From Hezekiah Wyman
I would like to start by thanking you for attending this meeting, though it’s not like you had much of a choice. After all, attendance was mandatory. I’m also glad many of you accepted my invitation to your family members to be here as well. I have a few remarks to make to all of you, and then we’ll retire to the ballroom for a great lunch and some employee awards.
I felt that this meeting was important enough to close all 12 of our tire and automotive shops today so that you could be here. To reassure you, everybody is being paid for the day — except me. Since our stores are closed we’re making no money. That economic loss is mine to sustain. Carrington Automotive has 157 full time employees and around 30 additional part-timers. All of you are here.. I thank you for that.
When you walked into this auditorium you were handed a rather thick 78-page document. Many of you have already taken a peek. You were probably surprised to see that it’s my personal tax return for 2008. Those of you who are adept at reading these tax returns will see that last year my taxable income was $534,000.00. Now I’m sure this seems rather high to many of you. So … let’s talk about this tax return.
Carrington Automotive Enterprises is what we call a Sub-S – a Subchapter S corporation. The name comes from a particular part of our tax code. Sub-S status means that the income from all 12 of our stores is reported on my personal tax return. Businesses that report their income on the owner’s personal tax return are referred to as “small businesses.” So, you see now that this $534,000 is really the total taxable income – the total combined profit from all 12 of our stores. That works out to an average of a bit over $44,000 per store.
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On Federal Health Care Reform Constitutionality:
Congress, Use the Article V Safety Valve
By Paul Galvin
Don't Take Things That Aren't Yours.
~ A lesson from All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten
By following this wise counsel, Congress could settle the legitimate question whether it has the constitutional authority respecting health care reform. It can do this by using one of its undisputed powers, namely, proposing constitutional amendments under Article V.
In writing their Constitution the Framers set out a list of the “few and defined” powers (Madison, Fed. No. 45) that the people and the states were willing to cede to the then newly created government. That list but that list only, a point of instruction underscored by the 10th Amendment. Two powers on that list, the Interstate Commerce Clause (ICC) and the General Welfare Clause (GWC), read today as they did in 1787, never having been amended. Similarly, the requirement of the Article VI constitutional oath of office to support “this Constitution” – meaning of course the written one – has remained in force and unchanged for the same period. With that background, compare these congressional behaviors.
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by Heather D
Over the weekend we witnessed the continued assault on our Constitution, and liberty in general, when the Democrat majority in the House rallied their troops, twisted (or nearly broke) some arms and passed "The Affordable Health Care for America Act". If you are anything like me, you sat glued to your television set, intently watching C-Span, knowing in the pit of your stomach that Speaker Pelosi would never have brought the bill to the floor if she did not have the votes to pass it.
Some in this country want to believe that the assault on our rights will be stopped simply by replacing the Democratic majority with Republicans. These well-meaning Americans do not understand that establishment Republicans of today are merely Democrat-lite. They preach limited government out of one side of their mouth, yet vote for bigger government and less freedom, seeking more power for themselves and satisfying their most generous donors, dismantling the Constitution in the same manner as the Democrats that they claim to stand in opposition to.
One shining example of this is Senator Lindsey Graham, who has launched a very public war against Ron Paul, Ron Paul Republicans, and in reality, any Republican who supports the Republican platform, rather than paying lip service to it. Senator Graham recently teamed up with Senator John Kerry in an Op-Ed proclaiming the need for cap and trade policies, despite the fact that the bill would serve no real purpose other than to transfer wealth to a few and further destroy an economy that is already imploding. After a public outcry over this, it remains unclear where Senator Graham stands on this dastardly bill, but you can be certain that the danger of this legislation becoming law is still very real.
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They Can’t Push Us Around Forever
by State Rep. Susan Lynn (TN-57th)
The following is a letter from Tennessee to the other 49 State Legislatures
We send greetings from the Tennessee General Assembly. On June 23, 2009, House Joint Resolution 108, the State Sovereignty Resolution, was signed by Governor Phil Bredesen. The Resolution created a committee which has as its charge to:
- Communicate the resolution to the legislatures of the several states,
- Assure them that this State continues in the same esteem of their friendship,
- Call for a joint working group between the states to enumerate the abuses of authority by the federal government, and
- Seek repeal of the assumption of powers and the imposed mandates.
It is for those purposes that this letter addresses your honorable body.
In 1776, our founding fathers declared our freedom in the magnificent Declaration of Independence; our guide to governance. They established a nation of free and independent states. Declaring that the purpose of our political system is to secure for its citizens’ their natural rights. The Constitution authorizes the national government to carry out seventeen enumerated powers in Article 1, Section 8 and the powers of several of the ensuing amendments.
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