Lately in several discussions revolving around government spending and taxation, I’ve noticed a basic problem with Americans when it comes to the issue of government budgets; America as a political-financial entity is utterly schizophrenic. We will, more often than not, vote for increasing spending and vote against raising taxes – and you simply can’t have it both ways, especially if you want to cry about deficits.
Living in California, this issue has been particularly pressing to myself and my closest associates in recent months. Our state, one of the biggest economies in the world, is on the verge of bankruptcy because of this basic self-defeating desire to have our cake and eat it too.
It’s very easy to be a snide armchair politician (I should know). What’s much more difficult is to actually overcome this essential problem of living in a capitalist democracy; that we will ultimately get the government and the industry that we deserve.
It’s worth noting here that I’m an ardent proponent of capitalism. Those who are confused by my recent defenses of socialism need to do some homework. I would suggest starting with The Wealth of Nations, considered by many to be the first modern work on economics, written by Adam Smith, considered by many to be the father of modern capitalism, and an advocate of progressive taxation, estate taxes (”death tax”, if you’re one of those easily-propagandized types) and many other “liberal” and “socialist” causes.
But the basic problem referred to above, that we want it both ways, is an undeniable pitfall associated with both capitalism and democracy. Because both are rooted in the advancement of liberty, they rely heavily on the essential goodness of people, and their willingness to take responsibility for their actions.
We as a society, and as a fiscal collective, are failing because we have lost sight of the fact that rights and responsibilities go hand in hand. You do not get to demand total health care coverage while demanding the liberty to do whatever you please to your body, while whining about the nanny-state. You cannot assert your absolute right to gun ownership while complaining that there aren’t enough police and policies to protect us, and then chafe against gun control laws. If you believe that national security is of utmost importance, do not be surprised when you have to take your shoes off at the airport and the government becomes increasingly opaque in its machinations.
So before you go talking to anyone about a balanced budget again, it’s your turn to try your hand at the National Budget Simulator. The numbers are a few years off now, but it gives you an excellent idea of just how difficult it really is to make your ideologies fit into the cold hard matrix of reality.
For more on the necessity of reconciling the problem of rights and responsibilities, check out Why People Hate Capitalism, a great article which could serve as an excellent wake-up call to all the posers wearing t-shirts with Che Guevara on them that were made in a Guatemalan sweat-shop and sold at Walmart.
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Problem I have with that is this….
California already taxes harder than it’s other 49 states, but there is no transparency to the MASSIVE spending influx which has never slowed down. Even if they upped taxes and received the “$6 billion” increase they supposedly needed…the spending hasn’t slowed down at all. Therefore even with tax hikes, they would still be dramatically in debt, from impractical spending budgets.
The most inane response to this deficit is cutting off all programs that give future jobs such as education and social welfare (Programs that ARE designed to get those hurting back on their feet). This seems like a very temporary fix, that will cost California more money in the future by having uneducated Californians running the state in 10 years or more. Granted school districts like Los Angeles Unified CAN hold their own without financial aid from the state, it leaves over a hundred districts penniless and/or closed for good.
Posted on June 24th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
California takes in nearly twice as much in state tax receipts as any other state, but we’re actually about 10th per capita (’05 stats here – http://www.census.gov/govs/statetax/05staxrank.html )
Spending isn’t ever going to go down – it shouldn’t. Number one, government spending has to keep track with inflation just like personal spending does. And just as individuals strive for a higher standard of living (higher income, higher spending), so too will the government/society/”the commons” whatever you want to call it. Part of the reason I personally live in California is because I like being on the cutting edge. I want to be living in the first state to get all the cool new toys, and that means a lot of spending – which means a lot of jobs, and a lot of wealth going back to private citizens.
California’s tax code is insane. After capping the property taxes, and passing a law that says the voters of the state have to approve tax hikes by referendum, we simply can’t raise enough money through taxes to pay for the services people demand.
Yeah there’s a lot of waste, and we have to crack down on that. But there’s also a lot of tax cheats, and insane decision-making that favors cutting spending on social services before cutting say, state legislature salaries (over $100k in California – http://www.theliberaloc.com/2007/12/03/california-legislature-set-to-get-a-big-raise-do-they-deserve-it-2/ ) or tax breaks for fat-cats. The little guy always gets the short end of the stick.
Posted on June 25th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
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