Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Debate Followup for KS House Dist. 53

* My opponents in this election both contacted me to express disagreement with my review of our debate. Their rebuttles are in the comments section for this post, because I believe it's only fair for the voters if they get the views of all 3 candidates.
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Reviews from those who listened to yesterday's debate yesterday and gave me feedback have been very good. Thank you to Jim Cates for hosting and Steve Forman for producing the show!

2 hours after the debate I got a call from tv 13 WIBW. On October 31st I'll be appearing on their News at Noon program. Also, on October 20th, I'll be speaking to Mr. Buchanan's class at Shawnee Heights High School, along with Ann Mah and possibly Doug Desch.

I stumbled a few times early on (answering complex questions isn't easy to do sometimes in 60 seconds...) but then recovered. Those who gave me feedback said that my opponents seemed to be hostile and confrontational with each other, while I seemed respectful and more thoughtful in what the callers were asking.

I respect both of my opponents (Ann Mah-D and Doug Desch-R). They seem to be good people who just sit on the wrong side of some issues. What bothered me about their answers to some of the questions was that they both seem to favor more laws and more government in areas I believe already have WAY too much of them.

For more information about all 3 candidates, click this link:http://www.thomaslessman.com/#ThomasLessmanPlatform

Again, thank you to Jim Cates and Steve Forman, as well as both of my opponents, Doug Desch and Ann Mah.

Respectfully,

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Thomas A. Lessman,
Candidate for Kansas House Dist 53
Website: www.ThomasLessman.com
Blog: www.talessman.blogspot.com
Professional Email: Chairman@MillionDadsMarch.org
Personal Email: talessman@yis.us
Phone: 785-230-4546 or 234-3486
Mail Address:
4124 NE Brier Rd.
Topeka, KS 66616
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Libertarian Party of Kansas
www.LPKS.org

Monday, October 02, 2006

Blind hate leads to blind stupidity

Recently, a man named Jeff Cohen wrote an opinion about urging people to buy Citgo gas to punish 7-11 for not supporting Venezuela's socialist tyrant, Hugo Chavez. You may remember that a few weeks ago, Chavez called President Bush II "the Devil" at a UN assembly.

Several people on MySpace, including my own sister, were ecstatic and sent it around to everyone they knew. After all, they reasoned, ANYONE is better than Bush II.

Oh how blind hate can so easily lead to blind stupidity...

I'm a Libertarian, and as such I'm definitely NO fan of Bush II. Bush will go down in history as one of America's worst presidents (as will Clinton).

That said, Bush will NEVER be as hypocritical or anti-freedom as Chavez is. Cohen seems ignorant to the FACT that if he wrote a column criticizing Chavez, he'd better not show his face in Venezuela or he'd get arrested.

Yes, you read that right. Chavez, the man Cohen claims is a champion of the poor and downtrodden, does NOT allow freedom of speech in his country. Furthermore, Chavez' administration is far more corrupt and abusive than Bush's administration is in the US - and that's pretty bad!

Cohen claims that Citgo's oil profits go to the poor of Venezuela, but that's a CROCK and Cohen should know better. Citgo's profits actually go to the managers of Citgo and to Chavez' cronies. Chavez isn't running a democracy - he's creating a socialist nation that borders on Communism.

But apparently Jeff Cohen thinks ANY hypocritical dictator would be better than Bush.

That's the problem with "politically correct liberal speak". It sounds nice until you actually SEE it in action.

Bush II is bad. Chavez is worse. Jeff Cohen should either open his eyes, or move to Venezuela to see just how bad his "champion" really is.

Sincerely,

Thomas Lessman
Candidate for KS House Dist. 53
Website: www.ThomasLessman.com

Here is the opinion sent out by Jeff Cohen:
Of the top oil producing countries in the world, only one is a democracy with a president who was elected on a platform of using his nation's oil revenue to benefit the poor. The country is Venezuela. The President is Hugo Chavez. Call him "the Anti-Bush."

