My gawd, there are some short-sighted, self-centered people here!

In most mature, civilized countries, taxes are fairly high, but you get a lot for them. Utilities and good public transportation, for example, and a guarantee that no one, including the elderly, will live in poverty. And free health care. But taxes (including all these services) are nowhere near what most people in the United States have to pay in monthly health insurance premiums alone.   Unless their employer picks it up, in which case, take-home pay is reduced by a commensurate amount, so the employee is still paying for it.

I think that people such as Hubby and Martin Gibson and DougR think they smell "socialism" in the air (Oh, Horrors!!). Well, take a good look. In countries that do have what you would probably regard as socialism, people tend to be happy and healthy, are less driven by the typical American combination of the need to acquire more "stuff" along with a nagging feeling of anxiety, and generally enjoy life a lot more than most Americans do. It's a little thing called "a feeling of security," that comes from knowing that even if the wolf is at the door, it can't get in.   

Now, really, guys, what's so evil and horrible about that! Eh? Tell me! What!??

I might remind our more conservative brethren that providing for the general welfare is something that's mandated in the Constitution:

The preamble to the Constitution states:

"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." [Emphasis mine, just in case you missed it.]

Article 1, Section 8 states:

The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States; [Here, too.]

I wonder what tune Hubby, Marty, and Doug would sing if they were among the 39,000,000 American citizens (assuming Hubby's figures are right, about which there seems to be some dispute, but even so, that's a helluva lot of people!) who couldn't afford health care insurance and suddenly found themselves, or a member of their family, with a catastrophic illness or injury. It does happen. And when you least expect it.

When asked for a contribution to help the poor, hungry, and downtrodden, Ebenezer Scrooge responded, "Perhaps they should die, and thus decrease the surplus population!"

Well, that is a solution, of course. And some folks seem to think that's just peachy.

Taxes are the dues you pay for living in a civilized country.

Don Firth