Taxes vs Entitlement..... (Political Opinion Thread)

clearlysuspect

lilwing88

Krieg

This kind of argument can be used for alot of things..."I pay my taxes, so i should be entitled too....blank" But in reality, what do our taxes go for? Yes, they should go for plowing your streets...etc. But shouldn't they also be used for body armor for our troops? Protecting us against terrorism? Of course...but politicians seem to think our taxes are supposed to be used to buy votes. That my friend, when it comes down to it, is mainly what our taxes (today) are for.

clearlysuspect

PuroFreak

Well your tax dollars last night, entitled us all to watch $2.5 million get pissed away on a commercial for the Census... What sense does that make honestly? First of all our taxes are out of hand because of all the places where government has overstepped their intended purpose. The government has gone beyond their job of protecting our rights so far that they were paying for peoples cable boxes so they can have television, which should NOT be something anyone is entitled to. This type of thing has caused the "entitlement mentallity" to grow in this country to the point where people expect it and even demand it from out political figures. Remember, "The government powerful enough to give you everything, is also powerful enough to take it all away."

lilwing88

PuroFreak

fla-gypsy

The role of government in our lives is totally out of control. Entitlement programs now eat up large portions of the Federal budget (LOL, at least that is what they call it) The only thing we should be entitled to is the unalienable rights mentioned in the DOI and what is specifaclly spelled out in the the US Constitution and those bestowed by the State in which you reside as spelled out in the US Constitution. We need a new Constitutional Convention to correct the mess our Pols have made it and spell out what their limits are. It is high time to do away with our current tax system and adopt the "Fair Tax" system to return order. It would prevent the Pols from buying votes by the party in power.

Krieg

Theedge

I actually wish they would plow less! Back and forth, back and forth, pushing tiny bits of snow...because the clock says it's time to drive the truck. Turn off the truck and have a cup off coffee for all I care, at least I wouldn't be paying for wear and tear on the truck & streets. Another thing that gets my goat is how we send money up to the state, and then beg for it back in the form of grants. When we do get a grant, we all pat ourselves on the back for what a "good job" we did. Of course the grant never covers the entire project or up keep, so we raise local taxes to cover that. It's a vicious ignorant cycle.

stephen_hannibal

clearlysuspect

Well, I can see how a young person coming into the financial world, getting a job and a car and a house could develop the "entitlement mentality." Perhaps some of us remember when a person could make close to minimum wage and still have a family and a house, and maybe retire one day. It wasn't a luxorious life like some of us have today, but it was a good life. How is the 21 year old supposed to feel when 35% of their money is being deducted from their paycheck and they can hardly pay the bills, let alone think of marriage, family, a house. Someone on here, think it was the squirrel, was arguing that the "odds are stacked against us" these days and I'm really starting to believe it. But I don't want to believe it. I want to believe that there is something that can be done to reverse the cycle.

One2gofst

The arguement that we have more services now so we need to pay more taxes is severely backwards. IMO, we pay way too much in taxes. Then again I am a libertarian. I believe we need military and locally we need police. Frankly I wouldn't mind higher sales tax on gasoline, both at the federal and national level. That would go to building and maintaining roads. At least that way, we would decide how much we, as individuals would pay in taxes. Realistically, anyone who does not want to get more than they give, should be a proponent of the Fair Tax. That lets each individual decide how much tax they will pay. It also makes the guy busting his ass all day for "the man" not have to subsidize the taxes the drug dealer doesn't pay. Sin taxes are a joke, as they only tax the things that are bad enough to need an additional tax but not things that are so bad they are illegal. IMO, part of the whole system that makes people like me so hopeless that we can get any relief and/or fairness back into the taxes we pay is that more and more people are depending on redistribution of wealth for their survival. When more people live off the redistribution of wealth, the smaller the possibility of being able to vote down tax increases and even less possibility of voting for tax reductions. I am a firm believer in the democratic republic form of government we enjoy, so it creates an interesting conundrum for me. Every citizen in good standing has the right to vote. However, that allows the many to infringe upon the few. When it comes to things like welfare/taxes theoretically the majority could vote that the minority pays their living expenses, which is f'd up. On top of that, when people become disenfranchised because their money is taken away, they are less likely to strive to be productive. So they stop trying to improve their situation and let someone else take care of them. And so it continues.

clearlysuspect

One2gofst

Thanks, sometimes I forget I can't just hit enter here like I can on other forums.

Krieg

stephen_hannibal

Unthought_Known

I pay a ridiculous amount of taxes on every cigar I buy, and I'm still not entitled to smoke it in most areas of San Francisco!

clearlysuspect

So, let us now be objective. We have all expressed dismay in obsurd taxation and government overstepping their bounds and primary responsibilities. Any thoughts on how to reverse the cycle?

letsgowithbob

clearlysuspect:

So, let us now be objective. We have all expressed dismay in obsurd taxation and government overstepping their bounds and primary responsibilities. Any thoughts on how to reverse the cycle?

I honestly don't know if there is any way to reverse it at this point. I think that the government is so bloated that it needs to go through a starvation diet, and I htink the only way for that to happen is a serious recession. I always think "well if we could just get rid of all the people that are currently serving we would have a fresh start" but honestly, I don't think that getting rid of all of them and putting all new ones would even work. I'm kind of at a loss for what to do to fix it.

Krieg

letsgowithbob:

clearlysuspect:

So, let us now be objective. We have all expressed dismay in obsurd taxation and government overstepping their bounds and primary responsibilities. Any thoughts on how to reverse the cycle?

I honestly don't know if there is any way to reverse it at this point. I think that the government is so bloated that it needs to go through a starvation diet, and I htink the only way for that to happen is a serious recession. I always think "well if we could just get rid of all the people that are currently serving we would have a fresh start" but honestly, I don't think that getting rid of all of them and putting all new ones would even work. I'm kind of at a loss for what to do to fix it.

China is already looking into selling all the treasury bonds they bought where the US could finance our debt...if that happens...you think the Federal Government would stop spending when inflation reaches 18% as a result? I highly doubt it. The #1 priority of EVERY politician is to get reelected, and how do they do that? By spending your money.

Smoke=Fire

TatuajeVI

TatuajeVI

clearlysuspect

TatuajeVI

jpclotfelter

Vulchor

PuroFreak

TatuajeVI

I agree with you completely, Jason. Except that I don't think our government will ever voluntarily give up power, or give back power to the states. Ever. It would take a super majority of Libertarians in both the House and the Senate and a Libertarian President. Not going to happen in my lifetime. The Republican Party doesn't have the will or the balls to make drastic changes save a very few of them. I believe our government is not only here to stay, but that is is here to stay and will keep growing. Short of a revolution (which I'm not about to say is a good thing) we're pretty much stuck with attempting to limit as much of their power as possible. Not going so well, lol.

PuroFreak

TatuajeVI:

I agree with you completely, Jason. Except that I don't think our government will ever voluntarily give up power, or give back power to the states. Ever. It would take a super majority of Libertarians in both the House and the Senate and a Libertarian President. Not going to happen in my lifetime. The Republican Party doesn't have the will or the balls to make drastic changes save a very few of them. I believe our government is not only here to stay, but that is is here to stay and will keep growing. Short of a revolution (which I'm not about to say is a good thing) we're pretty much stuck with attempting to limit as much of their power as possible. Not going so well, lol.

You are correct, the only hope we have is that the Supreme Court actually decides to uphold the Constitution in some major lawsuits against the federal government by the States, instead of legislating their own will from the bench.