The Obamacare legislation that the U.S. House of Representatives neglected to defund is laden with many new taxes and fees. President Obama has called for the repeal of the Bush-era tax rates, and for Congress to increase taxes on the rich. In Obama-speak, rich is someone who earns more than $200 thousand per year or $250 thousand for a couple. Tanning salons, pottery sheds, independent pizza shops, 4-pump gas stations and ice cream trucks may conceivably qualify as “rich” under the new lexicon. I do not know what you believe, but I think that we are already over taxed. The marketplace informs us that a value of a product or service is determined by its appeal. Deep within my skeptical core I know that I do not receive reasonable value for my tax “investments.” In fact, I would characterize most of the programs and initiatives supported by taxation as rip-offs and scams. We all know that Social Security is a vast Ponzi scheme, and many other government programs are overfunded today with massive funding increases due later on down the road. Think of bonds issued by many local and state governments…the payments continue as the bridges and roadways crumble. If government were competing in the marketplace, it would fail. We would have an opportunity to attend a massive liquidation sale as the hard assets of the various agencies, departments, bureaus and directorates were offered to the highest bidder (OK, so I’m dreaming…sue me).
Many of those agencies and bureaus are increasing fees for some of their services and transactions which, in effect, raise taxes on those various functions for those who use those services. The U.S. Congress and the profligate administration make the Sheriff of Nottingham look like a warm and fuzzy kind of guy when it comes to tax assessment and tax collection. As the government grows, as its regulation, rules and laws increase it embarks on a frenzied search for more revenue to pay for its regulatory excesses. True, they can and do borrow trillions of dollars, but they require vast sums of our hard earned dollars just to pay the interest on the debt. Their irresponsible management of the nation and our communities coupled with heavy borrowing…weakens the value of the dollar, and thus, leading to inflation which becomes a pernicious method of increasing our taxes through bracket creep. Our cost of living increases under the weak dollar, inflationary regime thus adding additional strains to our budgets. The result is that taxpaying citizens must do more with less while government does less and takes more. This is not a formula for prosperity. This is not a formula for serenity. This cycle makes King George III’s tea tax seem like small potatoes.
In the past three years Tea Party or Tea Party-type organizations have sprung up all over the nation as every-day citizens have joined together to combat the growing power, excessive spending and irresponsible borrowing by the government. Each local group has its own identity and priorities thus lending an air of confusion and disunity when an incident or issue requires action. In addition, the effectiveness of the Tea Party citizen groups is limited because of government abuse at so many levels and in so many arenas. It is somewhat like trying to fill a bucket with water while trying to catch a mist. While the Tea Parties and disgruntled citizens may have the power to retard the growth of government, I suspect that their impact will be minimal. The crisis for our nation is approaching much too quickly for the Tea Party-effect to be truly meaningful.
The answer for dealing with an oppressive, tyrannical government may be more chaotic and disruptive than many of us have assumed. It doesn’t seem feasible for us to send new legislators, congresspersons or administrators to government positions quickly enough to reverse the harm that has already been done to our country. The bureaucracy is infested with leftists who will drag their feet and resist any attempt to roll back their power and authority. Politicians by their nature want to be liked, and because the looters and the lefties have historically been louder and more forceful than the producers, it will be extremely difficult to capture the ears and the interest of enough politicians to assure success. The tipping point may have been reached, and the only remedies available may be for individual states to leave the union and form new like-minded alliances or federations. Dissolution of the federal government remains a possibility as it continues on its deadly path toward economic destruction. On the other hand, as long as the power rests in Washington the leviathan will fight for its survival even if it requires destroying the states, the economy and what remains of the nation. Government will confiscate every asset available to protect itself. The people will pay…again.
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