The Cost of Government Day

Wednesday, August 12, 2009 was this year's Cost of Government Day. As written on the website for The Center for Fiscal Responsibility, the Cost of Government Day "is the day on which the average American has earned enough gross income to pay off his or her share of the spending and regulatory burdens imposed by government at the federal, state, and local levels."

So, that means that I've had to work 224 days this year to pay for my share of the government's spending. That leaves only 141 days to work for myself. Wait a minute- do you mean to tell me that more of my money goes to the government rather than myself? How does this make sense? I can just hear Joe Biden saying, "You have to spend money to save money." Hmmm...

Now I know that we aren't really giving our money to the government 224 days out of the year, but the government's spending is quite real. But we don't all pay our portion, and that's why we have a federal deficit and debt. And the current government is more expensive: this year's Cost of Government Day came 26 days later than last year.

Now, liberals just love to point out that the Obama Administration inherited the deficit from President Bush, and it's now Obama's job to clean up the mess. Okay, fine. Bush did leave this country with a significant deficit. But let's look at some information from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO): the federal deficit at the end of 2008 was $459 billion. We can probably assume that this is the deficit Bush left us since I don't think he did much from 1/1/09 to 1/20/09. Now, please pay attention- this is important. The CBO estimates the current administration's deficit for 2009 to be $1.85 trillion! In just one year, Obama has quadrupled Bush's deficit. How does this help our economy? How does it help any one of us if this current president is going to spend more money than every previous president combined?

Think about this: I can picture a million dollars in a briefcase. To get a billion dollars, I would need a thousand of these briefcases. They could probably fill a warehouse. That means to get a trillion dollars, I would need a thousand warehouses! President Obama is spending 1,845 warehouses worth of money he doesn't have. The number looks like this: $1,845,000,000,000. All in his first year in office. And to the best of my knowledge, this doesn't include his takeover of the health insurance industry.

Please, don't even begin to say that Obama needed to spend this money to save the economy from Bush's mess. First of all, the unemployment rate continues to rise. I don't think the spending so far is working. Second, if my personal budget has a $1,000 deficit, I have a problem- most likely I cannot make my mortgage payment. Since I cannot just print the money, I will be forced to do one of two things: I could borrow the money (maybe China will buy my debt too), or I could cut back on spending. When I realize that I don't need the $1,000 entertainment system, my problem is solved. What I certainly wouldn't do is go out and buy a car! Not only would I still not be able to make my mortgage payment, but I wouldn't be able to buy groceries or pay my bills, either, probably for the next five years. If it doesn't work for me, it won't work for the government.

What the government needs to do is stop spending. If not, our country will continue to be in debt to countries like China or we will just print more money, leading to destructive inflation. Eventually, the Cost of Government Day will not just be a metaphor- taxes will be raised and we will have to pay for our share of the debt.

Anyway, don't mind me, I'm just rambling.

Opposing Health Care Reform is Un-American

Sounds silly doesn't it? Whatever your views are on health care reform are, it is absolutely ridiculous that anyone can be labeled as "un-American" simply for having opposing views.



Steny Hoyer and Nancy Pelosi have called those drown out opposing views as "un-American." They are, of course, referring to the many "town hall" meetings on health care that have gone on all around the country. The theme surrounding these meetings have been strikingly similar: many people that are opposed to Obama's health care reform plan showing up and attempting to make the voices heard.



I've seen the videos. People are angry. They have a right to be. They are being lied to by their Congressman and Senators. More and more, people are discovering what is in the bill and they are not getting straightforward and forthcoming answers. That is why they are upset and "drowning out" the crap that is coming out of their elected representatives mouths.



Darn those American voters! They're always getting in the way. First the Democrats blamed the Republicans for not getting the health care reform bill passed before the August recess. Well, that's just not the case. They have an overwhelming majority in the House and a filibuster-proof Senate. They have the votes- if it was just Republican opposition then they can just pass it just like everything else.



Yes, it's us voters that are causing you all this heartache. It's the 57% of Americans that oppose a single-payer system that are causing all the trouble. Because some of them are showing up to tell their Congressman how they fell, they are labeled "un-American," they are called the "mob," and they are accused of being hired by conservative- or Republican-backed organizations. Pelosi has even said that those who show up opposed to health care reform do so "carrying swastikas and stuff like that." (Please, if anyone has seen this, show me.)

Expressing opposing views isn't "un-American," even if you are yelling at your Congressman because you're ticked off. That is just about the most "American" thing we, as citizens, can do. As a matter-of-fact, there is even something call the First Amendment that protects this sort of activity.

I would suggest that the government, in its efforts to nationalize health care, is un-American. If you disagree, then please consult the Constitution. It specifically lists the duties of the government, and mandating health insurance at taxpayer expense, isn't one of them.

Once you lose free speech, you lose everything.