newsletter. Rep. Burgess has even gone so far as to introduce H.Res.966 on December 11, which has been referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor, to fire Mr. Jennings.

“Kevin Jennings is a former leader of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network. GLSEN is an advocate of helping every member of the school system, be they children, teachers, parents; gay, lesbian, or straight to promote a positive sense of self. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, or questioning children and those perceived to be gay, even if they are not, are bullied and harassed in our public school system. Some have even been murdered or committed suicide. This is something we are against and are glad GLSEN is taking action to solve the problem,” said McClelland. “We hope Congressman Burgess can use his time more wisely to solve our ongoing health care crisis, promote cleaner sources of energy, and help with unemployment here in Congressional District 26. If he would like to have an informed discussion on promoting equality in schools, the workplace, and law in general, he is welcome to sit down with us at Stonewall Democrats of Denton County. Our door is always open to discuss tolerance and understanding.”

Stonewall Democrats of Denton County is a grassroots organization committed to the election of LGBT friendly candidates and a leader in progressive equality issues. It is part of a network of 10 chapters in Texas and more than 90 nationwide.

Front-paged by WhosPlayin.
Eight more years and 34,000 troops the Huffington post reported today on President
Obama’s Afghanistan Decision. For the last year, our president has been talking about an exit strategy from Afghanistan.

One of America's top strategic interests must be to get Iran to behave less like a gang of revolutionary fanatics and more like a traditional nation-state. The President of Iran and the Mullahs must be shown that a stable neighborhood in the Middle East is good for Iran.

Received by email today...

Dear Old People,

We don’t want to kill you. You are our parents and grandparents and we love you. But if you throw a cranky fit and keep us from having decent, affordable health care, you can figure out how to work your own goddamn PCs, cable boxes and remote controls from now on.

And it wouldn’t hurt if you would stop being so bigoted and freaked out about having a black president too. We understand that this would have been impossible in your day, but it’s a long way from being a communist, or an Al Qaeda sleeper agent or Hitler. It’s embarrassing and this kind of stuff is why we don’t bring the grandkids around more. They miss you and we would all like it if you were a bigger part of their lives, but we don’t want them to grow up thinking this way.

- H.R.