When I and many of my dinosaur generation peers arrived in this world, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) was about midway through his third term as U.S. President. And while the search has been long and challenge-filled, I and no doubt countless others have at last come to realize that there exists—readily at hand—a truly simple and time-tested solution to most all of our needs and desires. That solution of course being—“more government.” And not just any government, but one ever-growing and duly proficient at being self-servingly responsive to humankind’s self-destructive basking in ignorance, apathy, complacency, greed, denial, and counter-productive fear.
Yes, think student loans are unfair—just have “the government” forgive such debt. Beginning to be inspired by all those unpursued “Help Wanted”/”Now Hiring” signs displayed across our nation—simply motivate “the government” to continue subsidizing unemployment. Fed up with the weather and have an unrelenting craving to take charge of the ever-changing climate of our some 4.5 billion years old planet Earth—then merely encourage “the government” to pass billions of dollars of Climate Change legislation (as China, India, etc., march on with their fossil fuel powered energy sources). And believe that large and small for-profit businesses don’t (by necessity) include “all” costs of doing business in the price of their respective products and services—then just have “the government” increase their taxes, and while at it hire thousands of additional IRS Agents to ensure payment thereof.
Furthermore, since the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will, in addition to other aspects, reportedly include a cap of prescription drug costs at $2,000 out-of-pocket annually for Medicare recipients—why stop there? Yes, why not encourage “the government” to simply also legislatively decree a duly generous out-of-pocket cap on, for example, housing, food, clothing, utilities, all medical/dental services, transportation, communications, education, legal services, entertainment, etc.
Of course at this point some of the more trivia-inclined among us may be pondering just who in the heck will ultimately be called upon to pay for, and/or otherwise suffer the consequences of, all this so-called “free stuff”? That is, “in addition to” our rapidly increasing and long out of control U.S. National Debt of now over $30 Trillion (some $92,000 per citizen; $243,000 per taxpayer). To which there of course exists yet another very simple, long underway, and likewise shamefully pursued solution—that being, we so-called adults in the room just keep kicking the can of responsibility down the road to America’s now youth and the yet unborn.
—William James Moore
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[The above was also included in the Public Mind section on page 4 of the Parsons Sun’s Weekend, Saturday-Sunday, September 3-4, 2022 Edition.]