Well, it's finally happened. I have found a topic that a conservative blogger and I can agree on! It is so shocking that I'm certain that the Devil is ice skating in hell right now. Yesterday, David Jennings at Big Jolly Politics proclaimed that the Tea Party, particularly the Texas Tea Party, is full of it. Now this is something every progressive has known for the past two years, but the fact that conservatives are finally taking notice that the Tea Party offers no real solutions (and never did) just makes me smile.
The author, David Jennings, is obviously writing from a conservative perspective. He is critical of the fact that the points laid out in the Tea Party's press release is all rhetoric with no details. He points out that if the Texas Tea Party Advisory Committee was serious about cost savings it would have figured out how much their suggestions would have saved the state. As Mr. Jennings points out, you can't really figure out the cost of banning citizens from other nations and states from using Texas parks and facilities, the over-all cost to society if we do not fund state parks, or the difficulty in not accepting federal funds with "strings attached". So many of the suggested ideas from the Tea Party are unrealistic, impractical or just have no clue what they are talking about, which are points that I and Mr. Jennings happen to agree upon. For example, the Tea Party suggest going after state benefits including longevity pay. The longevity pay for state employees doesn't even kick in until after you've been employed for two years and it starts at 20.00 a month. Yes, it eventually gets bigger the longer you work there but it's meant to help with inflation. Pay raises are actually few and far between, especially when the state budget is in crisis, so the piddly amount of longevity pay is to help with inflation and to keep workers actually there; instead of going to the private sector for more money. I won't even get into the pension, it's way too long and complicated for this post, but just know employees pay for their pension, it's not a glorious freebie, and newer employees like myself are required to pay for the pension and a 401k without a match, as a fail safe in case the pension disappears before reaching retirement age.
The author, Mr. Jennings, seems fairly credible. While I disagree with his opinions in his other posts, he has issued corrections and apologies when he has made mistakes, or given false information. Fairly impressive for a blogger since he has no real liability to do so, heck the real press neglects to correct mistakes it makes, and they're professionals. So kudos to Mr. Jennings for being a responsible blogger.
Slightly off topic but still relevant to Texas politics. Has anyone else noticed that the wackiest stuff seems to keep coming from Tyler? First it was Leo Berman, now the press release from The Texas Tea Party Advisory Committee. Could there be something in the water? Radioactive waste? Secret Government experiment gone wrong? Whatever it is, every time I see Tyler, TX in the press, I prepare myself for the potential loss of active brain cells.
