http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2077943,00.html
An open letter to my son about the above article.
Thomas,
I read the article you sent me and I understand the argument about how non-conservatives could see this ongoing conservative unwillingness to see any other solution than budget cuts and lower taxes. I think this unwillingness is based on years of rising spending and taxing in this country. I also believe taxpayers have a sense they are getting less and less from the government for more taxes. On a personal note - do you think you should pay more taxes? And if you did how would you manage your budget if you had less money in your pocket because of raised taxes? Do you believe your money which you pay in taxes should be given to a bureaucrat to run an important government program? Or is your circumstance as important or more important than the above bureaucrat and government program? For me, you and Rachelle, your marriage, your dreams, the family you are going to create, your career are infinitely more important than 99.9% of government programs past, present and in the future. So I say do away with them all if it allows you two unlimited opportunities to be successful and accomplished. For me, as a conservative, I have come to believe I can waste my own money just fine, I really don't need government or bureaucrats wasting my money. In fact I believe this sediment runs so deep that in places like California - the state is losing billions in tax revenue because taxpayers are buying outside the state and having things shipped into the state therefore avoiding California sales taxes. A direct byproduct of the tax and spend attitude of California. I mean if a business treats you badly with customer service or the service they claim to provide is less than advertised do you or I continue to populate such a place - "Hell, no" we move on to businesses which treat us well. Why not a state government?
Another observation for conservatives to bolster their understanding of cutting taxes and spending; the situation in Greece, Spain, Portugal, Iceland, Ireland and soon to be England and France. These are all fantastic examples of the tax and spend mentality, followed by bureaucrats requesting just a little more taxes and the problems - they will go away. The problems have not been fixed in those countries and it appears the only out is default or austerity programs - cutting spending i.e. cutting government programs. This is a far larger disaster and hardship i.e. losing all your pension money, paying out of control inflation, double digit interest rates and having what savings you have wiped out by the same inflation than it is to have controlled reduction of government spending and more money in citizens pockets from reduced taxes so they can prosper rather than default in bad economic times. A side note to the reduction in taxes - the thinking is with less taxes collected this should lead to an offset of less programs because some conservatives are eternally optimistic that politicians will suddenly wake up out of their slumber and live within their means - has not happened in my lifetime.
Historically the writer is correct. Under Nixon, Jimmy Carter and Reagan economically it was probably harder than it is now. However what he did not say was... Lyndon Johnson! [Updated July 5, 2001 - supporting reference from Walter Russell Mead: http://blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/2011/07/04/the-shame-of-the-cities-and-the-shade-of-lbj/ ]. President Johnson ramped up the Vietnam War, instituted the war on poverty and created Medicare during his presidency which all lead to unprecedented government spending (Deficits, inflation and a burgeoning national debt) and higher taxes - which all the above presidents followed and had to deal with the consequences of. So historically it is not today we should be most concerned about... it is the long term consequences of the current tax and spend behaviors. That is what is most disturbing. And let me be clear all politicians are fraught with this blindness - it is the nature of not always going to be around (Consequences) and special privileges which insulate them from real world circumstances. I find Republicans, Libertarians, Democrats, Socialists and Communists unable to think ahead into the future to see what they have set in motion and the eventual consequence.
There are two testimonies which the "raise more taxes and don't cut spending" criers usually will not mention. [July 5, 20011 update supporting article by Thomas Sowell: http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/271038/politics-vs-reality-thomas-sowell#.ThM1g4Z4MJk.blogger] President Kennedy's reduction of tax rates and cutting of spending and President Reagan's cutting of tax rates and cutting of government spending. Both created a huge increases in tax revenues being collected (President Kennedy's were the impetus for President Johnson's spending.) even though tax rates were cut! Why? Because people worked harder because they got to keep more of their money rather than sending it to the government - people like to do this - make more money without having to give it to someone who may not be working nearly as hard as they are. And because citizens have more money... they spend, save or invest their surplus money stimulating the economy.
Finally the last observation of conservatives is the economy - working, spending, investing, buying however you want to describe the act of money, goods and services - is not the responsibility of the government it is the exclusive area, authority, responsibility and privilege of the citizens to manage and run. That is why you see trillions legislated to "Shovel Ready Jobs" by the government to no avail! Why? Because the citizens do not like government legislating where money should go. (They really hate the slimy people who lobby the politicians into giving them portions of this waste.) See above - citizens want to be in charge of spending, saving and investing and resent the know-it-all politicians confiscating their money to waste. And when they get this feeling they hunker down, stop working hard, cut their expenses, pay less taxes, begin to barter and work under the table, move to places with better jobs and more amicable tax code and punish the politicians because they know they can persevere longer and get rid of them in the short term. If politicians want to stimulate the economy they jump in bed with the citizens and do what the citizens are doing - cutting expenses, paying off debt, saving and collect less taxes from them.
Love you,
Dad
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