Citgo is a U.S. refining and marketing firm that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company. Money you pay to Citgo goes primarily to Venezuela -- not Saudi Arabia or the Middle East. There are 14,000 Citgo gas stations in the US. (Click here http://www.citgo.com/CITGOLocator/StoreLocator.jsp to find one near you.) By buying your gasoline at Citgo, you are contributing to the billions of dollars that Venezuela's democratic government is using to provide health care, literacy and education, and subsidized food for the majority of Venezuelans.

Instead of using government to help the rich and the corporate, as Bush does, Chavez is using the resources and oil revenue of his government to help the poor in Venezuela. A country with so much oil wealth shouldn't have 60 percent of its people living in poverty, earning less than $2 per day. With a mass movement behind him, Chavez is confronting poverty in Venezuela. That's why large majorities have consistently backed him in democratic elections. And why the Bush administration supported an attempted military coup in 2002 that sought to overthrow Chavez.

So this is the opposite of a boycott. Call it a BUYcott. Spread the word.

Of course, if you can take mass transit or bike or walk to your job, you should do so. And we should all work for political changes that move our country toward a cleaner environment based on renewable energy. The BUYcott is for those of us who don't have a practical alternative to filling up our cars.

So get your gas at Citgo. And help fuel a democratic revolution in Venezuela.
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0516-25.htm

Monday, September 25, 2006

Thank you Topeka Capital-Journal

I've been known to disagree with the Topeka Capital-Journal, and when it happens I'm not shy about expressing my disagreement (as respectfully as possible). That said, the Capital-Journal isn't always wrong and I DO try to give credit where it is due. (Case in point: I thanked them in my letter "No Deadbeat" in Feb. 2004).
Now I would like to thank the Capital-Journal for it's work to expose a group called, "Schools for Fair Funding".

In the recent school finance fiasco, 19 School Districts and several attorneys formed a so-called "non-profit" organization that sued Kansas (well, just every KS taxpayer) for more money. Ironically, one of the state's worst Judges (Bullock "the Hutt") presided over that case. The Topeka Capital-Journal explains it in their articles, "Kline tells group to open funding records" (8-19-06), "Money spread beyond courtroom" (9-03-06), and "CJ's lawsuit draws fire" (9-15-06).

Does anyone else smell the odor coming from "Schools for Fair Funding"? *Sniff* it kinda smells *sniff* like ...

As a "non-profit" organization that used public money, "Schools for Fair Funding" is legally and ethically obligated to explain how much money it received and what it did with that money. Instead it seems they would rather withhold that information and continue using the court system to play legal games with the people of Kansas.

Thank you, Topeka Capital-Journal, for helping defend the rights of The People in this matter.

Respectfully,
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Thomas Lessman
Website: www.ThomasLessman.com
Email: talessman@yis.us
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Thursday, September 14, 2006

Good Riddance to Judge Bullock "the Hutt"

The CJonline article is here: <http://www.cjonline.com/stories/091406/loc_judgeretire.shtml>

For those who may not understand why we call him Judge Bullock "the Hutt", visit this page on the ACFC-KS website: (http://www.acfc-ks.org/Judge_Terry_Bullock.htm)

Ah, Judge Bullock "the Hutt", a Judge who doesn't have a problem kicking a man when he's down. Of course, this article only mentions his mis-efforts in the school finance case, and fails to mention ANYthing about his collusion with various agencies to violate the civil rights of non-custodial parents.

Nevertheless, you can BET that we'll have a "going away party" for him at the courthouse when he finally leaves...

http://www.talessman.blogspot.com/

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Thomas A. Lessman,
Candidate for Kansas House Dist 53
Website: www.ThomasLessman.com
Professional Email: Chairman@MillionDadsMarch.org
Personal Email: talessman@yis.us
Phone: 785-230-4546 or 234-3486
Mail Address:
4124 NE Brier Rd.
Topeka, KS 66616
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Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Praising the Minutemen

Praising the Minutemen

In light of a recent CJonline editorial (http://www.cjonline.com/stories/091306/opi_minutemaned.shtml), I feel it necessary to speak in defense of the Minutemen. Maybe the Editorial Board - like many entrenched politicians - just doesn't get it.

