It's time to set the record straight

By Jim Snyder

A Patriot's Opinion

I have been writing this column for nearly 18 months now. And in that time I have received hundreds of emails, phone calls, text messages, and face to face compliments on the topics discussed here. But every now and then I get someone who thinks I am some kind of hater, or that I am bad mouthing their favorite politician or party. Well, it’s time to set the record straight, so here goes.

First off, I am not a fiction or fairytale author. The topics I write about are either current or recent news stories or world events. And this column does nothing more than expand on those topics. I am very careful to be sure that when I say that this is a quote, that it is something that the person we are discussing actually said. It’s their words not mine. When I wrote that Mr. Obama made the statement “I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction,“ those were “his” words right out of his book “The Audacity of Hope,” not mine. When I mentioned the quotes of Margaret Sanger (the founder of Planned Parenthood) that were very hateful toward black Americans, those were her words, not mine. When Hillary Clinton is proven to have lied I am not going to sit back and say it’s OK. If you don’t like what these people said in their own words, that’s not my fault.

When I print facts or figures, they are taken most times from legitimate news sources or from government websites, they are not fictitious figures that I simply dreamed up. “The rich don’t pay their fair share” is a popular punching bag for democrats. The facts show that the top 20% of wage earners currently pays 80% of the total tax burden. Those figures came from the Wall Street Journal and the Tax Foundation, not from me. One thing I have learned over the years is this: The best way to make someone mad is to refute what they have heard or believe with facts and figures.

There are many people who will tell you they despise Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin, or Sean Hannity. And the reason they don’t like them is because they tell you what is really going on behind the smoke screen of everyday politics. It’s pretty bad when the truth makes people upset. Let me make this very clear: I do not hate anyone. I do, however, despise the actions of people who lie, make fraudulent statements, or who abuse their power and authority. I don’t hate the president; I merely have disdain for his policies that are destroying the country that I grew up in.

I do not hate democrats, some of my best friends are democrats; I merely disagree with their ideology. If something is wrong or hurtful to the citizens or this country then it’s wrong despite who said or did it. I did not like a lot of the things George W. Bush did and I spoke out against them as well. And speaking of the former president, how soon the liberals forget how brutal they were towards Mr. Bush for eight y e a r s . He was called a Nazi, a war criminal, a fascist, a murderer, and many other hateful names. But somehow now making comments about Mr. Obama is wrong? People hung effigies with the face of George Bush on them from bridges with a rope around his neck. Did anyone not think that was wrong? Of course it was. If that would be done now, it would be a federal crime.

The point is the same people who are crying wolf now didn’t seem to mind when the shoe was on the other foot and they were degrading and making remarks about the other side. Many of the people who are kind enough to compliment this column have a common theme. They say things like, “You say what I/we have been thinking,” or “Thank you for speaking out and exposing the truth.” Speaking the truth and bringing facts to the table is disturbing to some people. They don’t like it when you can prove that what they were led to believe was not true.

I put a lot of passion and research into this column. If someone doesn’t like something I say, my number is in the book. Call me and we will meet for coffee at McDonalds and debate the topic in question. But be warned; don’t show up with talking points you heard on TV because I will be ready for you with those pesky facts and figures. I love this country and I will defend her from anyone who I think is trying to destroy her.