Dear Candidate Romney
I read what you are quoted as telling a group of $50,000 a plate donors about people like me (see bottom of post). I read it several times. I scoured the Internet looking for places where someone at the closed-door gathering might be offering a different recollection.Then I came to the conclusion that you said what you said and meant what you said.
You claim you were quoted out of context - uh, there's a video - and that your comments were not elegantly stated? Were you wearing the wrong tuxedo when you said them?
As a member of the 47%, I'd like to share some thoughts and facts (those are things that are true) with you.
Go fuck yourself and the rich Daddy you rode in on!
I have worked since I was 13 years old.
I was raised by an alcoholic father and a clinically-depressed mother. My siblings and I were neglected and abused all of our childhood. But we went to school. We studied. We worked hard to get out. We got out.
I have paid taxes since my very first "real" job.
When I was promoted to EVP and board member of a large international firm I paid more in taxes than many people earn in a year. I never once cheated. I never once loop-holed. I had enough money to live comfortably. Why shouldn't I pay taxes?
When the once private firm where I had worked diligently for years was sold and sold again and then cut up into pieces and decimated by a firm similar to your Bain Capital, I lost my job. Hundreds of people lost their jobs.
The people who bought and sold us got very rich!
I sat in on board meetings where laws were laughed at and where intricate plans were made to get around regulations. I regret not trying to be a whistle-blower, but I had a child to care for. And the people who were taking the company apart scared me.
I was much younger then; they wouldn't scare me today. Today, I'm scared of dying from lack of proper healthcare. Today, I'm scared of losing my home.
After losing my job I started my own business.
Yes, I started it on my own but it was on a street that was built and maintained by city road crews. When I worked late I felt safe because there were police officers paid by the government. That's what President Obama meant when he said no one does it alone.
You tried to spin his comments into some of kind of political bullshit that would benefit your goal to reach the White House.
As a small-business owner, I paid my taxes. I insured myself and my workers. I treated them fairly and respected their talents and their humanity.
My healthcare insurance came to $1,500 per month and my disability insurance cost another $200 per month. These insurances came from the same insurance carrier that had "loved" me and cared about me for the 20 years I was a paying customer.
Then I got hurt! Then a chronic health issue that I had managed all of my life took a nasty turn. It was hard to work and I decided to apply for some of the benefits I had been sold.
Guess what, Mitt or Mitch? Insurance companies don't like keeping promises, especially if it costs them money. Four years later I am still fighting for full coverage!
I'm also still paying my bills and paying taxes.
I am not fodder for you and your richie rich pals to laugh at!
I am not a sound byte for your pathetic campaign!
Next we'll talk about how you really feel about the Palestinians and Israel. I'll be writing again, soon, Mitt. Have a nice day.
[From the Mother Jones website - and everywhere else in the universe:
Mitt said:
There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what...These are people who pay no income tax.
My job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives.