"We're taking a step back from a lot of things that were nice to do in good times."
-- Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue
College students across the country are protesting -- but protesting what? Reality?
Pretty much.
They're out holding placards and chanting slogans and confronting legislators, and hoping their mere assertiveness will ward off today's economic reality -- which is, as Britain's Margaret Thatcher predicted, that we're running out of other people's money.
It's not just college students, either. Every special interest known to man is now coming out of the woodwork to protest budget cuts at the state or local level. Of three letters to the editor on this page Thursday, one complained of cuts to the disabled in South Carolina and another lamented cuts to education.
But it's a good bet they haven't seen anything yet.
Indeed, Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue said this past week that what we're seeing is a tectonic "government reset." Spot on!
His statement that, "We're taking a step back from a lot of things that were nice to do in good times," could not be more simply or elegantly put. It sums up the times in which we live -- before many folks are willing to admit it.
Our hats are off to you, governor, for courageously and plainly telling us the truth.
If only our "leaders" in Washington would do the same.
Most state legislators understand the painful reality we are facing because they are compelled to balance their budgets and live within their means. There is no such understanding of this at the federal level. And that's alarming.
Our president and many of our congressional leaders in both the House and the Senate just don't get it! They continue to spend money we do not have like drunken sailors -- except, as John McCain likes to point out, sailors spend their own money -- piling up program after program, which exacerbates the federal deficit and requires more and more borrowing.
The federal debt is now $13 trillion and growing.
President Obama tenaciously holds to the idea of government health care. A majority of Americans don't want it for two basic reasons:
1) They don't want the government controlling their health care.
2) They are aware of the added costs required.
We in America have been fortunate to live and prosper affluently really since the end of World War II. Those times are over and all of us must recognize this.
Our dollar is depreciating, and our very liberty is at stake!
As a free nation, we have it in our power to reverse this suicidal course and re-establish stability in our economy and bring on more prosperous times, but not unless we change our ways.
Any question of the severity of our situation should be put to rest by two separate but related stories in public education last week.
In DeKalb County, Ga., officials say they may have to close up to a dozen schools to make ends meet.
And in Kansas City, Mo., the school board voted to close nearly half of all its schools -- 29 schools and early-childhood centers out of a total of 61.
Certainly that district was ripe for consolidation even in good times: It educates 18,000 students in 61 facilities. By comparison, Columbia County has 22,557 students in only 31 schools.
Still, Kansas City's teary tale -- parents angrily fought the closings and consoled each other afterward -- is a sign of the times. The good times aren't rolling anymore, and may not again for a very long time.
We certainly understand that cuts are painful; the private sector has been through many rounds of them. And students and parents are well within their rights to fight for programs they think are worthy.
But understand that we've been living in a fool's paradise where limitless consumption was fueled by ever-more borrowing -- and the kinds of jobs that actually produce wealth have been moving offshore. We should have known that was unsustainable.
Before we descend into a collection of crybabies, we need to channel the American spirit of self-reliance and perseverance. Our forebears have been through far worse than this. They look down upon us now and should not find us wanting.
Revolutionary War patriot Joseph Warren once exhorted his contemporaries, "Act worthy of yourselves!"
May we do the same.
Good editorial, far better than that mess you wrote about Sean Penn!
Are we talking 'bout the same Perdue ACES; raising taxes to support schools, which are still closing anyway? I thought the lottery was picking up the slack with educational funding. Why does the bloated bureaucracy always cut essential services whenever there is a budget shortfall? It's time we wean these parasites from the taxpayer's tit and force some fiscal responsibility!
Stop wasting $200 billion annually on un-winnable wars of choice and another $300 billion on a bloated military. That is a saving of half a trillion dollars each and every year. End all U.S. wars NOW, bring all American troops home IMMEDIATELY, and cut the Pentagon record $708 billion budget in half. Otherwise watch the middle class disappear and Americans' standard of living drop to 3rd world levels. Of course that is okay with the ruling oligarchs.
Bush's tax cuts for the rich are far more responsible for the growing deficits than is investment in education. Let Bush's tax cuts expire. And bring back the inheritance tax on estates worth more than $1 million. Make America a meritocracy not an oligarchy of inherited wealth. Rewrite corporate tax law, eliminate off shore tax shelters, and punish tax cheats with severe fines.
As far as Georgia goes, raise cigarette taxes to $10 a pack, raise taxes on alcohol, raise lottery ticket prices, and raises taxes on gasoline. These are all consumer taxes which should be just fine with the hahaha Fair Tax / Tea Party people. Make everybody bite the bullet.
So Cain, what will be your answer be when the terrorist cell groups in Iraq and Afganistan build back up and attack us again? What will your answer be when businesses can't give people jobs or build in a plant in the US because they are taxed too heavily when the Bush cuts expire? It's not as easy as you make it sound. However, I do believe for most things besides National Security that we should have a pay as you go. And if this healthcare plan from Obama goes through then we will even be further in debt.
Doesn't sound like any of those taxes would be affecting you, JRHC. Do you drive a lot to perform you job? Lots of people do. So make them pay disproportionately?? Maybe there should be a huge tax on tofu and vegetables.
As we go up the river, wearing our aristocratic Savannah bought clothes, we will struggle long for awhile hitting rocks and stumps as we deny we can’t go any further, but eventually we are going to have to pull over and make a camp on the river banks.
My biggest fault with the Democrats is that they don’t get this. Heck, I even agree with Cain when he says we can’t afford the war…we can’t. Let the rest of the world stop the murdering fanatics for a change. Like those settlers going up the Savannah River years ago they finally realized they had to bank, put on the work clothes and start to grow cotton around Augusta.
What a big pile of stinkin' BS! Thanks Sonny for stating the rather obvious. People lived way beyond their means when times where better than they are today, and now the debt collector has come to reclaim the cost of living so foolishly. Those folks who did not live foolishly, have nothing to complain about; but those who did are the ones that are whining uncontrollably because they lived uncontrollably.
For the first time I commented on a Yahoo article tonight as I signed on. It was about Rush Limbaugh saying he may leave the country if the health care bill passes. The article had comments under it and I read some and made a few there.
What struck me is that the comments were about 90% liberal with remarks that I can objectively say were anti-capitalist, anti-corporations, anti-anyone with anything. To their credit they were pretty open with their socialist desires for the country. They also appeared to be youngish from the few pics posted with their screen names.
I think we are in the early stages of a battle for what type government and economy we are going to have. Who is the working class going to side with when things fall apart. I really don’t know.
Why is education one of the first items on the chopping block?
You can tell Cain is a Democrat. Lots of ideas for spending other people's money. He's one of the "Hey, we know exaclty how you should live your life and we are going to create a program that we will be in charge of to make sure you live this way and we also have a great idea of who we can tax to get the money to pay for it" crowd. Tell you what Cain. I would rather spend twice as much to fight radical Islamist than pay another nickel to finance Obamacare. And people who smoke and drink should not pay anything but the standard sales tax. To single out certain groups to punish is unfair and would be unacceptable if they were taxing something that he enjoyed. Cain thinks it's okay to make a pack of smokes cost more than cocaine, pot, and meth. I am sure he is okay with that since he doesn't have to pay any taxes at all on those items.
Well said Cain. Defense spending is the nation's biggest boondoggle! Otherwise the editorial is nothing more than the usual harangue about the founding fathers, glorifying war patriots and condemning national health care. Typical Republican
You know, all kidding aside, Perdue has been a good governor getting these painful things done. Dang, it hasn't been easy, I bet. Imagine thinking you can be like every other governor, host functions, fly around on missions to find foreign industry to move into the state and have fun, but, suddenly, all this pops up. Many governors we've had couldn't have handled it.
Cain says lots of things, but they're not so "well." Ask Cain how much taxes he pays! Better still ask him how he covers his health insurance needs! Typical Demoncrat!
Americans overwhelming want health care, http://www.pollingreport.com/health.htm; http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/12/AR201003... As far as government-run health care is concerned, "there is no government-run health care in the plan, and not a single American would be forced into any government-run program."- from the Washington Post article. The unnecessary invasion of Iraq, the free-for-all on Wall Street have caused much of our financial woes....and it's not the common man who moved jobs off-shore, it was the fat-cats looking for cheap labor.
Cut spending, then cut it some more, then cut it even more. Stop fighting wars in countries who pose no threat to the United States. Stop the ponzi schemes of social Security and Medicare. Stop the entitlement programs. Stop exempting organized religion from paying their taxes. Stop bailing out failed corporations. Implement capital punishment for convicted violent felons and limit the appeals process to 18 months. Embrace the oh so radical concept of personal responsibility and let social Darwinism shape up America by its implied threat or weed out those who take no responsibility for themselves. It really isn't that hard to run a flourishing, prosperous, safe, country.
