Down through the ages, one of the most frequent causes of a revolt by the people has been excessive taxation.

In fact, our own revolution included a demonstration against a tax on tea ... Also the beginning of the pollution of Boston Harbor.

Just as often, the originators of the tax of the tax loudly proclaim that the taxes in this country are much lower than almost anywhere else. That's true. Not one of our taxes is truly excessive ... not one of them. However, if you put them all together, we get an entirely different picture.

We have federal and state income taxes, sales tax, property tax, utility taxes, gasoline taxes, luxury tax, estate tax, gift taxes, hotel room tax, tobacco and liquor taxes, beer and wine taxes, e-waste tax, port tax, Social Security tax, Medicare tax, California SDI tax, and the 18 or 20 taxes listed at the bottom of your telephone and electric bills.

Taxes that not only follow you to the grave, but hang around for awhile after you've gone!

Patrick Henry should come back and see what taxation with representation looks like!

On the other hand, I could be wrong ... because different people see things differently. What means one thing to me might mean another to you.

For instance, here are a few definitions out of my dictionary:

Abalone: An expression of disbelief.

Acoustic: What you use to shoot pool.

Bore: Someone who has nothing to say ... and says it.

Egotist: Someone who is always "Me Deep" in conversation.

Gross ignorance: 144 times worse than ignorance.

Grandpa Sez' "After all is said and done ... a lot more is said than done!"