In a message dated 8/19/2011 12:35:54 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, dross71803@aol.com writes:

Please send me no more emails.

Sent from my iPad

Rep. Dennis Ross: I'm not sure if your request is even legal (A: illegal), as it may violate Redress, of a constituent seeking legislative representation (see 'Point 2' below) and I will add that your attitude is unprecedented: No other elected official has ever made such a request (B: immoral) to not receive emails from a constituent at their public email address -- additionally: you come off as a bit thin-skinned. (C: you seem to be somewhat impractical) -- However, since I think you are making a good faith effort to hear the views of all your constituents --including having heard my views --I will not be forgetful that you are a very busy man, and I will probably not send you any more email --as you wish.

However, when you refuse to address constituent concerns of students who are being over-taxed at a rate of about 800 to 900 percent of the free market value of the service they receive (you would not like to be over-taxed like this, would you), you can not expect silence from the masses in pain. And, yes, tuition *is* a tax, since it is funding flowing into an arm of the government -colleges are generally owned by the state and always regulated by Federal & State Gov't --and this form of tax, tuition, has skyrocketed vastly. However, since I know that I have taken up more than average amount of your time, I felt guilty of being 'greedy' and made it a point to include views from my Democrat friends (see below), who do NOT have faith in your desire to represent them ---so I defended you, Dennis, see, but your attitude is a good argument I was wrong. You are a typical 'fat cat' lawyer, looking out only for the rich interests, not the majority.

But, I am mindful that you are also human, with feelings, and, despite the fact that you are blind to some of your constituents' needs, namely students who thought you'd defend them against over-taxation (since you claimed to be a conservative), I will take the higher road, and trust Jesus to deal with your errors, after having done my best to do "my part." -- Be blessed -and know that we, Christians, do sincerely pray for all our leaders (and that includes you) -whether or not we think they are doing right --and especially when we think you aren't.

PS: To the cc recipients who thought I was crying wolf, in my last press release on this subject http://GordonWatts.com/Odd-Press-Release.html or http://GordonWayneWatts.com/Odd-Press-Release.html see the congressman's response above and know I told u so. -- Gordon

On Aug 19, 2011, at 6:37 AM, Gww1210@aol.com wrote:

Glenn:

See the attached -- one of your customers discontinued his Ledger subscription after OVER 10 YEARS AS A CUSTOMER -- It was Denis R. Pearson (not Dennis Ross - but a similar name).

I know I'm not a 'Big Dog,' but I must agree with Pearson here: You're a good guy, but in the end, when I got a 'real' good Column, you didn't publish it, and this is political bias --either 'paparazzi' bias (since I'm a small guy), or maybe 'liberal' bias (since my criticism of Congressman Dennis Ross was that he was too liberal on some points -and I was 'too conservative' and NOT thus 'not news fit top print'). (But to your credit, you did publish my recent screed against liberal Andy Ford, the President of the Florida Education Association -in Letters, Fri. June 03, 2011: http://www.theledger.com/article/20110603/EDIT02/110609824)

(-:/ - Thanks.

I'll make a deal with you, Glenn: If you publish my piece below, I will personally advocate to Denis that he reconsider -Denis is one of Dennis' facebook friends & fans, and he won't like me taking a jab at our congeessman, but since I will use my conservative principles to 'reach across the isle' and propose support for a conservative, Free Market higher-ed bill (the student loan bill that Ross opposes), that is (oddly enough) supported by only Democrats, I think I may "have a chance" to convince Denis Pearson (and many other disgruntled customers) that they should give you another chance. (If The Ledger doesn't publish this, another reputable paper will, and they'll get the credit.)

I'll make an exception to my "no attachment" policy when including Mr. Ross a copy of this screen shot here --since I trust by now that Dennis knows that I'm not willing (or even able) to send him a computer virus in the screen shot of Denis Person's complaint against you & The Ledger. -- I feel bads that I'm taking up Rep. Ross' time, but I don't wanna talk about him behind his back --and I'll piggyback a 2-for-1 comment here to make my email worth it's time:

Point 2: Legislative idea -- Rep. Ross: My best friend, Richey Polk, and his uncle, Larry Polk, Plant City residents in YOUR district, are die-hard union Democrats (millwrights by trade) who think you don't represent them, but I "put in a good word" for you, and asked if they had any suggestions for you: both think that we waste too much time busing children to 'inner city' magnet schools,' and feel that all elementary & high schools should be equally qualified (and none of them 'magnet' but all equal) --abd that this 'bussing' use of tax dollars is a racially hot issue, when it should simply be stopped due to the fact that closer schools are can (by Free Market competition) be just as good. Richey also thinks Pres. Obama is a secret / undercover Republican because he TWICE refused to let the 'Bush era' tax loopholes expire --Richey thought the 1st time was simply because of the recession, but the 2nd time was suspicious.

