A local newspaper, The Financial News and Daily Record, ran a news piece yesterday entitled “Newsmakers for 2011.”  The article named the Top Ten Individuals who they believe will make a difference and will be making news in the New Year.  You can read the article here:  http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/showstory.php?Story_id=532588.  The last person on the list was me and I read in disbelief that a local paper would give the First Coast Tea Party the pat on the back it deserves.  Although they interviewed me, the people of the First Coast Tea Party should be the Newsmakers in 2011.  There is no one person leading this movement which is the beauty of it.  The media doesn’t quite get it and still cannot wrap their minds around this concept.  Here’s how it worked.

A nation of hard-working, blue collar and white collar, individuals woke up one day and said “Wait a minute.  What’s going on here?”  We realized that our good-hearted nature had set us up for a takeover by those who used and abused our kindness.  You see, ladies and gentlemen, you were working hard, paying your bills, creating a quality of life for you and your family and you were not relying on the government to help you.  In fact, you wanted the government to leave you alone.

All the while, the government was passing laws and regulations that impacted you a little bit here and a little bit there.  Those impacts happened at the Federal, State and Local level.  A little tax here, a little fee here, a little liberty lost here, etc.  Those “little” things began to mount up and then you realized you had been had.  Slowly, yet quickly, the government was in every area of your life and they were making a mess of it.  The bailouts at the Federal level were stunning and left our country in shambles and the American worker without jobs.  Locally taxes and fees were hitting our pocket year after year and it became a ritual and a high five experience to pass these taxes as we protested that “we can’t afford them” and “cut entitlements, spending and unnecessary expenditures.”  They shrugged their shoulders and went about business as usual while we stood in disbelief that they could be so cruel to the people.

Keep your eyes wide open as the New Year begins and local elections take center stage.  Right behind those elections will be the 2012 Presidential election too.  Your job will be to research each candidate and get all the scoop on them; listen intently to what they and their financial backers are saying; ask deep questions and keep digging when they answer; share your findings with your friends; attend tea party events about the candidates; support the ones you feel deserve your support; make calls for them; campaign for them; support them financially; and do all you can to turn our city around as well as our country. 

We have a big job ahead of us.  Locally Jacksonville’s unemployment rate hit 11.6% this month.  This is unacceptable and the mayoral candidates and city council members better have a plan that makes sense to turn this around.  And…it better not be a bailout by the state or the feds.  We Tea Party Members don’t like that whole bailout thing.

And…drum roll please… “The elephant-in-the-room issue that MUST be addressed is the Unfunded Liability – the Pension Plan.”  Some in our city don’t want to talk about this and if they don’t – they will be foolish.  It is a big issue and one that even the national media is discussing.  Jacksonville was ranked #6 in a list of 77 and normally that would be a good thing.  Not this time.  Being #6 means we made the Top Ten List of cities that will run out of funding for our city pension plan.  You can find the article at:  http://www.businessinsider.com/first-city-pensions-insolvent-2010-12# and read it for yourself.  You’ll notice that we outrank Detroit and New York!  (Thanks to Dawn Holder for sending us this information.  Dawn is a tea party member and the Legislative Chair for Concerned Taxpayers of Duval County.)

As we say in the South, “We are in a pickle.”  It’s going to take a smart, tough, roll up your shirt, willing to do the hard stuff, negotiate with everyone, respect the people, visionary, turnaround kind of mayor and city council to get us out of this pickle.   It will take alert, informed, smart, hard-working people showing up at the polls to elect the best men and women for the jobs too.

Are you ready for the challenge?  Do you think Jacksonville deserves these types of rankings or this level of unemployment?  Are you mad at the ones who put us in this mess?  Are you up for the hard work it will take to elect principled leaders to lead our city?

I think you can answer “Yes” to all these questions because I am one of you and that’s how I feel.  It’s been a tough two years and it appears we can’t let our guard down any time soon.  So…pull up your boot straps, eat your vegetables, exercise your body, read up and educate your mind and massage your heart – we have work to do!

UPDATE ON OUR PAY IT FORWARD 2011 CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

Yesterday we told you we need to Change the Change and in order to do so, we need funding to move the First Coast Tea Party into 2011.  We heard from many of you and thank you for your donations.  We need $100,000 in increments of $10 to meet our budget.  Will you help us get there?  Will you also ask 3 friends, colleagues, peers or family members to Give a Ten to Pay it Forward?    

Yesterday we saw the clip where the teacher in Pay it Forward set the goal with the class to make a difference in the world.  Today our clip focuses on the tactic “Touch 3” concept.  Will you touch three and ask them to join the tea party movement and Give a Ten to Pay it Forward?

You can Donate online at http://www.fctpcommunity.org/page/donate-1 or drop a check in the mail to:  First Coast Tea Party, 11437 Central Parkway, Suite 107, Jacksonville, Florida 32207. 

In the words of our Governor-Elect, Rick Scott  who will be here tomorrow, Wednesday, December 29^th at the Landing from 4:00-5:00 – “Let’s get to work!”