Bill O'Reilly is mad at me because I'm not mad enough about taxes.
Last week on "The O'Reilly Factor" (http://tinyurl.com/yja5qno), we talked about California's and New York's enormous budget deficits and planned tax increases. Those states would have big surpluses had they just grown their governments in pace with inflation. But of course they didn't. Now the politicians act like their current deficits are something imposed on them by the recession.
But that's nonsense. They created the problem with their reckless spending.
Let's look at the particulars. Had the government of New York state grown at the rate of population and inflation over the past 10 years, it would have a $14 billion surplus today. Instead, spending grew at twice the rate of inflation (http://tinyurl.com/yguvfpm). So New York has a $3 billion deficit (http://tinyurl.com/y9uwehd).
To dent California's deficit, bureaucrats will withhold an extra 10 percent from every taxpayer — at least from those who don't flee the state. New York planned to raise the price of new license plates, but then backed off. The visible tax was unpopular. But the hidden taxes grow (http://tinyurl.com/yhakdfx).
Hidden taxes are more pernicious because they disguise what we pay for government. We blame merchants, not our legislators, for the high price of gasoline, liquor, cigarettes and phone calls, but the money goes to the political thieves.
New York imposes a gas tax of 61 cents a gallon — almost a quarter of the cost of the gas. New York City taxes cigarettes at $4.25 a pack. Washington state collects $26 per gallon of hard liquor. Illinois politicians take a sneaky cut when you buy junk food: They add 6.25 percent to the cost of soda and candy.
My phone bill lists seven different taxes — unintelligible stuff like a "Public Safety Commission Surcharge" and an "MCTD tax." The payroll tax is one of the biggest hidden taxes.
You assume that you know what you pay because it's listed on your paycheck, but that's actually only half of it. Employers must pay an equal amount — money that otherwise would have been part your salary.
O'Reilly was most indignant about the visible taxes. "You, Stossel, are going to be paying 45 percent of your money to the government!" he said. I replied that I already pay more than that, since I live in New York City.
But I apparently was not indignant enough, because later in his show he told comedian Dennis Miller, "Stossel doesn't get it."
O'Reilly is right about my not being furious. It's not that taxes don't anger me. They do. But I'm more angry about the arrogance of the ruling class. It reminds me of Walter Williams' riff: "Politicians are worse than thieves. At least when thieves take your money, they don't expect you to thank them for it."
Taxes, even counting hidden taxes, are not the real measure of what the thieves take. The true burden of government, the late Milton Friedman said, is the spending level. Taxation is just one way government gets money. The other ways — borrowing and inflation — are equally burdens on the people. (State governments can't inflate, but they sure can borrow.)
O'Reilly told me that America is ready for a tax revolt. I hope he's right. But I don't think it will happen until more people see the ruling elite for what it is: a gang of arrogant bullies that has the audacity to believe that they know how to direct our lives better than we do.
That's why, bad as the taxes are, I'm more upset about ObamaCare, Medicare, the "stimulus," the auto bailout, the bank bailouts, the Fannie/Freddie bailouts, the trillions in guarantees, and on and on.
The politicians' spending schemes represent presumptuous interference in our lives. They are an assault on our autonomy.
John Stossel will soon host "Stossel" on the Fox Business Network. He's the author of "Give Me a Break" and of "Myth, Lies, and Downright Stupidity." To find out more about John Stossel and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2009 BY JFS PRODUCTIONS, INC.
DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM
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Dear John Stossel, Good Article. As for some of the writers getting 'hissed' off, it's time they get off their duffs and start pushing (no letting up, until all this corruption is stopped) the insurance and drug companies to PUT AN END TO HANDING OUT BILLIONS TO POLITICIANS THAT ONLY BELONGS TO THE INSURED AND THE CONSUMERS - NOT POLITICIANS! Why would politicians want to spend billions of dollars taken from insurance, drug, hospitals and the small business owners, to run for an office that pays $200,000.00 -? Why would politicians want to spend billions of dollars taken from insurance, drug, hospitals and the small business owners, to run for an office that pays $200,000.00 -? Let me start by saying "Nancy Pelosi" is no lady and her babbling on and on, jumping up and down, like she feels she's really doing something good, makes Taxpayers want to scream for her to 'SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP!' Politicians, like her, Reid, Rangel, Dodd, Frank, Hagan, (just to name a few) favorite words for "I'll check on this and get back to you" tells Taxpayers 'they truly have far TOO MUCH TIME ON THEIR HANDS, THEY KNOW ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, AND THEY ARE 'CYAING' just to make you think their 'HIGH-DOLLARED SALARIES & RETIREMENTS' are justified! I mean, really, after six (6) decades working on Healthcare, Medicare, Medicaid, you'd think these 'government programs' would be full of money, instead of bankrupt, wouldn't you? Insurance and Drug companies, medical pros, small business owners are going to have to 'CUT THE BILLIONS GIVEN TO POLTICIANS', and return several billion to Insured and consumers that's paid, legally, for their services, while the politicians 'TAKE, TAKE, AND TAKE' and give Taxpayers 'ABSOLUTELY NOTHING BACK BUT A BANKRUPT AMERICA, NO JOBS, NO FOOD, NO NOTHING!' The lawyers line up in a group lawsuit when a drug has 'sort of' caused harm to someone, but, yet, they're letting the politicians slide. Well, Taxpayers, get in line and start demanding your money back from the insurance and drug companies, as IT'S YOUR MONEY, NOT THE POLITICIANS! THE POLITICIANS SHOULD NO LONGER BE ABLE TO 'TAKE A RED CENT' FROM ANY DRUG, INSURANCE, HOSPITAL, MED PERSON OR SMALL BUSINESS OWNER! AREN'T PONZI SCHEMES ILLEGAL? ‘Lying' supposedly will get politicians impeached , then why hasn't ninety-five percent of politicians been impeached, sell them a one-way ticket to Gitmo, take all their assets to pay off the trillions they've borrowed without Taxpayers consent? Six decades later and America is bankrupt with these ‘corrupt, greedy, lying bunch of ‘blood-sucking ticks', still in office, still drawing big salaries and retirements, working on the same ‘programs/ healthcare' for years. They have nothing better to do to justify the bigs bucks they steal from Taxpayers, as it's obvious none of them know what they're doing nor care. This is why their favorite saying is “I'll check on this and get back to you!” This brings another thought to Taxpayers minds, if the Insurance, Drug companies, Hospitals, and Medical professionals stop ‘paying the politicians to run for office, maybe the ‘Politicians License to Steal' will come to a screeching halt! Politicians take billions from insurance, drug companies, healthcare professionals and what few businesses are left. This is why Taxpayers can't afford insurance, hospitals, let alone medications. Passing of Healthcare is another POWER GRAB and will finish bankrupting America. Fraud and bankrupting of social security, medicare and medicaid should tells folks that government run programs have never worked for Taxpayers, just for Politicians! Insurance and Drug companies should give their insured, that's paid them big bucks for years, all their money back. Folks, the Taxpayer that's paid $200.00 to $750.00 monthly, would be entitled to several million for each person. Just think, we wouldn't need them at all! What fools we've been letting these ‘blood-sucking ticks' tell us that ‘Taxpayers have to spread the wealth around!' Where is politicians ‘wealth they're spreading around?' Why would politicians want to spend billions of dollars taken from insurance, drug, hospitals and the small business owners, to run for an office that pays $200,000.00 -?
Comment: #1
Posted by: Shirley deLong
Sun Nov 22, 2009 3:54 PM
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