Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category
Theft
$26,591.91.
That’s how much was stolen from me in 2007 by the federal government of the United States, and the government of the state of Georgia. This does not include sales tax and property taxes – this number is simply the amount of withholding for income, Social “Security,” and Medicare.
I’m not even wealthy. I’m fairly well-off because I’m single, I have a decent job, and I try not to overextend myself with debt.I’ll get a refund when I file my tax return, but that doesn’t change the fact that the money was kept from me by force. Maybe I will add up all the taxes I can think of – property, sales, income, etc. – once everything is filed and done.
This will not change as long as people expect the government to do stuff for them. I would be in favor of the Fair Tax, except that it tackles a symptom and doesn’t address the fundamental problem. Our culture is the problem, because most people do not understand individual rights. That’s what needs to change.
I’m ranting. I need to stop before I get myself even more pissed off.
Pearl Harbor
66 years ago today.
I don’t really have much to say about it. My uncle Bill was there. I remember him once describing walking up a hill so he could see what was going on. I don’t think he took any part in the battle. He did, however, spend the rest of the war in the Air Force as an engineer in Dayton. I wish I had known him better. Maybe I’ll write down some of the stories my family has that he told them.
One thing about WWII that I am happy about – that we nuked Japan when we could. It ended the war early enough so my father didn’t have to see combat in the Pacific. He had just turned 19 a couple of months before the war was over, and his squadron was scheduled to go to the Pacific when they pulled my dad out and replaced him with a photographer. (My dad was an Aviation Ordnanceman.) If the war had gone longer, maybe he wouldn’t have lived through it, and I wouldn’t be here.
One other thing – the time from Pearl Harbor to the surrender of Japan was less than 4 years. Here we are now, with 9/11 over 6 years ago, and no end in sight for the “War” on Terror. Our culture, and our leaders, need to understand the morality of self defense, and how to fight a war to win. If we don’t re-learn this then we are screwed.
Shortage? What shortage?
There’s a geyser here in Atlanta right next to my office. Obviously not a volcanic geyser as in Yellowstone; it looks like a water main that’s been opened up. I’m not sure why but there are 3 or 4 trucks looking like they’re doing some work there. So it’s an opportunity for sarcasm, just because of the water being thrown skyward here – when the big story is the drought and the fact that Atlanta will supposedly run out of water in less than 80 days.
While I’m at it, I want to point out that there’s no water shortage. None. Nada. The water isn’t being destroyed, or thrown in to space. It’s all still here on Planet Earth, just waiting for creative enterprising individuals to see the potential profit in purifying it, transporting it to where it’s needed, and selling it.
No, there’s no shortage of water. What we have is a shortage of the understanding of reason, freedom, and Capitalism, and it’s being brought home in a very concrete way. And people still don’t get it. The governor of Georgia had a damn prayer meeting about it, instead of doing anything that might actually solve the problem.
You know what I think? People are going to die because of this. Maybe not this year or this drought, maybe not from a water shortage in Atlanta, but if we don’t realize that our survival requires manipulating the environment for the sake of human life, then people will die.
I took a picture with my cell phone. I’ll try to upload it. It’s pretty impressive.
Update: Here’s the picture.
They really don’t get it.
I had lunch with a politician yesterday. Well, actually I sat in a room with about 30 people and listened to a state legislator talk about her job. She described herself as “mostly libertarian,” but then a few minutes later described a transportation project that had used eminent domain to acquire rights of way. I would expect a “libertarian” to understand something about property rights. I guess principles can be discarded in favor of a job.
The project she was talking about is “MARTA” – the Atlanta rail/bus system. It is incredibly wasteful of taxpayers’ money, and the service sucks. One more example of something where government should butt out. Is there a market for a transit system? Let a private business build it, buy the property for right of way, and make the profit – or take on the risk of failure.
But if there’s no chance of profit, and no privately run business willing to build a transit system, it’s immoral to have the government do it. And remember, all those wasted millions of taxpayers money – if it were left in the hands of those taxpayers, they would put it to more productive uses. That’s more money in the economy to support a market for lots of goods and services. A profitable rail/bus system with good service is one thing that will be more feasible with a stronger economy.
GET THE HELL OUT OF THE WAY. Stop bleeding away the lifeblood of the economy. I’m probably wasting my breath, but at least now that I’ve vented I feel better.
A little activism
I just added We Stand FIRM to my blogroll. This is an organization set up to promote freedom and individual rights in medicine (hence, “FIRM”) in Colorado. Thanks to Diana at Noodlefood for the heads up.