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Ahh.... Now that is what I am talking about!!! I was a little worried about the absence of The Taxpayer's Mayor, but I think we will be just fine...

As a conservative, I despise ALL unions... I think at one time they were necessary (50 or 60yrs. ago), but not anymore. We pay $1,000's and $1,000's of dollars in numerous taxes to the city and the state, and what are the benefits? Is it our schools??? No, they are underperforming... Is it our infrastructure??? No, our road and bridges are a mess... Honestly, what is our Return on Investment? And it is not just municipal and state unions... Look at healthcare? Look at public utilities? For example... My brother, who has a high school diploma, works for National Grid. He has worked for NG for about 15yrs. Over the last 7yrs. or so, he has made in excess of $160,000 annually!!! He will brag to me at times that he was just paid over $300 an hour for 8hrs. to sleep... You don't want to know how much he gets paid if he is on call on Christmas Day and he has already worked his normal 40hr. work week!!! It makes me sick! My brother's intentions are to retire in about 12yrs. at the very young age of 59 as a millionaire!! Am I happy for him? Yes, very much... Am I jealous??? Absolutely!!! I have my undergraduate degree and my MBA in Finance... I have had a very successful career in Banking and Finance, my base salary is a little north of $110,000 prior to a year-end bonus (which I will only receive if I've done my job and I've earned it). With the help from some good investment decisions I made earlier in my career and my contributions to my 401K (which my company will match 100% up to 5%), like my brother, I too will retire most likely retire as a millionaire when I am around 70yrs. old.

As I said earlier, I am a conservative and as a conservative, I refuse to continue to pay excessive taxes to make people in unions; like my brother, extremely wealthy while they are paid $300 per hour to sleep at home in their beds and are guaranteed annual raises every year whether they've earned it or not. And when their contracts expire and they go a little while without a raise they get retroactive pay so they are all caught up and living the dream once again!!!

So rather than complaining and making myself look like a fool and basket-case like Mr. Cote, I decided to get in touch with a recruiter, sell my house and leave RI. While I still call myself Rhode Island Freemason, I am now proud to say I am the Florida Freemason! My family and I have been down here for almost 3yrs! Living in a non-union friendly state is great! My real estate taxes are almost a 1/3 of what they were when I lived on Warwick Neck, we have no car taxes, yet our roads are amazing! And my children's school is performing! And my utilities you ask??? Running our A/C almost non-stop costs us a little over $300 per month (on a 3,400 sq. ft. house with an inground pool)! Do I miss RI? Of course! It is my home, it is where I grew up! I think it is one of the prettiest states in the country!! But do I miss the politics? No! Excessive taxes... No! Unions... NO!

My only fear is that when all these union folks and politicians retire and when THEY come to realize RI is not a retirement friendly state, they too are going to want to pack up and leave RI for the Great State of Florida! My only request is you PLEASE leave your liberal politics and union-friendly ideology in Rhode Island!!!

Rhode Island Freemason err... Florida Freemason...

The Taxpayer's Freemason