What's Wrong With All the $$$

I recently had a discussion with a family member about government employees and salaries. I looked online at Government Salaries to find all the salaries. We both found it quite amazing that the top three paid government employees were all head coaches… for the same school. Mack Brown, the University of Texas head football coach, at 5.1 million dollars makes twice as much money as the next guy, Rick Barnes, the University of Texas head basketball coach, at 2.15 million dollars. If you look down further on the list you see that Will Muschamp who is only the assistant football coach is fifth on the list making 900,000 dollars. These numbers can upset some people. People wonder why are a football coach and basketball coach making so much money when tuition is going up and professors are being let go at the University of Texas. The reason that they are getting paid so much money is the product they put on the field or on the court is paying for there salaries. In the case of football Mack Brown supports his salary and probably pays for every other sports team besides baseball and basketball. Baseball and basketball probably break out a little ahead or even. Every other sport runs at a deficit. The football program pays for the entire athletic department. In most other states the athletic department runs at a deficit and the funs have to come from somewhere, whether that is from tuition or from the state. All I am trying to say to those people who are upset with how much Mack Brown is being paid is unless you want to get rid of all the sports teams that do not at least break even, or you want to pay those programs with your taxes dollars, cut Mack Brown a break. He deserves every penny he is getting.

How the Arizona laws could affect Texas

This is in response to the blogger Discglfr'sTXgovThoughts and his thoughts on whether Texas should adopt similar laws that Arizona. I have one thing to say about it COULD NOT AGREE MORE. Everything his said was right on. What the blogger said about the problems was absolutely right on. I have never had a problem with Immigrants coming into this country, but I want it done the right way. I believe that programs should be set up to get immigrants integrated the right way. I believe speaking the language is a must. It is very hard to be succesful in this country if you are not able to communicate with them. And the problem with the taxes and how citizens pay for some of these programs that illegal immigrants get such as medical treatment is not right. If they want some of these programs then they should have to contribute through taxes just like every other citizen. Again I just want to say that the blogger could not have been more right and I agreed with all his views.

What's With The Tea Party

Lately I have been hearing a lot more about the Tea Party in Texas and around the nation. I have been wondering what has been going on since they have not had a big story in the news lately. Apparently they are starting to fizzle out according to the San Antonio News. They are reporting that they are making a lot of noise still but are not sure if they are going to have any political power once the elections in November of this year have occoured. The more I hear about them the more I am intrigued what they stand for. From what I hear on the radio and television they are pretty much fed up with the stupid people in congress. They appear to be conservative but they are just as angry with Republicans as they are with Democrats. I feel in the last ten years, even though I have leaned towards Republican, that both sides are making things worse rather than better. I think that things could really be shaken up in Washington. I mean really things couldn’t get a whole lot worse right? Everybody is blaming everybody else with the problems with America. I haven’t heard too many viable solutions from either side. And every day it seems like government is getting bigger and bigger. When I see government getting this big I always think of what George Washington said about government being a nessacary evil. I don’t know what the Tea Party could do differently but I guess any change couldn’t put America worse off.

Everyones Got Thier Opinion

This is in response to Fess Up, Y’all Know Govt Matters. I am a firm believer that everyone is entitled to their opinion. We have the freedom of speech guaranteed to us with the first amendment. Before I agree or disagree with the blog I would like to offer a little constructive criticism. The language used I feel is appropriate for the way the blogger feels and I have no problem with it, however this blog is intended for many to read and if the blogger is not careful can come off as ill informed and uneducated. Another comment is the blogger needs to make sure all of the facts are checked.
Now with the post in general I have to disagree. Perry is trying to rally the GOP so that they can as a whole disagree with what the president is doing. They are trying to separate themselves and distance themselves away from President Obama, who is losing popularity fast. Perry appears to have aspirations to become president one day and if the general public is not favoring President Obama and the Democrats, Perry seems to be making the right moves. I believe that Perry will probably win the Governors election later on this year, and that the Republicans will remain in office for the time being.
I do enjoy reading the blog being more conservative myself. I have to say that the blogger does a great job voicing her opinion and if she truly believes it she could keep going. I don’t have to agree with it to show respect for her opinion. That’s what makes politics a joy to talk to about.

