From: Patrick Mullane

Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Subject: Thanks

HI Bill.  As somebody who’s not quite yet sending $250K a year to Uncle Sam, but hoping to get there, thanks for your efforts with respect to thankthetaxpayer.org.   I read about you and your organization in the BBJ and found myself saying, “This makes sense!”

While I think most Americans are not inclined to thoughts of class envy, those that are (along with their politician-enablers) seem to have a loud voice.  My father, who is a successful business person, always grates at the use of the term “Working Americans” when politicians use it to apply to the middle-lower class.  It’s not the claim that they work that bugs him, it’s the implication that those who have made a lot of money didn’t work for it.  In my experience, nothing could be further from the truth.  I am looking for mid-market manufacturing companies to acquire and in that process have met many self-made men (and some women) who worked their butts off to get what they have, only to send half of it off to federal, state, and local government and, as you note, then be accused of “benefiting unfairly.”   I’ve often thought that if all Americans had to do what corporations and small business owners do – set aside income themselves each quarter to pay the government – things would change for the better very quickly.  Not holding my breath for that though.

Keep up the good fight. 

Hoping to be in the top 1% of taxpayers someday,

Patrick Mullane

Vice President, Corporate Development