Tighten Your Belt Already

I’m really sick of hearing my fellow countrymen bellyaching about money. Everyone’s crying about our country’s financial situation, but when push comes to shove, nobody is willing to make a real sacrifice and actually pay more in taxes, or suffer a reduction in their Social Security, Medicaid, unemployment, or whatever. You know what? It’s time for all of you to just shut the fuck up! I’m going to pick on a few demographics, but as I do so, you need to realize that I’m only singling out these groups to make a larger point.

Let’s start off with Social Security recipients. They’re a large, powerful demographic. When they speak, politicians shudder. As a result, Social Security has remained largely untouched, despite the fact that we’ve known for over two decades that current trends are unsustainable. Their rallying cry is that the government made them a promise. Am I the only one who thinks they have a selective memory? How many other promises has the government broken? What makes this promise so special? Has your age and wisdom taught you nothing? Are you still so immature that you fail to realize that circumstances change, and that not all promises can be kept? I honestly don’t care that you’ve paid into Social Security all of your life, because you are receiving FAR more than you paid in. I’ve paid in all of my life as well, but the sad fact is, there’s a very high likelihood that I will never get anything back. And you know what? I’m ready for that! So quit your bitching and share the pain!

What about the rich? They already pay more in taxes than everyone else. Yeah? So what? You are asked to pay more because you CAN pay more. I hear that high taxation on the wealthy is a disincentive to become wealthy. Sure, there’s a certain amount of reasoning there, but those arguing this position neglect to consider all of the super-rich trust fund babies who have never had to work a day in their lives. People who earn a lot of money deserve to keep it? Okay, but the operative word is “earn.” The wealthy may be asked to carry a heavier burden than the rest of us, but they have been more richly blessed as well.

Now let’s take a look at the opposite end of the spectrum… the super poor. They don’t have anything to begin with, so it’s not fair that they should be asked to sacrifice more. BULLSHIT!!! If you take more from society than you contribute, then you have no right to complain. You are not entitled to suck off of the government teat!

Corporations need to shut the fuck up too! I’m sick of hearing them complain about our high rate of corporate taxation, yet conveniently forget when the loopholes in our tax system allow them to effectively pay zero for the privilege of employing some of the most talented and dedicated employees in the world.

The reality is that our own selfishness got us where we are. The big question is whether or not we are going to man up and do what needs to be done, so that we can get ourselves and our decedents back on the road to fiscal sustainability. WE elected a government so partisan that we lost our top-notch credit rating. WE have allowed our politicians to spend money at an unsustainable rate. WE have come to expect the other guy to suffer so that we may keep our little creature comforts. And if WE don’t collectively tighten our belts – every one of us, then WE will collectively fail – every one of us. It’s time to put up AND shut up!