by C.J. Lanet
The Answer & Question Soiree is the first of its kind and about to be staged at the Dell Music Center located in scenic East Fairmount Park, Philadelphia’s premier outdoor venue. With 5,300 seats and 900 on the lawn, the site is ideal to gauge direct public response to the issues of the day and determine first hand the need to tweak our platform, if necessary.
To get seats they waited since seven in the morning. By 1:30 pm fifteen thousand people transform the usually placid East Fairmount Park into a jubilee with portable kiddy rides, vendors hawking everything you can pick up and eat to what you can carry away. The scheduled two o‘clock kick-off is postponed for a technical glitch with the sound systems. We plan to give Bob a minute of silence, but I decide to mourn his death privately. The crowd is enthusiastic, applauding and cheering when I take a bow. Finally I said,
“Hello, my names is Catcher McCall
… and I’m here to share my vision
of our America with you.
One day someone must take a stand.
Today, I said, ‘ enough is enough’ ...”
After the noise subsides, I presented my case to redefine the America character and in the process return our great country to the people, not the special interests group that have manipulated policy since World War II. My argument is not to throw money at a problem and kick the dilemma down the road for someone else to tackle it, but to address it straight up and fix it now. Health Care Alternative Option Act, Federal Tax Reform Advantage and repeal of the Federal Reserve Act, Clear Air & Water Improvement Initiative and amendment of the Homeland Security Act are where it starts.
As I look at the audience their faces express confidence, loyalty, even pride that just maybe someone is defending us against the status quo. I don’t make this remark as an ego trip, only by the thousands of letters we receive each week that confirm a just battle, defending their rights to make constructive changes for all the citizens, not the select few who have turned the United States into their private club, while the rest of the population struggles to survive. After outlining our intentions, I open the floor to questions:
Queuing to the microphone is a line twenty or more deep, and increasing.
“Your healthcare option makes sense, but what if I don’t want to use the federal hospitals?”
“Health Care Alternative Option Act will provide the right of all citizens to select healthcare, a doctor and treatment outside the USA Medical Hospital network. However, when a citizen elects that option, he or she must pay for the healthcare from his or her own pocket without any tax credits or deductions? We have prepared a fact sheet and specific bulletins on this question that explains how Health Care Alternative Option Act will function – ask for Bulletins 11045 and 15416. Both will be sent to you without cost. Also, we have our staff here with copies of the bulletins mentioned.”
“I want to be a doctor and to college in two years, maybe if my dad and mom, can afford it? If I enroll in Medical Universities everything is free?”
“Not free, you must earn the privilege to be a doctor. To be qualified to practice medicine, you must have a passing grade for a three-year undergraduate degree program and four years medical school curriculum. Then you must complete residency training to be eligibility for a license to practice medical, but the license is only valid in a USAMH.”
“If I want to be doctor but want to get an education outside of the federal program can I do so, and if I do, does the education loans programs and grants still available?”
“Certainly. You can apply to an unaffiliated college or university to be educated to be doctor. Only you are required an extra year of undergraduate study before qualifying to attend medical school and pay for the entire process to be licensed as a doctor. Your cost in today’s dollar is $1,050,000, and that’s if you don’t specialize in a tertiary field.
“Please let me add. We conducted a survey of the last 8000 licensed doctors registered from state records, and determine that 84% came from families with gross income per year greater than $250,000. The median AGI last year was $33.048. What does that mean? Poor people cannot afford to send their kids to medical school and become doctors. Let me repeat this fact. If you’re family doesn’t have a yearly gross income of $250,000, forget about being a doctor.
“There’s another issue requiring an answer. What happens if students don’t want to devote 15 years of their lives to be a doctor, who will be available to offer healthcare?
“At the current rate and without a definitive policy to attract students to the doctoring profession, by 2025 our country will face a 200,000 shortage of qualified doctors. ObamaCare in all its purported glory has not addressed the quality of care issue. The line of defense is the doctor. You don’t want to be forced into questionable care because of the lack of licensed doctors. Health Care Alternative Option Act must be law or we face catastrophic damage to the health of our citizens.”
“If I have this correctly, your proposed Federal Tax Reform Advantage will increase tax receipts by 50% over the current tax laws. How does it work? Also, does everyone pay taxes?”
“Our proposed Federal Tax Reform Advantage is a flat tax format were all deductions and depletion allowances are eliminated. Gross revenue or earnings by an individual or an unaffiliated corporation below $40,000 does not pay federal taxes. All corporations charted or doing business in the United States or having affiliates or subsidiaries outside the United States with at least a 50 equity interest are also required to have a flat taxes of 15% on gross sales, while individual or joint return holders are required to pay 12% of gross revenue above $40,000 per year.
“Now let’s look at the numbers to see if Federal Tax Reform Advantage flies. Last your Government Revenues were $5.1 trillion, while our gross public debt is $19.2 trillion - these two numbers are so far a part, it’s a joke. We cannot send more than we collect. Simple math shows we are dead in the water with 4 times more debt than collected receipts. What if you ran your household like that? A creditor wouldn’t think twice before pushing you out the door and into the street.
