The Truth Behind Taxes
"Tax and tax, spend and spend, elect and elect!" That's a famous quote by financier Harry Hopkins, Franklin Roosevelt's most trusted economic advisor. In essence, he was rather honestly communicating that government is in the business of maximizing taxes and spending the receipts on various segments of the population in order to return the most votes possible for the party in power. If that doesn't burst the altruism bubble, I don't know what will.
That tax, spend, and elect strategy has been a central pillar of Democrat politics for well over 70 years. Sadly, Republicans have not been deaf to the siren song of political power either, as was unambiguously demonstrated when a number of them walked away from the term limit pledge in 1994's Contract with America. As the saying goes: power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
So, what's the point? See through the rhetoric. Consider the long term. Recognize that politicians most frequently do what's good for them, not what's for the common good. Understand that these enormous spending programs have dire economic consequences over the long haul. As the country's demographics continue to skew older, and there are many fewer workers supporting those who do not work, the chickens associated with unwise and profligate spending will come home to roost.
What should we do? Be a watchdog for the size of government. Don't let entitlements continue to become a dangerously larger and increasingly untenable percentage of GDP. Most importantly, push for government support of individual accountability and responsibility. Support programs that encourage ownership—ownership of our retirement savings; ownership of our health care; ownership of our children's education. Take the power from the government and give it back to the people.
Only when the strings of government dependency are cut and replaced with a framework for personal responsibility, can we put this country on a path to sustainable prosperity. When we do, those at or near the bottom of the socio-economic ladder will see their status rise and their quality of life improve dramatically. Government has never operated, nor will it ever operate efficiently enough to manage the distribution of resources among such an enormous and diverse population. Don't be foolish enough to think this time will be different. It's just not possible.
That tax, spend, and elect strategy has been a central pillar of Democrat politics for well over 70 years. Sadly, Republicans have not been deaf to the siren song of political power either, as was unambiguously demonstrated when a number of them walked away from the term limit pledge in 1994's Contract with America. As the saying goes: power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
So, what's the point? See through the rhetoric. Consider the long term. Recognize that politicians most frequently do what's good for them, not what's for the common good. Understand that these enormous spending programs have dire economic consequences over the long haul. As the country's demographics continue to skew older, and there are many fewer workers supporting those who do not work, the chickens associated with unwise and profligate spending will come home to roost.
What should we do? Be a watchdog for the size of government. Don't let entitlements continue to become a dangerously larger and increasingly untenable percentage of GDP. Most importantly, push for government support of individual accountability and responsibility. Support programs that encourage ownership—ownership of our retirement savings; ownership of our health care; ownership of our children's education. Take the power from the government and give it back to the people.
Only when the strings of government dependency are cut and replaced with a framework for personal responsibility, can we put this country on a path to sustainable prosperity. When we do, those at or near the bottom of the socio-economic ladder will see their status rise and their quality of life improve dramatically. Government has never operated, nor will it ever operate efficiently enough to manage the distribution of resources among such an enormous and diverse population. Don't be foolish enough to think this time will be different. It's just not possible.
Nice Post. It seems o me that the whole of many problems, economic, political and even personal seems to be short-sightedness. To tax policies being suggested offer a short term solution to an isolated group of people. I agree that most politicians use this to maintain their own power. In order to fix the policies personal responsibility is key. But as stated - this also means having a very narrow focus, oneself. But what makes this different than the politicians who pander to one small favored group is that we are all a small group and therefore are all represented. The politicians are elected to represent us. But it is impossible to represent each individual; they must represent those who voice their concerns. This is why it is important to make our opinions known, important to say where we want our own dollars spent. As for government- cut the size which in turn will cut the tax base needed to support government. Those fired may initially suffer a wage loss, but if they are actually qualified to do something- then they will be reabsorbed into private businesses. I'm not very schooled in economics or business, but it just seems to be common sense that lower taxes mean better economies. The way I understand it: If I am taxed less, I have more money and choose to spend it where I want. It may be to the shoe merchant, the gourmet food merchant or a large donation to the breast cancer foundation. If I am taxed more, I have less money to give/spend on these things, and therefore those businesses and foundations have less money (my money).
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Your comments are well taken. Unfortunately, the common sense of which you speak is not common among the political class. The data is crystal clear. In our lifetime, lower income and investment taxes have always resulted in greater revenue to the government. Regrettably, that has been nothing more than a green light for our elected representatives to be even more unrestrained in their spending.
Taxes are absolutely necessary; they allow for the provision of essential government services. The problem is that many have bastardized the meaning of "essential." As a result, the size of government grows and grows, and we head closer and closer to the precipice of economic ruin.
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