Illegal aliens have no respect for our national laws, nor do they care about the "rights" or freedom of American citizens. Some factions of illegal aliens advocate the subversion and outright conquest of several U.S. states. Over 20 million illegal aliens have already infiltrated our nation. That's a very serious threat to our national security, and the government's response to date has been dangerously weak.

In times of crisis, every American citizens has the duty to stand up and work together to end the crisis. 200 years ago the Minutemen stood together to fight for our independence and freedom. Today they are standing up again to defend America's independence and freedom. Instead of criticizing these patriots, we should be supporting their brave efforts.

Respectfully,

Thomas Lessman,
Member of Citizens For Immigration Reform
. www.CFIR.org

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Minimum Wage Increase?

The hot topic on my favorite local radio show was the proposed Minimum Wage increase.

I admit that back in my high school days about 10 years ago, I thought minimum wage increases were good. I mean after all, I only made minimum wage back then, and I loved the thought of making more money. Who doesn't?

When the min wage increased however, I discovered that I really wasn't making any more money, even though my hourly wage was more. How? First the government took more money out of my checks for taxes. I also had to pay more for everything from cigarettes to hamburgers to gas for my car.

Thus, after the minimum wage increased, I wound up making LESS money than before.

My own personal experience aside, minimum wage increases sound great in theory, but in practice they are anything but. They cause more problems for businesses, cause layoffs, and lead to price increases. The only reason the government is proposing an increase is because higher minimum wage means more tax money for bloated government.

At the same time however, it is beyond rediculous when a company pays its employees barely enough to survive, while its managers and owners make an obscene amount of money. Wal Mart is a good example of this; the Walton family clears several BILLION $$$ each year while most Wal Mart employees scrape by on less than a living wage. Any Wal Mart employee gets fired if they so much as mention UNION.

If the purpose of raising minimum wage is to eliminate poverty or help everyone make more money, why don't they just raise the minimum wage to $50/hour? Wouldn't THAT eliminate poverty if EVERYONE made at least $50/hour? Of course not; then a cheeseburger would cost $45, and a gallon of gas would be at least $25.

Signed:

Thomas Lessman
Candidate for KS House Dist. 53
. www.ThomasLessman.com
Email: talessman@yis.us

Friday, August 18, 2006

LPKS vs. Shawnee County

Libertarian Party of Kansas files lawsuit against Shawnee County
Source URL: http://www.cjonline.com/stories/081806/loc_libertarians.shtml

Shawnee County officials are notorious for their selective persecution of people and businesses that aren't part of their "good ole boy" network. If you aren't part of that club, you'd better walk a fine line or else...

This particular time, the "good ole boy" network really screwed up. Whatever excuses they spit out, the FACT is that they ILLEGALLY violated the LPKS' constitutional right of free speech.

Unfortunately, it looks like Shawnee County taxpayers will have to pay for the ignorance of some elected officials who had personal grudges against the LPKS.

SH CO Commissioner Vic Miller, you and your excuses are pathetic! Rest assured, you'll be strongly opposed in your next election campaign.

On the off chance the LPKS loses this lawsuit, Vic Miller and other Shawnee County officials had better pray that I don't find out where they plan to hold their fundraisers...

Another popular local blog has more information available about this issue, and you can visit that blog at http://news2know.blogspot.com/2006/08/libertarians-sue-over-deputies-who.html#comments

Signed,

Thomas Lessman
LP Candidate for KS House Dist 53
Website: www.ThomasLessman.com
Email: talessman@yis.us

Libertarian Party of Kansas
www.LPKS.org