DON'T TREAD ON ME

I just wanted to give a shout out to my fellow Angry Americans participating in a nationwide Tea Party today - we support you ONE HUNDRED PERCENT.

I recently received a communication from one of my credit card holders , inquiring as to whether I'd like to pay an escalated APR of 11% because of 'changes in our business practices'. I can refuse and remain at 5% - or at least that's what the letter says - but if I do that , I will not be able to actually use the card. If I use it , the APR will immediately re-set at the 11% rate. So correct me if I'm wrong here - but didn't my taxpayer dollar just bail your lame a$$ out? And correct me again if necessary , but - aren't you now asking me to pay back the debt you showed up with BELLS on to ask for? What do YOU think my answer's going to be , stupid?

I do not appreciate condescending speeches about how I need to 'tighten my belt' and 'learn to live within my means' while entire corporations that have never heard that particular gem of wisdom are bailed out on my dime. I already do that , because if I didn't do that I'd lose my power , or lose my car , or lose my home. We manage to pay all our bills , buy the clothes for the kids that keep growing , keep the cats fed and pay for the food that has become darn near a luxury item , and by that point my belt is plenty tight enough , thank you. I've actually got some familiarity with what it's like to live within a budget - ya know why? Because I actually do it , day in and day out. We don't have a large fancy house that we can't afford - we have a house that's a little small for us , that we own. Round of applause , please. Nevertheless , we will be helping all those who did choose to buy more house than they could afford pay for the privilege of living someplace we *can't*. Sweeeeeet.

I'm sick and tired of paying the price for failure's that weren't mine - failure of our government in enacting asinine feel-good legislation 10 years ago that we're paying for now , failure to read the fine print on your own mortgage , bail-outs we'll be paying for the rest of our lives and our children's too , failure of corporations to run their own companies in a sensible manner , and the failure of our elected officials to love their own country enough to safegaurd the principles we were founded on. I'm angry , and I've been angry for a very long time.

And we are paying the price - we're paying with higher food costs , higher interest rates , loss of pay from the company that can't afford to pay more than X amount of hours a week , or can't afford to offer health insurance anymore. Or maybe they just can't afford to pay you , period. Done. We are all paying the price , but most of us didn't have much left to give , and not all of us get to vote on giving ourselves a hefty little raise to tide us over for - what , again? A job well done , was it?

Right.