Bringing the message closer to home, we have a governor who is oblivious to the rising unemployment and the exodus of business and residents to neighboring states. I know Governor Quinn is oblivious because he is doing nothing to stop or even slow this trend. True, he has given some patronage breaks to Chrysler and Caterpillar, but what has he done to those who really keep the economy alive - the small business owners? What has he done for the average taxpayer? What has he done for the former taxpayer who is now sitting home, hopelessly waiting for 6, 12, 18 months or longer for that phone call offering them a job? A job offer which becomes less likely with each passing day.
I remember a bit from the late Sam Kinison, where he joked about starving people in Africa. He said, "You live in a desert, what do you expect?" "If you don't want to starve, MOVE!" Of course, he was making questionable light of a very serious subject and I would certainly not support letting people starve in Africa or anywhere else, but the point is, Americans have a culture of determination; a history of fighting until they cannot fight anymore - a never-give-up attitude. Through our history, if a person could find work in their home state, they will move to another state because they would not allow themselves to fail!
Unfortunately, our government - both state and federal, have worked hard in recent years to break down this survival mentality, creating a new breed of individuals who are content to sit out on the sidelines and allow the government to take care of them. The result?
1. Productive people who are out of work move to other states to become productive taxpayers in other states.
2. Productive workers with jobs in this state, work harder and pay higher taxes to support the non-productive culture, created by our government, who remain in Illinois; an entitlement state.
This past week, I placed an ad to hire for possible positions and several people applied. Most applicants who were currently working, were looking for new jobs because their current employer was cutting pay and increasing workloads. Of those who were not working; the mature of the group (over 35), had been out of work for 6 months or longer and were willing to do anything, at any price to have a job. They usually came from industries hard hit by the economy where they had been earning a very good wage. The group of younger unemployed (under 30), had a history of job hopping - 6 months here, 2 months there...or they had not worked for 12 months or longer. When asked what they were doing during that time, one said without embarrassment, "collecting unemployment and watching TV". Another said, "not much, just hanging out". These were not high school kids, but were adults in their 20's and early 30's.
I also spoke to a delivery driver early in the morning. Here is a fully employed individual, protected by a union. He very shamelessly told me about a day in his life. He quipped about how he and his co-workers bid on their stops. He said the route he had today was not too bad so he took it. Then he added, if he gets to work late, only the bad routes are left and he does not bid on them. I asked him what he does in that case? He said, it's no problem, I still get most of my pay for sitting home, so I would rather sit at home than run a bad route. I should add, he works out of Wisconsin, where Governor Walker is currently being recalled because he is trying to fix what is wrong with the state budget, and has been very successful so far. Who is leading the recall charge in Wisconsin? The same unions that are protecting this driver who would rather sit home and do nothing than do a respectable day's work for a day's pay.
Then we have fuel prices blowing through the roof! The price for gasoline is the highest it has EVER been with promises of prices to go much higher. When prices increased under Republican Presidents, it was always said that the President was not doing enough to bring down the prices. Under a Democratic President however, the President has no control over gas prices. How does that work?
In Illinois, one of few state that charge tax on fuel as a percentage of the price, why has the governor not changed to a flat rate as most states do, for taxing fuel? This step alone could bring some relief, albeit minimal, at the pump. Simple, for Illinois government, higher gas prices equates to a windfall. This is nonbudgeted revenue in their pockets which no doubt, will be wasted just as every other dollar going into our government is wasted. It will not benefit the state in any way.
The history of our state's leadership has been colorful to say the least:
Jim Thompson - Moderate Republican, helped bring commerce to the state but big on spending. Knew how to play the game and knew the limits so he would stop just short of going too far.
Jim Edgar - Moderate/Conservative Republican - Honest. More fiscally conservative, but the conservative opposite of Jimmy Carter - wanted to be everybody's friend. Could not make the tough decisions.
Jim Ryan - Corrupt, Moderate. Old time politician. Played the game and did not expect to get caught.
Rod Blagojevich - Corrupt, Liberal, out to benefit himself at any cost. Cared about nobody. I would not trust him with the code to my garage door.
Pat Quinn - Liberal, Big Spender, will placate anyone and do anything to stay in office, but I believe he is honest.
I can go back a little farther to pull a few more rotten apples out of the barrel and fortunately, I can also find some great leaders which have left their footprints in our great state, not the least of whom are Ronald Reagan and Abraham Lincoln. This proves that corruption does not come from drinking our water.
It Is Time...To Save Illinois -
Our next governor must have absolute qualities. Among them:
- Fiscal conservative - the irresponsible spending must stop!
- Thick Skin - Stand up to Chicago politicians in Chicago and Springfield and say no to handouts. If Chicago wants to give away the farm, let Chicago find a way to pay for it.
- Stand up to union leaders - a state that works, provides more competent employees to pay union dues. A state of unemployed workers pays nothing. Union leaders do not understand this concept.
- Social Moderate - We are a changing culture but as the state go, so goes the nation. If we become extreme on either end of the spectrum, we alienate the majority of the constituency. We do not need roadblocks to protect us from ourselves, but we should not allow lawlessness and anarchy.
- Parents should police their children's behavior first. If law enforcement has to be the family disciplinarian, than parents should be held accountable.
- If abortion rights or gay marriage are the most important concerns to you in an election, than you need to re-evaluate your priorities. These issues matter to specific individuals as do others, but in any election, the most important issues should be those that affect the health and the future of the entire state, because if the state does not exist, these (and other) issues become moot.
- Rebuilding Industrial Base - Illinois at one time was the home of some large manufacturing facilities which employed tens of thousands of employees. Many of these jobs left the state and the country. Our next governor must produce a climate which will encourage companies to return or relocate to Illinois. This should be done without sacrificing our states future with TIF incentives.
- Create a Climate For Entrepreneurship - The state has taxed small business into certain failure over the past 15 years. By driving through your local towns, you will notice vacant storefronts unlike anytime in the past. In my travels in my work, I have seen many businesses in strip malls come and go by the month. The restaurant business alone, where the average profit nationwide is 3%, in Chicago it is only 1%. It does not take much of an increase in taxes, licenses, fees, surcharges or some other name the government creates, to take away a business owners profit and send them spiraling into bankruptcy.
- Business is None of Your Business - The state government is not in the job of operating restaurants, hospitals, car dealers or any other business. The IDPH is charged with developing guidelines for food related business and healthcare facilities to ensure the safety of the consumers and patients, respectively. These guidelines should be fair, reasonable and rational. Each industry has councils, associations and/or commissions which produce standards and offer their form of accreditation. Our food and healthcare industries have been the safest in the world, but have only recently began to show signs of failure; ironically after the government became more involved. Politicians are not experts in these fields and should not interfere.
- Respect All People of Illinois - It is called the state of Illinois, not the state of Chicago. This is a state rich in culture and diversity, from the recent European immigrants in the City of Chicago, to the long time family farmers in the southern third of our state. Each of these people who contribute to the state in their own way and each of these people deserve the same respect and attention. That said, a farming family in Livingston County toiling for 12 hours, 7 days every week including holidays - in the hottest summer sun and the coldest winter wind; should not be forced to pay for a person to have free air conditioning and cable TV, while they sit at home in government provided housing in Chicago. There is trash on the streets and graffiti on the bridges. If people collecting state welfare are able-bodied, they should be required to perform public service for 40 hours. This will clean the streets, save money for the state, provide work experience and self respect to the recipients.
One quality the next governor must not have - He must not be Pat Quinn or anybody currently serving in the state General Assembly.
Now, who is ready and willing to step up?
