Yard Sign Vandalism

I noticed some problems with the yard signs this past week. On Sunday it got Bad.

In California, there is a proposition, Prop 8, which, if passed would be a constitutional amendment stating that marriage is between one man and one woman. A proposition to this effect was passed here a few years ago, but it was reversed recently by the state Supreme Court, on the grounds that it is not constitutional. A constitutional amendment is by definition "constitutional" so the court will not be able to reverse it if it passes. My town is pretty conservative, so there were several Yes on Prop 8 signs popping up. I had not seen any for No on Prop 8 until around Thursday. I saw one on the main corner near my house where all the other candidates put their signs on the city landscaping area. About an hour later I drove by the same corner and the the No on Prop 8 sign was missing. Now all the Prop 8 signs are missing from the main streets. There are no signs at all on the main streets of my city that refer to Prop 8, with one exception shown below.

On Friday I saw that a neighbor of mine put up a No on Prop 8 sign. Then on Sunday I saw that the sign was torn and re-taped together with a message taped to the sign. As if somebody had torn it up. Disturbing.


So Sunday afternoon I was driving back home and saw someone who appeared to be installing a large Yes on Prop 8 sign by the main boulevard intersection in town. I looked over because the sign was shaking and I thought, hey, that guy must be putting the sign post into the ground. Then I saw him reach around and tear off the front part of the sign, which was a yellow vinyl banner, and he took off running with the yellow banner bunched under his arm toward a black Audi getaway car. I thought, wait a minute! He's not putting up a sign, he's STEALING the sign! Out of the corner of my eye, I saw another man tearing up a small No on Prop 8 sign from the same group of signs. I got angry and pulled into the deserted parking lot that the car was speeding through to see if I could get a look at the license plate. There was a slow-moving car in front of me that prevented me from getting too close. I guess it wasn't meant to be. Besides, there were no good plates. The car had dealer plates, and I couldn't read them. I called the police later to report what I saw, and they said, was the car black? I said yes. They said they were already investigating it. On Monday I drove by and snapped this cell phone picture out of the car window. What you can't see in this picture is that the ply wood has a rim of yellow vinyl on it, with grommets still attached.


So let me tell you. California may not be a "battleground" state in the presidential race, but the Gay Marriage issue is huge and very emotional on both sides. I'm saddened by this and a little bit frightened. I witnessed 2 sign vandalisms occurring at the same time by opposing sides. It would not take much for these confrontations to turn violent. I sure hope nobody gets hurt.


All is calm in my yard. Just to be safe, though, we put a guard baby out front.

Memories of Socialism

I remember that the family I stayed with in Sweden was griping A LOT about their tax system. They told me that the government encouraged a certain style of living. If they had porcelain tiles in their bath/shower, instead of the rubberized wallpaper they had, they would be taxed. If they had a wrought iron decoration on the outside of their house, they would be taxed. They were particularly sad about Bjorn Borg. He had been unable to come home to Sweden because he was overly successful. This had happened prior to my visit. These lessons helped to congeal in me a fear and loathing of anything that smacks of socialism. I found a blog post that addresses this:

Globalization has been an ally of taxpayers. Because it is increasingly easy for jobs and capital to cross borders, politicians are being forced to eliminate or reduce taxes that penalize productive behavior.

The latest example comes from Sweden, which is now eliminating its tax on wealth:

Maybe the next Bjorn Borg won’t feel compelled to move to Monaco now that Sweden plans to scrap a decades-old “wealth” tax that imposes levies on assets — not just on income. …The move, expected to be approved by parliament later this year, underscores the country’s efforts to keep successful Swedes and their capital at home by changing its fabled but costly welfare state.

“It’s not sustainable to keep taxes that radically diverge from other countries,” Finance Minister Anders Borg, who is not related to the tennis great, told The Associated Press on Thursday. “Not if you want the money to stay in the country.”

Sweden is not alone. The article notes that other nations have been forced to eliminate this punitive levy on capital:

Several European countries have dropped taxes on wealth in the last decade, including Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland.

Switzerland and Monaco seem to be the favored destinations of Sweden’s tax exiles. At least the new government recognizes the damage caused by punitive tax rates. The wealth tax is being abolished in an effort to lure talented entrepreneur and capital back to Sweden:

[T]he wealthiest Swedes have fled the country, including IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad, No. 4 on Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s richest people. He lives in Switzerland. Five-time Wimbledon winner Bjorn Borg moved to tax-haven Monaco in the late 1970s. The principality is also home to many Swedish sports stars such as Alpine skier Anja Paerson, high-jumper Kajsa Bergqvist and triple jumper Christian Olsson.

The government says more than 500 billion kronor, the equivalent of almost C$83 billion of Swedish capital, is outside of the country’s borders. “This is money that, if it was brought home, could be invested to create jobs and welfare in Sweden,” the country’s coalition leaders said in a joint statement this week.

Stefan Persson, the main owner of fashion retailer H&M, threatened to leave the country in the 1990s because of the wealth tax. The Social Democratic government at the time changed the law, giving him an exemption.

…Borg, the finance minister…added it was necessary for Sweden to remain competitive in an increasingly globalized economy. “It’s a step on the way back toward making Sweden an entrepreneurial society,” he said.

posted by Daniel J. Mitchell on 03.31.07 @ 1:42 pm

http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2007/03/31/sweden-repeals-wealth-tax/

The Back Story

I realized that my overseas readers might not fully understand the "Joe the Plumber" issue that came up this past week. Joe the Plumber is a man who met Senator Barack Obama on the campaign trail and asked him if he really intends to raise taxes on those making over $250,000 per year. This would be a problem for Joe, because he intends, through his own hard work, to purchase the plumbing business he has worked for. Here is the clip of the original meeting. Original campaign trail question by Joe the Plumber to Barack Obama

The issue became a center point to the subsequent presidential debate. Here is a portion of the debate. Presidential Debate re: Joe the Plumber

Sadly, the Loony Left launched a smear campaign against this citizen. They dug up his divorce papers, tax records and birth certificate. Anything they could find to try to discredit him. What they don't understand is that Joe is not running for office. It really doesn't matter what the facts are surrounding his life. What matters is that Barack Obama plans to raise taxes during a recession. He plans to raise taxes on small business. Small business provides 90% of American jobs. So if you think that this tax plan is a way to "stick it" to the "rich people", understand that regular people will lose jobs because of it. Understand that we will be telling our children that they should work hard and try for a better life, but G-d help them if they make more than $250,000 per year. Then they will be punished.