The tax rebate issue before congress this week is typical of the type of socialistic behavior emanating from a Democrat dominated Congress toward those who have risen above the “average” income level. In just over a year in under this party’s control, the economy has slid faster than a California mudslide.  It is continually perceived to be an eternal battle between the haves and the have-nots, but the reality is that there is no battle. It’s more a series of mandatory concessions imposed upon those in a higher income bracket in an attempt to appease those in the lower. The desire to eliminate the highs and lows of a free market economy in favor of an entitlement society has long been the battle cry of the majority currently in power.   While it makes sense that the more money you make, the more taxes you pay, what’s interesting is that the higher your income, the higher your rate of taxation. This makes perfect sense, right? Punish those who work effectively and invest in our economy by making them pay even more. The entitlement mentality, or Robin Hood Syndrome, is out of control. One has to wonder how is it congress can make decisions on a tax rebate based on empty demographics. For example, families with an income level of $174,000 and above get no tax rebate. How does this make sense? Without tracking the individual situations, how can one assume that anyone at or above this income level wouldn’t need or use such a rebate. What if that family had been hit with an enormous amount of medical expenses in 2007, such as cancer surgery and/or treatment. They may need such a boost to their income as much or more than someone making $100,000 per year. Or, what if the family has 3 or 4 children in college, so they too can one day contribute to society. Then, of course, there are those with such a low income that they don’t even pay taxes and desperately need this rebate. Sure, they’ll put that money right back into commerce, but again, congress is making the decision on awarding them a tax rebate based on meaningless demographics and assumptions. For those who are working hard to make an honest living and making an effort to help themselves, I’m excited for them. This rebate will mean a lot.  But, then there are those who are intentionally living off public assistance and off the income of others. This is just one more method by which they will receive a benefit they didn’t even attempt to earn. Prime example; I know someone in the military who married a girl right out of basic training. He was to ship out to Korea for a year, and she demanded they get married, or she would not wait for him. When a soldier comes out of basic training, they have been so cut off from family and friends that they are pretty vulnerable to such an ultimatum. Unfortunately, they had not been dating long enough for the soldier to realize he was being scammed. After three years of her making promises to join him in Korea –he signed up for an extra year based on her promise to join him there –and after a year of being back in the states with her throwing a tantrum every time he mentioned divorce, he finally filed. She is now disputing the divorce, demanding maintenance (similar to alimony). She did mention she desperately needs the money because the boyfriend she’s living with now isn’t working, so she essentially wants the soldier to support her for the rest of her life, even though she spent one night of married life with him 3 years ago. Had the soldier bothered to check into her family history prior to tying the knot, he would have found that this is a family who lives off public assistance and suing people and businesses for personal injury, worker’s compensation, sexual harassment, etc. Of course, they do not pay taxes, but clearly they need this tax rebate. After all, who knows when their next settlement might be, so they will need more money they didn’t earn to hold them over.  I could go on for pages and pages with examples, but the reality is, the government could easily find enough money to give back to everyone, if they would stop wasting it. To find out more about how your tax dollars are being abused and wasted, check out Citizens Against Government Waste at http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=getinv_Survey_2008MembersSurvey. This site is not for the faint of heart, so enter with caution.

Don’t forget to visit www.sensiblelife.com for tips and suggestions on maximizing your income, while still doing the things you want to do in life.

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This year has been eventful from one end of the spectrum to the other.  First- a big hug for my youngest step-daughter who scored well on her MCAT. I know she’s worked hard on her education, and I look forward to day we can celebrate her putting that M.D. at the end of her name (by the way, does this come with free medical treatment for family???).  

