Today our household received a flyer from "Perdue for a New Georgia." It contained a picture of a Boy Scout by a pile of crumpled flags, a very haggard-looking picture of Mark Taylor, a photo of Sonny holding a cute baby, and the following message: "Our traditions and values are under attack from politicians like...Mark Taylor. He put the interests of the radical homosexual lobby ahead of our Boy Scouts." The text also tenuously connects Taylor with Cynthia McKinney AND late-term partial-birth abortions. It was a real 4-bell alarm. Coming right on the heels of all the Mark Foley revelations, this seems like a real over-reaction to me. The large cardboard flyer contained not one but two tear-off postcard applications for absentee ballots already addressed to the board of elections in our county. If this mailout went all over Georgia, it must have been very expensive.
Sphere: Related ContentWednesday, October 04, 2006
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It did go all over Georgia, but the message was targeted. For example, in Forsyth County the message was a sort of generic "Sonny Did" list, but the description of the mailer is the same, complete with pre-addressed absentee ballot request forms.
I'm surprised they are still sending out this type of mailer, since many Republicans are very upset about their private info (name, address, birthday), being completely exposed.
See the story here:
http://www.11alive.com/news/blogs/blog_article.aspx?storyid=85236
and here on wxia:
http://www.11alive.com/help/search/search_article.aspx?storyid=85235
Bill Shipp calls out Sonny!!!
http://www.neighbornewspapers.com/329/10233402.txt
Sonny Isn't Santa
Wow! Let's hear it for Gov. Sonny Perdue. I was so happy when I heard the "Sonny Do" plan for eliminating income taxes for us old folks that I phoned my accountant with the good news.
"Sonny has made at least one major campaign promise that will cheer millions of old-timers and soon-to-be old-timers. He promises to 'completely eliminate the state income tax for the retirement income of Georgians 65 and older.' That's a direct quote from Sonny himself," I tell my tax adviser.
"Sonny says his plan will give us more money so we can spend more time with our grandchildren. Isn't that swell? I can't wait to hear those hip-hop songs!" I exclaim.
As is the habit of my long-faced numbers cruncher, he rained on my parade.
"Don't confuse Sonny with Santa. Sonny's promise may not be what it sounds like - or what you thought you heard," he says.
"What do you mean?" I demand.
Here is the short version of his answer.
n Georgia does not levy income taxes on Social Security benefits. Most Georgians look at Social Security at the centerpiece of their retirement. Perdue's promise has no effect on Social Security.
n In addition to the Social Security exemption, Georgians over 62 may now exclude the first $25,000 of retirement income for taxable purposes.
n That retirement exemption goes to $30,000 in 2007 and $35,000 in 2008.
(Example: Under current law, in 2008 and beyond, if both spouses are over 62, then the first $70,000 of their annual retirement income will be tax-free in Georgia. Plus, all their Social Security benefits are exempt from state income taxes.)
So unless you're hauling down a golden-parachute pension from a corporate executive suite or a big-time union payoff, the "Sonny Do" tax-elimination plan will not put any extra bucks in your pocket.
Suppose an old fellow like me is still working. Will Sonny's plan help out?
"Not the way I read it," says my numbers guy. "This is for retirees only."
OK, so Sonny's plan will not help many of us geezers with taxes - unless, of course, you're old and rich and raking in fat capital gains from multimillion-dollar deals. But that's another story.
Don't get me wrong. I am not accusing Sonny of misleading us old and befuddled voters. Well, not exactly. Heck, all politicians do to voters what he has done. That's why he calls it "Sonny Do." Candidates simply tell clever campaign operatives to write stuff that will get them elected. What's wrong with that?
"Promise them anything, but give them Me." That's the current formula. It works especially well in an atmosphere in which the opposition has lost interest and the media has allowed itself to be bullied into silence.
I hate to bring this up. But while we're talking about "Sonny Do" in 2006, let's look back at "Sonny Do" for 2002.
He didn't call it "Sonny Do" then, but here's some of the stuff he said would do:
n Provide every home and business in Georgia with access to high-speed Internet and create a telecommuting culture, which will reduce traffic and improve education by the end of the decade. Sonny had better get busy on this one. Today most Georgians remain without broadband service, and Georgia has lost its place as a high-tech leader in the South.
n Make state government open and clean. In the past four years, secrecy has become a hallmark of the legislative and executive branches. Questions have been raised about the governor's outside business activities and a new law that seemed customized to give him a $100,000 tax break.
n Turn school administration over to local government. Didn't happen. The state mandates 65 percent of school spending and sets rules for classroom size and curriculum. Even state Sen. Casey Cagle, Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, is opposed to the administration's 65 percent rule.
And then there's - what the heck, we're talking about the "Sonny Do" of the past. No one really believed he would do all those things. Hardly anybody heard what he said. Voters simply wanted to get rid of the other guy. Now a grinning Sonny is back with his charming wife and an all-star cast to promise the moon in a gold-plated TV ad campaign. To most Georgians, the important thing is not what Sonny will do - but whether he can keep those ever-threatening liberal hordes from overwhelming the Gold Dome.
You can reach Bill Shipp at P.O. Box 440755, Kennesaw, GA 30160, or e-mail: shipp1@bellsouth.net
Is this what Mary Perdue meant by "I hope we don't have any of those negative ads"?
Tina posted this, and she is the one who got the mail. I have asked her to send the image, and then, I will post it. Good idea.
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