‘Great article. But, you’ll find that most members on this forum want higher taxes and DO NOT want to take personal responsibilty. They would prefer to have the government pay for everything and stick their nose in the citizens business.
Most want socialism and pray that the government puts them out of business by paying their offshore earnings taxesrather than regulate the industry.’
Here is my short rant. I don’t think anyone in north America wants higher taxes. I say North America because I am Canadian, so I suffer way more from over taxation.
I think what a lot of the so called left wing nuts want, is a government that wants to be environmentally responsible and socially responsible. This means a government that approaches and tackles the problems that the planet is facing when it comes to pollution and is willing to ensure that no one has to choose between feeding their children and getting that much needed heart surgery.
The USA could easily offer FREE health care to everyone, as well as provide real aid to all of Africa, and they could have signed the Kyoto treaty and done a lot more for the environment, and they could have done this with reduced taxes. If you want the real culprit behind high taxes there, it’s due to several factors:
1. The high crime. With 10x the violent crime of other first world countries, you spend an insane amount on the prison system. Look at how much it costs to keep 1 person in prison for a year. Investing in education is proven to reduce crime and would save money in the long run as to avoid prison over crowding.
2. War and the military. Yes its important to keep the country safe, but how much of the military expenditures are necessary versus increasing the coffins of Lockheed Martin? With Iraq and defense spending the US spends over 50% of its budget on the military. How many tanks and nuclear weapons does one country need? I am not talking about sending troops in with less than the best in gear. I agree if someone is going to enlist they should have nothing but the best. But check how many weapons are built and sit there. The USA spends more on biological and nuclear weapons than any other country. Guess what, if there is a war and they use those weapons, we are all dead regardless of nationality.
I could go on and on, but stuff like that at least is why people outside of the USA view Americans as nuts for voting Bush in. I do agree with some of the Reagen ideals a lot of them are logical, but increasing spending on education, healthcare, and the betterment of society in general is not a bad thing.