My oldest step-daughter and her husband recently blessed us with a beautiful granddaughter, Olivia. Oddly enough, being a grandmother hasn’t made me feel old. What actually made me begin to feel old was that on New Year’s Eve I phoned my daughter at midnight to wish her and her husband a happy new year, and they were at home –they’d decided they really didn’t want to go out, but rather work on the room they are remodeling in their house. My daughter is now old enough not to care whether or not she’s with her friends at a party on New Year’s Eve. THAT made me feel old. I also want to thank everyone for your support, thoughts and prayers while my son, David, is serving in

Iraq. Many of you have asked how I deal with it, as well as how he feels about being in a war ridden country. While the answers to your questions have many parts, the key parts are that he has been ready to go to

Iraq for sometime now. After spending two years in

Korea and completing extensive training, preparing him for the day he would eventually end up there, he was ready to go. The worst part is the distance between us, but that gap is bridged by our almost daily conversations through instant messaging. We probably talk more now than we did when he was here in the States. We even celebrated the transition from 2007 to 2008 chatting online.

Iraq is eight hours ahead of where we live, so I was the first one to wish him well for the new year. As far as how I deal with him being in

Iraq –first, I know my prayers are heard. Even though I don’t know the outcome of what his life will be, I know he has the best protection possible through prayer. This brings me to the second key to handling David’s service there. There are no guarantees in life, except for the fact that each one of us has a limited time on this earth. If my son were still here in the

U.S., there would be no assurance –no promise –that something would not happen to him here. Sure, the propensity is higher in a war zone but think about that for a minute. Each time you’re traveling the roadways and you meet an oncoming car, you’re at risk of colliding, and many head-on collisions result in death. Most of us put our lives at this kind of risk on a daily basis, so I believe that it’s not the best thing to assess how much at risk a life is, but rather, if it’s your time to go, are you at peace with your readiness to go.

 As far as anything new with me and my husband, we’ve had our share of medical issues in 2007 –including medical issues with my dog. Fortunately, all tests have turned out a good report. For those of you who don’t already know, our dogs got into a spat, and my husband’s dog accidentally chomped down on my dog’s tail, severing a vein. It’s amazing how much blood can spew out of a wagging tail –it looked like a crime scene. This injury necessitated many days of me working from home to monitor her during her critical time, then taking her to daycare and vet appointments to do bandage changes. Aside from that, the weirdest medical issue was that my husband was bitten by a spider and was deathly ill for almost a week. It took about another 3 weeks for the symptoms to disappear, and now he has scars at both bite marks. As best as we can determine, the culprit was an Australian Redback, which is related to the Black Widow and equally as venomous.  Many of you have asked about any resolutions I’ve made for 2008, I no longer do those. Everyone knows resolutions are made with the intent of them being broken at some point. To me, that just sets one up for failure, so rather than resolutions, I set goals. I spent 2007 clearing clutter from my life, and not just the clutter that gathers in closets and garages. I’ve been focusing on the things that are important to me, and stepping down from duties to organizations that I’m just not that passionate about. I’m now focusing on keeping my priorities in order –God, family, friends and work. Once those are in the proper order, everything else in life falls into alignment.  

One of the things I enjoy most is listening to music –primarily Christian rock and classical - so I wanted to share one of my favorite songs with you. This one definitely helps me stay focused. It helps me remember that, even on my worst days, I can generally find at least 10 other people going through something even worse than I am.  Casting Crowns, Praise You In This Storm http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uHdcyue0bSw 

Also among my favorites is Ludvig Girdland. I first learned about this brilliant musician and composer in 2005. His music is absolutely beautiful, and his story is a tragic one. Of those who are reading this, if you have a prayer list, please add this gentleman and his wife, Tamara, to it as they can certainly use them. Below is a link to their story, and the link below that is where you can listen to and order his music. All proceeds from Friends…Forever go to Ludvig’s medical fund.  http://www.sensiblelife.com/features/people/split-second-decision.html 

http://www.sensiblelife.com/relax/book-and-movie-reviews/the-music-of-ludvig-girdland.html I also enjoy reading, and my favorite book came out in 2006, 90 Minutes in Heaven by Don Piper and Cecil Murphey.

Cec Murphey is a terrific writer and speaker. Anyone interested in reading his work, or learning more about him can visit www.cecmurphey.com.

 So many people have touched my life in 2007, and I am grateful for all of them –especially those who help keep me centered. With that in mind, I’ll close with wishing everyone a happy, prosperous and very blessed New Year in 2008!

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