The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

San Antonio Democratic Mayor Ivy Taylor recently made a statement which I felt the need to quickly rebut. When asked of the reason for poverty in her area, she said: "To me, it's broken people. People not being in a relationship with their Creator, and therefore, not being in good relationship with their families and their communities, and not being productive members of society. I think that's the ultimate answer..." No, I think the ultimate answer is if Mayor Ivy Taylor feels that helping those in poverty is out of her control, she shouldn't hold political office. Whether she cares to believe this or not, everyone in this country is afforded the right to believe (or not believe) in whatever entity they so choose. Just because a person is a Muslim, it doesn't assert that he or she is or isn't close with their family. Just because a person is a Christian, it doesn't assert that he or she is or isn't close with their community. Just because a pe...

A conservative acquaintance of mine posted a meme for the ages on Facebook yesterday, and even after trying to sleep it out of memory overnight, I still can't get it out of my mind. Yes, it's that ridiculous. The meme stated, and I quote: "Rich people stay rich by living like they're broke.. broke people stay broke by living like they're rich!" Read that again, and again, and just one final time to try and let it fully sink in. I was speechless upon reading this meme at first. Study after study shows that if a child is born into a poverty-stricken family in this country, the odds are he or she will be poor as an adult, and on the opposite end of the spectrum, if a child is born into a wealthy family, the odds are he or she will make decent money as an adult. Those with money are able to afford better education for their kids, better healthcare and more quality food, more opportunities in all areas, etc. If a family is really rich, this affords them eve...

I'm not exactly sure why I torture myself with Ben Stein columns. Not only do his initials typically ring true (BS), but when reading the nonsense he spews, I hear his painstakingly boring monotone voice while reading these articles. Perhaps I'm part-masochist in a way. In any case, I now feel the need to share this excruciating experience with readers. You're welcome... The American Spectator  article Stein wrote that I'll be writing about is entitled, "Poverty and Income Inequality." He started his "piece" in a typical Stein-ian fashion, by jumping randomly from one topic to the next, and writing this: "I spent almost all day lying in bed listening to old Big Band music. I have not been well, and this is perfect therapy. I just let my mind run free to go down freeways and alleyways and this is where I came out... At the intersection of Income Inequality and Poverty. Here is what my mind dredged up." Yeah... It's just like ...

Republican Georgia Representative Jack Kingston had some interesting things to say at the Jackson County Republican Party this past weekend, as he's trying to become the party's nominee in Georgia's 2014 Senate race. There he said the following about installing a federal school lunch program for children in families that are at or below 130% of the poverty line: "But one of the things I've talked to the secretary of agriculture about: Why don't you have the kids pay a dime, pay a nickel to instill in them that there is, in fact, no such thing as a free lunch? Or maybe sweep the floor of the cafeteria -- and yes, I understand that that would be an administrative problem, and I understand that it would probably lose you money. But think what we would gain as a society in getting people -- getting the myth out of their head that there is such a thing as a free lunch." That's right. A man who is partially responsible for the government shutdown, whom w...

Following the George Zimmerman ruling and President Obama's emotional speech regarding race in America, it seems that many far-right wing media outlets and talking heads tried to make it a point that racism doesn't exist in this country and George Zimmerman had every right to shoot and kill Trayvon Martin. One such person was neoconservative columnist of the right-wing site National Review Victor Davis Hanson, who wrote an article entitled, "Facing Facts about Race - Young black males are at greater risk from their peers than from the police or white civilians." Yes, it only gets better from there. Here's one bit from Hanson's article: "Is it ethical for the president to weigh in on a civil-rights case apparently being examined by his own Justice Department? The president knows that if it is true that African-American males are viewed suspiciously, it is probably because statistically they commit a disproportionate amount of violent crime. If that ...