Governor Perry-What a liar

[j_war06 0]

OH and btw if your from Distict 3 VOTE DAN DODD! If he wins I get a free 100 in my political science class because thats who I am backing in that election. And trust me I need the grade, plus I believe he is best for the job

[Poodles 0]

Well regarding the LBT thing... that is why this is in the rants section.

The taxes thing worries me about Bell. Although I know more about Perry than Bell, I just don't get a good feeling about Bell. I have researched, and like his ideas, but just don't know how he is going to FUND all of this. Although I am getting some of my information from the slam ads, he just does not seem like a good fit.

Perry has been quoted as "not going to WASTE any more money on education" and that is why I will not vote for him. Any money I get for my kids is put to good use. But he would rather give tax cuts to the richest of the rich and put the middle class down to the poor class as quick as possible. He is a waste, and will not get my vote. I would rather vote for Satan himself.

I will stick with my teachers organizations recommendation. Teachers must stick together for the good of EVERYONE.

I don't ask my students if they are democrat or republican before I educate them, or what their Mommy and Daddy have in the bank, I just do my job. I wish our Governor would give his voters the same respect.

[BJean 16]

Jodie Warner: What do you have against Ben Stein?

Poodles: I can understand why you would back the teachers' candidate, but I don't understand why you would buy the "slam" TV ads that malign Bell.

[Carlene 12]

thought this was a lapband site not a political one for everyone to bash politicians

This is the "Rants and Raves" forum, where you are invited to comment on anything and everything. Vent your spleen...but remember not to flame the members of LBT.

A similar forum is the "Talk Lounge". Everything off topic (not about Lap Band or weight loss) should go in one of these two forums. You are welcome to join us, but if you prefer to avoid discussions (and sometimes arguments) about a whole host of stuff, you might want to skip R&R and TL.

[Carlene 12]

I have to admit Perry hasnt come through on his promises........But he is the best candidate for this election. To actually vote any of the other candidates into office would be ludicrous, I mean hello its Kinky Friedman, Paula Dean, and Ben Stein running against him (basically). Seriously, Geez what are politics coming to?

Jodie...

And exactly WHY would we vote for a man who hasn't "come through on his promises"? Maybe because RICK PERRY IS A LIAR?

I am totally underwhelmed with the opposition but I am not voting FOR Bell, Strayhorn, or Friedman...I voted AGAINST Rick Perry.

Rick Perry does not value children, education, teachers, or the working class. Want to know why we have so much money in the state coffers now, with more pouring in all the time? Because Rick Perry cut Medicaid to millions of poor Texas children and elderly. He skimmed money off dedicated programs (special license plate sales, lottery, utility assistance,etc) and added it to the general fund. Now he wants to do away with the business tax, which hasn't even gone into effect yet.

During Rick Perry's watch, our electric bills have more than DOUBLED. And Perry wants us to believe that total deregulation of utilities will fix that? HA!

Rick Perry is the best friend big business ever had....well, since George Bush, anyway.

Are you sure you can afford to support Rick Perry?

[BJean 16]

Well said, Carlene.

[kesha23 0]

I dont live in Texas anymore, but when I did, it was during the last gov. election when he was running, I thought he was quite humorous on the oppositions commercial with hime and the highway patrol. I still have friends and family back there and I haven't heard anything, not one thing good about him. Good luck, I hope the voting goes your way next week.

[barbara465 2]

I did my voting on Saturday. I am encouraged by the number of people at the polls. Hopefully the voter turnout will turn the tide. Most of the polls show Perry leading. I hope the polls are wrong. I'm worried that the votes will be split by the other three that he'll win by default.

[Carlene 12]

I did my voting on Saturday. I am encouraged by the number of people at the polls. Hopefully the voter turnout will turn the tide. Most of the polls show Perry leading. I hope the polls are wrong. I'm worried that the votes will be split by the other three that he'll win by default.

That's certainly what Perry is hoping for. Right now he is in a solid first place with 30+%, Bell is second and Strayhorn a close third. Carol's supporters are very loyal and unlikely to switch, even to oust Perry. RP probably lost as many votes to Strayhorn as Bell did....maybe more. She used to be a Republican herself, after all. I hate that we are going to elect this jackass by voting FOR two better candidates, instead of voting AGAINST Rick Perry.

