Conservative Donnybrook

We are approaching the point of no return for democracy in America. That point occurs when a majority of the citizens no longer pay for governmental services and rely upon a minority of citizens to provide for their delivery. Today, the bottom 50% of wage earners pay 3% of the federal income taxes in 2005. We are two steps away from that point of no return I mentioned.

First, if that number should ever reach the point where the bottom 50% of wage earners (a voting majority of the country) were to reach 0% of the taxes, we would no longer have the votes to roll back the ever increasing burden on the top wage earners. Indeed, we may already have reached that point. Second, if those who are the bottom half of wage earners ever realize that they are not paying taxes, but rather are recipients of the public largesse, they will be lost as a source of reform. I think at present many of those who in reality receive more than they pay still believe that they are paying taxes and rankle at that notion. This is the only reason I still have hope. Alexis de Tocqueville noted in Democracy in America (highly paraphrased): “Once the majority of Americans realize that they can vote themselves all sorts of goodies and get their neighbors to pay for it, all bets are off. But, generally, I think the Americans are on to something.” Or words to that effect. Continue Reading »