Left Wing "Fair Tax" In Trouble?

It is no secret that the Granite State Fair Tax Coalitions (GSFTC) is a hive of left wing Democrat tax and spend socialists trying to hide behind a so-called bi-partisan front group.  It is run by leftists (here and here), colludes with leftists, and seeks to advance Democrat party tax policy under the false notion that our current system of taxation in New Hampshire is some how not fair.

But the evidence continues to confound their false narratives.

Despite the GSFTCs misrepresentation of facts and the spinning of data to mislead, whatever our tax system is in New Hampshire, it continues to provide a better quality of opportunity than any other state in the Nation.  The US census reports that New Hampshire has the lowest poverty rate in the country.

Well how the hell did that happen?  I thought things were so unfair here?  How could our "unfair" tax system still allow for the best economic environment for people to thrive in?  And in this lousy economy to boot?  We have the lowest poverty, one of the highest standards of living, and one of the safest to live in as well.  Could it be because our current system also provides one of the lowest overall tax burdens in the country as well?  Can we argue that low overall tax burden--the result of our so-called "unfair" system of taxation, is somehow more effective at keeping people above the poverty line than any other state in the country?

Hell yeah.

And what about all those other states with the sorts of taxes that the left wingers over at the non-non-partisan GSFTC/not so frikkin fair tax.org would like to impose on New Hampshire?  What are conditions like in those states?  Higher unemployment, more people on welfare, larger budget deficits, lower quality of life and standard of living,  and more people living below the poverty line.  Oh me, me!!  I want that!  Let's listen to the Democrats and screw with what works so we can suck like all the other states.

So the GSFTC is once again on the wrong side of reality, a side of the fence they could never really escape given the side of the fence they live on. The left side.

So it is not looking good for them.  The left wing and their side kicks had better hope we get us some poverty soon and a heap more than anyone else, or all the screeching about how immoral and dangerous the Republican State budget was, or how it will put peoples lives at risk, will be diving off the same credibility cliff as their insistence that there would be bloodshed in the state House or that our tax system is unfair.

And when are the voters going to connect the dots for good and accept that the Democrats in New Hampshire are not just wrong about almost everything they believe, they are wrong and want desperately for you to pay for it

GSFTC Member Organization Spotlight -NH Citizens Alliance

There are a number of groups that the Left wing Granite State 'Fare' Tax Coalition highlights on it's web site.  It's your typical collection of "non-non-partisan" interests like the State Employes Union of NH (That's the local SEIU 1984). The AFSC-which is the NH Chapter of a global leftist movement supported by all the nicest left wing foundations.  The League of Women Voters of course.  And there is even a who's-who of left wing, NH social justice churches and their political arms, all promoting socialist activism and statist policy from the pulpit down to on the ground left wing activism.

All of these groups warrant, and will receive, a proper vetting, but today I would like to focus on a special cog in the leftist machine of the so-called non-partisan GSFTC, one that happens to be very active in New Hampshire on its own; the NHCA.  The NHCA is the New Hampshire Citizens Alliance.  (You may remember their executive director, Sarah Chaisson Warner?  She received some unwanted attention after some remarks she made back in March of 2010. See also Here from the NHTPC.) The New Hampshire citizens alliance is...(drum-roll please)

...a statewide nonprofit, nonpartisan organization devoted to social, economic, and political justice.

A Non-partisan organization devoted to social, economic, and political justice?  Too bad that's just not possible.  There are no right wing groups seeking these ethereal ends.  These are buzz-words, Orwellian constructs, created by statist agenda-driven socialists to mislead people.  So the NHCA couldn't be "non-partisan" if they tried. But you don't have to take my word for it.  Just look at who they associate with and what they support.

In the 2010 election-cycle this "non-partisan" group spent over $15,000.00 in 'independent expenditures' to elect  Carol Shea-Porter to congress.  That was it.  No one else. Just one left wing democrat.  (Here is the FEC page and their latest Jan 31st 2011 filing.  Note the address and that Sarah Warner is cc;d by the lawyer presenting the filing for the NHCA.)  Note also that everyone was working to elect Carol SEIU-Porter.

For the sake of remaining a non-profit these expenditures were made to pay canvassers and on other indirect expenses but just happen to all be in support of just one left wing democrat for congress. Non-partisan my ass.

And like most left wing/democrat front groups in New Hampshire the NHCA is not the product of local activism but a state affiliate of USA Action planted in the Granite state by another group with ties to out of state money.  USA Action is referred to as the Nations Largest Progressive Activist Organization, and views itself as the place where they create the nations leading progressive coalitions. And they are connected to, and engage in community organizing (social and economic class warfare-intimidation tactics) and are heavily supported by  George Soros ' Open Society Institute.

This, at least, explains why the GSFTC likes them so much.  They have the same goals, and similar financial supporters. And it is all partisan, left wing activism in support of the democrat party agenda.

It is not non-partisan and it never was.

The Very Partisan Granite State Fair Tax Coalition Part II

The Granite State Fair Tax Coalition (GSFTC--Greedy Socialists Frisking TaxPayers Cash) is a partisan non-profit, which for years has insisted it is a non-partisan group advocating an income tax in New Hampshire.  But the GSFTC is non-partisan the way MSNBC is.  They use the dark side equivalent of the Jedi mind trick.  'The force can have a strong influence on the weak minded." And while there is nothing wrong with being a left wing partisan group, started by a social-justice driven religious organization, to advocate for a top down income tax, there is something wrong with acting like this is a non-partisan effort.