Oct. 29, 2006, 12:06AM

CHRONICLE-11 NEWS POLL

Voters are likely to re-elect Perry</SPAN>

Despite poor job reviews, he has 38% support while Strayhorn, Bell split ticket

By R.G. RATCLIFFE and LISA FALKENBERG

Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau

AUSTIN - A majority of likely Texas voters say they are unhappy with the job Republican Rick Perry has done as governor, but he is likely to win re-election because his opposition remains splintered, according to a new poll conducted for the Houston Chronicle and KHOU-TV.

Perry leads a five-person field with 38 percent support, according to the survey. Democrat Chris Bell has 22 percent support, and independent Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn has 21 percent — a statistical tie. Independent Kinky Friedman trails badly at 10.5 percent, and Libertarian James Werner has just 1 percent support.

Disapproval of Perry's job performance is almost universal across Texas' demographic groups, according to the survey. Perry still has solid support from conservatives and Republicans.

"Could this have been a competitive two-person race? Absolutely. But it was never a competitive two-person race," said pollster John Zogby. "You get back to that one point: Bell and Strayhorn are blocking one another."

Bell — despite a saturation television-advertising buy paid for by $2.5 million in donations and loans from Houston trial lawyer John O'Quinn — remains largely unknown to four of every 10 voters. And Bell has yet to consolidate even his own Democratic base.

Strayhorn shows strength among women, blacks and self-identified independents, but she has failed to make significant inroads with Democrats or Republicans.

Friedman simply is disliked by half the state's likely voters. His disapproval rating may be caused in part by racially insensitive remarks he has made and his poor performance in the gubernatorial debate, but the respondents were not asked to say why they approved or disapproved of any of the candidates.

The result: Because the winner need only get a plurality, not a majority, Perry probably will be elected to another four years in office on Nov. 7.

"The difficulty here is Perry has solidified in the high 30s," Zogby said of the challengers. "It would take two candidates to implode, and the odds of that happening are very, very nil."

[j_war06 0]

Jodie...

And exactly WHY would we vote for a man who hasn't "come through on his promises"? Maybe because RICK PERRY IS A LIAR?

I am totally underwhelmed with the opposition but I am not voting FOR Bell, Strayhorn, or Friedman...I voted AGAINST Rick Perry.

Rick Perry does not value children, education, teachers, or the working class. Want to know why we have so much money in the state coffers now, with more pouring in all the time? Because Rick Perry cut Medicaid to millions of poor Texas children and elderly. He skimmed money off dedicated programs (special license plate sales, lottery, utility assistance,etc) and added it to the general fund. Now he wants to do away with the business tax, which hasn't even gone into effect yet.

During Rick Perry's watch, our electric bills have more than DOUBLED. And Perry wants us to believe that total deregulation of utilities will fix that? HA!

Rick Perry is the best friend big business ever had....well, since George Bush, anyway.

Are you sure you can afford to support Rick Perry?

So if he doesnt care about children or education or the state at all, why did he come to my small town and shake all of the Texas Scholars' hands and do a speech, as well as sit and talk with us like a normal human being. Why did he come to my little bittie town and talk about the hurricane and try to make arrangements for help. WE WERE ALL STARVING and the elderly were dying because no rations of food or Water or gas were getting to Jasper, and when he got there and saw the situation he immediately declared a disaster zone and the dying stopped. I know I know this is his job, but you all are accusing him of not doing his job, where as from my point of view he is because he kept my town alive. He also made my classmates and I feel honored to have him at our Texas Scholars luncheon, he spoke to the boys about football, and the girls about college and their future. I remember that day well.

I support Rick Perry, I always have, in fact Im rather not broke. I dont see why I would be? I dont really have to spend my money on anything, and if I do its cheap, it isnt affecting me and I dont see it affecting everyone else. Go live somewhere that you have to pay higher and more taxes, then see how expensive Texas is. The world's prices are going up, mainly because the US is pissing everyone off, not because some miniscule State Governor is meddling and scamming...