“All rights, let’s savior the sweet cream of the Federal Tax Reform Advantage. At the present time federal direct revenue is $2.5 trillion, state direct revenue is $1.5 trillion and $1.1 is local direct revenue. Under Federal Tax Reform Advantage federal revenues will increase the first year of implementation to $4.95 trillion, almost double to what being collected on the old system. Bulletins 14007 and 14008 have the details; they’re yours for the taking just asks our staff. Thereafter, tax revenues will increase at 7% rate after various adjustments. Meanwhile, state and local direct tax revenue will also increase, but slightly to due how state taxes are charged and the method of federal allocations.”
“Why the roadblock for tax reform?”
“Corporate America does not want a flat tax, especially on their foreign affiliates. As the current tax codes are written, a US owned foreign company pays no U.S. federal taxes and only pays taxes in the country they are domiciled in. Worth repeating - a US owned foreign company pays no U.S. federal taxes.
“Also, individuals and family trust and other sheltered private entities would not be shielded. Today’s debates center on the so-called ‘Millionaires Tax’ and it’s just a spin. Millionaires don’t pay their fair share of taxes and are demanding more deductions.
“To answer your question, big money does not want tax reform. And definitely not Federal Tax Reform Advantage because they like the arrangement of the middle class paying the bulk of the cost to run the country. Our Federal Tax Reform Advantage will be a game changer and give the middle class and the less fortunate a fairer shares of our country’s wealth.”
“What’s wrong with the 1990 Clean Air Act to change it, don’t we have more pressing concerns?”
“This is nothing wrong the Clean Act, except its rules and regulation must be enforced with more teeth. Air pollution control relates to qualify of life. Do you want to live where breathing become dangerous? No! We deserve the same ai
r qualify our founding fathers had in 1776. Don’t laugh, I’m serious.
“Air qualify dictates where and how we life. Poor air quality means poor health or death. Right now air quality in the United States is the worst it has ever been. For example, you notice the coastal mists come in from the bays? That’s not mist by toxic mercury suspended in small droplets of water. Mercury in very small quantities can harm ecosystems and human health. Mercury pours into the atmosphere from coal-fired power plants, refining ores and paper manufacturing.
“Mercury is only one issue, our proposed Clear Air & Water Improvement Initiative will enforce the 1990 Act and allow the newly constituted agency to have direct enforcement power to fine and arrest, if necessary, repeat perpetrators. Coal-fired power plants owners have been told by EPA to clean up their act with scrubbers and other technologies to reduce mercury contamination. They refused, rather paying minor fines than install expensive equipment. Under Clear Air & Water Improvement Initiative, plants must comply or closedown.
“Next question.”
The line continues to grow, while broadcast media carries the event with limited interruptions. Since the advent of T.V. the general public is responding directly with local stations to continue broadcasting, and to cause regularly schedules programs to be cancelled. Even the Super Bowl lacks the clout that The Answer & Question Soiree has garnered. T.V. advertisers are merely flashing banner messages.
At 5:30 PM the political event should have been over, yet the question lines has stretched around the pavilion on to the grass 75 yards away.
During an applause break, Dorsey anxious scoots to the stage and said, “You got to end it. We’re 45 minutes over and security is getting antsy. Remember, at seven at the Ritz-Carlton you have electoral delegates for dinner meeting?”
“Cancel!”
“What? No can do, they are important! All 19 accepted invitations.”
“I can’t just said bye and leave. Get Vaughn to go.”
“No good, he’s left for Boston.”
“Okay, you go.” I check my wristwatch and add, “It ten to, give my apologies, get a few big screens in there and show this. They’ll understand.”
“What do I tell them?”
“Martin, just play it by ear. No big deal. I must stay! We’re getting excellent feedback. Okay go, I question is being posed.
As Dorsey exits the stage, he stops and turns. “What about the Calvary Chapel?”
“Fuck! What time was that for?”
“It passed. I just remembered.”
“Fuck! Need to take this question. Check on it, and get back to me, right now.”
“What about the delegates?”
“This first. Call the hotel and get the monitors set up, bigger the better. Get 4 or 5!”
Fielding a question on the Homeland Security Act, I see Dorsey shirring about like a rooster caught in the rainstorm.
By seven the show is still on and it’s getting dark. When I attempted to end it, 6000 cell phones flash and remain on, being waved from side to side and up and down. At eight the park officials gave me an ultimatum – either I end it or they would shut off the lights. I though it is an idle threat only to have the stadium type lamps flicker. With my hands above my head, and moving closer to the edge of the theater stage, I announce that the party must end. After a rolling moan, the crowds dispersed while clapping their hands or chant, “President Catcher McCall stands tall!”
Crowds have queued in front of three staff members and continue to pass out bulletins and signed autographs of my opening remarks.
By the time I’m driven away from the grounds in a plain-Jane Ford it’s 9:50 PM. Whatever schedules planned for the events is history. The Calvary Chapel service for Bob Halley has long passed while his body is on route to Kansas and his immediately family. As for the electoral delegates, Dorsey claims it when well, especially the five 60 inch monitors. As for the Soiree, it proved an excellent venue and to be uses in the future.
I tired and no one to talk to.