I agree: Even though I would be glad to balance the budget SOLELY on spending cuts (I'm uber-Conservative), nonetheless, like you, I'm ok with small tax increases if coupled with BIG spending cuts --and when I found out Pres. Obama let the big corp tax cuts continue, I was surprised: http://www.wnyc.org/articles/its-free-country/2011/jan/27/closing-tax-loopholes-obamas-best-shot/ verifies that Rich is correct in has facts here: "Closing Tax Loopholes: Obama's Best Shot?" Thursday, January 27, 2011, By Stephen Reader (I hesitated to tell you this, Dennis because I know you're busy, but I know Richey & Larry won't write you on this voicing their views, so I will: They agree with you also on getting rid of waste in government, like that stupid 'empty flight' airport, so you may rest assured that many Democrats in your district are common sense fiscal conservatives who won't hate your guts if they get 2 know u.) Now, reach across the isle *already* so you can get dems to support some of our conservative ideas!

---

OK, Glenn, if you're still awake (-: - here's my deal -- if you run my column, I will make a case to Denis Peason (and ALL disgruntled peeps) to NOT discontinue The Ledger on the grounds that it give ALL sides fair & equal "air time". PS: What u have to lose by letting the little guy have his say & publishing his piece?

[ OP-ED COLUMN ] Gordon Watts on Dennis Ross v Ledger dispute

By GORDON W. WATTS [My op-ed here is just 803-words – 4,729 characters – counting only the op-ed text; you gave Dennis 816-words, or 4677 characters. You, yourself, got 945 words 5526 (characters), and you have published like a thousand letters from Stella Darby and “Rev. Willoughby” –and it's been almost 10,000 years since the last letter I've had published – (slight exaggeration) Do you think you could cut me a little slack here?] Wait – I must cite my sources first:

http://gordonwatts.com/FannyDeregulation/DennisRossOnWaste.JPG

http://gordonwaynewatts.com/FannyDeregulation/DennisRossOnWaste.JPG

and:

http://gordonwatts.com/FannyDeregulation/DennisRossOnTaxLoopholes-andBBA.JPG

http://gordonwaynewatts.com/FannyDeregulation/DennisRossOnTaxLoopholes-andBBA.JPG

I read Rep. Dennis Ross' 's Aug. 17 Op-Ed (“Rep. Dennis Ross: Why I Voted No”), responding to the 'dissenting view' editorial by Glenn Marston (“Rep. Dennis Ross, in His Own Words”) that ran on the same day, and I feel the need to correct some glaring errors by both parties. First off, Glenn stated in his op-ed that “Standard & Poor's, in outlining reasons for downgrading its U.S. credit rating to AA-plus from AAA, expressed the need for action, greater debt reduction, and "measures to raise taxes or otherwise enhance revenues." In short, opposite of the Ross recipe.”

I am no fan of liberal knucklehead, Dennis Ross, who is leaning into RINO territory, and I did not vote for him, so my defense of Ross is not motivated by conflict of interest, but I am a Christian, and I must defend Dennis when he is right –and Ross' recipe is EXACTLY what S&P call for: To his credit, Dennis is almost as conservative as me –on some points anyhow: First, Ross is for “greater debt reduction,” as shown by his support of a Balanced Budget Amendment, which he rightly points out is the only way to bind a future Congress so fiscal responsibility. Dennis also supports getting rid of waste before we do across-the-board cuts, as shown by posts on his Facebook page opposing tax dollars for a rural airport that books EMPTY flight (read: big waste of tax dollars). However, Glenn Marston is also wrong on his other point too: Ross is on record for supporting elimination of tax loopholes, in exchange for spending cuts, and that would certainly satisfy S&P's call for "measures to raise taxes or otherwise enhance revenues." – Even I know that, and this is in spite of the fact that liberal Ross, fed up with my call for conservative, Free Market measures in Higher Ed, has removed me from his Facebook -and blocked me! The Ledger needs to learn to do primary research before making claims like this, and leads me to the 'glaring errors' on Ross' part –to be fair:

