While Working To Thwart A Bill To Move School Board Elections To November, Republicans Have Been Giving Away LOTS Of YOUR Tax Dollars

There was a wonderful monograph written in 1867 by Davy Crocket, who was serving in Congress at that time. It’s called, “Not Yours To Give” and it beautifully details why he argued AGAINST a bill introduced in Congress to appropriate money to a young widow of Naval officer. I URGE YOU TO READ THIS. It is very short, but in just a few pages, Crocket makes the case for why GOVERNMENT has no business giving away our tax dollars – NO MATTER HOW GOOD IT MAKES US FEEL – for items and issues which are NOT a function of government – things that don’t protect our liberty and don’t benefit the MAJORITY of taxpayers.

Below, I’ve pasted in the screenshots of just a FEW of the press releases that have come through my email account this year. Please note the amount of TAX DOLLARS that are being given away just in the few I’ve pasted in here – and this doesn’t even begin to touch the number of tax credits for businesses that our legislature dolls out.

But before we go there, let me start here.

I remember sitting in the Senate gallery in 2022. I was SHOCKED when a bill was run by Senator Jessica Garvin that would have tax dollars pay for tampons for women who couldn’t afford them.

Here’s the press release. It was literally titled, “Committee approves bill to fight period poverty“. Period poverty. Seriously. Worse even than the title, the bill would set up a revolving fund into which tax dollars would be deposited so that women who needed feminine hygiene products could have them paid for with tax dollars. She has run the bill each year since, with this bill asking for ONE MILLION DOLLARS in the revolving account.

Fortunately, it looks as though this bill will not get a hearing this year, but – knowing her history on the subject – we should expect to see it again next year; especially when there is a NATIONAL DRIVE to have tax dollars spent this way.

Why shouldn’t we fund tampons? Why shouldn’t we fund a rodeo, or brain tumor research, or the Oklahoma City National Memorial?

1. Who complains about our horrible roads and the lack of pay for fire and police? Lots of Oklahomans. These are legitimate functions of government, yet, when we give millions of dollars away for a prison rodeo, these are the things that get short shrifted. And if they don’t, THEN THE GOVERNMENT IS TAKING TOO MANY OF OUR DOLLARS IN TAXES IN THE FIRST PLACE!
2. Though brain tumors are horrible, so are all kinds of diseases – my son is a Type 1 (juvenile) diabetic – I’m not begging the legislature to give my tax dollars – AND MY NEIGHBORS – to fund diabetes research. I could give to PRIVATE RESEARCH centers if I wanted to. Private research centers raise money for ALL KINDS of research.
3. Private organizations should be supplying women who need feminine hygiene products, feminine hygiene products – NOT PUBLIC TAX DOLLARS. Maybe churches should go in together to fund a ‘feminine hygiene pantry’ if that’s what’s needed.
4. The MORE the STATE FUNDS, the poorer we ALL become. The MORE the STATE FUNDS, the less private organizations and churches do – why should they when the GOVERNMENT is doing it all for them?
5. BUT, bottom line, the MORE the STATE FUNDS, the bigger IT gets and the LESS LIBERTY – and money – WE CITIZENS HAVE to control our own lives.