Republican Thoughts

Hello
I'm the guy who sits next to you
And reads the newspaper over your shoulder
Wait
Don't turn the page
I'm not finished
Life is so uncertain

I am getting beat up by life this summer.  All my good deeds are being thwarted and if I was a lesser man I would be willing to give up.  But as the lyrics below from one of my favorite Lyle Lovett songs says, What would you be if you didn’t even try; You have to try.

So yes, if is not too late, please make it a cheeseburger.

My mother passed away last October.  I will always miss her and a certain loneliness will remain with me the rest of my days.  My mother was a single mother and to honor her I decided to give a gift to a single mother who works where I work.  I gave this woman a year off from housing worries.  From Jan to Dec of this year I told her she and her two daughters could live in my mother’s house rent and utility free.  My gift was a chance for this woman to finally get ahead, save up some money and hopefully lessen the evil grip that the MAN puts on all of us.  I spoke to her of what a giant difference this year could make.  I spoke of the freedom that having say $2,000 or so in the bank versus being $2,000 or so behind could make.

In June she came to me looking for a payroll advance “to get caught up”.  In early July her wages were garnished?  In late July she told me she was pregnant with child #3.  Her answer to my question of what would happen in January (when the free ride was up) was that she was sure that the current father would have his act together by then and she would move in with him!

So much for good deed #1.

In July we offered room and board to the 18 year old son of a family member.  Our offer also included our services to help mentor him through getting his high school diploma. He sounded VERY appreciative, and from our discussion (based on how many credits he had and how many more he needed) that getting his diploma would be no problem.  We soon learned that his “take” on how many credits he had was much exaggerated. We also soon learned that he had no desire to live with us assholes; our offer came with some restrictions on lifestyle and some requirements of effort.

But two weeks passed and we soon learned from the family grapevine that we were in fact included in the most current story of what he was doing in life and that he WAS soon to be moving in and working towards his GED. This was news to us.

We met again and discussed a revised plan based on actual high school credits and came up with a new plan to pursue the GED.  Peggy spent a day with him moving his belongings to our basement apartment, registering him in the GED program and obtaining a used laptop pc for him to use in the GED pursuit.  She took him to his class that evening and picked him up from class.

The next morning he left for coffee with his girlfriend and went AWOL.  Peggy spent her morning chasing him down, found him exchanged some stern words and got him back in the fold, back to studying that afternoon.  After Peggy went grocery shopping. She returned and found him gone again.  Off to study with his Aunt, who would then take him to dinner with his father and drop him off at school.  A call to the Aunt informed Peggy that there were no study plans, no dinner plans and the nephew never returned.  I went to the school that night, found the classroom and found it not including our candidate.

So much for good deed #2

Now for my republican thoughts.  Yeah I hear dem there Republicans ranting about the takers in our society.  I hear their reasons for cutting government spending, cutting all handouts.  I know where these opinions come from.  I have just run into two of them.

I have no answers for it.  I have no answers to why people will not WORK towards improving their lives.  And it bothers the ever lovin’ shit out of me that they still expect to get the same rewards that those that DO work hard and DO the things expected of them.  I liken it to a child who won’t eat dinner but still expects to get desert. But UNLIKE Republicans, I am hear to tell you that while I can agree that there will be no desert if you do not clean your plate, I will be god damned if I won’t  set the table and put food on their plate tomorrow

Look
I understand too little too late
I realize there are things you say and do
You can never take back
But what would you be if you didn't even try
You have to try
So after a lot of thought
I'd like to reconsider
Please
If it's not too late
Make it a cheeseburger

Set Him Free