Our first look at the partisan make up of the GSFTC (God Says Fleece Taxpayers for Christ) was a rundown of their advisory board.  This revealed a panel of progressive and left wing water-carriers, who provide cover and material support for a specific leftist agenda: a state income tax.   They are democrats and democrat supporters, willing to use class warfare and a faux-morality-cum-guilt complex media campaign, to advocate for that state income tax.  Fish swim, birds fly, democrats spend and so must tax.  To insist they are non-partisan suggests a mental state that is non compos mentis.  Or to be a bit more colloquial; They are just a bunch of typical leftists.

In part II we look at the GSFTC board of directors; looking for some sign that there is someone in this cabal who is not just another statist stooge pimping for a broad based tax. Don't hold your breath.  The Board of directors is stuffed with "off the rack New Hampshire democrats," party chairs, candidates, donors, or leaders of left wing advocacy groups.  It is all partisan, top to bottom.

We begin with the GSFTC President is Laurel Redden.  Ms. Redden has run for the New Hampshire state House as a Democrat and is listed as a member of the Chair of the Salem Democrat Party. And, naturally, she has donated to her party.  The likelihood that she is not just another tax and spend democrat is very slim.

Redden is also a Public Policy Associate for the New Hampshire Council of (Social Justice) Churches (NHCC) where she pimps seminars about government budgets and 'morality' as a tool for wealth redistribution; where God and Jesus are used as props to soft-sell the social-justice/statist agenda.

The GSFTC Executive Vice President is Reverend William Exner of the New Hampshire's Episcopal Diocese, which is (also naturally) associated with the NHCC.   He is a part of an Episcopal church in which (apparently) it is not a sin to confiscate property if you can get the temporal state to pass a law which takes it from certain folks and gives it to someone in government, whose job it is to decide who gets the rest.  That someone is probably a big state bureaucracy run by left wing experts, and peopled with state union employees who spend half of it trying continually to re-define "the less fortunate" for whom the money is supposedly meant.

The new role of the leftist church (UCC, UU, NHCC members, and so on) includes seminars on how to organize folks to advocate left wing theft by making a-moral state budgets about moral issues to justify a confiscatory tax policy agenda.  After all, how the heck do you add new government dependents and state union workers, (the other government dependents) who must pay regular tribute to left-wing union leaders and democrat political campaigns, who then lobby for more taxes, and vote for more democrats, so we can have more state workers, who pay more dues to unions, who need to confiscate more and higher taxes and....

This is all some leftist thespian escapade abetted by folks like Reverend Exner, that ignores histories harsh lessons regarding the negative consequences of statist rhetoric, broad based taxes, and socialist-redistributive polices by top down governments.  And it is a problem a member of the clergy should understand.  Given the very essence of human nature, "Distress always expands to meet the supply of publicly funded services available to reduce it."  So no matter who or how much you tax, no matter how compelling your argument, you will eventually come up short.  There will always be more people willing to sacrifice freedom for a free ride than you can provide for, so you will always need to ask the productive classes to give more, but when you ask the government to do it by force, you are advocating a downward spiral until there is nothing left but dependents and a sliver of a well-connected ruling class.  Social justice is a Marxist idea spun with Orwellian linguistics that actually seeks this division so we can only assume it's advocates are either ignorant to the eventual outcome or are planning to be in the ruling class.

Whatever the outcome, there is no morality in facilitating a dependency culture whose foundation is a Ponzi scheme doomed to collapse.

The Groups Vice President is Mark Fernald.  Enough said?  Fernald is another New Hampshire Democrat and perennial left-wing candidate for (insert name of office here).  He supports democrats, donates to democrats, pimps their causes, and deals the class warfare rhetoric every chance he gets.  Just Google him and bask in the glory of social justice rhetoric.  Again, nothing remotely non-partisan about it.

Treasurer Peg Fargo is the VP of the League of Women Voters in Manchester  and their Legislation Co-President.   As I pointed out in the first installment, the League itself is a left wing front group that uses women's issues to advance the lefts agenda. 

Next up, Director John Hatten.  Mr. Hatten is the Co-Chair of the Concord Democrat Party and the occasional democrat campaign donor.  Still looking for that non-partisan tilt.

Director Sally Embley is active locally in Webster NH.  She has participated on Webster and Hopkinton Solid Waste, Conservation and recycling committees.  She supports pay to throw and does not like to see state programs get cut; she also supports a broad based tax. Small chance she is not a democrat? Not sure, but not likely.

Director Carol Backus is a Retired Public Relations director for the NEA, the largest teachers union on the planet.  She also gives to the cause.  Not exactly small investments in the left wing agenda and not remotely non-partisan.

Director Tim Dunn (J Timothy Dunn), was the Democrat NH House rep who co-sponsored compulsory school attendance until the age of 18, as well as advocating hell-on earth for home-schoolers.  Mr. Dunn has also both endorsed and supported the scumbag John Edwards.  Still not feeling the Non-partisanship.

Director Sandy Issacs is with Compassion and Choices- assisted suicide and similar related interests put up primarily by the left.  Sandy is also a member of the Dublin/Jaffrey/Rindge Democrat committee.

And finally, we have Director Helen Schotanus.  Helen is with the NH Department of Education and a reliable democrat donor as well.

So is it possible for an abundance of prominent and active democrat and left wing activists to run a non-partisan group that just happens to advocate for their tax agenda?  Sure, it's just not actually non-partisan.

But as I stated in part one, there is nothing wrong with that if they are upfront about it.  The GSFTC is not. So the people deserve to know who they are dealing with when the GSFTC comes knocking.

 Cross Posted