Rick Perry does not value children, education, teachers, or the working class. Want to know why we have so much money in the state coffers now, with more pouring in all the time? Because Rick Perry cut Medicaid to millions of poor Texas children and elderly. He skimmed money off dedicated programs (special license plate sales, lottery, utility assistance,etc) and added it to the general fund. Now he wants to do away with the business tax, which hasn't even gone into effect yet.

Let me tell you guys something about the poor and the elderly. The elderly are paid through national government, that is a national government program, you know how I know? BECAUSE I PAY FOR IT! I give them every dime (not to offend anyone, but this is my opinion only). That is my money, I should get to put it in my own fund for when I am old, not to support someone's morphine habit. They should have been more prepared, their parents should have been more prepared, its the baby boomers and they eat up more money than my ciggerettes and booze do in a pay check (when I had a job). I am not a Republican or a Democrat, I am a Free Enterpriser. I believe that 95% of the poor in this country are poor for a reason. I come from a town where the median income for a whole family (2 adults, to children) is $22,000.00 a year. YES A YEAR. Had they moved to a city they could probably have the same job, making twice that much a piece. Had they finished FREE HIGH SCHOOL they would get better job offers, and possibly financial aid to AT LEAST go to technical school. I feel no pity for these people because I have to provide for them, I do not work to better them, I work for my money. My grandfather died by not taking advantage of social security and going to the doctor, he was too proud to take other people's money, and I admire that, althogh I wish he was around and I didnt understand at first. I understand now.

I could say that roughly 80% or more of people on government funded relief Should not qualify for it. I go through my town and see people in shacks with holes in the roof for a house, but drive a custom purple 2005 cadillac with 20" spinning dubs, hydrolics, and custom interior, two twenties in the back. Do you have any idea how much money that is! ITS A LOT! A WHOLE WHOLE lot. It is ridiculuous. Not to mention everytime I go to the dr. in Jasper there is always this old man trying to get pain meds for a "burn" on his back. But the burn wasnt that bad, and has been healed for about 5 years, but he still goes to get pain meds just to waste the govt. money to feed his addiction to prescriptions INSTEAD of using the government's money to seek professional help in a mental health care facility or an addiction specialty centre. I dunno I could go on and on for days on the state of national and local government and why it is that way, and why it is not Perry's fault.

And by the way, Ben Stein is a smart ass BEEEEP BEEEEEP. lol! And Chris Bell has ZERO personality and therefore should have ZERO public appeal, I want someone who says what they are going to do, and at least sound like they mean it, while I dunno what Chris Bell is saying half the time, I just want him to start saying "Bueller, Beuller, Beuller" and "Red eyes, Clear eyes". Honestly people the selection of politicians is slim this election year

[Tired_Old_Man 1]

And while you are complaining about the people with less money than you, the people with 100's of times more money than you are so glad you think that way because they need your vote and everyone's vote who looks down to complain, rather than up to see the real problem.

[BJean 16]

Jodie- Nobody's criticizing you for supporting for Rick Perry. But I think you're way out of line about Bell. If you're for Perry, you don't have to malign the other candidate to convey how great you think Perry is.

As for Social Security - it's not the government's money. When they pay it out, it's our money. You talk about how we should have prepared and our parents should have prepared. That's what Social Security is all about. We pay into Social Security so that we WILL BE PREPARED for retirement. That may not be why you pay into it if you do, but whether you need it or not it will be there for you when you retire. That is, of course, unless the politicians in power now change all that. If and when they do change it, many people won't be prepared for retirement. Then we will all have reason to bellyache about the government...BIG TIME!

[Carlene 12]

Jodie...

Please post a link to a news source that says one single person starved to death in Jasper, TX as a result of hurricane Rita. Just one. As for Perry's humanitarian act, he declared about 6 counties to be disaster areas, not just the town of Jasper, and then he promptly applied for federal funds to clean up and rebuild. It was the least he could do, as governor. Visiting the aftermath of the storm also got him some great (and free) media coverage to kick off his 2006 campaign with.

Texas is a "cheap" place to live? You think so? We pay 50% more for electricity than anyone else in the country. And while we don't have a state income tax (yet), we do have one of the highest sales taxes in the nation. Mine, including local taxes, is 8.25%. TXU is making record-breaking profits, courtesy of the PUC (all appointed by the governor), who allowed 4 raises in just over 12 months. How is that "cheap"?

