It makes no sense to me that the people who voted in the Republicans last Tuesday must be mainly from the people who stand to lose the most money under the Republicans. The statistics show that the gap between the haves and the have nots has widened with more of the countries economic wealth in the hands of fewer and fewer people. I still believe in the American Dream, but it seems that the cards are stacked against us. There are certain maxims in American politics that are as basic as mother and apple pie. I forgot which op ed writer said words to the effect that everyone is against taxes, yet we have taxes. Everyone is against a deficit, yet we not only have a deficit but it keeps getting bigger.
How is it that when we going into the voting booth, we leave our brains at the curtain? We should be the person behind the curtain, and yet we listen to people who make their livings out of being controversial, revise history so as not to be burdened with the facts. Doesn't anybody wonder, how much is enough? When talking about capitalism as an economic model and talking about Adam Smith and Wealth of Nations, how many have read the book. Smith does talk about societies responsibilities to the "less fortunate." It seems logical that when society fails to voluntarily meet its obligations to all its members, then government steps in to fill the void.
What is wrong with universal health care? What should we do with the people who can't afford it? One of the most stupid ideas I hear against the health care bill is that the government would form death panels to decide who would live and who would die. Isn't that what we have now by default? If we only provide for ourselves with no thought of others, aren't we deciding that the poor should not live as well or as long as we do? Would it not be more to say, that the reason we are against universal health care is that it reduces our chances of getting the best available care? Since we determine who has the money to pay for the care, we are the "death panel." Believe me, I am selfish enough to want the best for me and am only concerned about you after my needs are met.
Another of the things that I don't understand is property taxes. Everyone wants to pay as little as possible. But when you live in a town without rateables, you shouldn't complain about your taxes being higher than a town that has rateables. The higher taxes are the cost of keeping out the riff raff associated with things like industry, apartment building, malls, etc. So, if your town keeps out rateables to maintain the elite status, you should not expect me to supplement your tax rate. By living in Plainsboro and not in Princeton, the money I saved in taxes enabled me to buy a Mercedes. Now I made a decision that a nice car was more important than a nice address. The utility of my home is no different from an identical home in Princeton. The replacement cost of my home is no different from the replacement cost of an identical home in Princeton. However, the plot of land upon which my home is built is worth about 15 or 20 percent of an identical lot in Princeton. So, my property taxes are lower than someone elses.
So here I am rambling and I haven't begun to ramble. I'll have to write more another time.
