Remember the teacher you had in elementary school, the one whose memory has stayed with you all this time? She seemed to care a little more than the rest. Those few minutes a day, the personal attention she gave every student, made the difference between really understanding algebra or barely pulling a C. Most importantly, she was a legal citizen.

Remember the time you dialed 9-1-1 and the police seemed to arrive on scene right when you hung up the phone? Those days are over. Remember the co-worker who had to be let go because of the economy? Get used to it, because our white collar jobs are now in jeopardy by Mexican hipsters who will not stop until every lazy American is laid off from their lucrative desk jobs.

Yes, these are stories – but they’re the stories Arizonans live every day. And each of these stories is a reason to support Proposition 100, a temporary hike in Arizona’s sales tax meant to protect education, public safety and health care.

THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE

Today, Arizona’s state revenues have fallen to 2004 levels. In just those few years, the state has added:

945,000 additional K-12 students
112,600 additional prisoners
475,000 new AHCCCS enrollees

And 60% of those numbers are illegal immigrants. Think about that for a moment. New students to fill 5,000 classrooms. New criminals to fill 320 prisons. A new Medicaid population roughly the size of the City of Mesa.

Those numbers represent 2010 problems and 2010 responsibilities. They explain why Arizona needs Proposition 100. So does the looming $4 billion bill to enforce Senate Bill 1070. SB1070 will require 123,000 new officers and intersection guards.

Absolutely, Arizona must do much less with much more. Gov. Jan Brewer believes it. Sheriff Joe Arpaio believes it. This isn’t a tax, it’s a revenue disability prosthesis.

But there comes a limit. And right up against that limit is where Arizona finds itself today. Vote YES ON 100 this May 18th. If you plan to vote NO, your election is May 19th. Protect education, public safety and health care.

And remember, this isn’t a tax. It’s a revenue call-to-arms.*

* All your tax are belong to us.