The other day I was having a conversation with an individual who like many on the left believes the rich needs to pay more in taxes. When I asked why he believed this, he responded, “Because they can afford it and it’s the only fair thing to do.” So my follow-up question was why can’t we afford it? I could see the question caught him off guard. He asked me to explain what I meant. I said, “Why has it become more difficult for us to achieve success so that one day we too may reach the tax bracket you are proposing for the rich.” I could tell by the tilt of his head and the perplexed look on his face he was struggling to come up with a rational answer. He finally replied, “Because big corporations are in bed with the government and crafting laws that protect them and hurt the little guy.” Finally some root cause analysis was being utilized to get to the root cause of our problem. But there’s more to it than just big corporations in bed with the government. There’s the tax code and the over-regulation of our free market.
These three variables do help create an environment where permanent income classes are becoming a very real thing. With each regulation enacted, or a law implemented that favors big corporations over smaller startup companies or the tinkering of our success punishing tax code it becomes much more difficult for the lower income class to move up into the middle class income bracket and the middle class income to move up into the upper income tax bracket. It creates barriers between the different income brackets that shackle us to our current income class.
This is why the President’s rhetoric about class warfare was so successful during the last election. A permanent class feeling is sweeping over the people. Couple this with the Federal Reserve devaluing the dollar and now you not only have an environment that reinforces permanent classes but one that attacks all income classes by diminishing our purchasing power. Have you noticed how much harder it has become to stretch the dollar? How the price of goods and fuel are going through the roof. How there is less money in your paychecks. President Obama’s policies combined with the printing of money by the Federal Reserve are a direct assault against all the classes. And he wants you to believe the problem is the rich don’t pay their fair share. This assertion that the rich don’t pay their fair share is also an attack on the lower and middle income classes. Because no matter how you slice it whenever wealth is taken from the private sector to fund inefficient government programs, wealth is destroyed and we all suffer for it. It’s too bad so many have third grade understanding about the creation and destruction of wealth and the impact both have on a society.
Ronald Reagan was correct when he said government is the problem. Look at where it has led us. We now live in an America where permanent income classes have become a very real thing for many Americans; created by government via its laws, policies, and regulations. Maybe if more people understood this, the less enthusiastic they would be about embracing government and its policies that foster and establishes a new kind of America with permanent income classes. Maybe they would finally see that government is indeed the problem. I’m not holding my breath…
Liberty forever, freedom for all!
Original Post: The Sentry Journal
Excellent analysis, John. We’re quickly moving towards a ‘caste system’ like India’s. This is not only destroying our economy, it goes against everything our Founding Fathers believed in.
Thanks Don. I really believe the end goal of the left and some who claim to be on the right is to create a condition or environment where permanent classes are the norm. As long as they are part of the elite ruling class. We need to change this condition.