We should ALL give all our money to hussein and the dems because they know what is best for us and will dole out exactly what we need.
baron...perhaps stop the entitlement portion of social security. Most - but not all - of the fund belongs to the people drawing the checks. (Of course, it could be phased out over the years) You might as well say no more refunds on the income tax folks pay in. I agree with you on the entitlement issue, just not your definition of "entitlement".
dani - you don't understand ponzi schemes. People don't have little accounts in Washington with their names on them holding the SS taxes they have paid in over the years. What you or I pay today goes out in a check to somebody else next month. It is a ponzi scheme.
Typical Ryan blather. Just another reason why the Chronicle sinks more into irrelevance as the poor saps buying advertising space go unread. Hey, advertisers! There are SO many that don't buy this rag because of this page... Don't believe the lady at the desk when you buy your ad space... This "newspaper" makes up facts like it makes up its demographic numbers to you...
Actually, except for the shot at the federal government early on, the editorial comes across as more Libertarian than anything else. While we can no longer be totally and individually self-sufficient in the modern world, there is a fair degree of individual responsibility that can and should be a part of daily life.
We will always have those who cannot help themselves. You may disagree with helping them. You may see them as a dependent bunch of leeches. However, when you engage in the "what about me?" whining that is mentioned in the editorial, you voluntarily become that which you abhor: a dependent bunch of leeches.
People come to the river and build their towns and farms along its banks. Then the river floods and wipes it all out. That happens over and over. It is not an evil river being mean, it is a natural cycle of life. We build dams to control the river and shape the world along the river. Eventually, though, the dam will fail and the natural cycle will resume.
I believe that what is happening is an economic dam failing. Economics is a social science. Without people there can be no economics. We tried to shape the economy with our schemes and programs. Eventually, these all fall apart and the system resets itself naturally. This has happened over and over even during my short lifetime. I think that is what is happening now. It is certainly painful but it is what has to happen.
Still waiting for grouse or anybody who supports the health care bill to explain to me how a 6 year health care program funded with 10 years of taxes is sustainable! I asked yesterday, I ask John Barrow and I am going to ask a bunch of congress critters today...
Eat ,drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die. A socio-economic "earthquake". Is your "faith in the STATE" shaken yet? Do you see the king's new clothes? The majority obviously do not. Just think what a mess we would be in if we were actually a "democracy". Remember when the USA "boycotted"a sovereign country because they had a "minority government". We brought them to their "economic knees". Our mantra was Minority government is evil. Majority rule is good.
It should be clear to 100% of Americans that we have to drastically reduce all government spending. Our economy is not going to rebound anytime soon and even when it does, we still need to make the cuts. Our government at all levels is just simply too big & has way too much power in our lives.
Stop the health care debacle, we can't afford it. Cut spending in all federal agencies by 40-50%. Including congressional, senatorial & executive staff & czars. Term limits for Congress & the Senate. Ban earmarks. I am like Riverman, I am almost starting to agree with Cain. We cannot afford these costly wars either right now. The taxpayer slush/goodie fund has tumbleweeds blowing around in it. The money is not there to spend anymore.
Lastly, I applaud Perdue for his statements on cutting expenses & today's realities and it sounds like he is serious & plans to follow through. However he also wants to increase taxes & fees which this editorial fails to mention. That is something I absolutely do not support during this depression.
It would be wise if the dumbobama would institute the sam e typ of cuts at the national level. That would be something the everday joe taxpayer could get behind. Oh yes and regular drug test for the entitlement crowd in order to continue their "entitlements".
Cain, uh who is the state of GA at war with?
I wonder why the Bush Tax cuts that were for ALL taxpayers keep getting referred to as "tax cuts for the rich" by liberal socialists?
Grouse says no one will be forced into a government run health care system. Well the bill MANDATES that you purchase insurance (which violates the Constitution, but Obama and the Dems don't care about that). So if you don't purchase the insurance, and you don't pay the fine.......what then? You go to prison where you are in.............drum roll............government run health care.
If this healthcare bill passes I think it will be tied up for years in the court system. You cannot force someone to purchase a commodity. Its unconstitutional.
When things are good then you can have the xtras. When things are bad you keep the 'frills' down to an affordable amount.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2012. All Rights Reserved.