As for Social Security....you think you pay for it, do you? How about the SS taxes that my DH paid for 40 years? Don't you think he might have earned the benefits he receives now? Do you receive any pell grants or subsidized student loans to help with your education? I'm paying for those, you know. Social Security is insurance, not welfare. Nobody gets a dime unless he/she (or a dead or disabled parent) paid into the system. Now Congress...that's a nice retirement package. Serve one term in Congress and you can retire with a really nice life-long pension. I'm sorry that your grandfather chose not to accept SS benefits, but they are NOT "other people's money". If he paid into SS, it was HIS money, too. I assume that your parents feel the same way and will not be accepting monthly retirement checks from the Feds? How about Medicare? What will they do for insurance coverage, once they are too old to work? One heart attack can easily cost 150 K in hospital costs. Even the best planners/savers can't afford to pay for many of those.

And most senior citizens do not have a morphine habit, by the way. Surely you can't suggest that is the case, simply because you know of one elderly man who has a drug problem. I just read yesterday how many millions are being spent nation-wide to combat meth addiction and labs. If I'm not mistaken, the meth problem is almost 100% a "younger generation" epidemic. But I'm paying, like everyone else, for stringent control of over-the-counter decongestant meds so kids can't kill themselves quite so easily by cooking and using meth. You see, Jodie, when one segment of society has a problem, we ALL have a problem.

As one of the "baby boomers", let me assure you that the last thing we want to do is live off our children and grandchildren. Most of us not only paid into SS but once it became available we also took advantage of things like 401 K and IRA's. Unfortunately the cost of living outdistanced our savings, by a long shot. Property taxes are so high that many of us have had to sell our homes, even after working 30 years to pay for them, because it costs thousands of dollars in taxes and insurance just to live in our own houses. My brother, who did 3 tours in Vietnam, is one of those. Tarrant County kept raising the evaluation on his house - doubling it between 1989 and 2004- until he was forced to sell his home. What a fine job Texas has done of repaying him for his military service.

Rick Perry said he would not waste any more money on education. Do you consider public schools part of the welfare system? I don't. I consider them an investment in our future. If we don't pay teachers a living wage, where will we find qualified people to teach our kids? Do you know why there are so few men teaching in public schools now? Because you can't support a family on what Texas pays its teachers, and men are traditionally the primary wage earners.

Rick Perry left millions in matching federal funds for Medicaid on the table, choosing instead to cut health care for children. For CHILDREN, Jodie....not drug users or do-nothings driving purple Cadillacs. Children cannot help themselves. They cannot get a job and pay for their own eyeglasses. Did you know that in some poor school districts, children have to share eyeglasses because they no longer qualify for Medicaid? Does that make you feel good, knowing that you support the man who opposed buying glasses for kids, but said he is "all for" cutting the business tax - before big business has to actually pay a dime in additional taxes.

Keep studying, Jodie....you still have a lot to learn about politicians.

[Poodles 0]

Well in my opinion Jodie is already thinking like a true politician... unfortunately. Live and learn, she is young and may have to go thru a decade or two punching in and being stabbed in the back to truly SEE the world for what it is. I was young and idealistic once too. Then after 9 years as a High School teacher... you learn. The teenagers are not the only ones that will try to get things over on you.

I went ahead and voted today (Strayhorn), and went to the doctor. My doctor had some questions regarding the race too, since he knows I am a teacher. He wanted to know if Strayhorns ads were telling the truth, and I gave him an ear full. Told him about the so called "raise" and how we go two steps forward and three steps back. How we are losing teachers left and right because we are the first ones they screw. He said he thinks the two to choose from are Perry and Strayhorn, but he has not made up his mind yet. I told him who I voted for and why, and that his 3 year old may appreciate a private education if public education gets any more "help" from Perry. Hell, if my son fails 3rd grade TAKS I will home school him before I let him get held back because of that stupid test. I have seen Seniors move to Louisiana their final semester because of that thing... and they were smart kids, just had that test phobia thing.

I grew up in a shack in Quinlan. Going to school in my brothers hand me down clothes. I had food stamps, and free lunch. I have literally stolen toilet paper out of a public rest room before just to have it at home. I know what being poor is. And if I did not qualify for PELL grants and have a part time job I would not have gone to college, and would not be a teacher today. Who knows what would have happened to ME without that assistance. Does that make me a bad person?