Who's Really Voting For Your Bill

Vote. In the dictionary this word means a formal indication of somebody's choice or opinion.When I think of voting I think of one person choosing a certain item. Today in class I was introduced to a television broadcast that showed how voting works in our government. The broadcast was centered on a bill that was proposed that would make a person voting in the legislature present a photo ID when voting. I did not fully comprehend why someone would need a photo ID to vote if they were in the legislature until the piece continued. It showed how many representatives were voting for those who were absent. It was the most absurd and crazy thing you could ever see. There were literally dozens of little races all around the legislature were people were racing to vote for another person that was absent. It did not matter if you were of the same party, sat next to, or even knew the person they were voting for. They even showed how one person, while voting for another person, had his vote pressed by another. It was just a crazy puzzle of people voting for themselves and others. The first thing that came to mind was that there was no way that they could possibly do this; it had to be against the rules. In fact later on in the piece they showed the exact place where it clearly said that no one should vote for another person and that they could be punished for doing so. I guess the practice happens so frequently that no one is going to rat another person out. Another thing it made me think of was that this was definitely not the way a democratic system operates. Our founding fathers would roll over in their graves if they saw what was happening now. After watching the entire broadcast I understand why it would be a good idea for a photo ID bill. I suppose anything is better than what is being done now. It was quite disgusting to see how are bills are voted for. All i know is that things have to change.

The Tea Party in Texas

Tea Party

Since I have only been alive for 19 years now I have only known two parties; the Republicans and the Democrats. Occasionally I hear about some independents running for office but that only comes around the presidential election time. But a new organized group has caught my attention. They have called themselves the Tea Party. I don’t know much about them; only what I hear from political talk shows such as Glenn Beck and other news sources. All I really know about these Tea Partiers is that they are not happy with either of the parties and have decided to take things into their own hands. The Tea Party seems to be a very conservative group, more conservative than your run of the mill Republican. I have heard of the Green party and others similar and I have one question for the Tea Party. Are they going to be able to make a difference or affect elections as a national power? I came upon this article and found out how the Tea Party could have an effect on the Texas primaries that are being held on March 2, 2010. The editor, William McKenzie, talks about how the Tea Party helped elect a Republican candidate in Massa chutes, a usual Democratic state. McKenzie wonders if the same can happen in Texas. He believes that the success of the Party will not depend on the election of a certain candidate, rather on how much of the vote their governor, Debra Medina, can get. He goes on to say that he believes many of the Republicans in Texas could qualify as Tea Partiers. ? He believes that anywhere from twenty to thirty percent of the Republicans is Tea Party. McKenzie believes before any of the elections that the Tea Party has made a difference. Do I think the Tea Party is making a difference? Sure. Do I think they will be a contender locally or even nationally? Maybe. I believe that the Tea Party is an organization from both parties who are unhappy with the current government. The way things appear to be going and more and more people becoming very unhappy with the government the Tea Party could recruit many more followers

The Race For Texas

http://texasweekly.com/node/4430

Through the last couple of months I have been hearing a lot about the race for governor of Texas. It appears that Rick Perry has a decisive lead over the two other candidates Kay Hutchinson and Debra Medina. While we vote for the primaries for the governor on March 2nd there will also be voting for about 200 other legislative spots. There are a surprising number of close races during the primaries. It is crazy that this is only a primary race but things already get so competitive and hectic. I don’t think I have every paid this much attention to a primary besides the presidential. Everyone will be paying close attention to the governor race but I believe that we should all take a look on our representatives and make an informed decision on the people that could affect our lives. We may not know their name now but we should know what they are going to do for our community.