November 2004

Start Fighting the Republican Agenda Now
Spend Less and Give More This Holiday Season

On the tee-vee this weekend, some guy told me that the average American house will spend over $700 on gifts this holiday season. If you take away all the Jewish, Muslim and 'other' homes, that number should begin to go up. Christian houses in America will spend more than $700 this year for Christmas, Walmart is counting on that.

Since our families celebrate Christmas, Bigfoot and I are going to shop just like everyone else, but this year will be very different. As in years past, we are going to first keep our individual spending below a pre-set per-person limit, but with a new twist. This year, we are going to tithe the limit for each individual 10% to donate towards progressive political causes.

In a time of economic instability, one needs hard and fast spending limits, but this is no normal time of insecurity. The values and liberties Bigfoot and I cherish are in danger. George Bush and the new, stronger Republican congress are setting out to obliterate individual freedoms, as well as our country's financial back-bone. We need to reign in our exuberance, redirecting it towards people who will do good.

The proceeds of our 10% tithe, as well as a strict penalty program, should generate somewhere between $60 and $100 (if I choose to include our wedding anniversary and my birthday - both in December - to the plan, it may reach the high end) for donation. At the moment, our plan is to split the money between the ACLU and Emily's List.

This year's Presidential election was close, and taught me a very important lesson: start sooner, fight harder, and play from behind until you've won. People dedicated to protecting freedoms in America must give more, shout louder, and be seen more than ever before. The President won, but he did not win a mandate. My first effort to subvert his last four years in office will be to spend less over the holidays, pass the savings along to important people, and tell everyone on my list about the donations that were made in their names.

I will give you guys an update next month. (If you do the same, please let me know at grandpa@evilrobots.com (write "Blue Party Gives For America" in the subject line, please.)) As part of Evil Robots' new Blue Party, I am going to create a new way to subvert the Bush agenda each month.