In an email exchange with Rep. Ross, I asked him whether he would support returning standard consumer protections (truth in lending, bankruptcy proceedings, statute of limitations) to Student Loans, which were removed by the passage of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1994 (P.L. 103-394, enacted October 22, 1994), which amended the FFELP (Federal Family Education Loan Program), and Ross was good enough to give me a straight answer, but that answer was wrong for three reasons:

#1: His opposition signaled that he was FOR Socialist governmental intervention that would remove any Free Market pressures from banks to treat students right, and thus give lenders and schools a perverse motive for the student to default on their loans, thereby adding both interest and fees to the original loan amount. Standard consumer protections may look like a liberal free handout to students, but are actually just being fair: Even credit card users currently have these standard protections.

#2: Even though he was more “for” private bank loans than Federal loans, nonetheless, support for ANY Federal dollars to make or guarantee Student Loans is Socialist Big Government, not Capitalist 'Less Government.'

#3: Perhaps the worst problem with Ross' position is support of inserting ANY tax dollars into Higher Education distorts the Free Market, bidding up the cost of college –since the colleges *know* the students can take out deeper loans, every time Congress raises the loan limits for students, LIBERALS in higher ed mysteriously find NEW excuses to jack up tuition: Ross is liberal for supporting Socialist insertion of U.S. tax dollars into ANY private business venture –colleges may be regulated by the government, but they are not OWNED by the Feds –and in some cases, not even by a state (think: private colleges).

Since college tuition has skyrocketed in recent years, FAR outpacing the consumer price index (driving some students to even commit suicide, a new phenomenon!) –even as quality of American higher education has declined, this is proof that Ross' liberal policies have not worked.

Dennis, to his credit, is not for tax increases on everybody, but he forgets students:

Since tuition, technically a tax, as it goes to colleges, generally owned by the state, then tuition's nearly 1,000-percent increase, caused by liberal policies Ross supports, paints Ross as a 'big tax' liberal.

Students may not contribute as much as big bankers, whom your policies protect, but students are important too, so get it in gear.

This is especially egregious considering how this district always seems to get stuck with 'fake' conservatives, such as Adam Putnam, who voted for BOTH very unpopular bailouts (and yet got reelected by a clueless electorate who votes blindly along party-lines).

[ Gordon Wayne Watts is a Lakeland resident and graduate of FSU, a past candidate for State House, and also a political activist, probably best known for his pro se lawsuit on behalf of Terri Schiavo, which lost 4-3 in the Florida Supreme Court, arguably doing better than either then Gov. Jeb Bush (lost:7-0) or Terri Schiavo's own family (lost 2-1 in Federal Court). ]

Gordon Wayne Watts, editor-in-chief, The Register
www.GordonWayneWatts.com / www.GordonWatts.com

ALWAYS FAITHFUL - To God
BS, The Florida State University,Biological & Chemical Sciences
AS, United Electronics Institute
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"First, they [Nazis] came for the Jews. I was silent. I was not a Jew. Then they came for the Communists. I was silent. I was not a Communist. Then they came for the trade unionists. I was silent. I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me. There was no one left to speak for me."(Martin Niemöller, given credit for a quotation in The Harper Religious and Inspirational Quotation Companion, ed. Margaret Pepper(New York: Harper &Row, 1989), 429 -as cited on page 44, note 17,of Religious Cleansing in the American Republic, by Keith A. Fornier,Copyright 1993, by Liberty, Life, and Family Publications.
Some versions have Mr. Niemöller saying: "Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up, because I was a Protestant"; other versions have him saying that they came for Socialists, Industrialists, schools, the press,and/or the Church; however, it's certain he DID say SOMETHING like this. Actually, they may not have come for the Jews first, as it's more likely they came for the prisoners, mentally handicapped, &other so-called "inferiors" first -as historians tell us-so they could get "practiced up"; however, they did come for them -due to the silence of their neighbors -and due in part to their own silence. So: "Speak up now or forever hold your peace!"-GWW

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