I now pay taxes to pay for the elderly. Social Security is paid to help those already in the system, not for ourselves. You just better hope there are enough working people in the system when you get old, and that the baby boomers either die early and/or don't use up all that is in the bank now. (I like the baby boomers btw, not wishing anyone dead or anything.) We are not replacing ourselves as a nation, so who knows what will happen when we get to 65.

Heck under my TRS plan, Perry just changed the retirement age for teachers to keep us in the profession longer. With his bright logic I will be working until I am 90. (Another way we were screwed by Perry.)

[j_war06 0]

See, I did not mean in any way to totally catagorize senior citizens as morphine addicts and I apologize for that. The area of law I go into deals with politics. I know what you all are saying, and I will tell you that my children will never go to public schools, I grew up in them and I hated them, if they want to try it for a year or whatever I will let them make that decision, but until they can make that decision they will be privately schooled. I do support Perry in every way, I feel he is more qualified than anyone else in this race, he is more prepared to take on the leadership role and has that personality, while the others seem more like sheep following others to graze. Yes people died in Jasper from the hurricane, no it was not reported as starvation, it was reported as "natural causes", it was mostly lack of medical attention.

I am a firm believer that my money is my money, if someone else wants that money, then they should earn it. Not file papers to get government money and sit around watching free cable that they are stealing from the neighbors all day long. I believe people make themselves and they control their success. As long as the world revolves around money (and it always will until it inevitably is explodes from the heat of the sun and thinning Ozone) then thats what people should think of. I pay for my school, no one else. I pay for all my own things and I earned that money and saved it for 10 years before college in investments and such. I think that when taxes are taken from your check they should go towards fixing public things, (schools, highways, parks, etc...) not to individuals. The government should set up something like a 401k to where they take a certain chosen amount from each check and put it away until you are of age to draw it, that way your money is not wasted on others and then there is always the fear that there will be no money left for us, that is why I am for this plan. Ive heard several times through high school and in Pols classes that there will be no more money left for my generation for SS, I would rather have my own, which I will ofcourse. Although it should not be the government's issue to make sure that every person who does not have a PS3 has one, they are not Santa Claus. Im sorry, in Jasper this is what I saw, and I see it where I live now, people misusing the government's money (which is theirs since we release it to them).

I dont mind the sales tax here, its no big deal, in fact I am a firm supporter of the sin tax although I both smoke and drink, if that money can go to something that helps the public then I am happy, but to individuals who cant handle their own money and therefore have to spend someone else's money, you are not getting one red cent from me anymore. I no longer work for a corporation and I officially work for myself on a strictly cash only basis. I dont make a lot of money doing what I do, but it works.

I am a middle class American, and I feel that the lower classes get all the treatment. They are catered to day in and day out, and do they ever better themselves, no, they just breed a new generation of poor and maybe eventually one will get a sports scholarship to go play for a college and maybe wont get kicked off the team for possession of illegal substances. I know that I am young, but my opinion counts too and I definately know what is going on in the US, I study every single day, past and present, and even future. I am not an advanced student, and I do not know everything, but I do know how I feel and I feel like the middle-class is forgotten about too often. Its hard for me to go to school and pay that 3000 dollars per semester plus afford to live plus housing.

As for electricity, screw it, we need it use it in a conservative manner and you should be fine. My parents pay about $70-$100 a month in utilities for a 2200 square foot home, thats not that bad. We need it, or at least I do, so I use it. I live where all my utilities are paid, so I can use it all up as much as a I want. But if I had to pay them I would invest in some candles and only turn the lights on at night. Just pay it, prices will fluctuate up and down forever, I LOVE TEXAS we have a lot of really nice things going for us and we tend to be slightly respected (even the people who say they hate us must respect us in some way because they have something to hate us for, and therefore consider it threatening to be around us in some way, I know weird to explain this theory on here). Anyways, Texas is a great state, we have everything anyone could need and more.....Oh BTW, Public Schools should focus more on the behavior of the children rather than the teachers, if you want better teachers focus on universities, but students cause themselves and others to not be able to learn.