After reading Ben Friedman’s article, “A major cultural change is required,” I was both optimistic and disappointed at the same time. Ben is aware enough to notice the differing views on how to allocate taxpayer money, but he’s also fallen into the same culture he criticized by suggesting there are only two sides in this issue. His failure to recognize another alternative is due to his apprehensiveness to completely disregard the status quo.
To put it simply, taxation is theft protected by law. Every two weeks I receive a paycheck from the University with an amount taken away from me that is given to the state and federal government. I never agreed to forfeit this money, they just took it away. Of course the response is that the money is being spent on public goods for my interest and use, but if the spending truly served the public interest, we would all voluntarily pay taxes.
I personally enjoy outdoor recreation and hope to preserve some of our country’s beautiful parks. At the same time, I’m also reasonable enough to understand that this is a personal hobby. Since I enjoy outdoor recreation, I believe I should pay for the park’s services and make charitable contributions to maintain something that is important to me. Unlike politicians, I would never advocate forcing someone else to pay for a good or service that I desire.
The reason for the constant disagreement about taxes between conservatives and liberals is that both sides are pushing to spend tax revenue for political reasons. Liberals fight to spend taxpayer money on Planned Parenthood, universal healthcare and NPR while conservatives fight to spend it on national defense, the War on Drugs and nation building. Instead, I choose to incorporate a system that ensures the most efficient allocation of resources and the greatest amount of freedom to all by eliminating taxation. What you produce or earn in wages is yours and nobody, including government, is entitled to take that away from you. Government has nothing; therefore, it cannot produce anything without first taking something away from someone else.
So instead of both sides asking for a small sacrifice, as Ben suggested, the politicians should spend more of their time fighting for freedom. Rather than compromise over which programs taxpayer money should be spent on, more than often in an attempt to correct a problem created by government, let everyone keep the fruits of their labor and decide on their own. Government cares neither how much is spent nor the result of the spending as long as the cause is genuine to achieve a political end.
For that reason, there isn’t a single instance where government operates more efficiently and at a lower cost than the private sector. The private sector reacts to the signals received by consumers in the market to guide production and makes every effort to operate at the lowest cost possible. The business model of government begins with an initial investment through legal theft operating until its inevitable failure. Then, an explanation is given to the public about how the failure was caused by lack of funding which results in even more taxation with the process continuing ad infinitum. In the private sector, this business fails. It is responsible for its own capital while government has no incentive to cut costs or improve. It is through a system of voting with dollars in the free market that we will discover what goods and services are desired by society and where politicians were previously wasting money.
As Ben stated, “…no budget plan will succeed if our cultural issues are not addressed beforehand.” He could not be more correct. We have been raised in a society where we look to government to solve all of our problems. We expect to have a guiding hand from a group of people in government from cradle to grave. What I propose gives everyone the highest level of freedom, equal opportunity and the right to their property. Rather than compromise over which special-interest group taxpayer money should be directed toward, I recommend protecting the most important minority of all – the individual.
Adam Morgan is a junior majoring in management information systems.
